It started raining early morning but luckily enough the rain stopped when we were about to head out!
First stop, Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum as it was only open until 11am.
Let me just say, the security before heading into the Mausoleum is STRICT! No cameras, no photos, no large backpacks, no drinks, and after seeing what I saw, I can understand why!
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| Top: The only photo you could pretty much take of the Mausoleum Left: A train line in the middle of Hanoi. Amazing! |
Seeing Ho Chi Minh at the Mausoleum was, to me, the best 20 seconds of my life! You walk in, and walk around the clear enclosure and walk out. There are 4 soldiers at each corner. It's silent. It's a lot to take in. It's amazing. It's free. Definitely add this to your list if you're planning to see Hanoi!
Not too far away from the Mausoleum is the Military Museum. Most museums close from 11am-1pm-ish so be sure to plan a big lunch in between these times! The museum was interesting. It it set out like a journey to see how Vietnam ventured and survived pre and post war. It also shows how the women survived through the war. An interesting attraction to see.
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| Some of the imagery from the Military Museum. |
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Next stop, the Temple of Literature, which is featured on the back of the 100,000 Vietnamese banknote. It is a temple dedicated to Confucius, so there was a lot of Chinese symbolism and characters in the temple. It was a large temple and was very serene and beautiful. There was even a couple taking wedding photos in the area. A beautiful and well aged temple that is worth seeing!
Our last stop was Hoa Lo Prison, and it was a very sombre place. Reading about it beforehand, it was a French prison where they executed Vietnamese Freedom fighters. A very interesting visit as back then it was called 'Hanoi Hilton' because of the way the US prisoners were treated in there. It was like a hotel for them compared to the Vietnamese. Very sad that the Vietnamese were treated like that. It's well worthing checking out. It won't take you longer than 2 hours as the place is quite small as they knocked down majority of the prison to make way for the Hanoi towers. Check it out if you're in the area.
It was an eventful and historic day. We learnt more about Vietnam and what they had to deal with especially during the Vietnam War. If you're in Hanoi, I would recommend seeing all these attractions. It should' t take you more than a day and they are all well worth it.
Tomorrow we're off to Ha Long bay. Yay!
Until then,
-V
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