Blogs from Northwest, Vietnam, Asia - page 65

Weel, this am I didn't feel so chipper. After last nights ATM excitement I sat down in the hotel restraunt for my meal. I was waved over by the guy who works on the recption. He asked me to join the hotel staff for a meal they were having. A freind of theirs was heading back home for Tet and this was her leaving meal. Again it ws shown how freindly, hospitable and kind are the majority of people I have met in Vietnam. The meal ws accompanined by many rice wine toasts, leaving me a little hungover in the moring. The Vietnamese certainly picked up a lot from the Russians, and toasting is just one of them. As I left in the moring, I was given a bottle of rice wine to take away with ... read more

I awoke early again, keen to kick off. I'd had a good nights sleep in the hotel, which had the distiction of having the only lift in all of Son la. It even had instructions taped to the door. Planning to leave early, I just had to find the ATM I saw yesterday. My card turned out not to work. No problem I thought, I'll just try the bank. No luck. Oh No. Was there any ATM in Northwestern Vietnam? I was beginning to panic, as I was seriously runnin low on cash. Anymore big repairs and I'd be out. I tried to set up a Western Union money transfer over the internet, but it was no use. I was becoming very stressed, and I was resolving myself to contacting my friend back in the UK ... read more

After five or so days in Hanoi, it was time to get moving. I'd had a wonderful time, which included 1) meeting a gaggle of Spainiards, including the very kind Ane, 2) missing the rugby but gaining a great night out with a bunch of gin drinking vietnmese hairdressers, 3) unfortunately watching Scotland lose but ending up at the hippest nightclub (well nightbarge) in Hanoi till dawn and being driven though the Hanoi peasouper to enjoy a beef noodle breakfast and finally 4) getting aquainted with Hanoi's Irish Pub, meeting some old friends again, singing lots of songs, hearing beautiful Vietnamese singing, and ending up at the worst karaeko bar on the planet. For the record, I also had a few nights in watching TV. Can't do exciting traveller things ALL the time. I finally plucked ... read more

So....after an amazing dinner at our fantastic Viet/Melbournite friend - Trang's families house...We took the 9 hour train-ride to Sapa. We had a sleeper - which although intimate - with 6 in a room - it was quite comfy and I got to sleep well. We arrived in Lao Cai train station at 5.30am and after a quick 'cafe sua' (strong black vietnamese coffee with sweetened condensed milk mmmmm) we took a minibus upwards to Sapa. As soon as we got off the bus we were surrounded by young hill tribe girls in crazy bright outfits talking to us in fluent english! - They were asking our names and where we are from - it was a little weird and unexpected! Our hotel was plush...like a french villa in the alps! It was a beautiful multilevel ... read more

It was like pre-Katrina New Orleans on an extra dose of speed. Replace bronze spray-painted pantomime street-corner man with hunched over orange selling lady from the country, tourist horse-carriage rides through the French Quarter with brochure hawkers advertising Halong Bay excursions, the same amount of gawking tourists and you have it: Hanoi’s Old Quarter. I really felt quite at home and, for the first time in Asia, felt an uncomfortable knawing of homesickness and a longing to once again walk those grimy New Orleans alleyways so endearingly etched into my consciousness. History explains it, the similarities in architecture and the laissez-faire attitude, but it didn’t lessen my shock to see it flourishing in Vietnam. They’re doing better than our poor little state now, I would imagine. So Southeast Asia has the street market scene, right? ... read more