Good Morning Vietnam

Travelling by train, as by plane, you have to get used to some really inconvient arrival times. Today was one of those days. We arrived into Hanoi, though not the central train station, just before six in the morning. We couldn't get all the way into the central station because of issues with the rail bridge, which was once the longest in the world, and is so old, it was designed by Mon. Eiffel, of Parisian scaffolding tower fame.

As is customary in this part of the world, it was time to run the gauntlet of taxis, trying to provide their services. We shared a cab with Aisha, a traveller we met on the train the night before. She had been travelling through Japan and China, on her way to Melbourne, Australia. Hanoi was her last stop, before hopping on the plane for the long flight to the Antipodes.

Even with the train not going right into the middle of town, and the taxi ride, we still got to our hotel at about 0630, far too early to check in. We did take advantage of the hotel breakfast however, and were offered the option of using the room of someone that had checked out early, before it was cleaned. This was a rather strange offer, and not one we had ever had before. The hotel was fully booked, and this was the best way that the hotel could accommodate us, an at the very least have a shower, and use the toilet facilities.

Having taken the hotel up on the offer, we sat on the end of the bed in the room, and watched the final US presidential debate. It didn't take long however, for the debate to transform into more of an argument, and for Courtney's attentive viewing of the television, to become an inattentive examination of the inside of her eyelids.

Once the debate was over, and after an hour and a bit's sleep for Courtney, it was time to set forth, into the world of Vietnam. The time was 0915. Now to learn the weird and wonderful road rules of Vietnam. The lesson is quite quick. There are rules, but they are treated as suggestions. If you want to do anything as a pedestrian, cyclist, or driver, you just need to do it confidently, but carefully, and everyone else on the road willl give you the space that you need.

Our first purchase in Vietnam was a Vietnamese coffee. These come with condensed milk in the bottom, and an espresso over the top. When you come to drink the coffee, you mix the two together with a stirrer, and enjoy. It is a wonderful combination, not necessarily unique to Vietnam, but stereotypical, all the same. As we walked, we passed St Josephs Cathedral, built by the French, when Hanoi was part of French Indo-China. It was an excellent example of a building built in a style very different to those around it. Though there is a French quarter that still remains in Hanoi, the Cathedral isn't surrounded by buildings that were built at the same time it was.

Continuing our walk we headed to a temple in the old town, which sits on an island, in a lake. It contains many treasures, including a wooden horse that over-indulged in a few too many magic mushrooms which Courtney was obsessed with. Wishing that we had the same energy as that wooden horse, as we started to flag, we had some lunch to try and perk ourselves up. It was tasty, but the energy it provided was short lived. Between the heat, humidity, and lack of sleep, we were not going to be able to make much more of the day.

Back at the hotel, we indulged in another shower, before perusing the internet to source tickets to our next stop, Dong Hoi. Inspite of the internets ability to lower the cost of things the world over, in Vietnam, it turned out that the cheapest way to buy our train tickets was through the front desk of our hotel. Having sorted the longest train leg of our trip through Vietnam, we headed out for dinner, and a wander through the night-time streets of Hanoi.

They were littered with people cooking dinner, washing dishes, and selling all manner of food. Needing to catch up on some sleep, we didn't stay out too late, an were in bed by 2100. As I am sure you are aware, Will Smith wrote the Grammy winning song, 'Party Starter', about us.Read more