Wss picked up in a Soviet-era GAZ-69 jeep. The only bad thing was that today wasn’t great weather! But that was not going to stop the fun, and we were provided rain ponchos! The temperature really dropped today as well, and I was actually cold in my shorts! It’s definitely been a while!
We started with lunch, instead of going to multiple places we went to the Hidden Gem Cafe, where they gave us a range of food! The cafe was really quint with lots of recycled and upcycled items. The chairs were from tyres and lights from bottles.
– Starter – deep fried spring rolls, Vietnamese fresh rolls, Bánh mì, papaya salad
– Main – rainbow noodles – mi ngu sac
– Pudding – egg chocolate custard
Ca phe trung (northern dish) and sticky rice wine shot
The first stop was the French railway bridge that was made in 1899 and has had parts rebuild due to past bombings. Only bikes and people are allowed on this bridge. Historically, the French used these tracks and rode to move goods in and out of Hanio. They changed the direction of the traffic to drive on the left due to balance issues, this has remained to this day.
We drove around the city, down lots of side roads and markets.
We stopped at Ho Chi Minhs mausoleum (didn’t go inside). His body is on display in a glass cabinet like a mummy. This was against his wishes, which was to be cremated, and his ashes spread between northern, central, and southern Vietnam. The government had other plans for his body, which all people in Vietnam have to visit at least once!
Train Street
The next stop was Train Street, unlike in Thailand, where they have a market and loads of cafes. There are only a couple open now due to two Korean tourists dying a couple of years ago. With the speed the train travels, I am not surprised. The one in Thailand was a lot slower! Check out the video on insta of it coming past me!
Local stop
We visited one of the local houses and got to see just how small they are. Back in the time of the King, they paid a tax only on the width of the property. This is why the properties are tall and narrow but deep.
The gentleman’s home we visited was 80 years old. He told us a bit about his life, including that he had 5 children, 5 grandchildren, and 2 great grandchildren.
He looks after the great grand children and plays them instruments, he gave us a few demos on the different instruments he had next to him.
He had been a teacher and then a soldier. In the local prison, they had about 600 US pilots as POWs, mainly the US, as they had sent 197 x B52 to drop bombs in North Vietnam. He had said the bombing had lasted 12 days and nights. The US came just as Vietnam got independence from France, so they were vulnerable. They got info from POW pilots to try and use on USA. After the war, it took 2 years to unite the North and South.
He mentioned they had to move Ho Chin Minh’s body 4 times to keep it safe.
Local markets
The markets included both live stock and meat and fruits, and we even went through a black market that had everything you would end to build your own bike!
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