Hanoi - Here we come

---

After a non-evenful flight on Vietnam Airlines we arrived in Hanoi late on the evening of Wed 8th February and took a taxi to Duy Tan Apartments in the old quarter of Hanoi. This was where Carine & Bertrand from our Hill Tribe trek had lived for the past 18 months while working for United Nations organisations in Vietnam. They kindly hosted us the whole time we were in Hanoi, and gave us not only their own bed (they slept on an air mattress on the floor of the study - we were mortified, but as they argued that Carine needed to get into the study as she often worked from home we couldn't think of a way to change their minds) but we experienced home made breakfast for the first time since leaving NZ & a shower in a bath - rather than the floor - for the first time since Bangkok.

They gave us a number of tips regarding where to go & we spent a busy next few days doing the tourist thing.

Thursday, our first full day, was spent negotiating the traffic (more about this later) and seeing the sites of the old quarter, tasting the local specialties & visiting the Museum of Ethnology. That night we ate dinner at a lovely restaurant called Cyclo - where your seats were beautifully restored Cyclos. We dined with Carine & Bertrand & also met up with Emma & Paul. Emma is a friend of ours from Sydney, who we first met in 1992 in the Rarotongan Island paradise of Aitutaki.

The following morning we rose early and departed some time later (as due to some muck up, the tour bus was delayed on hour) for an overnight trip to Halong Bay.

Halong Bay is a beautiful place filled with over 3,000 Islands. A lovely summer resort area, as we were visiting it in winter (and it was cold here -we wore long pants & I had my woollen jumper on almost continuously), and with the associated mist and fog it reminded me a lot of the Milford Sound (but with the mountains being not as high - more hills). IT was a beautiful, relaxing 2-day tour. We visited some incredible caves hollowed out by the sea - with some very 'interesting' rock formations. Yes - of course there was something phallic, and in case we missed it, the nice people bathed it in a red light.

We kayaked that evening around some incredible islands & caves, and to the 'floating viallages'. These villages were used by fishing families and consisted of little houses and from 20 to a hundred metres of wooden poles set in squares. The villages walked these beams every day - as did their families & dogs - no flat boards except in the homes to reach the various fishing nets & canoes floating in the water between boards. All of these dfloated on hundreds of polystyrene boxes -all about 40cm thick.

Must go as am running late for a cloth fitting appointment. More about Hanoi in another update

---

Comments

[The Seniors]

Fascinating
Keep it up, the story is fascinating. Some similarity to our experiences in the east over years' but with far more involvement with local life than we ever aschieved. Look forward to seeing Brendan's photos. Take care!