GOOD MORNING VIETNAM!!! After moving to a new hotel nearby featuring unused towels and clean sheets, we were all set for a new start in Vietnam and ventured cautiously into the Old Quarter with fellow journey from hell survivor Mima. Spent breakfast practising the newly introduced 'Brace, Brace, Brace' airline crash position for readiness to deal with the never ending stream of sellers. Slowly but surely with the help of 6p beer* our powers returned, but taking care not to overdo it we spent the next two days lazing at a posh hotel pool making sure we avoided all things vaguely foreign. Finally decided we had to leave the comfort of the pool and the safety of HBO tv in our hotel room, so headed to Halong Bay for three days sailing around on a Chinese junk which was incredible......swimming, sunbathing, lunch on deserted islands and kayaking to secret lagoons!!! Also took a trip to Tam Coc for a leisurely row down the river through tiny grottoes and mountains.....the conical hat was compulsory and also very pragmatic......and watched the water puppet show in the evening. Ate loads of great food and drank plenty of Bia Hoi beer at Beer Corner.....a crossroads of four 'bars' where everyone sits on tiny plastic seats watching the world go by. Managed to avoid eating dog (we think) although did drive down dog alley where one restaurant was proudly displaying what appeared to be several back ends of Labradors with tails on a silver platter. Hmmmm tasty. So all in all, had great fun in Hanoi......one regret.....we never found time to enjoy some famous Fanny's icecream. * don't believe us eh? Check the pic in Hanoi and heres the rate, the cheapest beer in the world maybe?? www.xe.com/ucc