It's a long, long way from Wales to Hanoi as we found out during our day or so travelling by taxi and aeroplane via Munich and Singapore. It was Saturday, 5.30 a.m. when we hauled the last of our suitcases into the back of the taxi outside our house. So at 1 p.m. on Sunday I wasn't at my most alert or most patient as we wilted, watching the carousal in the arrivals area at Hanoi wind around endlessly until our luggage was finally propelled from a subterranean cell and onto the belt. And then after striding through the "nothing to declare" zone, we searched in vain through a horde of pleading poster holders for our hired driver. Not to be seen. Others though seemed quite keen to whisk us away probably on the back of their scooter to some lowly hostel. On the verge of accepting any offer when an apologetic man thrusting a piece of paper with my name on it claimed us and led us out through the throng of disappointed suitors into the sunlight. For those of you at home with well honed memories who may remember sunlight, I should also mention that the sunlight was also combined with intense heat. I instantly felt over-dressed with my fleece wrapped around my waist. Onward to the city. We sat quite impassively as our driver darted down the highway and finally into the Old Quarter of Hanoi and into the street where some of the staff of Hotel Elegance Ruby were waiting to greet us and lead us down a narrow lane to our home for the next two days. If you are planning to come to Hanoi, I would recommend that you read tripadvisor's review of this hotel and then make a sensible move by booking yourself in here. We booked a family suite for the three of us and are more than happy with it. The hotel is scrupulously clean and the staff go far beyond the sort of service you might hope for in the best hotels at home. Just one example. One of the young men on the front desk was willing to go out on his scooter to buy tickets for the Puppet Theatre for us.....at no extra cost. Everyone is full of smiles and you know that you're not going to ge a victim of some scam. After a well deserved lie down, we went out for an evening's wander finding out quite quickly that most pedestrians do much of their walking on the road here rather than on the pavement. You have to be aware that if you claim your place on the road with a modicum of confidence, the motorbikes riders will be able to quickly calculate how to avoid hitting you. And there's crossing the road! You can't operate as at home. If you wait for a busy road to be fairly clear or hope that a zebra crossing or a green man flashing will mean the traffic will stop for you, you'll be waiting until the undertaker is ready to plonk you into your final resting box. The rule here is to cross by walking steadily with a confident and defiant air and the traffic will avoid you. Strangely exhilarating. Our first night food stop was at a blandish pizza place run by an Aussie..... with Heinz tomato sauce on the tables. Classy! But Caitlin had only eaten fruit on the plane and wanted something unspicey and familiar. So once again, the twelve year old wins! Back then through the streets where the locals sit and eat and socialise on the pavements beside their stalls and shops. A short while in our room lying horizontal watching the highlights of the Olympics from an Asian perspective. Towards the end of day one, we saw some of Andy Murray's game with Roger Federah. And then to sleep, perchance to....... If not for a knock on the door at 9 a.m. on our second day by another guest who seemed to think that she was also supposed to be in our room, we would have missed the ten o' clock deadline for breakfast. Nice breakfast! Interesting mushroom and egg dish and a very pleasant banana pancake with honey. Caitlin also claimed corn flakes. My mother could have eaten here!!! The hotel had helped us organise our train tickets for the night train to Danang on Tuesday night / arriving Wednesday morning. This morning, we charged them with sorting out arrangements for three days in Halong Bay and three days trekking to the north in the Sapa area close to the Chinese order. More details to follow. Since it's nearing midnight as I write these words, I'll quickly run through the highlights of day two. We headed towards Hoan Kiem Lake as our first destination avoiding a few hawkers' attempts to prise some money off us for their tacky souvenirs or an offer of a ride around the lake on some form of motorised or non-motorised transport. After buying tickets for a mid afternoon performance of the Water Puppet Theatre, we crossed a wooden bridge with 20,000 dong tickets in each of our hands which gave us entry to the pagoda which was built in the 19th century to commemorate a supernatural encounter between a sword yielding turtle and Vietnamese warrior which resulted in the invading Chinese being repelled. As if!! Anyway, well worth the visit. The site is of great religious significance in Vietnam and several people gave a quiet prayer. Not sure of which religion though. Being aware that we had to keep an eye on the time as we had a theatre performance to catch in mid afternoon, we strolled around the lake past couples sharing youthful smiles and more senior citizens sat here and there watching the Westerners walking past. The Water Puppet Show! We paid 100,000 dong for our upgraded seats. Just over £3 each. Worth a visit but thankfully not too long as you wouldn't burn inside to get back in there for the next performance. A worthwhile cultural experience! Interesting un-westernised music to accompany the different scenes. If you are taller than 6ft, beware..... as you might get your long legs wedged into the back of the seat in front of you. I've also got to comment on the number of youngsters in the audience who seemed to spend all their time filming the proceedings on their mobile phones. Pity the people who will be expected to watch the low quality visual offerings of their talentless offspring. The rest of the day was spent exploring the streets in the Old Quarter. Having read several accounts on tripadvisor, the general consensus seems to be that the Northern Vietnamese are less warm and friendly than those from the south. Surprising! Everyone.....yes everyone so far...has been very friendly. And hardly any hassle. Just a firm, polite and respectful "no thank you" seems to be respected . And no signs of scams......yet! We ate in a very nice vegetarian restaurant tonight. The Tamarind Cafe, if I recall correctly. Anyway, nos da to everyone I know. Write a comment if you would! Will try to write more in the next few days. e