Day 1019 – Hanoi, Vietnam

Day 1019 – 22nd March 2008 +7:00 GMT

We woke up and it was pouring down with rain. After breakfast we got a taxi from the hotel to the Museum Of Ethnology. We read that it was the one thing not to miss in Hanoi, unfortunately it was a bit disappointing.

Museum Of Ethnology

In Museum Of Ethnology

The main museum has a dozen or so displays which show all the different tribes and ethnic groups that make up Vietnam displaying their traditions. In the grounds outside is more interesting and shows all the different types of housing they have and you can walk through all the replica huts they have built.

Tribal Huts At Museum Of Ethnology

This type of hut was usually for town meetings and to welcome guests

Tribal Huts At Museum Of Ethnology

2 Or 3 Families Would Live In This Type Of Hut Upto 100 Metres Long

Burial Chamber

Burial Chamber

Tribal Huts At Museum Of Ethnology

We had some lunch here and then got a taxi to the Temple Of Literature which is about half the distance back to the hotel and the taxi fare was twice as much. We paid to get inside the grounds and proceeded to get soaked through to the skin as the rain was still pouring. The Temple Of Literature is a garden comprising of five courtyards and a large reflection pool. There are several buildings which house some ancient stones, the stones have the names and details of 82 doctors carved into them dating back as far as 1442.

The Temple Of Literature

The Temple Of Literature In The Rain

The Temple Of Literature

The Stones On Which The Doctors Names Are Engraved

Jill At The Temple Of Literature

We had a walk around the grounds and then walked back to the hotel to dry off.

Hanoi In The Rain

In the evening we took a walk through the old quarter to the water puppet theatre but all the shows were sold out for the next 3 days so we found ancient restaurant and had some food and then moved onto the Dragonfly Pub. Just as we arrived and sat down the Spurs vs Portsmouth game kicked off so we had some beer and some cocktails and got joined by some other travels who all live in Wellington, New Zealand. 20 minutes later two other people joined our table and it was a good night.

The Temple Gates On The Lake

We walked back to our hotel about midnight and collapsed.