Hanoi by foot

Sean decided to take command of the day and guided us quite smoothly through the a couple of sites in Hanoi. First stop: The Temple of Literature. Entrance fee: 31 cents.


It was founded in 1070 by Emperor Ly Thanh Tong, who dedicated it to Confucious to honor scholars and men of literary accomplishments. Six years later, Vietnam's first university was established here to educate sons of mandarins.

Then off we went to the Hoa lo Prison Museum, which was built in 1896 by the French. For another mere 31 cents (or 5000 VND) we wandered through the exhibits which were primarily focused on the Vietnamese struggle for independence from France. Surprisingly, very little was mentioned about its later use, which was for imprisoning U.S. POWs during the Vietnam War. This picture shows a somewhat clever and probably inexpensive way to prevent prisoners from escaping over the walls.

Having spent so much money or toursity attractions, Sean and I continuted to explore the city by foot, wandering the rest of Central Hanoi towards our hotel in the Old Quarter. We wandered through some street markets that featured hand made silks and sidewalk Pho, stopped at a cafe for our umpteenth Vietnamese iced coffee, and finally settled into a local eatery for some journal writing, people watching, and a bite to eat.