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Published: June 27th 2011
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I said Hoi An was beautiful but the drive from Hoi An to Hue is even better. Our driver took us up the mountain roads and it was just incredible. Look at the photos. Our bus broke down for about 10minutes, probably because the roads were so steep and the driver was so crap but we didn’t mind as we got to get out and enjoy the view. Unbelievably, a woman pulled up and tried to sell us bracelets; sellers are everywhere. On the way we stopped at an old war bunker where the pushiest sellers ever were but I dodged them and enjoyed the view instead. It took about 4 hours to get to Hue.
We were starving so all went for some lunch and then out all afternoon for a motorbike tour. The last couple of days have been unbearably hot but being on a motorbike keeps you lovely and cool. It’s also a great way to see Hue as everything is very spaced out and a lot of the sights are in the countryside. We stopped a few times and saw a Pagoda, Tiger Fighting Ring and a gorgeous river which again gave amazing views so you
should look at the pics! The tour went through loads of countryside and over really rough dirt roads so the motorbikes were really fun again. At the end of the tour, we had ice coffee which is my new favourite drink. Ice Coffee and Banana, Museli and Yoghurt are definitely joining me back in England.
In the evening, we went to a cheap restaurant and then for a couple of drinks. The bar we went to was really good and had bogof offers so we enjoyed some cheap cocktails and played Jenga. Our guide had never heard of or seen Jenga before so we played a few games and left because we wanted a good nights sleep. The breakfast buffet at the hotel was average. Terry kept some breakfast in a bag for later (so sneaky). A few of us left to find the local supermarket so we could buy food for the train and it took us ages to get there. In the heat, oh my god, it was so tiring but when we found it, Terry saw it had a KFC outside and all was good. It was Asian style KFC, with rice and stuff but they
did have Zinger burgers! The supermarket was great because obviously it’s all really cheap for us so we stocked up for the journey and headed back.
The train ride from Hue to Hanoi takes from 1:30pm till 4am the next morning. What a misson! We left Hue an hour late (typical Vietnam) but our train is nice and the cabins are clean. Lots of the group are enjoying their “train beer” and fun has been had chatting to Vietnamese people (who just love to chat to white people). Later on in the journey the lights all went out and we thought we were broken down. The train staff gave out free pot noodles. After a few hours, the train was incredibly boring so we just fell asleep early. Eventually, we arrived in Hanoi at 5:30am and got straight on a minibus to Ha Long Bay for over 3 hours. I tried to sleep but it was pretty much impossible. By this point we’d been travelling since 12:30pm the day before and were all feeling incredibly gross (Vietnamese trains don’t have showers). I think I had the best shower of my life in the hotel. Never take showers for granted!
So today we headed out to Halong Bay for a cruise round the islands and to visit some caves. Halong Bay is a series of 3000 islands and it’s sort of hard to explain why it’s so beautiful but it really is. The pictures are going to do the talking for me. We had a private boat and were given a lovely seafood lunch with crabs, squid, prawns and this big fish which I don’t know what it even was. The weather was perfect and most of us went up to the top deck to sunbathe and enjoy the view. We docked at an old cave which was so humid inside, we were all dripping with sweat and one guy had actual steam rising off him he was so hot and sweaty. It’s been one of the best trips of the whole holiday, definitely go if your ever in North Vietnam!
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