19/12/06

Hanoi has a population of approx 4 million people and I swear all of them own motorbikes. I've never seen as many in one place and they all seem to be on the street that I want to cross. I was a little nervous the first time I followed the suggestion in the guide book - 'have faith, step out into the road, walk slowly and make eye contact with the riders and they'll just ride around you'. What could possibly go wrong?! But, amazingly it actually works.

I got back into Hanoi yesterday after a couple of days in Halong Bay. Despite the misty weather the scenery was breathtaking - huge limestone blocks errupting out of the green water of the bay. One of the highlights was kayaking around the bay at sunset. Despite the air being cool the water was so warm and the light was just perfect.

23/12/06

After one more day in Hanoi I headed south to the historic city of Hue. Unfortunately it rained for the whole two days I was there so I probably didn't see the best of the city and it's surroundings. The first day was spent looking around the old quarter and the Citadel, while for the second I took a boat trip up the river to see some of the old royal tombs dotted along the riverside. It was nice but my feeling about Vietnam is that, despite being geared up for the tourist trade, there's nothing particularly spectacular to see (apart from Halong Bay!). I much preferred being in Thailand and Laos.

The other thing about Hue is that everyone was intent on setting me up when they found out I wasn't married, whether it was the cafe owner who wanted to take me to a local village to arrange a Vietnamese bride for me, or the many moto or cyclo riders who offered to take me to see dancing girls or 'Night Ladies'.

After Hue it was down to the pretty town of Hoi An where I am now. The old town is really nice with lots of original buildings, narrow streets and a nice little harbour. It was there I had one of the best meals in my travels through Asia so far, and all for $5!

29/12/06

I spent Christmas in Nha Trang, one of the few developed beach resorts in Vietnam, and what a Christmas it was! Definitely different, and one to remember. I went on a boat trip around some of the surrounding islands so while you lot were freezing your asses off back home I was bathing in the sunshine and snorkelling in the clear blue waters of the South China Sea. Actually, the water wasn't so clear but you get the picture. The two bizarre parts to the day were just after my Christmas lunch (rice, noodles and spring rolls!) when the crew dug out some makeshift instruments and proceeded to play some really bad renditions of seventies classics and Christmas songs. As if that wasn't strange enough, it was followed by all of us back in the sea in rubber rings, clinging to a floating bar while the barman doled out copious cups of unidentified fruit punch from a huge cooler. The strange thing was, the more you drank, the better it tasted! To finish the day off I managed to find a restaurant that served a proper turkey dinner which was actually very good. Definitely a Chritmas to remember!