SailorJill and I Sail on the Orient Express a.k.a. Millenium's Immersion Cruise

[SailorJack]

A quick quiz. Are there more cars or motorcycles/motor scooters in Hanoi? Answer below.

 

 

 

 

Even with motor bikes you get traffic snarls.

 

 

 

 

Cars were at a distinct disadvantage. They would stop at a traffic light and then the bikes would squeeze between them and line up in front.

 

 

 

[A Sixth?]

I am sure you will have a different experience. Same thing happened to us. We visited the Vietnam 7 or eight years ago and found the country quite different this time - much more westernized and tourist oriented.

 

Maybe I'm wrong but my take was that Texed was there long enough ago to be sponsored by the US military and his visit was all expenses paid. :D

[SailorJack]

Maybe I'm wrong but my take was that Texed was there long enough ago to be sponsored by the US military and his visit was all expenses paid. :D

 

I missed that! In that case Vietnam is going to be VERY different!

[A Sixth?]

I missed that! In that case Vietnam is going to be VERY different!

 

Love your updates and pics. Just retired and planning the same cruise in the near(ish) future.

[SailorJack]

As we drove through Hanoi we were surprised at the various architectural materials that were evident. In talking with a Vietnamese student I asked about that fact and was told it was a result of the US bombing Hanoi. Reconstruction used whatever materials were available. I asked if this area had been bombed and he responded that every area had been bombed. He was not old enough to witnessed the bombing but was repeating what he had been told. There was no rancor in his retelling - just talking about something that was sort of ancient history to him.

 

This photo sort of highlights what we were seeing. In the photo are tin roofs, exposed brick, modern corner picture windows, some surviving French architecture on a balcony, and a modern high rise building in the background - a real oleo of styles and material.

 

 

 

 

 

Buildings in traditional French style that survived the bombing. We actually saw lots of building in this style all over Hanoi.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Of course there were lots of new construction throughout the city.

 

 

[Texed]

Maybe I'm wrong but my take was that Texed was there long enough ago to be sponsored by the US military and his visit was all expenses paid. :D

 

Yeah, and the currency we used was MPC. :D

[silkismom]

;pUs too!

[SailorJack]

This innocuous wall is the outside wall of the infamous "Hanoi Hilton" prison camp in Hanoi.

 

 

 

 

It was actually built by the French in 1886 to hold political prisoners and Vietnamese people striving for independence. The "Maison Centrale" - which translates to "Central House" - is a euphemism used by the French for "prison". This is the main entrance to what is left of the prison - most of which was demolished in the 1990's.

 

 

 

 

When the French were defeated and left Vietnam the Vietnamese took over the prison and renamed it Hoa Lo - which has been translated as either "fiery furnace", "Hell's Hole", or "Stove." The name comes from the name of the street that ran along side the prison - pho hoa lo.

 

 

[SailorJack]

This wall separated the prison from the street. To hinder escapes, the tops of the walls were imbedded with shards of broken glass. Our guide told us that relatives of the prisoners would through things over the wall - tobacco, heroin, food, etc.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A model of the prison.

 

 

 

 

A photo of the prison taken during a flyover. This was what the prison looked like up until 1954. It was interesting in going through the prison to see that more space and displays were devoted to when the French ran the prison and much less with respect to its role in housing Americans during the war.

 

[SailorJack]

Love your updates and pics. Just retired and planning the same cruise in the near(ish) future.

 

 

Glad you are following along. Just one more port to go and then I have to find another cruise.

 

Jack

[Beejay4016]

Love your writing! Would definitely buy a book written by you!!

 

I'd be queueing up for one also.

[SailorJack]

Yeah, and the currency we used was MPC. :D

 

I have no idea what MPC was, but you will need Vietnamese Dong this time around.:)

 

Jack

[Tom47]

I have no idea what MPC was, but you will need Vietnamese Dong this time around.:)

 

Jack

Military Provisional Currency?

[Buck Turgidson]

MPC, military payment certificate

[Tom47]

MPC, military payment certificate

So Buck, are you going to be in the remake of Doctor Strangelove?:)

[Texed]

I have no idea what MPC was, but you will need Vietnamese Dong this time around.:)

Jack

 

Sorry Jack. it was a joke. Because the dollar was a highly sought out commodity, we could not carry dollars "in country" at the time. :)

[Buck Turgidson]

So Buck, are you going to be in the remake of Doctor Strangelove?:)

LOL, nice catch Tom:)

[SailorJack]

Just inside the entrance to the prison was this sign. The sign is a little blurry, but It reads:

 

Hao Lo prison was constructed by French colonists in 1896 on the land of Phu Khanh village of Vinh Xuong canton in Tho Xong District, Hanoi. Formerly, Phu Khanh village came into being as a result of the merger of Nguyen Khanh and Nam Phu hamlets. In the 19th century, Phu Khanh villge was the only destination in the Thang Long citadel where earthen home appliances, such as kettles, teapots and portable stoves were made. Accordingly, Phu Khanh village was also known as Hoa Lo village, the village of portable stoves. Those handmade products of Phu Khanh village wee preferred not only by dwellers in the Thang Long Citadel but also by people from far and wide. Thanks to the tradition of making of "Hao Lo" portable earthen stoves, Phu Khanh villagers enjoyed a good life.

 

When the French colonists came and occupied Hanoi they moved all villagers, old pagodas, and communal houses in Phu Khanh village to other places. Chan Tien pagoda and Phu Khanh communal house were located to the end of Ba Trieu street where they are today. Bich Thu and Bich Hoa pagodas were destroyed completely. French colonist then built a prison, a courthouse and the head quarters for their secret police on the land area of Phu Khanh village, forming a complete autocratic ruling system to aid their domination and oppression against the patriotic movements of the Vietnamese people.

 

Covering a total land area of 12, 908 sq. m, Hoa Lo Prison was one the largest and fortified prisons in Indochina at that time. In 1886, Hanoians in particular and Vietnamese people in general lost forever an ancient village which practice a time-honoured craft.

 

 

 

 

The forbidding door leading into the prison itself. For many prisoners this was the last thing they ever saw outside the prison.

 

 

 

Prison issued clothing. From the pictures we saw around the museum they must have quickly turned into rags. The "MC" on the clothing is for "Maison Centrale" - the French name for the prison.

 

[SailorJack]

This is how prisoners were shackled. Full Disclosure: These are not real people.

 

 

 

 

Our guide said that more difficult prisoners had both legs shackled to further restrict movement.

 

 

 

At night this had to be stifling in the heat and humidity.

 

[SailorJack]

Hao Lo prison was often cited as one of the most dreaded prisons in Asia. This sign helps to explain why.

 

 

 

 

This was one of the solitary cells.

 

 

 

 

Same shot without the flash. Life had to be desperate in one of these cells.

 

 

 

 

Conditions were not much better for the women prisoners.

 

 

[SailorJack]

A lot of space was devoted to describing a mass escape from the prison.

 

 

 

 

A cutout section of the original sewer used in the escape of the 100 prisoners.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A depiction of how they escaped. Many of those who escaped became leaders in the Communist Party that forced the French out of Vietnam and went on to become leaders in the new government.

 

[SailorJack]

Military Provisional Currency?

 

 

MPC, military payment certificate

 

Thanks folks. I had no idea.

[SailorJack]

As I mentioned earlier, most of the displays in Hanoi Hilton dealt with the actions of the French. These murals depict life under the French prison guards.

 

 

 

 

Fists raised in defiance on the left side of the mural while mistreatment depicted on the right side.

 

 

 

This is one of 16 guillotines that the French used to execute prisoners. Notice the bucket to collect the severed heads.

 

 

[SailorJack]

Doctors and medicine were probably unknown to prisoners so...

 

 

 

 

The almond tree against a modern backdrop. The tree must be at least 80 years old.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

One can almost imagine prisoners coming up to the tree and peeling off bark to treat the cuts and bruises incurred from the mistreatment illustrated in the images posted on the wall. I wonder if American prisoners here had access to the tree.

 

 

 

[DavyJoneses]

As I mentioned earlier, most of the displays in Hanoi Hilton dealt with the actions of the French. These murals depict life under the French prison guards.

 

 

 

 

Fists raised in defiance on the left side of the mural while mistreatment depicted on the right side.

 

 

 

This is one of 16 guillotines that the French used to execute prisoners. Notice the bucket to collect the severed heads.

 

 

 

I had no idea they used these outside of France - and they had 16 of them! You have to wonder how many executions they had.