Hello everyone,

Yeh, i'm getting really behind now! So we left Hanoi on Saturday 6th August on the sleeper train to Hue. Weirdly we bumped into the same guys we crossed the border between Thailand and Laos with who were getting on the same train.

We arrived in Hue the next morning and headed to our hotel. We then decided to get a cyclo taxi over to the market across the river where we had a little wander around. Some of the sellers were quite persistent in trying to get us to buy their stuff including one who completely blocked our way and thrust shoes in our face but it was all good fun. Afterwards we had a look round a nearby supermarket and bought some supplies before heading back on the cyclo to the hotel. I forgot to say, a cyclo taxi is basically a moderated bicycle with three wheels and a big seat on the front for passengers. We also went in one one night in Hanoi which was quite an experience. I don't envy the men who have to peddle people around all day in the heat. Weirdly we didn't see any tuk tuks in Vietnam, just cyclo and moto taxis, they're definitely missing out there.

The next day we hired a scooter again and rode to the citadel across the river. It was damaged during the war but it is still really beautiful. After lunch we drove a bit further out of town to the Thien Mu pagoda. Here we got really nice views over the Perfume river with the mountains in the background. The pagoda was lovely too and we had a nice wander around it. A car is on display inside which was used by a monk from the pagoda to drive to Saigon where he got out and set himself on fire in protest. On the way back we took a detour around the walls of the citadel, mainly for Ryan to enjoy the bike some more.

On the Tuesday we got back on the bike and headed to the tomb of Tu Duc. It is a fair way out of town and was a really enjoyable ride although very hot! After lunch we drove further on to the tomb of Khai Dinh which was also really nice and had great views from the top. Taking the scooter to these places definitely beats taking any of the buses we drove past. Unfortunately we for Ryan we had to return it to the smiley rental man in the evening.

The next day we left Hue and headed to Hoi An!

Lots of Iove,

Jo and Ryan xxx