In November of 2005, four of us Bonaireans made a trip to Vietnam and Angkor Wat. Susan Burns and Ann Joseph did a fabulous job of planning it all out. Hanoi turned out to be one of our favorite cities in the world!
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A very livable city, endlessly fascinating to wander around in. Great parks and restaurants and historical sites less than a day trip away.
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We took a night train to Sa Pa, a beautiful mountain resort near the China border. There was an anniversary celebration of the Vietnamese victory over the French in the last battle before the French withdrew. All of the many ethnic tribes in the area were represented. My favorite: The hikes through the extremely hilly countryside.
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They say (okay, one person said it once) that the islands in Ha Long Bay are the crumbs left over after God baked the world. Truly spectacular! We did a day cruise and soaked in the sites. On the way back to Hanoi, we stopped at the Humanity Shop, where they have a sort of artistic commune for many of those crippled or deformed from the US spraying of agent orange during the war. The contrast of the horrific deformities and the stunningly detailed art work was very inspirational.
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Hoi An is a World heritage site. Many of the houses in the old city reminded me of styles you see in Bonaire. The town is a very pleasantly quaint river/seaside tourist town.
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Too many reminders of the war here. And, if I hear of one more palace built for a concubine of a dead prince, I'll scream!
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We were just passing through on the way to the airport. Seems pretty charmless, especially compared to Hanoi. Still, did not have time to give it a fair chance.
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Amazing! This whole civilization was unknown to the western world until long after it had passed. The number of ruins and the detailed carvings are overwhelming. We did time our visit to coincide with an annual dragon boat race on the river. Siam Reap is the only town in the world I've seen that is full of six and seven++ star hotels... At least someone rated them such.
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