MY FIRST TRIP TO VIETNAM

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I arrived Noi Bai International Airport aboard Air Asia flight AK-870 from Kuala Lumpur. It was indeed the earliest flight I ever had, keeping wake all night until I boarded the plane at 0630 hrs. ( I practically slept during the entire flight to Vietnam and woke up shortly before we landed in Hanoi). At Noi Bai International Airport, the immigration and customs formalities were simple and straightforward. In fact, when one of the Immigration Officials saw I was holding a Philippine Passport, he asked me to transfer to the next counter (for Diplomats) so I was the first to get my passport stamped.

Got a taxi and went straight to Bodega Hotel where I booked a room for one night. I was supposed to do my Vietnam tour together with my nephew, Alvin, but his arrival in Hanoi was delayed a couple of days due to late release of his passport. I did a walking tour around Hoan Kiem Lake and the Old Quarter during my first day in Hanoi, then I decided to buy a ticket at Vietnam Airlines Sales Office for a flight to Cambodia the following day to see Angkor temples in Siem Reap and visit the attractions in Phnom Penh for a couple of days. I was back to Hanoi on the evening of June 3, 2008 in time for the arrival of my nephew from Manila.

It was past midnight when Alvin's flight finally arrived Noi Bai International Airport. I could see how delighted he was to make it to Vietnam successfully on his own. It was his first time to travel abroad without the company of any family member. We took a cab to the City and checked in at Democracy Hotel in Hoan Kiem District. It was a long day for both of us so we had to put the lights off as soon as we dropped our tired bodies to our beds.

We were up around 9am and had breakfast at the rooftop of the hotel. We did our walking tour around Hoan Kiem Lake, then explored the Old Quarter. The sites covered in our City Tour include Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum at Ba Dinh Square, Ho Chi Minh Museum, One Pillar Pagoda, Ho Tay Lake, and the Presidential Palace. We bought our tickets for the Water Puppet Show at Thang Long Water Puppet Theatre. Alvin and I had a taste of Vietnamese cuisine at Long Van Restaurant. The following day, we joined a group tour to Halong Bay. By the way, this is the reason why I decided to visit Vietnam. While reading a travel magazine I saw the beautiful photo of Halong Bay featuring it as one of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Vietnam. Today, is more famous having been nominated as one of the Seven New Wonders of the World.

We were picked up at the hotel around 8:00 a.m. and the trip to Halong Bay Pier took 4 hours with a brief stopover at a souvenir shop. As soon as we reached the pier the tour guide purchased the tickets for the boat ride. We boarded a Chinese Junk Boat along with other foreign tourists from Malaysia, Australia and U.K. Vietnamese lunch was served while our Chinese Junk Boat was sailing the emerald waters of Halong Bay. We stopped at an island to visit a cave but the heavy rain suddenly poured. We all purchased a cheap raincoat for US$ 1 each. After the cave visit we returned to our boat and although the rain already stopped the atmosphere became gloomy. The Halong Bay Cruise is ideal on a good weather. Everybody felt sleepy on the way back to the pier; I was half-asleep all throughout the 4 hours return trip to the City.

The bus dropped us at our hotel before 8pm. and although we have already checked out the hotel manager offered us a room where we can take a shower and rest before going to the train station for our trip to Hue. He even asked one of his hotel staff to accompany us to the train station and helped us with our luggages. We were escorted to our respective berths inside the train. This is indeed the so-called excellent customer service and Vietnamese hospitality!!! The night train to Hue left around 2300 hrs.

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