From 2008/12/01 to 2008/12/07 |
-- From Cao Bang to Ninh Binh, Hoa Lu |
The road tracklog |
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The 01/12 I left Cao Bang as of the daybreak to Lang Son for sending emails in the search of a workshop to replace the pump pipe of lifting cabin. Alas the road QL4A was under work, I arrived in Lang Son at 10:30 where I looked for an Internet Café. The international connection was too slow I could neither to receive nor to send message. Consequently I decided to head directly to Hanoi where I looked for a bivouac around lakes. Alas I did not find anything for my truck. I stationed in the Dai Co Viet Street. I had seen at the entry the city a Mercedes concession where I had asked whether it could deal with the replacement of the damaged pipe of which I had the spare part. The answer was ok; I had taken an appointment on Wednesday. |
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The 02/12 was dedicated initially to going to a bank to withdrawal money to pay the repairs of my truck, then to a cybercafé to update my website. Then I visited the city. The site of Hanoi is attested since the Neolithic era, civilization Hoabinhian, the city is built along the Song Hong River, the Red River. The plan of urbanization is conceived with quadrangular trees lined streets and many lakes. It has a population of approximately 3.5 million inhabitants and surely as many motorbikes. I visited it by bicycle by a beautiful sunny day. It was a great moment, except pollution by fumes exhaust and sound of the horns of taxis and buses. The chance wanted that close to my bank the French-colonist Prison is. Only one building remains but oh how much exhibit was revealing prison conditions in 19th and beginning of the 20th century. |
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While going to Old Quarter where the cybercafés are, I stopped to contemplate the Hoan Kiem Lake, Ngoc Son Temple and the Sighs Bridge. |
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Heading northwards, I passed in front of the Ho Chi Minh's Mausoleum and the Palace of the General Governor of the Union Indochina of which architecture is characteristic of French colonial art. |
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Further on it was the Quan Thanh Temple whose bronze of Tran Vo, God of North, dates back to 1677 and at the edge of the Ho Tay Lake the Tran Quoc Pagoda. |
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Cycling back in front of the Ho Chi Minh's Mausoleum I was going to see the One Pillar Pagoda dedicated to Bodhisattva of the Mercy, Am Bo Tat in Vietnamese, otherwise Chinese Guanyin, Tibetan Chenrezi and Avalokiteshvara in Sanskrit, then the Ho Chi Minh Museum. |
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It was time to have terrestrial foods, I lunched at KoTo on Van Mieu beside the Temple of the Literature which was the first university in 1070 devoted to Confucius, it trained the Vietnamese Laureates according to the Chinese tradition. |
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In middle of afternoon I paid visit the Centre Culturel Français and its proximity to the jewels of modern architecture the Museum of the Vietnamese Revolution. |
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At the end of the day I went shopping to food purchases for the next weeks. Back to my truck, it remained to write a report of this marvellous day. |
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The 03/12 I headed to the Mercedes Workshop while passing by the metal bridge Chuong Duong Bridge as at the time of my arrival. Alas a policeman told me that it was not allowed for trucks. Another policeman asked me money. I drove my way because on the map there was another bridge further on, Vinh Tuy Bridge. When I saw it, it was under construction! I continued on the same road along Song Hong on several kilometres. I discovered another bridge used by trucks but accesses were still under work. After several kilometres on a bad road, I arrived at the junction between the QL5 and the QL1A, i.e. at 500 meters of the Mercedes Workshop where I was again accepted by Mr. Van Huy, Workshop Manager, which entrusted work to Mr. Nguyen Duc Trinh, Service Advisor, with a workman. The replacement of the defective pipe was carried out in the morning with difficult conditions under the truck in an inextricable tangle of cables. The examination of the pipe showed that it had been abraded by frictions on a duc which goes from the air filter to the engine following vibrations on the roads. I left the workshop after being invited to have lunch. Mercedes' Team was welcoming, skilful and helpful. |
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Back to Hanoi around 3:00 p.m. I bivouacked on Hung Vong at 200 meters away from the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum. I walked around to visit the Citadel, closed to the public, the Flag Tower and the Military Museum. I walked across the embassies quarter occupying beautiful colonial houses of the Twenties. |
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The 04/12 started with a strolls by bicycle towards the West Lake, Ho Tay, to visit the pagoda eponym surrounded by a garden well-suited to the meditation. |
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Back to centre town I did the walk suggested by the LP in the Old Quarter, “Cité Indigène” according to the French denomination. It is the economic heart of Hanoi characteristic of the Vietnamese psyche, business, work and commerce. The name of the streets changes with each quadrangular block of buildings of which the height was lower than the Royal Palace, according to the Chinese tradition of the “Prohibited City”. Districts are specialized by trade. The tour made it possible to discover interesting houses by the architecture which had been developed according to the tax system well before the French colonization. Some old commercial houses remain such as for example “Memorial House” of Chinese rich salesman. |
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In the narrow streets the traffic of motorbikes and some cars made the visit harassing as well by pollution by exhausts as by that of the blows of horn, a carpark testifies some by motorbikes. |
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Bach Ma Pagoda is the oldest in the city built by Thai Ly To to honour the white horse which had led him on the site of the future town of Hanoi. |
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Further on the only city gate having survived not only savages of time but also destruction of invaders, Cua O Quan Chuong, gives an idea of the wall surrounding it. |
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Of course French colonization left a Cathedral, St Joseph, of Gothic style with stained
glasses of the 19th century. My cycling ended in the compound of the diocese
where I had some rest before having lunch. |
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One of the advantages of a individual trip consists of faculty to choose his restaurant. I went in a high place of the life in Hanoi at Nha Hang Lan Chin along the Museum of the Vietnamese Revolution close to the Centre Culturel Français. |
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Then as digestive trip I cycled to the Paul Doumer Bridge, now Long Bien Bridge, built according to Eiffel’s plans. |
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Before paying a visit to the embassy of France I visited two more temples. Hai Ba Trung close to a small lake was a peace and meditation haven where students drew it. |
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Then it was the Ambassadors’ Temple which was formerly a hotel for ambassadors of the Buddhist countries. |
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This last day spent in Hanoi ended with the spectacle of the Water Puppets dating back to
1000 years of age. |
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The 05/12 I left Hanoi without regrets to Halong Bay where I arrived in the late morning. The two cities on the West coast, Bai Chay, and on the East coast, Hon Gay, of the bay are devoted to tourism, hotels of any category, restaurants, Karaoke bars, massages etc. |
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I drove over the bridge connecting the two banks to go to Cai Rong on Van Don Island where I lunched at pier. Then I looked for a bivouac on Bai Dai, Long Beach, which I found along a narrow and asphalted road. There was nobody, time was gloomy, fog and clouds darkened the landscape. |
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The 06/12 was a rest day in Bai Dai, by checking my truck and by working on my website. The road from Bai Dai to Bai Chay being painful I decided in the late afternoon to go to bivouac in Bai Chay to advance me, because the following day I had a long road to head towards Ninh Binh where I had many visits. The day was even gloomier than the day before. No visibility on Halong Bay, I didn’t buy a traditional boat trip round the Bay. |
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By crossing through Bai Chay I took a picture of a characteristic example of a building modern architecture; there are only two windows, at the front and at the back! The ground floor is devoted to business. |
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The 07/12 I had more than 200 kilometres to drive, I left to arrive in the early morning at Tam Coc, close to Ninh Binh, to visit caves. I say it clearly, nothing to see. |
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On the other hand two kilometres away Bich Dong Pagoda is composed of three pagodas built in caves which are pleasant to visit. |
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At the beginning of afternoon I visited the site of the old capital Hoa Lu of which
there remains nothing. |
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Ninh Binh, le 2008/12/07 |
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