Blogs from Vietnam, Asia - page 1362

Ahhh, beautiful Halong bay. I was afraid we wouldn’t see any of it through the fog but it cleared a bit and although it was still overcast the scenery is, none the less, impressive. Spectacular even. GETTING THERE The actual trip was fine and it only takes a few hours. The only problem was the Hanoi Factor. This is the name I’m giving to anything and everything that doesn’t go quite right in Hanoi. And - for us at least - a lot seems to not go quite right in Hanoi. I’m going to blame it on some evil curse or something. Really, in keeping with the tradition of my loathing of Hanoi the vendetta must continue. Anyway the only problem - which was little more than an irritation really - was being told the night ... read more

Having recovered sufficiently from my Nihon homesickness, I feel I've settled into a bit of a travel groove, now two weeks in to the voyage. Hoi An is a pleasant spot on the central coast, just south of Danang. I have mixed feelings about my time in Vietnam so far. Experiences other travellers report to me mostly confirm what I've seen and experienced so far. Independent travel here is a bit of a struggle, as Vietnam has fully embraced and is capitilising upon a tour-based infrastructure. Attempting to move about outside this is a little more hassle than I'd expected. It's alot more expensive than the rest of the region, and although obviously alot cheaper than home, the touting and unashamed scamming is rife which empties the pocket alot faster than expected. Then again, right now ... read more

Vietnam never ceases to amaze. The scenery alone is so diverse and just so beautiful! I know I have said this over and over but it really truely is and SaPa is no exception- in fact I think it is a favourite of mine, a trip highlight! Brookes is off in Halong Bay (where I visited last year) while I opted for a new adventure trekking and visiting the hilltribe villages around SaPa. We spent the day in Hanoi after arriving from the nighttrain at 5am. I caught another night train the following night to arrive in Lau Cai. In my cabin were 3 hilarious Kiwi's in their 50's. They were just so funny carrying on about their adventures with their funny sense of humour!! In Lau Cai we were put on a bus to SaPa, ... read more

On Sunday, March 12, we took the overnight train from Sapa back to Hanoi. We arrived in Hanoi at around 7 am (March 13). We returned to our guesthouse and then went out to book our trip to Halong Bay from an agent of Kim Cafe ($33, including tours, meals and accommodation, but not the bus back to Ha Noi). Unfortunately, the owner of the guesthouse got upset as we did not book any tours with him. Using that as an excuse, he charged us $2 extra for storing our luggage for the Sapa trip. Which is unethical, as we already returned to stay in his guesthouse. Anyway, we have no choice but to pay otherwise he would not return our passports. On March 14, we got picked up at the guesthouse by the tour operator ... read more

When we returned from Halong Bay the only thing we had to do before leaving for Sapa was to change our clothes and get a shower. About 4 hours after we climbed out of the small bus that took us from the Bay we boarded the night train at Hanoi. That itself was an interesting part of the adventure that we were about to begin. The scenery of the train station reminded me of movies that were set in old Chicago: bits of water dripping from the dark sky of the early evening, human beings crouching into their greyish coats stumbling from out of no where into different directions- disappearing within seconds and only mumbled voices and hushed sounds reaching the ear- whilst steam was rising from the massive locomotives and the ticket man (dressed in ... read more