Laos Airlines were pretty darn good, although l am not a tuna fan and got a fright when biting into a bread roll and got a fishy surprise.

Our taxi took as to the old quarter in Hanoi; a city of 7.5 million. Pretty mind boggling after coming from 'lil NZ!

It took us a good day of getting the courage to confidently walk across the street without holding hands for dear life and saying our goodbyes. We had read and heard about the congestion but you really have to experience it to believe it. There seems to be no rules as in we saw slogans on t shirts "green l can go; orange l can go; red l can still go" which says it all. To add to that chaos you can do u-turns anywhere and feel free to drive on sidewalks, the wrong way and on the wrong side of the road. No place is safe, including the side walk which is an extension of their homes and businesses with street vendors setup with their food and stools, a myriad of motorbikes parked (which seem to be the family car as infants are often wedged between adults). We often found that a walk that appears only a few minutes takes nearly double due to the constant need to weave out from the side walk onto the street and then make a break for it to cross a street knowing that motorbikes are hurtling towards you in all directions. Amazingly we only saw one minor crash although a lot of foreigners had bandaged legs maybe from riding motorcycles?

A few highlights of Hanoi were the Hỏa Lò Prison which was a prison used by the French colonists in Vietnam for political prisoners, and later by North Vietnam for U.S. Prisoners of War during the Vietnam War. During this later period it was l thought sarcastically known to American POWs as the Hanoi Hilton. But according to the exhibits it was a compliment. The prison was demolished during the 1990s, though the gatehouse remains as a museum.

The displays mainly show the prison during the French colonial period, including the guillotine room, still with original equipment, and the quarters for male and female Vietnamese political prisoners. Exhibits related to the American prisoners include the interrogation room where many newly captured Americans were questioned (notorious among former prisoners as the "blue room") is now made up to look like a very comfortable, if spartan, barracks-style room. Displays in the room claim that Americans were treated well and not harmed (and even cite the nickname "Hanoi Hilton" as proof that inmates found the accommodations comparable to a hotel's). Propaganda in the museum includes pictures of American POWs playing chess, shooting pool, gardening, raising chickens, and receiving large fish and eggs for food. The museum's claims are contested by former prisoners' published memoirs, and oral histories broadcast on C-SPAN identify the room (and other nearby locales) as the site of numerous acts of torture, so l have since read.

We also went to the Women's Museum which depicts women's role in Vietnamese society and culture which included the various tribes and their costumes and traditions.

Hoan Kiem Lake, or Sword Lake According to the legend, in early 1428, Emperor Lê Lợi was boating on the lake when a Golden Turtle God (Kim Qui) surfaced and asked for his magic sword, Heaven's Will. Lợi concluded that Kim Qui had come to reclaim the sword that its master, a local God, the Dragon King (Long Vương) had given Lợi some time earlier, during his revolt against Ming China. Later, Lợi gave the sword back to the turtle after he finished fighting off the Chinese. Lợi renamed the lake to commemorate this event, from its former name Luc Thuy meaning "Green Water". The Turtle Tower (Thap Rùa) standing on a small island near the centre of lake is linked to the legend. The first name of Hoàn Kiếm lake is Tả Vọng, when the King haven't gave the Magical Sword back to the Golden Turtle God. Large soft-shell turtles, in honor of the emperor, had been sighted in the lake for many years. The last known turtle was found dead in January 2016. It is on display and was a massive 160kg. On a Friday and Saturday night an area around the lake is closed (mostly) to vehicles and the locals come out and enjoy the lake. It was pretty hot and very humid most days with temperatures in the 30s which was hard work, with the humidity making it feel like 45 degrees.

Shops and street vendors are crammed in everywhere with some lovely French influenced architecture in one quarter. As we have noticed in Asia, there are dedicated streets to a particular thing such as car seat covers, North Face brand, silk garments, silver and sunglasses. You name it, you can get it (whether it is legit or a second reject l wouldn't know).

The Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum was a slightly bizarre experience. We had to get up early to be in line with the masses to see the final resting place of Vietminh leader Ho Chi Minh. It is a large building located in the center of Ba Dinh Square, where Minh, Chairman of the Communist Party of Vietnam from 1951 until his death in 1969, read the Declaration of Independence on 2 September 1945, establishing the Democratic Republic of Vietnam. He is clearly adored and possibly revered. His embalmed body is currently on display in a mausoleum despite his will stating that he wanted to be cremated. The tomb is modeled after Lenin's Tomb in Moscow. Streams of people queue each day, sometimes for hours, to pass his body in silence. This is reminiscent of other Communist leaders like Vladimir Lenin, Mao Zedong, Kim il-sung, and Kim Jong-il. His body is sent annually for two months to Moscow to be touched up. It was eerily weird as his body looks like he only died yesterday not in 1969. Next to the mausoleum is the presidential palace which you can only view from a distance and also the modest wooden stilt house where Minh once lived. Uncle Ho as he is affectionately known, lived for some years a very in line with communism unadorned life.

Now to the food, what a relief after Laos. We really love the food which is similar to Thai minus the mandatory chilli. It is very clean and fresh. Our favourites are Bánh mì, Bún bò nam bộ, Bún cha, Gỏi cuốn, Phở and not forgetting the smoothies (when they have no sugar, which Asia seems to have a sweet tooth) and of course the local beer Bia hơi. I did struggle with the coffee which l don't rate and it was hard not having milk instead condensed milk!

On our last day we went to Lotte Tower which has a spectacular view of the city from the 65th floor a mere 272 metres high.

One night we caught up briefly with Yuval and Niki which was great to see them.

We left Hanoi after several days for a trip to Halong Bay before returning for a couple of days then heading to Dong Hoi on the sleeper train.