Halong Bay-Hanoi, Vietnam: 10May07

This was merely a day for transportation from Halong Bay backed to Hanoi. i would catch a night train to Sapa in the night time. All people in our group who were going to Sapa as well took a package with tour agent. i am the only one who bought my own train ticket and would arrange my own tour.

i sat beside of Sarah in the van and we talked quite a bit then. She was a very cheerful lady at the same age as me. She and Jason are from Wales, England. They already traveled for 3 months and they would travel around Asia and Asia Pacific for one year! Well, UK pound is a very useful currency in terms of to travel. :) She said they saved for 3 years for this one year trip. They were the second person/couple i met who is doing something like this. Save and travel.

For the long train trip at the night, i rewarded myself with a dinner at a nice vegetarian restaurant. It was expensive in Vietnam standard and the food was so sos. But the ambient was good. Half way eating, then i suddenly realised that just now, i paid the ten times price for the one hour internet. Instead of paying 3500 D , i paid 35000 D. No wonder the shop keeper looked kind of blur a bit when i paid him. Anyway, this was just around SGD 4, so not a bit deal. i would be more careful next time.

The most annoying event of the day was, when i was at the train station, someone just grabbed my train ticket and 'forced' me to use his service. Basically he guided me to the platform and my seat in the train. This was something that i didn't need at all and i didn't ask for! He demanded 10000 D, i gave him 8000 D then. A lesson learnt when i go to India later. Always remember my platform and coach number so that i do not need to hold my ticket in hand.



Transfering from small boat to big sailing boat.
There are boatman selling fruits and titbits.



Good bye, Halong Bay.
Sailing back to the main land.



Hanoi Old Quarter at night.



MONEY MATTER:
1.) Food: 91000 D
2.) Transportation: 15000 D
3.) Others: 73000 D

Hanoi, Vietnam - 7May07

A Day with Hanoi Kids

The train wasn't as bad then. i actually really slept and woke up at 5am then. My knees were kind of clamped but got ok after a while. The good things are at least one got to go to toilet as need/want and i could at least washed my face and brushed my teeth.

The train arrived on time at Hanoi. i am not sure whether i got down at the wrong train station or what, but the road name that i expected did not appear. So i took a taxi to go to the guest house i wanted to stay. Again, they did not have a room, so i just simply choose one with a price that i am willing to pay.

The famous sinh Cafe is every where in Hanoi. i went to the genuine one and booked two of my trips. i wouldn't want to take any chances for any trips involved with travel agent.

The highlight of the day should be the tour with Hanoi Kids. Two young girls, one 19 and one 20. They guided tour was basically so so, nothing inspiring. But i enjoyed the interaction with the local people, especially got to know the local university life. Too bad that HCM Mauseleum was not open, so i got to find another time to go there later.

The water puppet was really a master piece of art. It was lively and intersting. i was sitting in front of some chinese tourists. The aunties were so enchanted with the show that they were giving their own inerprestation and were laughing most of the time. So i ended up enjoying the show as they do. Well, this time, i used my camera without paying the 15000 D fees.



This is one of the Vietnamese girls who shared the very clamped sit with me. She doesn't speak English but her kindness will always in my mind.
When i travel, it is always those kind people that remains in my mind.



The train arrived at Hanoi Ga (Station).



Temple of Literature. The tortise has the names of those who were succeed in their examination (金榜题名).
The temple was founded in 1070 and dedicated to Confucius in order to hornour scholars and men of literature accomplishment. It is a rare example of well-preserved traditionsl Veitnamese architechture.



One Pillar Pagoda, built of wood on a single stone pillar 1.25m in diameter, is designed to resemble a lotus blossom, symbol of purity, rising out of a sea of sorrow.



Ho Tay (West Lake). One of the legends: Ho Tay was created when the Dragon King drowned an evil nine-tailed fox in his lair, which was in a forest on this site.
We had hightea in a lovely small restaurant by the lake.



Dong Xuan market. There are hundreds of stalls in this 3-storey building, employing around 3000 people.



Hoan Kiem Lake (Lake of the Restored Sword), right in the heart of Hanoi.
There is a Ngoc Son Temple sits on an island near the northern end of the lake.



The fantastic water puppets show.


MOENY MATTER:
1.) Accommodation: 140000 D]
2.) Food: 69000 D
3.) Transport: 44000 D (taxi from rain station to hotel) + Sapa soft seat train (135000 D)
4.) Sights: 1050000 D
- Tam Coc + Hao Lu Day trip: 256000 D (USD 16)
- Halong 3D2N: 784000 D( USD 49)
- Temples/Pagodas: 10000 D
- Water Puppet: 20000 D

[Withdrew ATM 2000000 D. Local bank charged 20000D]

Hue-Hanoi, Vietnam: 6May07

Eyes opening train ride!

Today was a transportation day. The train was in the afternoon so i got the whole morning to shop around. But it happened that i met a Spainish guy while having breakfast, so i ended up did not have time to shop. We talked for hours!

By the way, i like the pancake in Vietnam. It was so delicious and it just wasn't the kind of pancake we eat in Singapore or Malaysia. Every city in Vietnam cook it in a slightly different way, but it just tastes equally good!

Well, this Spainish guy planned for his round the world trip 2 years ago and saved for 3 years. He quited his job and started to travel around Asia. This was his 6.5 months already. The interesting thing about him (which was making our conversation lasted so long) was that, he does mediation. He stared with doing yoga and then read a bit about meditation and started to do it himself. He actually practising meditation every morning and night. He was kind of became my inspiration then. i should really continue with my daily mediation eventhough i am travelling. In the other way, if i really wanted to make it to Europe, then i really need to be more thrifty when i finished my 'great tour'. But the different between me and him is, he doesn't has a family to think of while no matter what, supporting or meeting the expectaions of family is kind of life my 'life time mission'.

During lunch, i saw a Chinese solo girl. i was about to leave the restaurant then. i basically just went to her table and said, "Hey, i guess you are traveling alone too." Then bla bla bla. The normal usual kind of questions. i found it really interesting in the sense that, i think female solo traveler tends to hook up to each other than male solo travelers. Traveling solo for woman is still kind of like not as easy or even common than solo male, or else, there won't be a branch or session for woamn solo in Lonely Planet. So women tend to encourage and sharing tips among each other.

i also started to realise that, English is really important to know new friends. Many folks especially those Japanese were very shy to talk to others because normally they don't have good command of English. In the other way, i don't feel arkward to talk to others because i speak relatively good English (despite my grammar errors, people do understand me well enough).

Well, about the train trip to Hanoi. The first moment i stepped into the coach, i thought "Oh, My God!" i knew why the ticket seller was so surprised when i told her that i wanted a hard seat ticket. Basically i saw people picnic in the coach! People were eating and attending to kids by sitting on the floor (with their own map). Some were even slept on the floor. i have never been to a train like this before, neither do i ever take an overnight train before. The hardseats were made from wood at a 90 Degree angle and they expected 3 people to sit on the bennch which is only probably 1 meter long!

Since i was there already, so there was nothing i could do. People in the coach spoke little or basically no English at all. We kind of used body language and sign language to communicate. They were just some common Vietnamese folks, kind and may be leading not as easy life. Interaction with the local (if there were any at all) was probably the only good point of taking this train. i swore that, i wouldn't take a hardseat for Sapa night train!

There were 5 of us to share this 2 rows of hard bench facing to each other. The Vietnamese people was really kind. 3 of them actually slept on the floor, so that the other guy and me got to sleep on the hard bench.

The other thing about the train was, everyone throw rubbish from the window of the train. Consider how many trains are working everyday, then the amount of rubbish was really huge. With the kind of toilet system as well, i think everyone of use contribute our waste to the railway too.



Vietnamese train, cabin. Probably a third class, hard seat!



Train toilet. Whatver one releases will go on to the track without process!



One of the many kinds of banana pancake. i prefer the banana pancake to have the banana cooked together with the pancake and not topped on the pancake.
Well, anyway, the kind of pancake in Vietnam is not the kind of pancake i took in Singapore.


MONEY MATTER:
1.) Transportation: 16000 D (From Hotel to Train Station)
2.) Food: 80000 D
3.) Others: Post card 6000 D + Stamp 8000 D