Thaler Travels

Welcome to Hanoi's Vietnamese Women's Museum      While there are many great museums in Hanoi, I visited one of my absolute favorites this week.  The Vietnamese Women's Museum is devoted entirely to the role of women in the country with permanent exhibitions of women's role in the family, in the history of Vietnam, and in fashion.   The first exhibition focuses on marriage and childbirth customs.  Good thing I visited this just in time because I took notes on childbirth customs for daughter Allyse and marriage customs  for soon-to-be daughter-in-law Erin.  Let's start with customs for you, Allyse.  The first is a ritual involving the blood of a sacrificed dog to be rubbed over your stomach to chase away evil.  See, I bet you hadn't thought of that yet.  Then one should make offerings of 3-5 jars of alcohol, one pig, one dog, four bracelets and a bowl of rice.  Let's just focus on prayers for health.  And f...

From Hao Lo to Chi Hoa            Early on when I knew I was off to Hanoi, I determined that I would visit the "Hanoi Hilton" the nickname given to the prison which held American pilots, including Senator John McCain, who were shot down during the Vietnam War.  The true name of this prison, built by the French in 1896, was Maison Centrale but the locals called it Hao Lo, or Fiery Furnace, in reference to the village of Phu Khanh, the village known for making earthen pots and kettles which was displaced in order for the building of the French prison.  It was a large prison, the largest and most secure prison in Indochina at 12,908m2 or about eight square miles.  The remnants of that prison are now a tourist site in Hanoi within easy walking distance from Ho Chi Minh's Mausoleum and Truc Bach Lake were McCain was shot down.          It is no surprise to me that this prison, where many political prisoners were h...

History in the Making and We Were There                   Bob and I had a great few days in DaNang with our friends Todd and Michelle Van Maanan right on China Beach.   I would be very hard pressed to tell you what the highlight of the few days was because there were so many: the SDSU sweep of the Summit Tournament (Todd and Michelle are from USD), the gorgeous sunshine and beautiful beach, the fresh seafood, the Marble Mountains and Buddhist caves, or the golfing at the Montgomerie Links.   At every turn: on the beach, at the golf course, and at the top of the Marble Mountain, it seemed we met men and women from the USS Carl Vinson . The historic nature of this landing was obvious immediately, as it was the first time that a US navy aircraft carrier had docked in Vietnam since the end of the Vietnam/American War.   It was here in DaNang that 3,500 troops landed in Vietnam- over 50 years ...

A Night at the Hanoi Opera House   This past week we played tour guides and had great fun.  We toured all around Hanoi and ventured out to the Bai Dinh Pagoda, sailed down the Tam Coc River, braved the rain at Ha Long Bay, watched the traditional water puppet performance, sighed at the agony of prisoners held in the Hoa Lo Prison ( called the Hanoi Hilton by American prisoners), and spent an absolutely incredible evening at the Hanoi Opera House amazed at the acrobatics and traditional music performed by the Cirque du Soleil troupe.   Rather than try to describe the performance, please click on the link and enjoy it for yourself!!! " My Village   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wsnjbfrn_zk Busy Monday at the Bai Dinh Pagoda- still celebrating the lunar new year Bai Dinh Pagoda and Buddha      Ready to sail down the Tam Coc River.  Notice the captain rowing with his feet!

Happy TET!      Good morning and Happy New Year!  The long anticipated TET has arrived. TET, the lunar New Year, is a combination of Christmas, New Year, and Memorial Day, from my perspective, limited as it is. Folks here in Vietnam have been getting ready for this- the most important, sacred holiday of the year, for weeks now.  Our first sign that something was up was the transporting of kumquat trees- dangerously strapped on the backs of motorcycles.  I was amazed to see these trees, one after another, transported in this manner.  I was told that these were definitely NOT mandarin oranges; we don't eat these; they are for decoration only.  (Bob will tell you that I stole a kumquat from a tree outside a store and brought it home to try it.  It was tart- think lemon or lime- but I actually liked it- nothing a little sugar wouldn't fix!)  The kumquat tree   The other early indication was the purchasing of branches...

The tombs of Two Vietnamese Emperors (just south of Hue)      While in Hue I didn't want to miss the chance to see some of the most impressive tombs of the emperors, so Bob and I went to visit the Tomb of Tu Duc. Tu Duc was chosen over his older brother to ascend to the throne and reigned as emperor from 1848-1883, the longest reigning emperor.  It was not, however, a happy reign.   Although he had 104 wives and hundreds of concubines, he was unable to produce an heir.  This was probably due to a childhood case of the smallpox.  He continued his father's habit of persecuting Christians, a practice which came to a climax with the decapitation of the Spanish Bishop Jose Maria Diaz in 1857.  This led to an attack in Danang (a city farther south) by the French, and the loss of three southern provinces to the French.        Tu Duc designed his tomb himself and the construction on it began with forced labor begin...

From Citadel to Citadel       One of the very first things on my check list when I arrived in Hanoi was a visit to the citadel.  The Imperial Citadel of Thang Long was, in fact, very close to Ho Chi Minh's Mausoleum, and I walked by its gates and walls several times before it dawned on me that this was the citadel.  This citadel was built in the 11th century in the same spot as a Chinese fortress that had been built in the 7th century.  And no, Mr. Schneider, I was NOT alive then! It remained the center of political power for almost 13 centuries and was added to the Unesco World Heritage List in 2010.  In 1810 the Nguyen Dynasty moved the center of power to Hue and built a citadel there.      Much of this citadel was in disrepair already by the 19th century, and what wasn't was further damaged and torn down when the French occupied Vietnam in the 19th century.  Still standing, however, are the North Gate, the Doan Mon Gat...