Friday Night-September 12

On Friday night, we went on a food tour that led us around places in Hanoi. The purpose of the food tour was to be able to have the experience of eating some traditional Vietnamese food. Some of the foods that we ate are things that I would normally eat like pomegranate seeds or beef meat and chicken. There were also some things that I don't normally get to eat in America, either because they don't sell it or because nobody knows what the food is or how to eat it properly. Some of the new foods that I ate were dragonfruit, white pomegranate, and a rice dish. The food tour was more than just being able to try out food. As our tour guide led us around the city, he showed us different historical spots or places worth noting. One place that he showed us was a city gate of Hanoi that was built for protection of the city. It is the only gate still standing in Hanoi. After the food tour ended, we went to the Night Market of Hanoi where people came and set up their products for sale and sold them at a more reasonable price than at their own stores. We were warned about thieves that would snip the strings of backpacks or purses and steal whatever was in it. We spent about an hour at the night market and it was fun overall. One thing that we all were excited to see was the Korean food stand. They were selling Korean food and we all agreed that we wanted to come back to the night market for it. We hadn't really brought any money so we were not able to buy anything. However, we had also eaten supper about an hour before. We left our hotel at about 4:45 PM and got back at 10:30 PM. We had done about 4 hours and 45 minutes of walking. One hour was sitting for supper or at the restaurants, when we were not walking. However, it was still a lot of walking to do in one day. In Korea, we used to walk everywhere we went. After we would get back, our feet and legs would be sore. I haven't had that experience since we were in Korea. One thing that I am thankful for in America is that we have the luxury of vehicles to get us to our destinations. Be thankful for your cars and that you do not have to walk everywhere like some of the poor people have to over here because they cannot afford a moped, much less a car.

-James