Halong Bay and Hanoi

Our last sleeper train between Hue and Hanoi was the longest we had in Vietnam and the least pleasant. At 4.30am we were glad to be getting off! We said goodbye to the cockroaches and got into our minivan to Halong Bay. We arrived there that afternoon having stopped at a few tourist traps along the way including an 'authentic pearl shop'. We stepped out of the minivan and were directed onto a large wooden boat known as a Chinese style junk. There were nine of us on board the junk staying in the bay overnight. As we cruised towards the bay passing many of the 2000 islands that randomly jut up out of the crystal clear emerald waters we admired the beauty that is Halong Bay. Having enjoyed a delicious lunch of seafood on board we eventually arrived in the centre of the bay where our junk docked by some caves. We climbed off the boat and spent an hour wandering through the Hang Sung Sot cave meaning 'surprise cave' as the French people who discovered it were not expecting it be so large and were...surprised : ) the cave was truly impressive with three large chambers and in the second chamber the stalagmites have formed in a shape that the guides try to convince you looks like a finger but which is known among tourists as the 'cock rock'.

After we had emerged fron the caves we were put into kayaks and set free to make our own way around the bay for an hour. Me and Roy were in our own kayak and we made our way around the islands and past a small fishing village full of floating homes.

That night after dinner with the junk anchored in the bay we sat on the deck with the rest of the tour enjoying some local beers, admiring the clear view of the stars and fishing for squid with no success. If you are going to Hanoi we would say a trip to Halong Bay for one night is a must.

The next day we headed back to the capital city of Vietnam, Hanoi. The one thing that really sticks out about this place is the absolutely mental traffic, which as usual consists of millions of motorbikes and scooters. If you want to cross the road you have to just step out into the traffic which may seem like a death wish but as you walk the scooters just avoid you and that is the system, no nice green walking man, no you just step out and hope for the best. Bit of fun really!

Hanoi is a bit of a maze and all the streets look the same. The first evening we were there we went to eat dinner at sone local street food BBQ. If you saw this place at home you would run a mile to avoid all kinds of food poisoning, but our tour guy told us it was safe and in fairness there were tonnes of locals so we figured it couldn't be too bad. It was set up on the corner of this junction in the city and they had a table on the path covered in meat and you pick up a box and fill it with whatever uncooked meat you want and then they throw it on a filthy looking BBQ while you take a seat on the curb, surrounded by rubbish and cockroaches, on tiny little plastic stools just big enough to sit on. But it was DELICIOUS.

We then hit the nightclubs as it was our last night with the tour group which we had been with since Cambodia. Just as things were really kicking off at about 12am though the police arrived to remind us that we were in a communist country with a curfew and everyone was kicked out. The bar staff tried to convince us that the police would demand money and then leave and that the party would continue but we didn't fancy hanging around outside waiting for the police to leave so we managed to find another nightclub that appeared closed but under the shutters was really still banging away. Interesting night out!

After two days and nights of exploring the labyrinth streets of Hanoi we were finished with our trip through Vietnam, saying goodbye to the fast pace it was time to slow things down as we flew into peaceful and beautiful Laos.

Sarz