Good Morning Vietnam

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The adventures begin! After one failed attempt of landing in Singapore, a threatened reroute to Kuala Lumpur and some scary turbulence, we are here, safe and well, in Hanoi.
The city is crazy busy and the drivers are insane; trying to cross the road is a task in itself! The heat is unbelievable; it’s like living in a permanent sauna. This doesn't come without some incredible thunderstorms, rain that's so hard it almost hurts! And amongst all this madness are beautiful lakes and gorgeous parks to walk around and escape to for a couple of hours.
Two days in Hanoi was enough for us. We were ready to leave the hectic city behind in search for something a little quieter, so we set off for Ha Long Bay. The weather was gorgeous, not a cloud in the sky. We have never seen anything as beautiful in our lives. We explored some of the caves in the bay on a small fishing boat and sailed around the waters where 'Tomorrow Never Dies' was shot. We trekked to the top of Cat Ba Island, where we were met with stunning views of the island and the bay.
'Organisation' and 'health and safety', however, are NOT a high priority for the Vietnamese, as we found out on our first night. We had booked to sleep on the boat but were moved to Cat Ba island a few hours into the cruise because it was discovered that there were no beds for us to sleep in. A bus picked us up at the port but there was no space on the bus to bring us to the hotel (we were given stools to sit in the isles). Once at the hotel, we found out that it was double booked, only six beds left between eighteen people, so some of us slept in the local school, others in the hairdressers and a couple in one of the nearby village houses!
The whole experience was fantastic, so funny, a taste of the real Asia. What's the fun in everything going to plan?
We spent the second night on the boat and enjoyed it all the more. Although it was sad leaving the bay after the third day, we had had the time of our lives. Hard to believe that this is just the beginning of a whole year of adventures.

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Comments

[violet Ui Dhulaing]

What an amazing place
Mebs, great to hear from you and Paulo. The scenery is fab and I enjoyed the blog. Feel I'm on the trip. Keep blogging.Love mam

[violet Ui Dhulaing]

What an amazing place
Mebs, great to hear from you and Paulo. The scenery is fab and I enjoyed the blog. Feel I'm on the trip. Keep blogging.Love mam

[mary]

Brings back memories
We did all this two years ago . Pat made his Kareoke debut on board our boat ..Halong Bay so peaceful but Hanoi too busy and always ready to rip off the tourists... the rest of Vietnam much nicer ... Hope the journey brings all of the best to you both love m

[Loz]

Fabulous!!!!
WOW guys, the beginning of your adventure looks amazing....so so jealous! might just try and pick up a flight asap!! he he....so proud of u guys 4 doing what u want! keep up the pix, u both looks so happy, it's gorgeous xx my love from bris xx

[carol]

lucky you
Hi meadhbh, Vietam looks fantastic.Enjoy the year .I will enjoy reading about your travels and seeing all the wonderful places you visit . Stay safe carol

[orlaith]

cool pics, looks and sound like your having a ball xxx

[anonymous]

Great pics Mebs. Loving the blog too and looking forward to seeing the "Handstands round the World" album already x

[Julie and Caoimhe]

hey hey looks class, we are very jealous here. enjoy every minute of it xxxx

[Freda kenny]

Good morning Vietnam
Hi Méadhbh and Paulo, What a lovely surprise to hear from you, and thanks for all the news and photos. Hope you have a wonderful trip with lots of fun and adventure. Just back from Galway. When I was coming through Shop Street, the thaought actually crossed my mind 'Wouldn't it be lovely to meet Méadhbh!'. I come home and find your message! Telepathy, eh?? Keep in touch and enjoy every second! Cion agus beannachtaí, Freda xxx.