Halong

Back in Hanoi after a 3 day trip to Halong Bay. I'm wrecked now but it was really good. Of course, I'm sunburned as well! The trip was really cool, saw some amazing views - the bay seems to stretch for many miles with hundreds of small islands dotted around. Very odd place, looks like someone sprinkled a lot of massive rocks over the water.

On the trip we visited a brilliant cave, no less. Parts of it looked like you were on the moon (no, I'm not drunk). The cave entrance was pretty high up so we got a lovely view of the surrounding islands from there.


We stayed on a small island for 2 nights with the group. There was pretty much just a beach, the bamboo bungalows we stayed in and a bar/eating place. The rest of the island was mostly rock and trees. The beach was beautiful and it was cool that it was just the group staying there so it was quiet during the day. We got on well with the people that went. There were 3 other Irish on the trip, a fella from Galway, one from Mullingar and a girl from Dublin. An English couple we met were really nice as well, it was good to meet people that had been in the other parts of Vietnam as we knew little about where else to go etc.

Today we went to the Prison Museum in Hanoi, which was worth going to. It was fairly biased but what can you expect?! It seemed a lot more anti-French than anti-American for some reason. They were very quick to point out that the American POWs were allowed to play volleyball and were given Flip-flops by the Vietnamese government. Sounded like a great time! It was interesting to see John McCain's uniform on display there.


We're heading away from Hanoi tonight on a train down to central Vietnam, to a city called Hue. Another big train journey. The next major destination is China Beach which is about 4 hours from there. I really liked Hanoi, we didn't really get to see as much as we wanted, in terms of museums, attractions etc. I'd love to come back sometime.

I love the smell of Starbucks in the morning...

Yay, we're in "Nam". We arrived last night in Hanoi and are staying at The Hanoi Backpackers' Hostel. Sounds like the right place. It's really nice here. The city is beautiful, really more scenic than I expected. It's more like a European city with all the tree-lined streets and statues of Lenin etc. I can't get over how many scooters are ripping through the streets. At any standard traffic light there is usually more than 30, often with whole families aboard! Last night we saw someone carrying about 15 plants on the back of his scooter. Pretty impressive.

Today, we went to try and see the Ho Chi Min Mausoleum but it wasn't open. The man himself is on display apparently embalmed. Tomorrow we're going on a trip with about 5 or 6 people we met at the hostel to Halong Bay which is supposed to be a great place to visit. That's for 2 nights/3 days. Really looking forward to seeing a beach! When we get back we're gonna hopefully spend a couple more days in Hanoi and then travel down the coast of Vietnam. Don't really know what to expect there but I'm sure it'll be good! Hope you're all in fine fettle.

"Ooh-La-La, my buddha!"

Writing this one after a few days in the jungle. Lots happened since the last post! Last Thursday we got a train through the night from Bangkok to Chiang Mai in Northern Thailand. It was a bit gruelling but at least we had fold-down beds to lie on for the 15 hours. I really like Chiang Mai, it's much cleaner and way less hectic than Bangkok, lots of nice bars and restaurants and a cool night market. We spent Friday and Saturday just walking around looking at stuff, more temples, shops etc. Watched the FA cup final in The Chiang Mai Saloon.

On Sunday, we started our three-day trek in the jungle. It was completely enjoyable, one of the best things I've done. I had more exercise in those 3 days than I have had in 6 years. Up hills, down hills, across rivers etc. The first day, we went bamboo-rafting down a river. A bit scary when I was knocked off by a branch, what with not being able to swim and all, but they fished me out very quickly! We stayed that night in a mountain village with farmers and all their hogs and roosters.

Yesterday we spent more time in the village and did some more challenging hill-walking which was a lot of fun when you get into it. We then had a really good night with great food cooked by the guide and lots of beer which led to a ridiculous game involving a black frying pan called "007 Bang!". All the people that we went on the trek with were really sound, a few Americans, Norwegians, Indonesians, Canadians and an English fella.


Today we did a couple more hours of walking and then after a nice lunch went elephant riding. It was quite a mad feeling being up on one, feeding it bananas, but by the end we were feeling kind of bad about it. The elephants don't seem to be treated great by some of the guides. Anyhoo... "I had my fun and that's all that matters".

Loved the trek, but I'm delighted to be back in the city now after a nice shower and cup of tea. Probably heading out a bit later if I can still work my legs. Hope all is well at home.

"Paeng!" - a good word...

First day proper in Bangkok, didn't wake up until around three (still adjusting to time difference). Really enjoyed today. We got a few tuk-tuk rides around the city seeing stuff. Got chatting to a few thai people who were very helpful - there seems to be a very tight line between the ones who are ultra-helpful with no motive and those that are trying to scam every bhat. We met two seperate guys today who talked to us really enthusiastically about what to do and see here. They seemed more concerned about us getting ripped off than we were. "Paeng!" means "too expensive!". They all seem to be really big "Loy Keane" fans as well. Met a tuk-tuk driver who said he "was there when Loy Keane got the captain's armband from Eric Cantona in Thailand". He thought Keane should never have let his hair grow long...

Went to see "the sitting buddha" and "the happy buddha". They were quite cool, especially the happy one, he had a sly glint in his eye. We booked our tickets for Chiang Mai (city up the north of Thailand) and we'll be going tomorrow night - another long journey through the night. Sounds really cool though. Elephant trekking, waterfalls, national parks etc. Should be fun.

And we're off..

Writing this from Bangkok. Finally got here after a gruelling flight throught the night. Thought it was a good idea flying through the night - turns out it's not if you can't sleep!

Anyway, liking it so far though already it's by far the oddest place I've been. Gonna really explore tomorrow - currently in an internet cafe on Kao San Road (backpackers' first stop it seems!). Gots to run now and find somewhere to eat that doesn't give me a terminal illness! Will hopefully have a few photos in a couple of days.

Out.