Vietnam

Hanoi

 

Vietnam is such a beautiful country. We were fortunate enough to travel there in 2010 with not just our children but also my brothers family. This trip was bittersweet as it would probably not have eventuated without the tragic loss of two family members.

Daily life on the streets of Hanoi

Three years ago now my MIL passed away. We had to travel to Sydney for her funeral and while we were there we were also able to catch up with my brother and his family, It was my daughters birthday and we had a great night of catching up. The conversation centred around the importance of living life in the now. My brother and his wife had also lost close friends recently. So we decided that a trip to Vietnam was the go. My brother had travelled the world extensively in his youth but Vietnam had never been on his list. We were fortunate to have a little inheritance coming our way to finance the trip.

Moving the cattle along the beach at Hoi An

 We left dinner that night on a high...we had a plan....the kids were excited....it would be their first trip overseas!

Hanoi -this man made these detailed figures from Vietnamese playdoh!

That was the last time I saw my brother alive......he died three months later very suddenly and very tragically.....ten days after his fiftieth birthday!

Beautiful view after 1000 steps!

Nine months later my husband and I decided that we were going to continue planning our trip. I sent my SIL an email explaining our decision....would she be ready to join us?? I was certainly overjoyed when she accepted our invitation.....it would be have been what he wanted.

My SIL (R) and I on a junk in Halong Bay

So to say that trip was memorable is an understatement. We had the best time! We laughed , we cried, we remembered, we experienced, we celebrated, we honoured. My brother has now travelled to Vietnam as we left some of his ashes in the most beautiful place on earth.

The most beautiful, special place on earth.