Reflection Of Hanoi By JunJie

Yes Yes i know,its late and im on the computer. Its bad for me i presume? Anyway,the trip to Hanoi was full of big bang of exciting activities and experiences.For my first impression of Hanoi, i first thought that Hanoi was an undeveloped country whereby its more to what it is like in the 19th century of Singapore,but it prove me wrong as the days goes by as i can see construction of buildings and shopping centres which told me that Hanoi is not as undeveloped as i thought, U could say that they are catching up to how a developed country is like.

During my stay at Hanoi it has taught me lots of things and left a lot of memorable experiences in me, one such experience was the trishaw ride around the streets of Hanoi which i rate it as TOTALLY AWESOME! It surprises me a lot, though that the traffic was heavy and cramped but the cars and motors gave way to each other despite the unorganised traffic movements,when a car or motor honked at U do not be shocked as it is something like 'excuse me coming through~!' (correct me if im wrong though). It gave me an impression that they are very flexible at driving as they do not bang onto each other's vehicle nor any pedestrians which i was going like 'Wooooaah! this is some great driving skills!' (gotta learn that when im legal to drive).From this, they have taught me how road courtesy is important in managing the movement of traffic other than keep honking on the road. To me it was fun as U don't get to do something like that in Singapore now.Now If U try something like that in Singapore im afraid U might get a knocking down experience to the hospital rather than a fun and thrilling experience. (Touch Wood Though).

Another example was a boat trip to the Ha Long Bay (I spelt it correctly right?), by the way i was trying to upload some pictures for display but well the uploading was like forever so never mind. I encourage all who have the intention to visit Hanoi to take a boat trip to the Ha Long Bay. the scenery was more beyond what words could describe it, when i look at them i felt at ease and relaxed, free from the troubles of the world (but there is no such thing as U can escape from the troubles of the world), I bet that U couldn't see something like that in Singapore can you?

There was another experience that dealt a great impact on me during the stay at Hanoi, which was the visit to the Hilton Prison whereby it was once where the Vietnamese prisoners were locked in, It was in fact shocking as they showcase how the prisoners were tortured and what are some of the methods that is being use for execution. The methods used for execution was brutal and the methods used to torture prisoners were cruel, i was wondering if the people who are killing and torturing the prisoners are even human. However there are prisoners who managed to escape the prison and also from the suffering.

I am fortunate to be a Singaporean ( thats who i am and where i grew up) as Singapore is a peaceful country whereby there is no conflict within the nation and i need not go through hardships like what the Vietnamese prisoners did. After what i experience in Hanoi and compare it with Singapore. I learnt how to not take things for granted as the things that i took for granted was very important that one is fortunate to have it.

In conclusion i think that this trip to Hanoi was worth the time and eventful, i would like to thank the teachers and the tour guide (Mr Quynh) who has participated in this trip as long as all the other students as well. It was indeed an interesting trip that has spiced up my holidays.