Hanoi highlights - Friday

Our first destination today was the Ho Chi Minh mausoleum. Even though he left clear instructions that he wanted his body to be cremated with the ashes distributed around the country - once you die, you lose your voice! - upon his death in 1969, “Uncle Ho” was embalmed by Soviet doctors and his body lies within this imposing building. Doctors from Russia apparently have special technology to preserve his body and 2 days each week (including Fridays, when we visited) the building is closed to allow the doctors to care for the body. Our guide used the site to talk about the government. They have elections every five years, with elections coming up next month. The leadership is overwhelmingly dominated by members of the communist party. After visiting this property we stopped off for a local specialty “egg coffee”. The recipe is secret, but the coffee has a sweet topping presumably incorporated an egg yolk. Because of my caffeine sensitivity I opted for egg chocolate - but wasn’t impressed. After that we had a group lunch and then had time to do what we wanted for a few hours. I went with Jane (and Carol from AZ) to the women’s museum. We didn’t have enough time to do it justice, but we learned about different traditions of birthing, marriage customs, and women’s tasks, and saw clothing and costumes of different ethnic groups within the country. Later this afternoon, our group went to learn about water puppets and to see demonstrations from a family that has been making the puppets and performing for many generations. They carve the puppets out of fig wood in their home; the home also includes a small theater, with the stage consisting of a pool of water. The wife explained how the men make the puppets, and we went upstairs for a show. It was both fun and funny, with animals and characters popping up out of the water to dance or fight. See the attached clips. After we saw several skits, the wife/puppeteer came out from behind the curtain to show us the puppets. We then had a chance to handle them ourselves. Our last stop was supper at a simple noodle place, Bun Cha, that serves barbecue pork in broth with rice noodles. The meal, with beer cost $4. It was quite tasty and has even been recognized by Michelin. Its major claim to fame is that Obama and Anthony Boudain supped there many years ago - their table and bowls remain preserved behind plastic like a museum! Back at the hotel several of us played bridge in the lobby for about an hour. A long and fun day!Leer más