Ramblings about life and travel

Hanoi - a potpourri of many influences

pot·pour·ri /ˌpoʊpʊˈri, ˈpoʊpʊˌri/ – noun
1. a mixture of dried petals of roses or other flowers with spices, kept in a jar for their fragrance.
2. a musical medley.
3. a collection of miscellaneous literary extracts.
4. any mixture, especially of unrelated objects, subjects, etc.

I like to think of Hanoi as a potpourri or melange of various influences - old vs new, French vs Chinese, communist vs capitalist. Unfortunately, I was there for just a day and it left me thirsting for more.

Hanoi or Ha Noi (Vietnamese: Hà Nội) is the capital and second-largest city of Vietnam.
It has been inhabited since 3000 BC. Not many places in the world can claim that!
From 1010 until 1802, it was the most important political centre of Vietnam.
Hanoi served as the capital of French Indochina from 1902 to 1954.
From 1954 to 1976, it was the capital of North Vietnam.
The city is located on the right bank of the Red River.
October 2010 officially marked 1000 years since the establishment of the city.
Currently, it is one of the hippest places to visit.

Some of the things that one must do:

Visit a Buddhist monastery
Visit the Cathedral
Eat some amazing Vietnamese food
Take a cruise on a junk boat in the HaLong Bay which is a UNESCO world heritage site. I have to do this the next time.
Explore the colonial quarter
Watch the world go by whilst sitting on the banks of the lakes - Hoan Kiem Lake, West Lake, Halais Lake and Bay Mau Lake

Yummy food...........

Their version of falooda! Loved it.

Didn't like these desserts!

The communist party HQ

Entrance to a Buddhist Temple

Tiny Oranges everywhere

A temple is never complete without incence sticks

The Cathedral - French influence

Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum

Snake wine!

Turtle Tower in Hoan Kiem lake

The Opera House

Peaceful Oasis!

The Flag Tower

Tagaytay and Taal - a day trip from Manila

Tagaytay is 2 hours from Manila and makes for an excellent day trip or a weekend getaway. It is the gateway to Taal Lake and Volcano. The city is a popular summer tourist destination because of its cool climate due to its high altitude.

Tagaytay also offers a view of Taal Lake - a lake within an island within a lake.

So we drove from Manila to Tagaytay, We then took a boat across the lake to the Island where the volcano is located. Once we got into the tiny boat, we were asked to cover ourselves with a plastic sheet. I was wondering why..............only to find out in a bit. The water was choppy and as our boat zipped through it, the spray was all over us. Luckily, I had followed their instructions and had covered myself. Not that it mattered as it was quite hot and we would have been dried up in no time.

Taal Lake is a freshwater lake in the province of Batangas, on the island of Luzon, Philippines. The lake is situated within a caldera formed by very large eruptions between 500,000 and 100,000 years ago. It is the country's third largest lake (the largest being Laguna de Bay). Volcano Island, the location of Taal Volcano's historical eruptions and responsible for the lake's sulfuric content, lies near the center of the lake. There is a crater lake on Volcano Island, which is in Lake Taal, which is located on Luzon Island. That crater lake is the world's largest lake on an island in a lake on an island, and it in turn contains its own small island, Vulcan Point.

Source: Wikipedia

The Taal Volcano

You can either walk or take a pony!

The Caldera with mineral deposits.

The view from the top.

Back to Tagaytay

The pretty local boats

Manila - a Spanish outpost in Asia?!

I didn't really know what to expect when I went to Manila. Had heard a lot of stories about it from friends - good and bad. So will try and give you a brief of my brief visit there.

Manila is the capital city of the Phillipines. The Phillipines has 1000s of islands and is a treasure waiting to be discovered.
Manila is located on the eastern shores of Manila Bay. The sunsets are priceless and not to be missed.
It is a very crowded city and reminds one of Bombay. However, unlike Bombay, it is quite clean.
It is a melting pot of many cultures as the Phillipines were "settled" by various other nations - China, Spain, British and of course America.
You can see the foreign influences in the people, their food and of course the architecture.
Intramuros is the ancient walled city. Very Spanish and historical.
90% of the population is Catholic and they are very religious. Reminded me of Goa.
The people are quite docile, friendly and accommodating and every ready to help you. I was warned about pickpockets but during the time I was there, I did not have a single bad experience.
The society is very matriarchal and women play a very important role. I was told so many times by strangers that I was beautiful and could pass as a Filipina. Did wonders for my ego!
The women are gorgeous. I guess Western men prefer to marry them and on some websites you even have a section - Dating a Filipina!!
There are plenty of malls for shopping and food. Some of the better known ones are - The Mall of Asia (which is huge), the Green Belt Park, the Powerplant.
The best part is that the rupee is equivalent to the Peso. So you can shop till you drop! Furniture, furnishings and decorative items are what I would recommend one buys.
Taxis are pretty cheap in Manila. I didn't get the opportunity to travel by their metro. In the suburbs you can also travel by tricycles.
However the ubiquitous jeepneys are the most interesting form of transport. They are brightly coloured and painted with biblical scenes and packed with at least 20 locals. I have to go back to Manila just to ride in one of them.
The official language is Tagalog.
Remember, this is one of the few countries that still have departure tax. So keep some money for the airport.