We had decided to purchase the lacquer painting which we had seen the other day so made our way to the gallery. Being the first customers of the day the owner was disposed to give us a very good discount so we decided to buy. The rest of the day was spent just experiencing the buzz of Hanoi. Had coffee at a place on the roundabout at the NW corner of Hoan Kiem lake and marvelled at the huge number of vehicles making it through the intersection without lights, police direction or hassles. Such a system would not last ten minutes in Australia before there were collisions and road rage. A recommendation for anyone visiting Hanoi. Get a tee shirt made up with the following written in Vietnamese: Thank you, I do not want: A cyclo ride My sandals, flip flops, or sports shoes polished A Zippo lighter A wallet A skewer of little donut balls These seem to be the most abundant and persistent hawkers for tourists. In the afternoon we rested in the hotel as tonight we get the overnight train to Lao Cai which does not leave till 21:50. The railway station is well organised and not too busy. It seems that, like the planes in Myanmar, all the trains are lined up ready for the starters gun. The train never got going fast (probably a good thing) but it was a lurcher and let out some amazing metallic creaks and groans which seemed to come from directly beneath our cabin. After a while we got used to it and slept fitfully. The bed was 183cm long but sleeping on the diagonal was reasonably comfortable. Fortunately the temperature was about right as being too hot or cold when you are trying to sleep and not being able to do anything about it is the pits.