Krabi: Photos from Vietnam
As promised. These aren’t in any particular order; these are just the ones I liked the best. I’d encourage you to have a look at the whole Vietnam set, though, as well. For my per-minute-internet-dollar, I’d say there’re more’n a few photos in there that are worth a look, if I do say so meself — Vietnam is a lovely country, in general, but it is also very photogenic. Anyhoo, off we go…
The slow, serene rowboat ride through Tam Coc (known as the “Halong in the rice paddies”) was really awesome. Went into some cool caves, too.
I only took about a million zillion photos of Halong Bay itself, so, for sanity’s sake, I’m putting just one here. Just one. Here it is.
That one was pretty awesome, though, right? Yep. Thought so. Okay, moving right along…
Wait — there really is an actual Hilton in Hanoi? For realz?
Yes, for realz.
This photo is dedicated to Chris Silzle. “You look for the person who will benefit the most…” (Lenin Statue, Hanoi.)
A happiness window in Khai Dinh Mausoleum, near Hue.
Trekking around in the gorgeous hilltribe-farmed scenery near Sapa was one of the highlights of my trip thus far. Here are a few photos from the trek…
Step farming looks neat.
Some kids and a dog, which they’ll probably eat at some point in their young, hilly lives…
What, you thought I was joking? Hey, I know it’s gruesome, but I had to take a photo. And, in fact, it’s considered a delicacy there. They eat dog during special occasions. On this day, they’d just finished building a house in a nearby village — cause to celebrate if there ever was one. So, doesn’t it look yummy?
These craft-making and -hocking ladies were relentless. Super friendly and sweet, but they just followed you around till you bought something. And it only got worse — at our homestay we were surrounded. Fionn, a great and hysterical guy to hang out with anyway, was a big hit with all the hilltribe salesfolk.
This following photo is only meant to be viewed by those of you who aren’t my parents. So, close your eyes, parentals. Hahaha…. 🙂
Yes, that’s me. Yes, that’s me, in a giant field of cannabis. And yes, it’s possible that we might have tried some later on that night (hi Mom!), and if we did, it hypothetically might have been very strong (hi Dad!), as good, or nearly as good, as some of the stuff I’ve heard people smoke back home.
Ahem. 🙂
So there’s this crazy religion in Vietnam called Cao Dai — it’s a combination of Christianity, Hinduism, Confucianism and Buddhism, as well as some other weird shit thrown in just for fun. Like, Victor Hugo is a saint in this religion, for example. The main temple near Saigon was ridiculously ornate and the religious ceremony was really captivating.
And I really like this photo of their pseudo-Masonic eye.
As a side note, it’s pretty hard to see in this photo taken from a distance, but I thought this guy looked just like my friend Eddie. Eh, so Duke of Nam — are you down with the Cao Dai? Have you been secretly worshipping Les Miserables?
I really liked Hoi An, in general. It was a lot like Luang Prabang, in Laos. Old colonial stylee, really laid-back, with lots of opportunity for sweet photos. Like this…
Japanese bridge, at night.
And this…
These giant mosquito coils are lit inside a temple for good luck. They burn for 30 days.
And this…
Tailoring is huge in Hoi An. (I had a suit made.) A lot of silk shops n’ such. I think this photo looked better on my little camera display, but I still like it.
And finally. This last one is probably my favorite photo of them all. I don’t know why, this lady was just the sweetest old woman. All she would say was “Hello!” — but she kept saying it, repeating it. As I approached from up the beach: “Hello!” Then I came near and answered her, “Hello!” And as I passed, again: “Hello!” Back and forth, we kept saying hello to each other. Then after I’d gone by a few feet, again she called after me: “Hello!” So I stopped and I asked to take her photo — and then she smiled this big, toothless grin. And, well, I just love it.
Tags: Halong, Hoi An, Photos, Sapa, Vietnam
ismateo
Why you gotta bring up the dogs? I mean, if you dont eat you die, and my people dont want to die, so they eat. Put a little fish sauce on anything and it taste like chicken.
so halong *were* you in the rice paddies?
blah!!