The red flag flapping in the wind outside the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum
The never-ending queue of visitors waiting to enter the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum
We left Ho Chi Minh and flew to Hanoi with a totally different goal in mind. While Ho Chi Minh taught us about life in a whirlwind, Hanoi unveiled to us her cultural grace and tightly-knitted bond with nature. Weather-wise, it was as if we had stepped out of a sauna bath into a cool and cloudy paradise up in the north. Although it drizzled for a couple of days, on most other days the clouds remained non-threatening and the weather was chill.
The air of patriotism and communist vigour remained as apparent in the capital of Vietnam as it was in Ho Chi Minh, as was evident at the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum. On the other hand, the spellbinding call for a refined understanding and appreciation of her culture and way of life was equally forceful. Hanoi, including its surrounding suburbs, were the places to go to, to listen to enchanting stories about turtles and their fabled swords. Naive and fairytale-like as these stories were, they were what kept us going in our quest for legendary adventures.
Colourful rattan masks at a gift shop inside the Temple of Literature
A bell pagoda at the Bai Dinh Temple – the largest temple complex in Vietnam
Gateway to the jade temple mound where we finally found the turtle and its sword
Indeed, one of our quests was to intentionally revisit some of the places where the Running Man crew did their filming in Vietnam. Trang An at Ninh Binh was one of these places which I wanted very much to go to, having seen on the variety show how it retained most of its ancient charms till this day. We therefore booked a day trip out to Ninh Binh, went to the Bai Dinh Temple complex and then sat on a two-hours boat ride at Trang An. For the whole of the river boat expedition through ruins and under caves, there was really nothing else other than the greens and blues which made the whole experience wildly therapeutic and addictive.
The deserted gateway situated at the top of a hill at Trang An, Ninh Binh
Female paddlers taking short naps and breaks on a lazy Monday afternoon at Trang An
The countless rows of boats and their paddlers awaiting passengers to board
An overview of Trang An from the bridge leading to the main road
Since we ended the day early at Trang An, the tour guide decided to bring us to this world-renowned ancient capital which was within a half an hour bus ride from the river. It was only when we reached there that the sense of déjà vu hit us. We were actually at Hoa Lu – the place where the Running Man crew competed in the final tearing off of name tags. ‘So, this was the ancient capital that the tour guide was referring to – pronounced as Hua Lü, not Hao lu’, I laughed at myself.
I wondered how the laid-back villagers must have felt to have witnessed a group of people entering this holy compound and running around like mad men, tearing off name tags from each other’s backs.
Strange? Blasphemous? Or nonchalance?
The Hoa Lu Citadel, where the finale of the 136th episode of Running Man was filmed
The suburbs around Hanoi tell of the success stories of the Vietnamese embracing tourism and evolving with the increasing trend of commercialisation so as to ensure sufficiency and survival in a lowly industrialised milieu. While tour agencies in Ninh Binh prided themselves for providing an eco-friendly option to learn about and appreciate the conserved landscapes of Trang An, cruise operators at the Halong Bay bundled their tour packages to the World Heritage Site with an abundance of fresh seafood produces that they claimed could only be found along the coastal lines of northern Vietnam. Honestly, how could anyone resist such an attractive offer?
Thriving fishing communities at the Halong Bay
A tranquil scene of a fishing platform amidst thousands of islands at the Halong Bay
Young paddlers wearing non-las on board colourful boats, awaiting passengers to hop on
However, the allure of the Halong Bay was not immediately apparent – not when you were right in the middle of an idling seascape surrounded by the oftentimes thick and misty fog. All one could see were the countless islands appearing right next to you at one moment and then disappearing behind the ocean waves at the next. The smaller motorboats would speed past your cruise ship to churn up infinitesimal and fleeting waves. Colourful kayaks could occasionally be seen floating on the calm waters at a distance, carrying passengers tucked neatly into brightly illuminated life jackets – a scene that is common to most other seaside resorts.
In fact, the allure of the bay only started to kick in when I began to look beyond the things that were right before my eyes. Staring into the expansive horizon, I was impressed by how capable the bay was at retaining its calm composure regardless of the countless things that were happening at the same time. The humps of the dragon spine that weaved in and out of the seabed to form the numerous islands continued to stand still and isolated from one another. It is possibly this unchanging, stoical and consistent existence and stability within the bay that brings people from all over the world to pay loyal pilgrimage to it every year.
A huge, ghostly fishing boat stares into the expansive horizon of the Halong Bay
Yet another cruise boat packed with passengers and anticipation
The two day-trips from Hanoi were the highlights of my adventures in Vietnam. Getting out of the city center and into the outskirts of Hanoi was like a great escapade from the hustle and bustle of the urban sprawl (and traffic noise). I have most certainly learnt how to better appreciate things in life – in its stillest, purest and most natural form.
