Hi everyone.

It's been so long since I've updated this blog, we've traveled the whole length of Vietnam and are now in our final destination - Hanoi. We were meant to be on a three day trip to Halong Bay today but there's a category 1 cyclone which had other ideas. No boats are going out to the bay at all. We were so disappointed because Hanoi isn't the most interesting of places to be stuck in really. I'd describe it as the poor relation of Saigon really. Plus it's absolutely teaming down with rain so we're at a bit of a loose end. Hopefully this storm will have passed tomorrow and we'll be heading out for a 2 day trip. We've been told its the highlight of Vietnam so we really don't want to miss out!

So anyway after Ho Chi Minh City we got the bus to Mui Ne. This place was absolutely gorgeous. One of the nicest beaches I've ever seen! We couldn't believe our luck when we got a really nice room about 10 paces away from the beach for $4 each. Despite this the place was really quiet and full of families and couples. Not really our scene at the moment! We had a couple of romantic dinners on the beach and decided it was time to move on early to Nha Trang, especially as it was the World Cup final that night. Luckily there were spaces left on the coach and so we made it to Nha Trang at about 6pm.

Nha Trang was no where near as pretty as Mui Ne but we weren't too bothered about that as it was so much fun! Within an hour of leaving the hotel we were dancing with a group of girls from england in on of the lively bars. Just what we needed after our romantic meals together! We then waited up until half 1 to watch the match with another group we had met that night. I got told off by a vietnamese lady for putting my foot on a shrine to the budha in the pub (really disrespectful). I felt so bad as she gave me a propper good telling off. I felt about 5 years old again. Anyway Nha Trang continued in a similar way for the next 3 days and nights. Beach in the day and parties at night. We had a bit of drama on the second night when hannah got her camera and money stolen. We took a trip to the police station which was interesting. Some guy came out of the office in his boxers - he'd clearly just woken up. He asked us what the problem was and then came back in full uniform and took a statement from us. It took a good few hours but we finally got the police report hannah needed for her insurance. The next day we bumped into the two lads we'd met in Bangkok on the beach. They were only staying for the day as they had a bus to catch that evening so we just chilled on the beach for a while. We then went out for the most amazing bbq. We had these kababs that were on swords. They were amazing and it was all you can eat. Unfortunatley one finished me off, which isnt like me! Anyway the two lads we were with decided to delay their bus until the morning so we had a bit more time with them which was cool.

So we left Nha Trang which was really sad as we'd had such a fun time and met some really great people but it was time for a bit of culture. We found this in Mui Ne. This is a really pretty town with old french style buildings. It had some really great bakeries so we indulged in the delicious cakes a few times. It's also famous for it's talors. Nearly everyone who goes there gets a suit or a dress made. We decided not to as we'd either have to post it home or carry it round for the next 4 half months. I might regret this decision when i get home if i ever get an interview as they were so cheap! We spent two nights here and saw some temples etc. Cant believe how many temples I've seen now, I should be an expert!

The next stop on our tour of Vietnam was Hue. We were very unimpressed when we first arrived. It was a bit of a dump to be honest. So we arranged a trip to see the tomb of an emperor and the Citadel (a past residency of emperors) which is the main reason people visit. The citadel was quite impressive. It's basically a city within a city it's that big. Much of it had been damaged in the Vitnam war however so it could have done with a bit of renovation! Hannah and I always wish there was more information at these places as we sometimes come away wondering what exactly we've just seen. Maybe in future a bit of research before the trip would be a good idea. That night we bumped into a group who we'd traveled with to Hoi An. We had a few games of pool and a few drinks with them. They'd never been out past 11pm before that night so we changed that. I also had my first street food that night (terrible i know after 1 month)! Hannah was looking at me horrified as I tucked into my chicken noodle soup. I'm pleased to report i survived and will have to start eating it more as it's so cheap and tasty!

After Hue it was a 14 hour bus journey to Hanoi. We had a sleeper bus which makes the journey half bareable. However they're not designed for westerners and I usually struggle to lie down flat as I'm too big! This bus was full of locals which i dont mind except they're soo loud and they all bring really smelly curries as snacks. I did manage to get a few hours sleep however, and we arrived at the capital for about 8am. It's always hard work at this point as you're thrown off the bus, half asleep and then you're immediately surrounded by people trying to get you to their hotel or to get in their taxi. We tend to just walk away from them to try and get our barings then we can figure out where we want to stay. On this instance though we were bundled into a taxi and taken to a hotel which is probably the worst one we've stayed in so far but we were too tired to argue!

So that brings me up to date. Except that we went to Ho Chi Minh Museum yesterday. On the way the taxi cost us 27,000 dong (1 pound). We got in a taxi on the way back and hannah noticed the metre was already on 300,000 dong (10 pounds) after about 5 minutes!! We told him to pull over and hannah argued with him for about 5 minutes. He was getting pretty angry so i was ready to give him the money and run. She stood her ground though and we ended up paying 30,000. You have to be on your guard all the time here. People are pretty rude! Looking forward to getting to laos where apparently its friendly and incredibly laid back. Just what we need after this city,

Anyway thats all for now you'll be pleased to hear. Hope I didn't loose too many of you along the way. I'll have to try and write more regularly in future. Fingers crossed the next blog will be about Halong Bay!

x x x