Nguyen We Meet Again 2

July 14, 2016

Anita and I met for breakfast, then headed out on foot for some more exploring.  Sidewalks seem to be more common here, but one is not safe from motorbikes on the sidewalks.  It would be helpful for pedestrians to have rear-view mirrors!   At one of the first intersections, we encountered uniformed guards directing traffic.  Soon an official-looking motorcade of long, black cars passed directly in front of us.  I'd love to know who was in those cars.

Our first stop today would be St. Joseph's Cathedral, built in 1886 by the French colonial government in the style of Notre Dame in Paris.  (Vietnam is home to four million Catholics.)  The hotel concierge had provided directions, but we weren't 100% sure we were in the right place.  We noticed a small shop selling landmark magnets in a basket out on the street.  One of them was obviously the cathedral, so we held up the magnet and asked which direction.  I swung my arm out in the direction indicated by the shopkeeper, promptly whacking my poor companion in the face - so sorry!

Facade is filthy from air pollution

With no spillage of blood, we continued up the street and soon realized the cathedral was the same place we'd seen yesterday on our food tour - oddly out of place and tucked away at the end of a street.  This time, we were able to go inside for a look.  The light through the stain-glass windows bounced off the vaulted ceilings and the dark wood of the pews.  Many saints were depicted on the side windows, their names written in French, like St. Ignace De Loyola and Ste. Claire D'Assise.  The heat was oppressive inside, with several fans mounted on pillars for the faithful to use as needed.  A few Vietnamese waited for their turns in the confessional.

 Outside, we sat down to plot our next move.  A bicycle taxi driver was fervently trying to sell us a ride.  Then he started saying something else to us, crossing his arms in an "X" shape, and we realized we needed to leave the courtyard, as the gate was about to be locked.  We'd luckily timed our visit just right.

Just down the street from the cathedral was a small stone entrance to Chua Ba Da, a Buddhist temple and pagoda.  The building looked fairly new; the original one was likely destroyed during the "American War," as it is referred to here.  The temple was fairly small and dark, crammed full with rows of huge Buddha shrines.  A man slept on the floor at the back, and a woman tended to the offerings.  Outside was a mural depicting the story of Buddha and his journey to enlightenment.

We were quite drippy in the heat, and looked for a cool cafe to have a drink.  The key was finding a place with closed doors and windows.  The tiny cafe we entered had three or four tables, all but one occupied by locals who were clearly not customers, but just neighbors escaping the summer weather.  We each enjoyed a very refreshing mint iced tea; then, renewed, headed back outside.

We walked to the Vietnamese Women's Museum, a very interesting collection of history and culture.  The three floors had three themes: Women's Clothing, Women in History, and Women in Family.  The Women's Clothing floor depicted traditional costumes from several of the fifty-four different ethnic groups in Vietnam.  Many were very colorful with intricate weaving, batik, embroidery and applique.

The Women In History floor focused mainly on the important role many women played in the resistance wars against several enemies.  Many fought for liberation, and against the United States.  The exhibition included lots of anti-Nixon propaganda.

I found the Women in Family floor most interesting.  The various rites and superstitions involved with marriage, childbirth and child rearing were examined, along with activities of daily life.  For example, parents commonly give the babies ugly names and don't praise the qualities of the babies for the first month, to keep evil spirits from wanting to steal them.  Another area focused on the worship of Mother Goddess, a belief widely practiced throughout Vietnam.  Lots of interesting and colorful rituals are associated with Mother Goddess worship.

Nu and Nam - "like chopsticks"

After cruising the gift shop, we were on our way to lunch at "Bun Cha Obama," a Bun Cha shop that had been visited by President Obama and chef Gordon Ramsay just a month before on May 26, 2016.  This was a no-frills, three-story shop with metal tables and plastic stools.  Pictures and videos of Obama's visit graced the walls, and we both ordered the Combo Obama.  I think I liked this Bun Cha a bit more than the one we had the day before, but I was not enamored of the fried seafood roll.  It was nice to see how our president was honored here.

Click here:    bourdain-parts-unknown-obama-hanoi

In the evening, we joined our husbands and one of the local Ford guys and his wife for dinner.  They ordered dish after dish, including barbecue beef, sauteed morning glory, and spring rolls.  Everything seemed to have lots of garlic and was quite tasty.  Minh and Vinanh were very friendly and warm people, and we had a most enjoyable evening.  We had to take two taxis back to the hotel, and one lucky taxi driver was paid ten times the fare - too many zeroes on this money.