Hanoi, Thailand and Home Sweet Home!

  Hanoi, Vietnam
Monday, October 8, 2007

We were left stranded by our bus company on the outskirts of Hanoi at 6am in the morning so this was not a good start. We were told by bus company a minibus would come and pick us up but after waiting 30 minutes in the rain, we had to give up and get a taxi. Maybe its because we are at the end of our trip and a little tired of buses by now, but we are finding traveling in Vietnam a pain! The bus companies here never do what they say they do and this was the last straw.  All the taxis were asking over 10 dollars to drive us into the city, it was raining, we were tired (it was 6.30am by now and we didn't get much sleep on the bus) and all we wanted was to put down our bags and get something to eat.  We managed to find one taxi man who would take us into town for 4 dollars, still way overpriced, but he knew we had no choice! Damn bus company!

Not a good start but as it turned out, we ended up really liking Hanoi.  The people are not so friendly, everyone is out to rip you off some way or another but yet there is still a nice vibe about the city.  If you want to relax, don't come to Hanoi!  Hawkers are everywhere as usual, insisting on taking you on their bike or cyclo, kids are trying to sell you postcards, women trying to sell you bananas and pastries and men want to sell you marijuana    The locals eat, sit, work and park their bikes on the pavements, so you are forced to battle with the motorbikes on the street when you want to walk anywhere.  Vietnamese people work long hours and if they're awake, they don't really see why anyone else should be asleep.  At 5.30am every morning we were woken with the sounds of blasting Asian pop music, scooters revving and constant tooting of horns and shouting.  There is nothing for it but get up and join in. One morning we got motorbikes into Lenin Park at 6am in the morning.  This is a big park in the city center where everyone goes to exercise before the sun gets too hot. It seems like the whole city was awake and at the park.  We expected to see the usual Tai Chi, Badminton and aerobics but we didn't expect the ballroom dancing classes which seemed to be the most popular among locals. At 6.15 in the morning hundreds of people were waltzing to Abba's, 'Fernando' which was blasting from speakers.  Some were just dancing alone swaying their hips trance-like with eyes shut!  It was all a bit surreal.  Don't see this being too popular in Pheonix Park at 6am!

We took a boat trip around Halong Bay for two days and a night, just to relax and get out of the city.  It really was beautiful with landscape that we haven't seen before.  We like Vietnam the more time we spend here, it not our favourite in South East Asia, but it has still been a fantastic experience. We are experts at crossing roads now in the manic traffic, 6 lanes or 10 lanes, bring it on!  There is no point waiting for a gap in the traffic so you just have to throw yourself out there. The trick is to walk with purpose, not too fast and catch the eye of the oncoming bikers so they can avoid you.  

We are back to Thailand for a few days of rest and relaxation before flying home on the 10th October. We went to a LadyBoy show last night which was amazing..! We're both really excited about coming home, of course a little sad that our adventure is over, but there are lots of new things to look forward to as well!  We can't wait for the simple things, a big Irish breakfast, that first pint of Guinness, having clean ironed clothes hanging up in our wardrobes,  being able to go to the fridge to make a cheese sandwich and of course, most of all, we can't wait to see our family and friends. xxx

We've truly had the time of our lives and enjoyed every minute our epic adventure.  From hunting Anacondas in the Amazon, climbing Macchu Picchu at sunrise, viewing giant icebergs in the Antarctic, attempting salsa dancing in Cuba and crazy tubing in Laos, we are going home with experiences that will remain with us for the rest of our lives. It's impossible to sum up our journey in a few words, but we feel very fortunate to have traveled around the world for a year and to have experienced so much - If anyone reading this has even the smallest inkling of taking the plunge and traveling for a few weeks, months or a year, we totally recommend it!! After all, Life's Too Short.