Vietnam Travel Haiku - Hanoi Reflections Poem by john tiong chunghoo

Hoan Kiem Lake
chinese influence runs
so deep

Ba Din Square
in the quietness, a nation's
reverberating dream

Temple of Literature
on the myriad stelai, the crumbling
essence of confucius

Temple of Literature
around the ancient sages
students pray for good results

cold and stiller than the corpse
the guards at Uncle Ho's
embalmed body

Considered the cultural center and former capital of North Vietnam, Hanoi's French influence shows in the charming tree-lined streets, lakes throughout the city, and abundant French colonial architecture, seen in buildings like the Opera House and the Presidential Palace. Romantic Hoan Kiem Lake is home to a variety of picturesque temples and bridges. Walk to the Temple of Literature, site of the country's oldest university, and then on to Ba Dinh Square, where communist revolutionary Ho Chi Minh ceremoniously declared Vietnam's independence in 1945. You can catch a glimpse of Ho's embalmed body at his mausoleum in the middle of the square.