VIETNAM

DAY 61 — March 6,  2017 – Nha Trang, VIETNAM

Our intro to Vietnam was in the beachside city of Nha Trang where we visited an embroidery and silk paintings workshop, a big Buddha, the ancient Po Nagar temples and a market, of course.

The workers here reminded me of the artists at the Herend porcelain factory in Hungary.  Their fine, precision work takes a toll on the eyes of the young embroiderers.

The work is exquisite and you cannot help but marvel at the patience, the stamina and the skill required to create such beautiful works of art.  The prices of the pieces were exquisite also. Alas, we will not be bringing one home.

The 30 foot tall white Buddha statue at the Long Son Pagoda overlooks Nha Trang and can be seen from many parts of the city

Starting the 376 step climb to the white Buddha.  Tourists get a good workout visiting the temples, shrines, pagodas, and caves of Asia because everything is always high on a hill.  I am logging 12 -15,000 steps daily, much of them straight up.

The Cham Towers at the Po Nagar Temple complex are breathtaking in size and design..  Originally there were 8 of these towers standing on the granite hilltop overlooking the Nha Trang region.  Only four remain.   They were built between the 7^th and 12^th centuries out of wood, which burned easily, then were rebuilt in stone. Ornamentation was not carved into the stone, however, but simply attached.  It was all easy to steal and many of the statues and decorative pieces have been found far from the original towers.

Our first impressions of Vietnam were pleasant. Although it is a little scruffier that Hong Kong and Shanghai, it had a vibrant air and its beach location was so pleasant.  Plus, it was a beautiful day with light  breezes that minimized the heat.

DAY 62 — March 7,  2017 – Ho Chi Minh City, VIETNAM

Ho Chi Minh City, formerly known as Saigon (and still referred to as Saigon by most residents) was our destination on our second day on Vietnam.  Ho Chi Minh (above in front of city hall) was the revered communist leader during the 1930’s when Vietnam was still under French colonial rule.  The civil war between the north (supported by Russia and China) and the south (supported by the US) in what the Vietnamese refer to as the American War ended with the Viet Cong taking over in 1972 as the US pulled out.

The Saigon post office was designed by 

Gustav Eiffel and featured beautiful interior vaulted ceilings.

Saigon’s Notre Dame Cathedral sits on the same square with the post office.  Both buildings were built as a statement of power by the French during the colonial period in the 1800s.

The former Presidential Palace, now known as Independence/Reunification Hall was made famous in 1975 when cameras from around the world filmed the Viet Cong tanks breaking through the gates and ending the Vietnam War.

The gates now welcome tourists to the former palace still decked out in all its formal grandeur.

The upper floors are filled with luxurious reception areas, dining rooms, conference rooms and living quarters fit for a President.

The lower levels are a solidly built and reinforced bunker.  This was where war planning and communications took place and where government officials could retreat to if the building came under attack.

Communications Room.

After our visit to Reunification Hall, we took a 45-minute Rickshaw ride and, though we started out nice and easy on a side street, we were soon in the thick of car and scooter traffic.  Moving about in a low, open seat in heavy bumper-to-bumper traffic in a city where traffic rules are basically non-existent was exciting, to say the least.  And then, that was when my smartphone camera gave me that dreaded message:  STORAGE FULL -- just like in those TV commercials.  Ron managed to save the experience with his camera, getting a lot of the excitement on video.

Grab is Saigon’s Uber service.

HCMC/Saigon is a city of 12 million people and 8 million motor scooters.  Costing between $1200 and $10,000 they have radically changed life for the Vietnamese.  They are inexpensive, agile in traffic, and easy to park.  And they allow everyone to get around quickly.

But Vietnamese women are very careful about getting too much sun. They value a light complexion.  So, even though it was in the high 80’s in Saigon, all the women on motor scooters were covered from head to toe.   Gloves, jackets, socks, and face coverings were the norm.

Our lunch was at a restaurant made famous when Bill Clinton ate there in 2000.

And the restaurant was conveniently located across the street from a market.  Every city seems to make sure all its tourists get to visit the markets.  But after all the markets in Korea, Japan, and China, we are about marketed-out.  I think the proprietor of this stall was, too.

DAY 63 — March 8,  2017 Sailing the South China Sea

I participated in another floral arranging class.  The ship’s florist received a big shipment in Vietnam and was eager to share.  These classes are revenue producers for the ship and are held about every two weeks or whenever they get a good supply of fresh flowers.

It is amazing what you can do with an upside down Vietnamese coulee hat, a silver plastic vase, and bunches of six different flowers, assorted greenery, and two florists making sure everything looks perfect.

               

From this  . . . to this.

Sailing to Singapore.

HONG KONG

DAY 57 — March 2, 2017 — Hong Kong, PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF CHINA

DAY 58 — March 3, 2017 — Hong Kong, PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF CHINA

For more than 150 years, Hong Kong was a unique blend of Chinese and Western cultures as part of the British Empire.  Today it is called a “Special Administration Region” of China while it goes through its 50-year transitional period from a British Colony to full Chinese sovereignty in 2047.

The history is long, complicated, and intriguing but, basically, it is a story of drug lords and their unwillingness to give up their highly lucrative trade. The British East India Company had developed a highly profitable business selling opium to China.  By the beginning of the 19^th century, millions of Chinese had become addicted and the country was suffering economically.  The Chinese Emperor banned the trade of the drug and began confiscating and destroying the shipments.  The British opium merchants were outraged and demanded military retaliation.  The British fleet moved in and wars were fought over this issue for a decade.  As the big winner, the Brits were granted Hong Kong island and Kowloon in perpetuity and a hundred-year lease on some other territories on the mainland as the spoils of winning what became known as the Opium Wars.  Mind you, Britain would not allow opium to be imported back home but they were happy to export it to the Chinese because there was just way too much money to be made.

After the Japanese occupation in WWII, Hong Kong was returned to Britain.   But the post-war years brought increasing international changes and pressures and in the 1980’s, the Thatcher government began talks with China about the return of Hong Kong when the 100-year lease ran out on the territories.   It was finally turned over officially in 1997 with the stipulation that life in Hong Kong would remain substantially unchanged and the Chinese socialist system would not be imposed for 50 years.  As someone wrote at the time, “horses will keep racing and nightclub dancing will continue.”   Officially, it is said that China with Hong Kong is now one country with two systems.  Others describe it as “the same bed, different dreams.”    It is clearly helping to give rise to the “new China.”

A lot of Hong Kong residents picked up and moved to the west when the country was turned back to China but its current population is 7 million and growing.  This is partially because China officially ended its 1-child per family policy in 2015 and partially because it is now difficult for anyone to leave.  While the zero-growth population policy was in effect, couples wanted to have boys only and girl babies were often aborted or abandoned.  So, eventually, of course, there were too many men and not enough women.  Family trees started to have too many “bare branches.”  Huh, imagine that.  Girls are actually important to a country’s future.  China has now changed to a 2-child per family policy.

Hong Kong by day:

View of Hong Kong and Kowloon from Victoria Peak on Hong Kong island.

Fishing boats in Stanley Harbour on the southern, quieter side of Hong Kong island.

Classy signage directing visitors to the Stanley Market, a popular place for tourists to shop their hearts out at hundreds of flea market type stalls.  We have gotten pretty good at speed-walking through these markets yet our fellow passengers rave about their “finds.”  My problem is that I have had too many “finds” over the years and I am no longer in acquisition mode.

Stanley Market.

Kowloon Park, a beautiful oasis in hectic downtown Kowloon.

Hong Kong by night:

The Chinese love high-end products and at night, the blazing Hong Kong store signage is a tourist attraction all its own.

Night view of Hong Kong from the ms Amsterdam.

If Hong Kong looks like it is all tall buildings that image is not far from the truth.  It is actually all tall buildings AND traffic congestion.  With 8,000 skyscrapers it has more than any other city.in the world.  It also has more Rolls Royces than any other city in the world.   It does have its moments of peaceful tranquility as well, but our long list of sites to see was quickly whittled down to just a few due to the time and stamina it took for us to get anywhere.

Hong Kong is no longer a British colony but it still uses the British driving system.  Just like in London, there are signs at the crosswalks to remind you what direction to look before you step out.

We were happy to say goodbye to Hong Kong.  It wore us out.

Next:  Vietnam.

SHANGHAI DAY 2

DAY 54 — February 27, 2017 — Shanghai, PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF CHINA

After all the modern buildings and LED lights of the day before, we set out to see another side of Shanghai.  Yu Garden had been recommended to us by so many people that we had to make it a part of our visit.  The contrast of the new and the old of Shanghai couldn’t have been more stunning.

Photo of a postcard for aerial view.

The entrance bridge to the garden was built in a zig zag pattern to confuse the demons and prevent them from entering.

Built as a private garden in the 1550’s, Yu is an example of classical Chinese gardening architecture.  Under state preservation now, the garden occupies an area of over two hectares featuring amazing rock sculptures and precious cultural relics.

Here are a few views of Yu.

There was something to admire at every turn.  It was a wonderfully relaxing way to spend our second morning in Shanghai.

Yu Garden had a lovely shop within its walls where this gentleman was engaged in his incredibly sophisticated finger painting art.  He created one for us while we watched.

Shanghai Museum

After hours on our feet in the garden we, for some reason, thought it would then be a great idea to spend a few more hours on our feet walking through the Shanghai Museum.

It is a lovely modern facility with 8 galleries showing off its amazing collection of ancient artifacts and art.  Bronzes, ceramics, stone sculptures, jade, Chinese painting, furniture, currencies, and ethnic minority arts and crafts are all beautifully displayed.  I took about 300 pictures.  Here are a few of my favorites in no particular order.

 

On our way back to the ship we found another wonderful juxtaposition of the old and the new.  Plus . . . traffic. 

Shanghai is a fantastic city with so much to see and not enough time to get around the congested streets to see it all.  We are now adding it to the list of places to revisit.

DAY 55 — February 28, 2017 — Sailing the East China Sea

It’s Fat Tuesday and the ship's entertainment department sees it as another reason to dress up our 
dining room stewards to create a party atmosphere for us.  We all received Mardi Gras hats and 
beads but we didn’t look nearly as 
cute as Andy and Alex our table stewards.

DAY 56 — March 1, 2017 — Sailing the Formosa Strait

Halfway point of the cruise.  Is 111 days too long to be at sea?  I can’t say for sure until it’s over but, certainly, there have been moments when I really (really, really, really) wished I could be home with our family and friends.

On our way to Hong Kong.