Northern Vietnam

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So here is part 2 of the Henaghan/Wood travel's in Vietnam after leaving Nha Trang we travelled on toward's Hanoi making some interesting stops along the way...........

Monday 16th February
Arrived in Hoi an tired and groggy after an overnight bus journey from Nha Trang. The driver seem to not understand the speed limit and on a few occasions that I managed to nod off I was woken by being thrown forward in my seat after taking flight over the many bumps in the road. It was probably entertaining to watch as my seat was actualy broken so I was left with the desicion of sleeping in an upright position or being flung forward every 5min treating my fellow passengers to a deer trapped in headlights expression oh spoilt for choice! We finally arrived in one piece greeted by a mini scam - a hotel out of town which they overcharge you for basic rooms and lie to you that it's a 5min walk to the centre which then turns into a 40min walk (according to tuk tuk drivers) when you start to head for town to find cheaper accommodation. So we ignored everyone and headed off to the centre approx 25min walk which was pleasant after the bus journey. We struggled to find accommodation as all were full or silly prices then the one's we could afford we had to wait until mid day for people who "might" check out. Due to us only wanting to do one night we settled for one at $12 (double our usual price) but it has a pool in "reception" strange but true. We showered then headed towards the old town to check out the sights. Named a Unesco World Heritage site we expected to pay an entry fee which goes towards preservation of the towns historical architecture but this is not enforced. Its a nice little town and the Japanese covered bridge and houses have been well maintained. We had lunch at the Thu Bon river side and watched the local street sellers at work and had a nice meal. We tried the Cao lau doughy flat noodle mixed with croutons been sprouts and pork. The real thing can only be had in Hoi An as the water used to cook the noodle must be from the Ba Le well (in Hoi An) We had a siesta then later headed out to buy onward tickets to Ninh Binh decided to splash out on a sleeper as it was only $2 more than a sitting.

Tuesday 17th February
NOT a good nights sleep due to our fellow travelers deciding to take advantage of the pool in the middle of the night and the way the hostel is set out all the rooms look down onto the pool so the noise travels straight through the middle then to make matters worse at around 6am they were leaving to catch buses and running up and down the corridors shouting from one end to the other I think its the closest I've come to murdering anyone in my life! So feeling tired but hopefully I will sleep on the bus tonight. We had a look around at the Tailor shops and my god they're everwhere and so much competition good quality and cheap I wish I had had something made but we didn't have time. We checked a few prices and a winter coat was anything from $25 to $45 depending on the material so I'm hoping that I can get something in Thailand fingers crossed. We checked out at 11am and went for brunch before catching our 14hr bus to Ninh Binh. We stopped at Hue along the way and two people we met on the Mekong delta trip got on our bus which was nice to catch up and find out where they had been. We were told to stay on the bus but most people swapped to a sleeper bus. Our bus was part slepper/part sitting so we stayed on that one to avoid the hassle of moving. The beds were so close you wouldn't want to be lay next to a random stranger especialy a Laos local as they're known for not having boundaries for personal space like us westerners so that would be an experience. Luckily I had my handsome boyfriend next to me so that was ok untill he began to snore that is, you just can't win! We were trying to get our things sorted and I happen to put my flip flops on the bed and the driver grabbed them threw them on the floor and kicked them underneath so I shouted at him as steve "accidentally" banged into him as he got off the bed so he swung round and grabbed Steve and everyone then mouthed off at the driver for being such an idiot. I was expecting Steve to start and I was imagining a full on brawl like the one between Daniel and Mr Darcy in Bridget Jones - ok maybe I kind of wanted that as it would have been amusing and a good story to tell. Oh well theres always next time.
Finally stopped for food around 8pm then felt so tired by 10pm so we fell to sleep on our little beds to be then wide awake at midnight. We stopped and got some fresh air then I listened to my i-pod untill I managed to fall asleep a little later. Books, i-pods and cards are the travellers survival kits we just don't know what we would do without them oh and a head torch as the buses cut the lights as early as 9pm which can be game over if we didn't have our torch.

Wednesday 18th February
We woke up around 5am as we were worried the bus would forget about dropping us off in Ninh Binh and we would wake up in Hanoi. It all worked out ok and we arrived at approx 6am. They dropped us opposite a hostel and a pr guy greeted us and gave us one of his cads so we used it to get into town as lonely planet didn't have a map for this area. We walked 30min before getting a hostel in town for $5 better than the pr offering his for $10 thanks for the map though! Had a mini nap before heading out. Its a small place not many hostels or tourists for that matter which is nice but food looked like it may be a challenge. We had a nice simple lunch in what seemed like a locals front room with only 1 table and right across from the hostel. Her little boy kept us entertained with his toys and babbling with me and Steve making noises and him copying. Free internet at hostel so we caught up with news from home and went to the same front room resturant for dinner.

Thursday 19th February
Today was a fab day we rented push bikes for $1 to do the 10km ride to Tam Coc known as "Halong bay on the rice paddies" most people do this as a trip from Hanoi so we timed it so we could be there when the tours weren't and it worked more than perfectly at 12:30 the tour buses were just pulling out of the car park we really couldn't have timed it better it was like we had the river to ourselves. Being rowed along in our little boat for 2 through the caves and being surounded by amazing rock formations with rice paddies being worked by the locals as we passed made this one of the best things we have done so far. The boat for 2hrs only cost 60000d and then 30000d each for the cave passes. So glad we came to Ninh Binh to do it ourselves. We took a slow ride back and had a nice meal at the usual but the woman disappeared on her bike leaving her little boy and next door neighbours kid in the back room earlier we had the next door kid be chased around by mum with food as he played and completely ignored her (they have no understanding of table manners) noticing the woman had disapeared the kids came over to check out what we were up to and next door neighbor kid stuck his fingers in our noodles and when I firmly told him no and moved the food he just tried again so we had to cover it with plates and wait for him to lose interest little sod! The woman didn't come back so we went for a wander then popped in a little later to pay, I think she thought we had done a runner and to be fair we could have but we're to honest, Well I am!

Friday 20th February
Travel day to Cat Ba 7am bus for the 3hr journey all on time. When we arrived in Haiphong we raced to the toilet so missed where the other 4 travellers went. We tried to grab a taxi but Steve got frustrated with the moto taxi drivers as we had repetedly said we didn't want a moto. We ended up getting a taxi for 50000dong (2 pound ish) to the port where we discovered there was a free bus oh well. We checked out the boats and settled for the fast boat which left at 12:30 and took 1hr instead of the slow boat for 3 - 4hrs. When we bordered the boat it looked very much like the boats we had seen leaving before it and were the slow 3 - 4 hr boats plus there were locals I had seen buying the slow boat ticket on this boat clearly we had been scammed. We double checked with the ticket woman and she said "this is the fast 2hr boat" which was the same as the 1hr boat she had 20min ago sold us tickets for. So it's clearly a case off "whatever happens happens" We realized we had indeed been had by paying an extra 100.000dong (4 pound) for the "fast boat" as we were informed it does not even leave from that port. Anyway the journey was not good I felt really motion sick and it was the worst 3hrs I have ever spent on a boat. When we arrived in Cat Ba we settled for pretty much the first hostel we came to $6 and on the 6th floor with an amazing view of the bay. After heading out for water we discovered it's shockingly expensive and the locals unfriendly at that. Food in the resturants are around double to what we are used to paying and we also found the Halong bay trips where very pricey. Anyway we are going to sleep on it and see if the weather is better tomorrow.

Saturday 21st February
Ok so due to the weather situation we have decided to scrap the Halong bay boat trip because most of the activities on the boat like snorkelling, sunbathing sightseeing etc. you need good weather and not just the sun its such low clouds the visibility is not good so thats that. So with no need to stay on this "rip off the tourist island we are catching the boat back to Halong City which takes 2hrs and goes through Halong bay so this is not a completely wasted journey after all and much cheaper than a trip at 100.000dong (4 pounds) they did offer a ticket all the way to Hanoi but we decided it would probably be cheaper to do it ourselves. We just hope all runs on time as the last bus from Halong to Ha Noi is at 2:30 but it would have to be a major delay as we are scheduled to arrive at 11am but that depends on who you ask Oh the joys! So we had a nice meal and an early night.

Sunday 22nd February
Up early for breki and a coffee. The bus was late which wasn't brilliant as it was raining but we set off at about 8:30am I asked our "guide" what time do we arrived in Halong City and he said "the boat take 4 hour so we there at 11am" So I then filled him in on the fact that it was 8:45 so we wont be there at 11am if it take 4 hours. He then laughed and said "yes yes is 11 ish" so basically we get there when we get there? We waited at the boat dock to be greeted by a an open top little boat and we all looked at each other thinking "2hrs on this in the rain"....ha ha haaaa! Luckily this just took us out to our larger more comfortable boat. Steve nearly killed himself transferring from one boat to the other by banging his head on the door frame and nearly beheading himself but on this trip its becoming a regular occurance like I have to check out a bathroom in all the hostels we look around where as Steve has to head butt something at least once a day and it could explain his memory loss but it dosen't explain why he only forgets things i've said hum.....curious!
People who had done the 1,2 and 3 day Halong Bay trips were on the boat as it was used for the trips but also to take people like us back to Halong city when the trips are over and they're headed that way anyway. The boat looked nice and the rooms cozy but we decided to ask the people on board how they had enjoyed the trip Oh and their faces said it all. Sadly this made me feel better about not doing the trip and saving money (does that make me a bad person) I did feel sorry for these individuals as some of them had been seriously ripped off and one girl had paid more than a couple put together had paid so you never know if your being ripped off it's frustrating. We noticed we had not actually started moving by like 9:30am which is 1hr late so we asked a guy what was happening he said the engine was broken and we may need another boat so I'm thinking "is anything going to go right today?" I also took the opportunity to ask this guy how long it took the boat to get to Halong City and he replied 1 and a half hours so there you have it if anyone is telling the truth I'm hoping its him. We sat chatting to some people before we heard the engine splutter then we began to move and we keep moving so we gather they fixed it oh goodie. The journey was nice and very misty it reminded me of "Pirates Of The Carribbean" all I needed was a sword and one of those fancy dresses Kiera Knightly wears oh and of course Orlando's a finishing touch. We arrived at just after 12:00 and tried to get a taxi to the bus station but they were all charging silly prices or not on meters (which can be dodgie) it ended up costing 35000dong and the bus was just leaving which cost us 60000dong each. All in all it cost the same to book a boat/bus combie as it did to DIY but at least we can't be left stranded having paid for a bus as some of the combies are a con. We arrived 4hrs later being quoted 3hrs but hey were not even fazed anymore. We decided to walk into the old town from the bus station as it said in lonely planet a 2km walk! Ye right 2 and a half hours later we arrive me covered up to my knees in mud (I hope thats what it is) wet through from the rain generally not happy as the bridge alone was longer than 2km "thanks lonely planet" The bad luck didn't end there we couldn't find anywhere to stay it was either get a second morgage or full so another hour passed and people had obviously watched us pass a few times Steve stutting ahead with lonley planet whilst I drag my tramp of a self about 10 feet behind when a guy approched me and I thought he was going to give me a $1 you know for the homeless tramp but he asked me if I was lost I explained that if my boyfriend keeps marching off and not noticing I'm not behind him then yes I may well be lost but for now we just can't find anywhere to stay. He told me where his hostel was and said there was some dorm beds at $3 but we had already been there and I told him that they told us they were full which they had and never said about the dorms prob because we are a couple and they don't somtimes like to put couples in dorms we have discovered. So I finally caught Steve up stood on a corner looking in every direction (I don't think he'd noticed my absence) We then bumped into another guy who we just followed back to his "cheap hostel" and we got a room there for $8 on the top floor with bathroom and tv so finally shower time. I'd noticed a set meal advertised whilst we were looking for a room so we went in hunt of that because im not good at remembering the location of the thing's I see but as luck would have it there it was just around the corner 49000dong (2 pound) for a small 3 course meal perfect.

Monday 23rd February
Went to the market bought a pineapple for the bargain price off 5000 (20p) so had that for lunch. Noticed that people in Hanoi love to use their horns I have a headache by mid-day. You also have to be carefull not to get in the way as they often don't wait for anyone and will get rather annoyed. Steve seemed to like walking in the middle of the road and carried on doing so even when everyone else moved out the way so i'm not sure i'll have a live boyfriend by the time we leave. Walked to the supermarket and I treated myself to a hairdryer at 80.000(under 3 pound) Food here is a good price compared to most resturant as there isn't many vendors around (that I trust with all this dog meat around) so we had a simple noodle meal over the road from our hostel before having a movie night in our room.

Tuesday 24th February
Suppose to go to the Laos Embassy today but we didn't manage that as we were up until the early hours watching old movies. So we headed to another market (to Steves delight) and it was very "local" as we checked out the different items for sale I nearly had a hart attack when I came too close for comfort to a huge wash tub full off big frogs arrrrrh! You couldn't see me for dust and after that I was using Steve as my frog guard get it like a body guard but frog, ok i'll get a life! We were than suprised a second time to encounter a butcher stall with a whole "dog" for sale we asked to take a photo but they said no to Steve's disappointment but it really wasn't a nice sight more disturbing than I'd expected actually. Anyway we decided we had seen enough an headed towards the Theatre to check out the Water Puppetry This originated about 100 years ago in northern Vietnam, developed by rice farmers the wooden puppets were used on the water and accompanied by traditional music and has been carried on ever since. So we may fit that in one day this week. We decided to have a curry set meal at a nice looking resturant and to cut a long story short it looked good but it was minging Steve managed to clear his plate though. We also got stung on the bill as they had in tiny writing at the bottom 10% tax which is usually already added so we will look out for that one in future.

Wednesday 25th February
Laos Embassay today so up early but I fell in to a Mango (spanish clothes store) along the way didn't buy anything though. We arrived at the embassy at 10:30 it cost 1,260,000 (52 pounds) for two. It was quick and we have to pick them up tomorrow so thats good news. We had a walk to St Josephs Cathedral which was having what looked like a karate head band service of some kind and suprise lots of building work. We checked out a recomended all you can eat lunch pasta salad buffet and we discovered it did pizza buffets at night sounds good. We walked past a local cafe and they were spit roasting something outside and we got closer and you guessed it "DOG" Steve got a cheeky picture as we passed. Later I began to feel a little poorly so we had an easy night and got a takeaway I couldn't eat it and later I was meeting with it again in the bathroom where I spent most of the night.

Thursday 26th and Friday 27th February
Felt like I was going to die or actualy wanted to. Not well poorly sick and not happy but i'm thinking Steve may have poisoned me as he was going on about wanting to watch a few football matches on tv and they happen to be on on these particular days so i'm keeping my eye on him from now on if I live through this anyway.....

Saturday 28th February
Well feeling better today but my hunger pains woke me up at 4am after nearly 3 days without food. Decided to take it easy and fancied a boiled egg buttie so thats what I had. Not got much energy still and still felt really sleepy so again had a chilled day just a mini walk to the market then bought our bus tickets for Laos tomorrow which im excited about. A lot of thinking went into buying the tickets to Vientiane as we have heard horror stories about being dumped at the border but we looked into it and it cost $14 for the 24hr journey which even if they did leave us at the border it was a similar price to get there by train anyhow so we're half expecting to be dumped there and then we can't be disappointed when we are, I will just make sure I have my bag with me at all times.

Sunday 1st March
Travel to Laos but you can cheek out that story on our Laos Blogs.......................

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Photos

Cat Ba Island
The view from our room

Halong Bay
It's a bit cloudy!

Hanoi Rooftops
The Old Quarter