Hanoi

Somehow, I had to wear everything I owned in order to stay warm in Hanoi wandering the labyrinth made by the buildings of the old quarter. Our hostel was brand new and was extremely nice. We booked some bunk beds and headed out into the freezing heart of Hanoi. Picturesque, yes. Likeable…hmm. Seems like everyone who has been to Vietnam has been here, and the Vietnamese know it. Don’t care if you’re there or not, because someone else will easily fall into the gap you make.

At work in Hanoi

I can’t quite put my foot on it, but I couldn’t find something awesome about Hanoi besides it’s vicinity to Ha Long Bay. Maybe I was spoiled by Thai and Cambodian hospitality and blinded by the New Year party atmosphere of Saigon. Or maybe it was just because it was cold. Either way I stocked up on Crest toothbrushes because I knew I wouldn’t get a proper toothbrush back in Japan.

The next day we were off to Ha Long Bay. We piled into a bus with people from around Europe and U.S. The bay was beautiful, but it was FULL of boats towing people around. It may have been one of the most commercialized tours I was ever on, mostly because we were stuck on the boat and couldn’t wander off. We met a German guy who lived in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. A Dutch couple and became friends with a younger Irish woman and man who we sang Karaoke with.


Halong Bay

After our one night on the boat we headed back to Hanoi for our last night. We met up with the two Irish and tried some Bia Hoi, Vietnamese fresh beer. It is beer that is brewed the same day it is served, and is cheap. I think about $.10 a glass. It is usually drunk about two feet or less from oncoming traffic on a street corner shop. This night we turned in early, since we were catching out next flight early back to Bangkok before heading home to Japan.