Last day in Hanoi

I have just spent my last night in Hanoi, and I hope a change of location will give me a change in weather. Hanoi has not been kind to me in terms of the weather. Warm to hot, 100% humidity, a lot of drizzling.
A couple of days ago, after I returned from my car trip to the north, I just relaxed. I did some shopping. I am not good at bargaining, I don't like it, and I feel that I am dealing with people that live on a few dollars a day, so when I bought my first tee shirt last week it was from a young girl on the street. I did do some bargaining, and ended up paying 5 dollars. Yesterday I bought another tee shirt, at a store in the Old Quarter, for 2.50, no bargaining.

In the afternoon that day I attended a Water Puppet Show. This is a very traditional form, unique to the North of Vietnam. The audience were all tourists, and it was ok, but not something I would want a video of. I had a nice dinner, and for 5 to 6 bucks, you can eat in style.
The highlight of the day was a 1 hour aromatic massage (14 $). It was fantastic. I had a hell of a time getting up from the table afterwards.
Slept like a baby. I definitely want to do this again.
Yesterday I decided to join a city tour. Group of one. My guide was a university student. She spoke English quite well. The Vietnamese have the same problems as the Chinese students I met in China. The are good at reading, and writing, but they don't get a chance to listen to native English speakers, so their spoken usage is difficult at times.
We went back to the Ho Chi Min mausoleum, and also the Presidential Palace, which was built by the French. All important buildings in Vietnam are yellow. My guide explained that yellow in the colour of royalty, and denotes power. In the good old days only the king was allowed to wear gold. That is very similar to the British royalty, where only the king was allowed to wear purple, and the colour of clothing showed the social posituion of the person.
We also visited the Temple of Literature, which wasn't so much a temple as a place of learning. It was Vietnam's first university, and is over 1000 years old. It is dedicated to Confucius. Confusionism isn't as much a religion as a philosophy of social rules, and is basically a system of feudalism. The King is appointed by the gods, men are superior to women, and it lays down a set of rules for social behaviour. No wonder the kings liked it.
I was asking my guide about teachers' pays, and she said an experienced teacher in Hanoi makes about 150$ a month. Less experienced teachers, and teachers outside of Hanoi make less. OSSTF would shudder.
After a big lunch, we visited the Museum of Ethnology. This was opened in 2000 and is excellent. There are even English descriptions. There are 54 ethnic groups in Vietnam and a lot, like the hill tribes I visited in the north are very unique, they have their own culture, their own language.
It was a long day, from 8 to almost 6.
I was stuffed from lunch, so for dinner, I just sat at one of the local street "pubs". Draft beer is still only about 30 cents. As you sit street vendors walk by selling all kinds of goodies. I had a supper of peanuts, dried shredded octopus (quite good), a slice of bologna, which the lady sliced for me, and even cut up, and also a rice cake, which was tasteless. Everything seems to cost 50 cents. A can of beer is 50 cents, same with a bottle of water, or a can of pop. Maybe that's only for tourists.
I went for a nice walk around the lake in central Hanoi. It is very nice. There is a pagoda and a temple in the lake, and it is all lit up at night. Lots and lots of people, some strolling, some doing exercises.
The amazing thing about this country are the people. I haven't seen one drunk, no arguing on the street, everyone seems content and cheerful. It is amazing.
You do hear honking of horns continuously, but it is used as a warning to others, not as a sign of anger. I have been amazed I have only seen one minor accident. One of the reasons is the traffic moves much more slowly the in our cities. Top speed is 30, usually between 10 and 20; but it moves continuously. There is not time when you are stuck somewhere for any time. It flows slowly and steadily. It is an amazing experience. I suggested to one of my guides they should make up tee shirts with a picture of a typical traffic scene, and a saying "I crossed a road in Hanoi, and I am still alive" I am sure it would sell well.
Till the next time
Ralf