After we had already visited most of the sights in Hanoi yesterday, we started the day late.
Organize bus trip to Ha Long Bay
Our first point of the day was to organize a bus trip to Ha Long Bay, 147 km away. Most providers always want to sell you complete tours, consisting of a transfer, boat tour and overnight stay. However, with our hotel we were able to organize a bus that would take us for 7USD per person each way. Of course it could be cheaper, but we didn't want to spend the whole day getting offers.
Water Puppet Theater Hanoi
In the afternoon we visited the famous water puppet theater. The price of a “First Class” ticket is 100000VND (approx. 3EUR). However, we couldn't find out what the difference was between first and second class. The seat pitch was definitely not designed for Europeans. The performances are held several times during the day, although it should be noted that the evening events are usually fully booked 1-2 days in advance.
In the approximately one-hour performance with traditional musical accompaniment, the puppets are played over a water surface. However, they do not hang on threads, but on sticks that are guided just below the surface of the water. The finale is the transformation of a golden carp into a dragon. We found the piece very entertaining, even if you don't understand much of the actual story.
Turtle in Hoan Kiem Lake
After the theater we walked along Hoan Kiem Lake, the central point in Hanoi, to Hoa Lo Prison. At the lake we witnessed what appeared to be a major event. Many Vietnamese suddenly ran to the water's edge armed with cameras. When we got there, we knew why, because a huge turtle suddenly appeared. Based on its size, we think it must have been very old.
Hoa Lo Prison
The Hoa Lo prison was built by the French occupying forces shortly before 1900 and was also used by the Americans and, after the end of the Vietnam War, by the Vietnamese themselves. The nickname “Hanoi Hilton” emerged among American prisoners. It took us maybe 45 minutes to see the exhibition and the cell complexes. However, the price at 10,000 VND/person (0.35 EUR) is very affordable.
Dinner at Old Hanoi
For dinner we decided to go to Old Hanoi based on TripAdvisor's recommendation. The restaurant is located in an old restored French villa.
The ambience is very classy for Hanoi. We were led into a small room with only three tables and the waitress, who was only responsible for this room, greeted us warmly. As a starter we ate freshly made spring rolls.
Although we each ordered our own main course, the food was delivered one after the other. So first the duck came with a sweet tamarind sauce and then we ate the beef steak we ordered with a strong sauce, onions and leeks. There was also steamed rice.
For dessert we had flambéed mango and bananas. In the end we paid just 650,000 VND (22.80 EUR) for the complete meal with drinks.
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