Gooooooooood Morning Vietnam….sorry it had to be done (RIP Robbin Williams, you beautiful soul)
Well what a cultural shock (in a good way, I think ?) this is. Vietnam is nothing like I have ever experienced before. I flew into Hanoi, my 1st destination in Vietnam and as always got some currency out of the ATM and brought a local SIM card for my phone. I find having a local phone number such a help for contacting transportation (Eg. Uber) or the hotels when I get lost, google maps etc, all without incurring huge UK phone bills. I think sometimes the family are getting a bit lost about which number I am on, but I keep my UK number on WhatsApp and messenger if there is any doubt. The money here is also really difficult to get my head around….it has so many 0000000’s in it. I tried to take 80,000,000 Vietnamese Dong out of the ATM, thinking this was approx £250. I had used one too many 0s and was actually trying to take out £2500. Luckily the bank realises I’m an idiot and wouldn’t allow it. It’s not helped by the locals telling me something costs 40….and what they mean is 40,000VND. I’m getting better, but I think I could easily be ripped off!!! I’m surviving on the goodness of the people ?
Hanoi is in the North of Vietnam and subsequently the weather is a bit cooler and while I was there drizzly. Not use to the weather being rubbish, but I’m English and a bit of rain won’t stop me ☔️ Also the coronavirus is big news out here, so a lot of people are wearing face masks and some museum/attractions are closed because they are worried about the risk. I was staying in a lovely hotel in the heart of the old quarters and within walking distance of a lot of the sights. My 1st day I went for a long walk around the old quarters, the lake and into the french quarters. The main worry was dodging the millions of scooters. I soon learnt that you just close your eyes and slowly walk across the road, they somehow avoid you ?
Vietnam was a country that had been colonised by the French, so there is a lot of French influence here, including Christianity, hence churches, and also a lot of the architecture.
While in Hanoi, I visited the prison museum, which was mainly about the way the french had treated the Vietnamese rebels (people who wanted independence), but also had a small section from when American POWs had been kept there and called it the Hanoi Hilton. As always, very thought provoking.
After the prison, I headed for the famous Train Street. Before I had left the UK, I had read that the street had been closed to tourists, because of the danger and people taking risks to get a good Instagram photo!! So I was surprised to find when I got there, that as long as you sat at a cafe and brought a drink, you could still watch the train go by. I was a little early for the train, but I ended up sitting with a couple of Australian girls. One was a teacher and the other a paediatric nurse who works in Sydney. It was great chatting with them and I was even encouraged to go to Sydney and work there because it’s my kind of experience they need ? It’s ok….I’m not leaving England ?. Anyway the train was amazing, and a little bit intense. The health and safety brigade in England would have kittens if this was allowed at home.
Following on from the train, I went for a wander around the French quarters before heading back to my hotel. I did lots of steps this day.
Funeral flowers
The next day I was collected from the hotel as I was going to take an over night cruise around Ha Long Bay. Once again a recommendation and a ‘must do’. The journey took about 2 1/2hours to get to the bay from Hanoi and it was great to see some of the countryside, on route. When we got to the Bay Area, we transferred to a speed boat which then took us to our accommodation for the night. Nice little boat with approximately 12 cabins. My cruise companions for the night where from lots of different countries, but my favourites were 5 old men (in their 80’s) from Taiwan. They basically brought a litre of whisky and proceeded to just sit on deck and work their way through it. They also gave some poor lady the run around who was trying to sell snacks and drinks along side the boat. I think they were trying to give her Taiwanese money but obviously she wanted Vietnamese Dong. In the end she got furious and rowed off. I’m sorry but it really made me laugh ?
So, to the cruise itself….really nice experience, lots of activities included, such as canoeing into bat caves, swimming, spring roll making, tai chi and lots and lots of food to eat. Ha Long Bay area is beautiful, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It was quite busy with lots of other cruise ships going around….I can only imagine that things will get even worse in the next 10years. Very glad that I did this excursion. Shame the weather wasn’t a little better!!
Actually a working fishing bay 
Boys on tour 
Room with a view 
After the cruise, I was transferred back to Hanoi for one last night. Had another wander around and back to the train track, although I missed the trains coming this time.
From Hanoi, I caught a flight to Hue, a bit further south. I had thought about catching the train to Hue (36hours), as an extra adventure, but decided against it….I’m getting too old for those kind of adventures, I like my comforts!!! My new hotel was right in the centre of the tourist district of Hue and was very lively. Lots of places to eat and things to see. My 1st full day, I had my usual walk around and eventually found myself sitting in a park near the perfume river. While sitting here, a couple of young men approached me and asked if they could practice their English with me. Initially I felt a little anxious that I would be robbed or conned (I really must stop reading reviews), but they really did just want to practice their English. I ended sitting with them for over an hour and had a lovely time.
While in Hue, I also went on a city tour. This took in the Thien Mu pagoda, a boat trip on the Perfume River, Imperial Citadel, the royal antiques museum, Dong Ba Market, Khan Dinh King’s tomb, Minh Mang King’s tomb (I didn’t go inside, too many steps to go up by the end of the day) and finally we saw how incense sticks and conical hats are made….phew, what a busy day. The trip also included lunch (more on that later). This day was made especially fun because of the people on it…the crowd you are with definitely can make or break a trip. As much as I had enjoyed the cruise, the people on it were all quite serious. Firstly was Anna, a Spanish solo traveller, who now lives in Montana with her husband, we really clicked and laughed all day. Weirdly, Anna had also lived in Brighton and had worked at the RSCH…it really is a small world. So small, that when I mentioned I lived in Brighton, I got booed by the only other English people on the bus, Steve and his nephew, from south London, who support Palace, I soon corrected them about my football alliance and all was ok then. I also really enjoyed the company of a South Korean couple, who I watched all through lunch as to how to eat correctly ?. We were joined half way through the day by a couple from Milan who were great fun too. All in all a very successful day.
And finally…..the food . I promised myself that I would try everything that was put in front of me, and except for the now infamous squid dish (a step to far), I have kept that promise. Not going to lie, I’m not really loving the food here….it’s not awful, or too spicy, like in Sri Lanka, its just all about the textures for me. Luckily (or not) you can get quite a lot of western food here, which is triple the price of local food, so it is a once in a while treat. Yesterday I found a KFC on my travels and was very excited and ordered what I thought was a chicken burger, turns out to be a shrimp burger ??. Serves me right, but what a disappointment, isn’t it KFC for a reason ?….it did come with a proper plate and glass though ?
