We saw the Post Office built by the French. Lovely building but it reminded me of a lovely old train station. Lots of very high end shopping, not what I expected from a communist country. The neighborhood where we had dinner last night was amazing. I don't recall ever seeing bigger (and more garish houses ). Our guide told us they belonged to government workers. He preceded to tell us that policemen are very well paid. Lots of graft and corruption here! Yet they can't afford public education and Heath care! Lots of high end cars, while the vast majority are riding motor scooters. Someone asked Kong why the children were not in helmets, and he replied that they did not make them that small.
We went in two Temples and toured Chinatown. Turns out that the Chinese that settled in Vietnam are great business people, just like everyplace I've ever been. Ron went on a small tour to explore tunnels built by the North Vietnamese during the war. I went shopping for a little while, kind of overwhelming! When he gets back I will download the photos from today.
We fly back to Bangkok for a couple of days and then head home. Great trip and we can recommend Viking, especially for a third world country. The 25 people in our group have been fun and interesting. They have all done a lot of traveling and lived all over the world. Lots of them older than we are, one guy 81, and he does everything. The majority are from the US, then England and Canada. Our bus broke down in China town and we all got off and walked cheerfully to the next sight, nobody made any fuss. Our guide made a call and a new bus was dispatched. The buses are another thing, fussy little curtains, super ac, coolers of ice water and cold towels. The hotels have been Sofitel and very lovely. When we have sent out our laundry it comes back the same day wrapped in tissue paper in a wicker basket.
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