After a few nice nights relaxing in Luong Prabang, eating excellent French infused cuisine and fending off inch long mosquitoes, it was time to leave Laos for Vietnam. At first we had considered taking a bus to Hanoi. It didn’t look too far on the map. However, after investigating we found out it was a 29 hour drive through the windy goat tracks of eastern Laos mountains. We opted for the 50 minute plane ride.
On arriving in northern Vietnam life was immediately different from tranquil Laos. Motorbikes buzzed everywhere, in more than slightly chaotic fashion. We stayed in the Old Quarter where I snapped the above photo. I’m not sure if I spelled trickshaw correctly, or even if that is the technical term for the taxi-like vehicles in the photo. I was asked to go for a ride on every corner, but never saw the point as in general I seemed to walk faster than they were pedaled.
Would have been a memorable bus ride! What did you do in Hanoi? Reminders of the war? Were the dragons just there or was there some sort of celebration going on?
Memorable is one way to put it. There wasn’t much about the ware in Hanoi that I saw. But we didn’t really go to any museums or anything. The people were friendly. The dragons are always there. That is near a big lake/park in the middle of the Old Quarter.
What a cool photo! All those different, bright colors and all those different geometric shapes (e.g., wheels on the trickshaws, parallel trickshaw “awnings,” etc.) (I’m going to feel pretty silly if they’re really the regular “rickshaws” and I’m calling them trickshaws. Just following your lead here, Josh. )
Also, I realized I *was* kind of silly because when I was first looking at the dragons, I thought they were festive paper streamers that were tied to the trickshaws! You know–like balloons or something. And I thought: “Wow, how did Josh manage, with all those trickshaws streaming by, to click the camera *exactly* when the dragonos looked to be on either side of the monument like that?!?” You’re good, Josh, but not *that* good! I soon realized the “trick” was on me. (Oh, pshaw! ) (I know–it’s late. That’s my excuse!)
I don’t know why you didn’t want a 29-hour drive on winding, mountainous goat tracks . . . in Laos! Where was your usual spirit of adventure?
Liked your: “. . . never saw the point, as in general I seemed to walk faster than they were pedaled.” And your mention of the inch-long mosquitoes. I don’t envy you them!
It’s neat how the red/orange canopies on the rickshaws fit it so nicely with the red/orange dragons. My mental image of rickshaws does not include metal ones with wheels that look like bicycle or wheelchair wheels. I’m thinking of the old bamboo ones we used to see in movies. And, yes, I’d think a person could get around just as fast by walking.
5 Comments »
Comment by josh — May 3, 2009 @ 1:16 am
After a few nice nights relaxing in Luong Prabang, eating excellent French infused cuisine and fending off inch long mosquitoes, it was time to leave Laos for Vietnam. At first we had considered taking a bus to Hanoi. It didn’t look too far on the map. However, after investigating we found out it was a 29 hour drive through the windy goat tracks of eastern Laos mountains. We opted for the 50 minute plane ride.
On arriving in northern Vietnam life was immediately different from tranquil Laos. Motorbikes buzzed everywhere, in more than slightly chaotic fashion. We stayed in the Old Quarter where I snapped the above photo. I’m not sure if I spelled trickshaw correctly, or even if that is the technical term for the taxi-like vehicles in the photo. I was asked to go for a ride on every corner, but never saw the point as in general I seemed to walk faster than they were pedaled.
Comment by dadman — May 3, 2009 @ 11:57 am
Would have been a memorable bus ride! What did you do in Hanoi? Reminders of the war? Were the dragons just there or was there some sort of celebration going on?
Comment by josh — May 4, 2009 @ 4:55 am
Memorable is one way to put it. There wasn’t much about the ware in Hanoi that I saw. But we didn’t really go to any museums or anything. The people were friendly. The dragons are always there. That is near a big lake/park in the middle of the Old Quarter.
Comment by Peg — May 4, 2009 @ 1:40 pm
What a cool photo! All those different, bright colors and all those different geometric shapes (e.g., wheels on the trickshaws, parallel trickshaw “awnings,” etc.) (I’m going to feel pretty silly if they’re really the regular “rickshaws” and I’m calling them trickshaws. Just following your lead here, Josh.
)
Also, I realized I *was* kind of silly because when I was first looking at the dragons, I thought they were festive paper streamers that were tied to the trickshaws! You know–like balloons or something. And I thought: “Wow, how did Josh manage, with all those trickshaws streaming by, to click the camera *exactly* when the dragonos looked to be on either side of the monument like that?!?” You’re good, Josh, but not *that* good! I soon realized the “trick” was on me. (Oh, pshaw!
) (I know–it’s late. That’s my excuse!)
I don’t know why you didn’t want a 29-hour drive on winding, mountainous goat tracks . . . in Laos! Where was your usual spirit of adventure?
Liked your: “. . . never saw the point, as in general I seemed to walk faster than they were pedaled.”
And your mention of the inch-long mosquitoes. I don’t envy you them!
How’s Beth doing by the way?
XOXOX,
Mum
Comment by Clara — May 4, 2009 @ 9:53 pm
It’s neat how the red/orange canopies on the rickshaws fit it so nicely with the red/orange dragons. My mental image of rickshaws does not include metal ones with wheels that look like bicycle or wheelchair wheels. I’m thinking of the old bamboo ones we used to see in movies. And, yes, I’d think a person could get around just as fast by walking.
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