Le luxe des voyages au long cours, c'est qu'ils permettent par moment de se libérer des contraintes de temps et de découvrir en profondeur une région ou en l'occurrence une ville. Hanoi est le passage logique, obligé même, entre deux excursions dans le nord du pays. Autant dire qu'après presque trois semaines en terre tonkinoise, nous commençons à connaître tous les recoins de la cité mais c'est toujours un plaisir de retrouver le vieux quartier et nos petites habitudes gastronomiques: café matinal dans la rue de l'opéra, plat de nouilles au coin de la rue sans oublier le délicieux "bun cha" (soupe de vermicelles avec des morceaux de porc grillé), toujours un peu plus difficile à dénicher. Nous avions déjà bien roulé notre bosse dans la capitale avant le départ de Jacky et vu les "incontournables", si tant est que cette expression ait un sens dans le cas d'Hanoi.
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| Petit café bien serré "en terrasse" |
A commencer par la dépouille embaumée de Ho Chi Minh qui gît sous des tonnes de béton dans son imposant mausolée. On ne rigole pas avec le père de la nation et c'est sous haute surveillance que les visiteurs sont invités à passer respectueusement devant le corps cireux du vieil homme. Pas de bruit, pas de photos et une forte odeur d'éther, on se croirait au chevet d'un mourant. Même atmosphère pesante au rez-de-chaussée de l'ancienne prison de Hoa Lo, bâtie par les Français à la fin du dix-neuvième siècle pour mâter toute velléité d'indépendance. Nombre d'horreurs y ont été commises, comme les autorités vietnamiennes aiment à le rappeler à grand renfort de mannequins en plastique émaciés, entassés dans les vieilles cellules sombres et humides. Mais au premier étage, l'ambiance change du tout au tout et on peut découvrir ce que certains appellent parfois ironiquement le "Hanoi Hilton". c'est là que les soldats américains capturés pendant la guerre du Vietnam, essentiellement des pilotes, étaient retenus comme prisonniers. Une fois de plus, la propagande va bon train et on aurait vite fait de penser que la prison n'était qu'une joyeuse colonie de vacances pour Yankees. Sur les photos d'époque, on peut voir certains captifs, hilares, préparer le repas de Thanksgiving ou décorer un sapin de Noël. Mais ce que nous aimons à Hanoi, c'est la ville elle-même avec ses rues chaotiques, certes un peu moins encombrées qu'à Saigon. Pour nous, c'est là que bat le coeur du Vietnam!
The luxury of long-haul travel is that you're no longer bound by a time limit and it often gives the opportunity to explore in depth an area or in this case a city. Hanoi is the logical stopover between two excursions in the North. Needless to say that during the almost three weeks we spent on Tonkinese soil, we got to know every corner of the city but it was always a pleasure to be back in the Old Quarter and restart our gastronomic habits: morning coffee near the opera, fried noodles around the corner, not to mention the delicious "bun cha" (vermicelli soup with chunks of pork), always a little harder to find. We had already seen quite a few places before Jacky left and particularly the not-to-be-missed sights even though the term does not really apply in the case of Hanoi.
Starting with the embalmed remains of Ho Chi Minh, lying under tons of concrete in his imposing mausoleum. The Father of the Nation is under close surveillance and visitors are required to show respect. It is a serious affair: no noise, no pictures and a strong smell of ether, like at the bedside of a dying man. Same heavy, serious atmosphere on the ground floor of the former Hoa Lo Prison, built by the French in the late nineteenth century to house Vietnamese political prisoners during their struggle for independence. Lots of crimes were committed there, as the Vietnamese government likes to remind people with the use of plastic mannequins displayed in various dark and damp cells. But on the first floor, the atmosphere changes completely in what was ironically nicknamed "Hanoi Hilton". This is where US soldiers, captured during the Vietnam War, mostly pilots, were held as prisoners. Once again, propaganda is well underway and one could easily believe that it was no more than a merry summer camp for Yankees. You can see tons of pictures with laughing prisoners cooking Thanksgiving meal or decorating a Christmas tree! There's a lot to be said about Hanoi but what we really loved about it was the bustling city as a whole with its chaotic streets (although they're not as busy as in Saigon). Definitely where the heart of Vietnam beats!
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| Scène de rue à Hanoi |
The luxury of long-haul travel is that you're no longer bound by a time limit and it often gives the opportunity to explore in depth an area or in this case a city. Hanoi is the logical stopover between two excursions in the North. Needless to say that during the almost three weeks we spent on Tonkinese soil, we got to know every corner of the city but it was always a pleasure to be back in the Old Quarter and restart our gastronomic habits: morning coffee near the opera, fried noodles around the corner, not to mention the delicious "bun cha" (vermicelli soup with chunks of pork), always a little harder to find. We had already seen quite a few places before Jacky left and particularly the not-to-be-missed sights even though the term does not really apply in the case of Hanoi.
Starting with the embalmed remains of Ho Chi Minh, lying under tons of concrete in his imposing mausoleum. The Father of the Nation is under close surveillance and visitors are required to show respect. It is a serious affair: no noise, no pictures and a strong smell of ether, like at the bedside of a dying man. Same heavy, serious atmosphere on the ground floor of the former Hoa Lo Prison, built by the French in the late nineteenth century to house Vietnamese political prisoners during their struggle for independence. Lots of crimes were committed there, as the Vietnamese government likes to remind people with the use of plastic mannequins displayed in various dark and damp cells. But on the first floor, the atmosphere changes completely in what was ironically nicknamed "Hanoi Hilton". This is where US soldiers, captured during the Vietnam War, mostly pilots, were held as prisoners. Once again, propaganda is well underway and one could easily believe that it was no more than a merry summer camp for Yankees. You can see tons of pictures with laughing prisoners cooking Thanksgiving meal or decorating a Christmas tree! There's a lot to be said about Hanoi but what we really loved about it was the bustling city as a whole with its chaotic streets (although they're not as busy as in Saigon). Definitely where the heart of Vietnam beats!
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