Hanoi: Turtles, Puppets and Prison

Hanoi is a fascinating place, there is something going on at all hours of the day and night - even in the very early morning.

I headed down to Hoan Kiem Lake before sunrise one day, hoping to see the locals practicing t'ai chi, but what I actually saw was for more energetic. There were hundreds of people around the lake, before the shops and cafes opened, all partaking in some form of exercise. There were joggers and power walkers:

And lots of people doing some very energetic exercises (they are in the background in the photo above) to loud radio broadcasts, which were transmitted from the baskets of bicycles. There was lots of shaking and swinging of limbs, all in time with each other but strangely just out of time with the music (think of me on the dance floor).

I did see some more tranquil sport:

As well as badminton in the middle of roundabouts and, my personal favourite, ballroom dancing to Vietnamese techno music.

The lake is a special lake for the people of Hanoi as it is the home of the legendary turtle who grabbed the sword from the 15th century emperor who drove the Chinese out of Vietnam. There is actually a very large turtle in the lake although he is only one of three of his species remaining on the planet, so he must lead a lonely existence. Cu Rua was fished out of the lake back in 2011 to have some veterinary treatment - he weighed over 200kg and was over 2m long, but was found to be only 100 years old, so it must have been one of his forefathers who dove to the bottom of the lake with that magical sword.

Turtle Tower.

The turtle featured in some of the stories told at the water puppet show. This is an ancient and traditional art form, which has been used to tell fables and stories of normal farming/fishing life in Vietnam for over a thousand years. The puppets are controlled by a crew behind the screen who are up to their waists in the water, they now wear waders to stop the water borne infections that they were once plagued with. Here are some of my favourite puppets.

Drummers

The fisherman who blew smoke through his pipe.

Fairies

That turtle

The French influence can still be seen in the beautiful tree lined streets through Hanoi.

The Parisian lampposts

And the baguettes.

There was one more gruesome reminder of the French that I found....

This (well-used) guillotine in Hoa Lo Prison.

The prison was built in the late 1890's and housed up to 2,000 prisoners (even though it was built for only 400). 

It was a very creepy tour, as they played spooky music and had screaming and crying playing over the speakers in some rooms.

Many prisoners escaped through the sewers, which were only 25cm wide.

This prison was also known as the Hanoi Hilton during the American/Vietnam war, as it housed the American POW pilots who were shot down in and around Hanoi. John McCain was famously imprisoned here.

Hanoi is a fantastic city - full of culture and entertainment.