Legend has it that Halong Bay was created in the 13th century when the Mongols invaded Vietnam.  The King of Heaven sent  mother dragon and and a baby dragon to defend Vietnam.  The dragon spewed fire and jewels making a wall to keep the Asian hordes out of Halong Bay.  After defeating them the wall became the limestone in the more than 1900 islands from Haiphong to Quang Ninh Provence. This Unesco World Heritage site has been discovered but is a feast for the senses.  Junks ply the waters offering overnight gourmet dinner cruises and cave explorations. Halong Bay is the number one tourist destination in Northern Vietnam.

Tet Nguyen Dan translates literally to “the first morning of the first day of the new year.” This day varies by the year but is always in either January or February. The Vietnamese consider Tet to be their most important holiday. We arrive on the day before New Years Eve.  The Hanoi airport is packed with families waiting for their loved ones to arrive.  It is the custom to go home for this holiday.  We don our masks and wear them on the plane and airport to decrease the risk of the new coronavirus from China.  The Vietnamese teacher who is my seat-mate is excited to see her family. Vietnam feels different than Thailand immediately, more motorcycles, more horns more people in small shops eating and shopping together.  I like it!

Tet is a time for paying tribute to ancestors. Each day for the duration of the week of New Year, offerings are placed on the household altar and incense is burned in memory of the departed.

Locals purchase cherry blossoms and kumquat trees and place them around the house, these plants are iconic in Tet folklore, symbolizing prosperity and health.

After our arrival we join the cacophony of people and motorcycles and make our way to a generations old coffee shop that makes “egg coffee”. Better than Vietnamese coffee even, they serve expresso strong coffee with egg yolk whipped with sugar on the top! Super! We sit in tiny seats 10 inches off the ground. The coffee is served in a small bowl of hot water to keep it warm!

WATER PUPPETS

Dating back centuries is the art of water puppetry for which northern Vietnam is well known.  Hanoi’s famous Thang Long Water Puppet Theater houses a show that is not to be missed.  We got to go behind the scenes to visit a water puppet artist and see his studio and small theater.  The puppets are made of a light wood and are lacquered and foiled with several layers and take up to a month to make just one.  Hint: The dragons spew water at the audience.  This puppet master’s family has been creating these beauties for generations.

It’s nothing but New Years here… shopping for food, decorations and of course making sure you have envelopes for “happy money” for the children for good luck! Don’t forget the chicken with a crown for lunch and sticky rice with mung bean paste in the middle.

Mostly this is a holiday like anywhere else in the world… you spend it with family.

In the north of Thailand lies a beautiful province Chiang Rai. It’s capital is a smaller city with lots of charm. Round lanterns bedecked the streets in preparation for the Chinese New Year and the city just glowed.

Outside of Chiang Rai there is a shiny white and silver temple, Wat Rong Khun that is being built by a Thai artist, Chalermchai Kositpipat, (a 50 yr project) and already attracts huge crowds to help pay for it.  Part Salvador Dali part Vegas, it is garish and is intended to show the path from living a bad life to a good life. Small ornaments can be purchased to obtain good karma.  No pics allowed inside and strict surveillance is employed. Not sure how I felt about it….

The Golden Triangle is north of Chiang Raiand is actually the border between Thailand, Myanmar and Laos through which flows the Mekong River. This mighty river originates in Tibet, and flows through China, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam into the South China Sea.  If you want to take a “slow boat to China” it takes about 2 days traveling north.  This area has been home to the opium trade for centuries and still is today with poppy fields hidden in the jungle.  It is thought that opium originated around the Mediterranean and was brought to China and India by Alexander the Great. Britain later capitalized on trading tea for opium leading to the opium wars.  These Chinese growers probably brought the cultivation of poppies to the Golden Triangle.

Near this area lies the Doi Tung Royal Villa that was constructed in the late 20th century under the order of Princess Srinagarindra.  It is believed that besides serving as a home for the princess, Doi Tung’s purpose was to dissuade the nearby hill tribes from growing opium.  The garden is gorgeous. Worthy of your time.

Chiang Mai (new city) was found in 1296 A.D., 720 years ago By King Meng Rai, as the capital of the first independent Tai State “Lanna” (Kingdom of One Million Rice Fields). It lies in the northern province of the same name. It seems smaller and more manageable than Bangkok with a very walkable old city. We enjoyed the shopping and temple sightings and also discovered the surrounding northern area with hiking trails, hill tribes and elephant sanctuaries.

A controversial tribe to visit is the “long neck” Karen tribe. Two decades ago, an intensifying civil war between Karenni separatists and the Burmese army caused Kayar residents to flee Myanmar. Thailand granted the Kayan temporary stay under “conflict refugee” status. Some of these “misplaced people” have set up a tourist camp to make money. They have a custom of wearing long brass coils around the girls’ necks starting as young as 5 yrs of age. Is this exploitation or what? You decide.

This girl is 17 yrs old, no longer attends school, is single and has a stall selling handmade scarves and carvings in the tourist camp. She started wearing the coiled brass necklace when she was 5 yrs old and has had it off only twice since then. Admitting that it was heavy in the beginning, she chooses to wear it.

The elephant has been a contributor to Thai society and its icon for many centuries. The elephant found in Thailand is the Indian elephant, a subspecies of the Asian elephant. The Thai sacred and royal symbol was the white elephant. They are not albinos but are genetically different. White elephants are not white, they are a dusky pinkish grey. Through time elephants have been used in jungle work (teak trade) and in wartime such as in Thailand as profiled in the book “Elephant Company” by Vicki Croke.  Today they are an endangered species. There are only about 4000 elephants left in captivity in Thailand and perhaps 1000 in the wild.  A short distance from the long neck village is an elephant preserve where we learned about elephants, fed elephants and bathed them in the river.  In turn they sprayed us with water.  It was so much fun. The mahouts (lifetime caregivers) were superb and control them mostly with voice commands. All of Thailand and all travelers seem to love 🐘🐘🐘.  Elephant pants, shirts, t-shirts, bags, statues and jewelry are everywhere.

Don’t miss the markets in Thailand and Chiang Mai’s Sunday market is the best.

We learned from a “master” monk today.  He seemed to be in his 30’s; was charming, educated, smart, clad in orange robes with a great sense of humor and a cell phone at his side (checking the timer often). He taught us how to bow to a monk, parents and a master. Next he demonstrated wrapping his robes for going out of the temple (no shoulders showing), in the temple (right shoulder showing) and for formal occasions. This robe is an orange rectangle about 8×5 ft with a belt 1×8 ft.  The cloth is left from burial shrouds and sewn together in squares and rectangles to resemble rice paddies.  He has three of these.  Thailand has only male monks and female nuns.  Most boys become monks for a short period of time and that is one of the best ways to educate children at no cost to families.  The most important thing for a Buddhist is to do no wrong, do good and have a clean mind. He emphasized that intention is critical.  Monks rise at 4:30 am, chant, meditate, and collect alms for breaking their fast. Next they go into the community for service from 8-5 pm, eat, chant, meditate and retire. Very impressive young man.

A UNESCO World Heritage City, Sukhothai houses a vast number of historical sites and temple ruins. As the first capital of Siam, the Sukhothai Kingdom (1238 – 1438) was the cradle of Thai civilisation – the birthplace of Thai art, architecture and language. ‘Sukhothai’ means ‘the dawn of happiness’, and the kingdom did enjoy an extended period of peace and prosperity until it was annexed by the Ayutthaya Kingdom.

Buddhism is a way of life, we are told, not a religion.  Every Buddhist believes in reincarnation, karma and Buddha.     The core beliefs of Buddhism are harder to understand and they are personal: see suffering, what is the cause of suffering, understand suffering and the way to get rid of suffering are the four stages.  For example: Recognize you are suffering. It is because you are sad.  You are sad because you have lost someone.  Accept that it is part of your life’s cycle. This was explained to me by our guide, Are, who became a monk for a short period of time when he was 25 yrs old.  Thais may do these short intervals as monks 3 times in their lives.

We headed for the the local market the next morning to purchase food to give to the monks. They are not allowed to cook so they rely on alms giving Buddhists to bring them food.

Well this usually means food for me and the rest my mates. The best was sticky rice cooked with coconut milk and flavorings inside bamboo tubes and roasted over the fire for three hrs. Flavors… brown rice with black beans, black beans, egg custard, and pumpkin…. very sweet and delicious! Not so delicious… grilled rat ( I was weak and did not try it). The most adventurous of us, Diane, had our guide procure some for lunch…tastes like chicken! Haha

The Burma Railway (Death Railway) was built from 1942-1943 in order to supply the Japanese army in Burma when it was thought the sea path was too dangerous as the Allies recovered from Pearl Harbor and started the Pacific campaign. Over 60,000 troops; 6300 Brits, 2800 Aussies and 2500 Dutch and Americans worked on the RR and over 12,000 lost their lives. Forty-four Aussie MD’s employed tropical medicine learned from the Dutch physicians who had grown up in the East Indies and improvised. Bamboo IV’s, splints and crutches. They used homemade charcoal for dysentery and cholera plus maggots to clean ulcers to prolong lives. 

The most deadly portion of the Railway construction was dubbed “Hellfire Pass” because condition of the POW’s resembled a scene straight from hell.

From a survivor: 

MATE

Me mind goes back to 43,
To slavery and ‘ate,
When man’s one chance to stay alive
Depended on ‘is mate. 

With bamboo for a billie-can
An’ bamboo for a plate,
A bamboo paradise for bugs,
Was bed for me and me mate. 

You’d slip and slither through the mud
An’ curse your rotten fate
But then you’d hear a quiet word:
“Don’t drop your bundle mate.” 

An’ though it’s all so long ago
This truth I ‘ave to state:
A man don’t know what lonely means,
Til ‘e has lost his mate. 

Also in this province of Kanchanaburi stands the rebuilt bridge over the Mae Khlong (River Kwai) profiled in the movie of the same name and Kanchanaburi Cemetery of Commonwealth soldiers which is definitely worth a visit.

HINTUK RIVER CAMP

We glamped at the Hintuk River Camp above the River Kwai Noi for two nights and enjoyed the service and the scenery and the boat ride.

Charming and cultured, food-loving and spiritual, wanton and warm, Thailand sparkles.  I am returning after a 25 year hiatus….it is much the same but different too.  Traffic jams, pollution but the same friendly people.

Sabai, Sabai (take it easy) is a local slogan in Bangkok, gateway to Southeast Asia. This elephant shaped country formerly known as Siam is the only country in this region not to be colonized. Since May this land of almost 70 million people has been ruled by a military junta.  It is not okay to talk or disparage the monarch in any way… 

Are you a foodie? Consider a trip to Thailand.  Lemongrass, kaffir lime zest, tamarind, chilies, cilantro, ginger, galangal, garlic, coconut, basil, fermented shrimp paste….of course they make their own curry…the textures of papaya, bamboo shoots, cabbage, green beans all married together are a feast for your taste buds! Thais do not use chopsticks.  They use a tablespoon in their right hand and a fork in their left hand packing the spoon with food. Each bite is layered with rice on the bottom and the entree or veggie on top. It’s all 🌶! Hello Patrece and Joe! Noodles made from rice, wheat and mung bean flour or rice form the basis for every dish. Dessert is fresh fruit often with sticky rice….. yummmm.  And all the markets, especially the floating markets blast every sense.

New Flower Market

This country seems very spiritual.  Everywhere you look, along the busy streets, at homes and restaurants are “spirit houses”.  The spirit world is everywhere in Thailand where animism and folk beliefs are deeply infused with Buddhism.  These little houses come in all shapes and sizes from the very small to the very large.  Thai spirit houses are a shrine to the protective spirit of a place and are positioned in an auspicious spot most often in the corner of a property, home or business. High enough to show respect but low enough to enable daily offerings.
94% of Thais describe themselves as Buddhists.  Large temples and truly magnificent Buddhas are everywhere. The flower markets house workers making flower arrangements mostly for religious offerings.  The scents of jasmine and lotus abound.

Spirit Houses

Bangkok’s famous palace complex was built in 1782 and features several magnificent buildings including Wat Phra Kaeo (Temple of the Emerald Buddha), which contains a beautiful Emerald Buddha that dates back to the 14th century. Shoes are removed before entering and no pictures are allowed. They change the golden clothing of the Emerald Buddha either seasons. It’s a grueling day in the sun but definitely amazing Palace. The royal family has not lived in the palace since 1910.

My first trip to Hong Kong was nearly 50 years ago, in 1973.  As a junior in college I traveled to visit my aunt and uncle and their three children over Christmas vacation with my parents.  Promising to take me along if the price of wheat hit two dollars a bushel seemed a safe bet for my dad, but alas for him, the market went up and he kept his promise. 

A little history.  Of course much has changed.   The United Kingdom acquired Hong Kong in perpetuity following the first Opium War in 1842 via the Treaty of Nanking. The Kowloon Peninsula was added in 1860 and New Territories we’re leased in 1898 for 99 yrs.  The Sino-British Joint Declaration was signed by the Prime Ministers of the People’s Republic of China and the United Kingdom governments on 19 December 1984 in Beijing. This ceded Hong Kong , Kowloon and the New Territories to The People’s Republic of China effective July 1, 1997.  China promised “one China two systems” (communism and capitalism) for 50 yrs. Today Hong Kongers are trying to hold Beijing to that promise; hence the widespread protests.  A seat mate on my United flight said protests now occur mostly on weekends but to check the news everyday before leaving the hotel.  The Icon Hotel said the same.  No problems so far. A guide in the adjacent sampan last night said tourism is down 70%. But this is “the fight of their lives”.

In Hong Kong, on Chinese New Year’s Eve, January 24, the crowds are especially heavy at the flower markets. About 15 temporary markets are set up each year in parks or other public places. The scramble can get intense. Many vendors keep selling after midnight.It is thought that gifts of fresh flowers and plants give good luck. So it is a part of how Hong Kong and Macau people celebrate their holidays.

The Star Ferry is THE Hong Kong Ferry,one of the beloved icons of the city and a lot more than just a means of transportation. It has been shuttling residents between Hong Kong Island and Kowloon in the mainland for over 120 years. Up to 1978 when the Cross-Harbour Tunnel opened, it was the only way to cross the harbour.

Did I mention my traveling partner Ann is an adventurer at heart?Guided by Cathay Pacific‘s culture recommendations, we ended up in a seedy “typhoon shelter” (small inlets where boats are sheltered during the storms) for a dinner aboard a sampan.  We were actually in the Causeway Bay area of Hong Kong Island and were dropped off by a baffled taxi driver and after finding no signs for the “restaurant” we called the Shen Kee proprietor and she walked down to retrieve us.  Onto a beat up old boat chugging to a gently swaying sampan and our delicious dinner of beer, boiled shrimp, garlic crab and spicy crab and noodles began. About 8 o’clock the laser light show in the Harbour started and our night was complete! Good call Ann!

A guide on the neighboring sampan advised us to take a taxi to the top of the Peak Tram and ride it down to save time. There were no lines…. according to that guide, tourism is down 70% since the protests… I believe it.

The Peak Tram is a funucular railway in Hing Kong, which carries both tourists and residents to the upper levels of Hong Kong Island. Running from Garden Road Admiralty to Victoria Peak via the Mid-Levels, it provides the most direct route and offers good views over the harbour and skyscrapers of Hong Kong. The current renovations will be finished in 2021.

At the bottom of the peak tram we  decided to walk to lunch through the Central Business District teeming with young professionals everywhere and dressed for the part.  Escalators, gardens, sidewalks with a crush of people and google Maps turned the 20 minute walk into a 40 minute adventure but it was exhilarating! We were headed to another Culture Trip recommendation, Dim Sum Square.  My daughter would say it was dim sum done in a fast casual way… small place,  small seats and tables and a grumpy manager willing to help the lone visitors who were not Hong Kongers.  Tea in a pot at each table and a menu in Mandarin and English.  We decided on barbecued pork buns, crystal shrimp, soup dumplings and a bun with a filling that looked like a runny egg yolk but tasted sweet.    Mmmmm good!

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