Marci and Steve Go Back to Europe

  Our dinner at Green Tangerine was set in stone months ago after Steve’s diligent research for the best French restaurant in Hanoi. And, as it turned out, it was only a four minute walk from our hotel.  Through a charming courtyard with heat lamps and twinkling lights and up the stairs to a lovely second floor room set with white tablecloths.  Since we weren’t too hungry, after a lunch of Cha Ca Vong and banana flower salad (two local specialties) we settled on a bottle of Rioja, two starters and one main, all to share. From the amuse Boucher to the last bite, it would be hard to say which was more impressive, the food or the presentation. Red Tuna Târtar  Sea Scallop Carpaccio on Beêt, Pineapple & Mango Mushroom Cake App Satiated, we returned to our hotel unable to figure out how we could possibly make room to eat again on Friday morning for our 10am street food tour with Ha.  Before we begin, let...

Hanoi, sunny with a chance of Pho Well, that’s way better than cloudy with a chance of meatballs! Another quick flight today to North Vietnam where we expected a bit more Communism and some sunny skies. We got the sunshine but as it turns out, Vietnam is socialist, not Communist. The first difference is that Communism is a political system and Socialism is not. They are both economic systems but in Communism the workers own everything (or so the definition goes) and in Socialism there is private ownership. So I finally understand why it has never felt like we have been in any Communist countries during this trip.  Our hotel is in the Old Quarter and if you saw the streets, they are so small, you would never think cars could drive here, but they do along with motorbikes and large tour buses and even trucks.      Then add in the vendors, the mobile shops on bicycles, the street food and the sidewalks that are essentially parki...

Travel Day, so we play the game..... The picture I used shows our group from the boat on a tour of a small village in Cambodia.  We are in the home factory of a small enterprise that makes a vital item, used though out Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam. These are handmade  STOVES, used everywhere for cooking. They are used with either wood or charcoal.  It is the traditional way, and they are made from clay. They are used EVERYWHERE.  It is hand pressed into a mold, and then shaped by hand, & with a piece of wood to make a uniform interior. The metal 'jacket' is sourced from another family in the village that makes them from new and used galvanized metal. Note that the bails where the handles will be attached are made from old metal cans. Here is an ancient one in a museum Here is one used right on the street, in a market Older style without the metal, being used to heat water to boil  silk worm cocoons in silk ...

On our Way to Hue (pronounced 'Way') on the Reunification Express Let your imagination run wild.... Although the charm of Hoi An could entice a visitor to stay longer, with gray skies and damp everything, we were ready to head out of our marginal hotel and onto the train for a scenic three hour ride to our next stop, Hue.  At every arrival we have been met by a driver and guide and so, we assumed, we would be driven to the train in Hoi An and met again in Hue. But, to our surprise, our Hue guide and driver arrived at our hotel, and Son ('shoon', like moon) accompanied us on the train while our driver raced to Hue,with the luggage, to meet us on arrival. Perhaps we have paid a bit too much for our guided services?  The Hoi An Station ( actually Da Nang station) is not exactly an upscale renovated building like Philadelphia’s 30th St. Station, but more a slice of daily life, which means basic and old. But, as Steve went to find us a Bahn Mi for...