We left on coach at 7 am to begin our Castaways tour and our journey to Halong Bay. I am so unbelievably excited to see this place, a collection of around 3000 floating islands and one of the 7 wonders. After around 5 hours on multiple coaches, buses and boats we sailed through the breathtaking Halong Bay - beers in hands - towards Castaway Island (a privately owned party beach in the middle of Halong Bay). Upon arrival on the island we were served a grand feas...

I woke up with the best intentions of following the guided walking tour, but after making it one step out of the hostel I decided that the hangover had defeated me once again and I went back to bed! Eventually I made it out, the weather was gorgeous - so hot and sunny and suddenly I remembered I was in Vietnam! I decided to follow the walking tour myself after having been told it wasn't worth having the guide in any case. I walked down the old quarter and around ...

After a good few hours of paying for last nights alcohol consumption I finally built up the energy to go wander around Hanoi. Whenever I travel I always love to walk out the doors of my hostel and wander, without a plan, just to see the streets, the people, the buildings and really get a feel for the city I am in. There are so many people on motorbikes (but nowhere near as bad as India) and bicycles too, but hardly any actual cars. The locals here really do wear...

I cannot believe that I am setting off for 4 months of travelling. I'm currently sat on my Singapore Airlines flight buzzing with excitement to take off! I feel completely unbothered by the 24 hours of travelling that await me, knowing that my first stop is Vietnam - I feel so lucky to have the opportunity to visit such a beautiful country. After 24 hours of travelling I made it to Hanoi in Vietnam, and I could not help but smile as I made my way to Hanoi Backp...