When we talk about Vietnam, what comes to mind is that it is a communist country. While this is true, it is now a socialist republic led by the Communist Party; the party and state are based on the ideologies of Marxism and Leninism. Vietnam is organized on the principles of democratic centralism and operates under Vietnamese law and its constitution.
Vietnam is one of the five remaining communist countries in the world today. The president is the head of the republic, and the prime minister is the head of the government. It has three branches: the executive, which is administered by the government and the president, the legislative, which consists of the national assembly, and the judiciary, which comprises of the courts (World Atlas).
Hanoi is the capital of Vietnam, which is in the north, and the country’s second-largest city. It has a long history as the political, cultural and educational center of Vietnam, dating back to at least the 10th century (Wikipedia).
Last week, a group of 24 golf enthusiasts from Cebu and Mindanao went to Hanoi for a golf game in two of Hanoi’s best golf courses, The Legends and Thang Lang. My wife, son and I joined this group that was organized by a good friend, Junie Cimafranca. We stayed for four days in Hanoi City and the experience was indeed unforgettable.
Worthy of praise is that the immigration officers asked no questions when we handed our passports, neither did they show uninviting facial expressions when we entered the immigration counter at the arrival area of Noi Bai International Airport in Hanoi.
Just like Bangkok, Thailand, only a few among the Vietnamese can speak English well. I told myself we, Filipinos, are better off than them since we are equipped with the facility to communicate well with the English language.
Talking of the traffic on Hanoi City’s streets or even outside of the metropolis there is nothing much different down here. Motorcycles dominate the streets. There are motorcycle drivers that drive against the flow of traffic. Seeing those undisciplined drivers, I just laughed to myself. But in our four days of stay, though, I did not notice any road accident.
We visited places in Hanoi City that used to be the center of the French government during its occupation, which started in 1858. The Hoa Lo prison, now a museum, was originally used by the French colonists for political prisoners that showed how the Vietnamese oppositionists were tortured. Hoa Lo prison was later used by North Vietnam for US prisoners during the Vietnam War.
We played golf at The Legends on Wednesday and on Friday at Thang Lang. These two golf courses are well manicured and maintained to the highest standards. The layout is breathtaking and very challenging even to our fellow golfers who are considered Class A players. Most of us, after the game, could only wish we had similar golf courses here.
On Wednesday, our break day from the golf game, we went to Ha Long Bay, a famous tourists’ destination. But before Ha Long Bay, our bus stopped at the huge Legend Pearl Shop where there was a demonstration on how the pearl was grown in the oysters at the farm. Guests were invited to eat fresh oysters. I tried and later regretted it because the oyster was too salty since they did not provide vinegar.
The Ha Long Bay tour on a boat that came with a buffet lunch was simply memorable. It is a cruise in and around the Unesco Heritage site. The name Ha Long means “descending dragon.” The bay features thousands of limestones karsts and islets in different shapes and sizes. It also has caves that my companions went down for a long walk.
After our cherished golf games in the two beautiful golf courses and treasured tour of Vietnam’s tourist spots, the worse came during our return trip on Friday night. The midnight flight to Manila was cancelled and moved to 3 a.m. We arrived at the Naia Terminal 1 at 7 a.m., Saturday and the connecting flight to Cebu at noon was again moved to 3 p.m. Well, all that we could do was sigh and complain to no one as we’re used to the delayed flights of PAL.