They weren't onion rings after all

Hanoi is a trip. It's a whole different world. Few traffic lights, and people park their mopeds on the sidewalks. Unless there are bigger sidewalks with a little room, then they make it an extra lane during rush hour. Half the people have helmets. Seat belts aren't worn by the majority of our cab drivers. People don't use car seats for their kids. People ride with their babies and toddlers on mopeds. I just watch and watch, trying to figure it out what I'm looking at. I play this game I call "What is wrong with this picture?" Like oh, there are 5 people on that moped.

Tonight we decided to check out a Vietnamese fast food joint called Lotteria. There are only a handful of fast food joints within walking distance. It's mostly where people have tiny closets open to the sidewalk to cook and itty bitty table and chairs on the sidewalks. I think crime is low here, I'm just guessing. Because on many streets here you can find people chopping up vegetables on the sidewalks. With decent sized knives. I've always felt safe here. The biggest danger is just crossing the road. If it wasn't for Ron, I would spend these entire 2 weeks on one square block. But we made it to Lotteria, and I was pulled in by the offer of onion rings. It just sounded so good.
I ordered some and a little paper plate was placed in front of me with 3 little rings. Well, good for my plan to not over eat. They were tasty, and they weren't onions, but I wasn't sure what they were. I shared with Ron, so I went for a second round. Not as good for my diet. When I get back to the States I will have to weigh myself again. But my point is that when I ordered I looked a bit closer at the menu on the counter and it turns out they are "squid rings". Really? Second question: Why? Third question: On purpose? People do this on purpose. It's just wrong to eat the slim flexible limbs of sea creatures, if you ask me. Nor the rest of it. Sure, squid is full of vitamins and minerals. But it's not a pleasant texture at all. For me, it's like eating an alien.

Day 11 in Hanoi was what I call “information epic”  Ron solidified the plans for flying out next week, and where we will be staying for 2 weeks in Nha Trang (on the coast). We also went to a vast underground megamall. This place was so noisy, full of so many people. It included an ice skating rink, a bowling center and a movie complex. The skating rink was partly surrounded by restaurants where you could watch the skaters. 

Day 12 was about going to another huge new mall to people watch. Just the ride there is fascinating as all of Hanoi flies by my window. I was telling Ron about how it’s funny that we do everything together but still have different experiences. For example we sit on opposite sides of the cab, looking at different views of the same road. These cars are so small, if you look out the window at the side, you don’t see the view out the other side or the front. We sit at the same table, but across from each other. So we have different views of what is going on behind the other person. It’s kind of ironic. We see a lot of things that are the same, but plenty of things that are different. Plus our view, or perspective, starts from 2 different places. We have 2 very unique sets of eyes based on lifetimes of separate experiences. I will look at birds in cages in front of stores, and Ron doesn’t notice this trend. He notices if the men have facial hair or not. He notices the different kinds of mopeds and scooters and motorbikes. I just notice the outfits the women wear while they are traveling. They really cover up, and I wonder if it's due to wanting lighter skin. They wear these jackets that cover their legs and hands too. It got up to 102 degrees today. How do they do it, being all covered up?

Now it’s Day 13 is July 3^rd.

I made friends with a girl at the front desk. She kept looking at me. Then she finally started to talk to me, so I went over there. And that I’m one of the first foreigners she’s ever tried to speak English with. She was very sweet. We went to the Ho Chi Minh mausoleum, but it was closed. They take that place very seriously, it is guarded well. This man was the first president of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam. He died in 1969 and his mausoleum today is supposedly still one of the most visited places in Hanoi.

We went to the Ho Chi Minh museum and it was busy in there, and hot. And there were several little kids who just stared hard at us. They didn't seem so interested in the museum. They appeared to be dragged there by parents. One of the things that stood out for me was how they mixed history and art. I was fanning myself the whole time, it was just shy of being comfortable (I'm getting creative with describing the heat here). Then we went outside and it was even less comfortable. Even with an air conditioned ride back to the room I was completely overheated. That’s what naps are for. We do very little here because it’s too hot to even wander down the street. But we have been doing research and reading.

Tomorrow is the 4^th of July and we have been invited to a buffet dinner by some friends from Hawaii who we met last week. They just got an apartment here, they love Vietnam. The three of them were here at the hotel and we bumped into them a lot. I love the way I can make friends and connect so quickly with other people in my travels. 

There are a few lakes around here, this is one of them. If you want the full effect, you have to stand in front of your oven until you start sweating, then you will feel like you were there with me.

This is the the plaza above the mega mall. I swear the food court was a block long with restaurants on both sides.

               Ho Chi Minh, the Communist revolutionary leader. This is his statue in the museum.

                 This is the building that houses his body, and usually has a long line of visitors.

Families on mopeds. I have seen 2 small accidents, but not with families on board. Mostly traffic is slow enough to avoid accidents.