Allan Stratton's Blog, page 3

VIETNAM: THE CRAZY HOUSE

Welcome to a Tim Burton movie set in real life! Dalat's Crazy House may not follow socialist architectural principles, but luckily it was designed by a daughter of a local Communist head honcho so it's Wacadoo Wackadoo all the way to the land of multi-coloured birds. The architect is a Paris trained PhD, actually, and certainly one of a kind -- even in the circus that is Dalat her building stands out. and yes, people can actually stay here -- it's not just a ride.

This is a dining area a.k.a. ...

VIETNAM: LANTERN CELEBRATIONS

Hanoi is celebrating its millennium as a capital city this year. There are festivities all over the country. This week was Hoi An's turn which accounts for the floats among the lanterns. Enjoy the night lights, and the lanterns both festive and commercial. Next post, I'll show you the city by day. It's one of the few old cities in Vietnam that didn't get obliterated and is well worth a look. also a taste! Its restaurants have the best cuisine in the entire country!





























See ya next post,

Allan

VIETNAM: LANTERN CELEBRATIONS

Hanoi is celebrating its millennium as a capital city this year. There are festivities all over the country. This week was Hoi An's turn which accounts for the floats among the lanterns. Enjoy the night lights, and the lanterns both festive and commercial. Next post, I'll show you the city by day. It's one of the few old cities in Vietnam that didn't get obliterated and is well worth a look. also a taste! Its restaurants have the best cuisine in the entire country!





























See ya next post,

Allan

VIETNAM: MONASTERY RETREAT

After the hustle and bustle of Ho Chi Minh City, a trip to the Buddhist monastery/teaching complex in the hills surrounding Dalat was just what the doctor ordered. What a joy to wander/wonder the grounds, free of our "guide" who happily texted his way through our visit.

The complex was sooooooo tranquil. There were larger shrines for prayer...





And smaller. All filled with incense.




And a place for the monks to sleep.



We loved the wander down to the lake...



In the morning haze, the lake was ethereal...

VIETNAM AND CAMBODIA: SNEAK PEEKS

Okay, I'm either at the Cannes International Film Festival now where the film of my novel CHANDA'S SECRETS is screening as an Official Selection under the title LIFE, ABOVE ALL. Or I've done that and am in Venice. In either case, I think you'll forgive me for not taking time out to post. Instead here are random sneak peeks of places and people from my trip to Vietnam and Cambodia that I'll be showing you when I'm home and have shown you the festival and Venice. (If you're a newbie, you can c...

DALAT: VIETNAM'S NIAGARA FALLS

Dalat is Vietnam's Niagara Falls. There isn't a falls but there is a beautiful lake for honeymooners to paddle around in. Apparently. When we were there it was being drained for sludge. Aside from that, the town is pretty and has a bunch of neat stuff like tacky advertising (see above), the summer palace of ex-Emperor (a.k.a. French flunky) Bao Dai, the Crazy House which is truly a fun time inside the head of a gonzo architect (female head of the local party boss with a PhD in architecture fr...

VIETNAM: FROM DICTATORS TO DALAT

So last post I said we'd be in Dalat today, the Niagara Falls of Vietnam -- minus the falls. But I thought I'd be remiss if I didn't show you ANY public buildings in Saigon. (Or Ho Chi Minh City as they say in the North, or if they work for the Vietnamese government.) So okay. This is the entrance to Vietnam's answer to Disneyworld. We didn't go inside, but I thought the dragon might catch your attention.

Below is the building everyone my age remembers -- Reunification Palace, known as the Pre...

INSIDE THE VIET CONG TUNNELS

So here I am in Cu Chi one of the 163 miles of tunnels north of Saigon that let the Viet Cong appear and vanish as if by magic and led to some of the fiercest bombing and defoliation in the war. It's weird down here. So come along for the tour. I guarantee you'll see more than the inside of my nose.

First of all note the tiny opening into the tunnel. You enter arms over your head and close the trap. As you can imagine, when it's properly in place it's impossible to see where it is. Poof! you'...

SAIGON: UNCHARTED TERRITORY

So here we go -- into the Big Muddy -- a.k.a. the tiny waterways of Saigon's District 2 which take us out of the urban core and into, well, a whole other world very much like the Mekong Delta.

We found this boat by accident. A guy at the dock was hawking a trip but he wasn't especially official, and Daniel was a little afraid we were going to get taken upriver, surprised by some gang, murdered and dumped. But in the words of Blanche du Bois, "I have always depended upon the kindness of strange...

SAIGON BY NIGHT

Saigon (Ho Chi Minh City) at night is a wonderfully garish spectacle. Here's the big night time market. (Check out the last post for a shot of the death-defying gauntlet of mopeds you have to face to get to the market.

Here's Daniel wandering a line of stalls.



And here's the city from the bar at the top of the Sheridan.



From street level, check out one of the nicer streets.



And one you wouldn't want your mother on alone.



Even the trees get festive at night.






Yowza. tomorrow a slower pace along the r...