The Hanoi Hilton

Another full on day yesterday and we we all very weary last night. Thankfully there was a bit of a breeze and a shower of rain in the evening that helped to cool things. Had trouble with Internet access last night and am trying to catch up before we leave the hotel this morning.

Yesterday we visited the Ethnic Minority Museum where the 54 different and diverse groups are acknowledged and explained. In the gardens replicas of the houses have been built. It is pretty humbling to think about the conditions these people live in and we complain about how hard the hotel bed s are.

Next stop was the Women's Museum. The displays of the women who fought during the war were impressive, they were certainly strong, capable and scary. I particularly enjoyed the display of fashion through the ages. The modern day traditional costumes are so beautiful.

We stopped for lunch at a restaurant that had more of a western flavour. It was probably a food choice as some of the girls struggled yesterday. I do have to admit that the French pastry and mango smoothie I had were delicious. Not far from where we had lunch was a street full of glasses of various descriptions. A number of people and prescription lenses made. There was a flurry of sunglass purchases. 

Last stop was the Hoa Lo Prison, otherwise known as the Hanoi Hilton. Not much of the prison is left but what is there gives a pretty good idea of what prisoners of all nationalities experienced. There is a pretty 'sanitised' depiction of how the Americans were treated as opposed to how the Vietnamese were treated by the French. The drains that some of the prisoners escaped through were tiny. If I had tried I would have been like Winnie the Pooh!

This wall has been built as a memorial to the prisoners who were incarcerated and the carvings give a pretty graphic depiction of the trauma that was experienced. 

The girls went off exploring again and then found somewhere for dinner. Ella's group had pizza, fries and garlic bread! They also managed to squeeze in some more shopping. i am seriously considering hiring out bag space for the trip home.I went with a couple of parents to a different Vietnamese restaurant. Once again fantastic food, wonderful service and all for about $8.00. I walked around the old quarter for a couple of hours just soaking up the atmosphere. I didn't buy anything - think I will need to get shopping tips from Ella.

We are off to St Joseph's Cathedral this morning as it is Easter Sunday. Could be an interesting experience. I forgot to say that we went to the Water Puppet Theatre on our first day in Ha Noi. Now that was an interesting experience. The music and singing were very loud and high pitched but the puppets were pretty amazing to watch probably not something I would rush back to experience. Not sure when we will get access to the Internet again, but will update as soon as I can.