Vietnam

It took a while for this year to kickoff my vacation, but in November it finally happened; I was gonna travel for a month as a backpacker again, but unlike the similar year of 2013, this time I would arrange everything completely, and I was basically all alone.

Starting with Vietnam, I landed in Hanoi, and I was overwhelmed by the numerous motorbikes, but managing the chaotic traffic was actually do-able as long as I monitored every cross section with my eyes.

With the Vietnam War or Second Indochina War having piqued my interest, it's the main reason for me to visit this crowded country, as I visited several war attractions in Hanoi, Hue and Ho Chi Minh.

Uncle Ho's biography and revolution and such is similar to other socialistic and communism characters from the 20th century. It's interesting to see his teachings still functioning in the next century after all of the invaders have been defeated.

The Old Quarter in Hanoi is the heart with the Sword Lake nearby where I witnessed the unique Water Puppet Show. Numerous food street vendors, bars, markets and people venture inside this area, and it's definitely worth starting or finishing here.

I did a group tour towards the picturesque Ha Long Bay, which reminded me heavily of my time spent in Guilin and Yangshuo. I befriended a Brazilian here named Silvio, and later on we also drank beer in the Old Quarter.

I also checked out the Imperial Citadel, the Military Museum, Quan Thanh temple and of course Ho Chi Minh's Mausoleum, but his body was temporarily getting "refreshed" in Russia. Still, I was content to see it's exterior.

After taking a nighttrain on a ticket I booked online long enough before visiting, I entered Hue, the former capital of Vietnam, and nearby, the old DMZ zone also split up North and South Vietnam from one another.

Hue's Forbidden Purple City was ridiculously large, and it obviously reminded me of Beijing's Forbidden (Red if you will) City. My Airbnb owner arranged a driver named Mr.Long for me, and alongside the city and some royal tombs, he also brought me to key DMZ attractions such as the actual old border.

After taking another very long train ride from Hue to Saigon which took 20 hours, I was of course reminded of my 25 hour China train trip, but this time, atleast my seat was reserved. At one point the Vietnamese people would sleep all over the floor and below the seats, while smirking at my tourist face.

Ho Chi Minh or Saigon was the final stop in Vietnam for me, and I experienced the nearby highlights such as the Mekong Delta and the Cu Chi Tunnels in group tours. While I fired my first AK47, I reflected back on Vietnam´s ancient and recent histories, as the Vietnam War surely was a mess.

For an average sized country, Vietnam surely has been growing more prominent economically in the region, and the country felt like it was modernizing at a good pace. There´s plenty to see in this country when speaking of nature, culture, history and communities, and I had a good time exploring and experiencing!