Cool Hotel Hanoi

... are used more for motorbike parking and to hold the overspill for shops than they are for walking on.

When we got to the hotel we were greeted by an extremely friendly and enthusiastic man who gave us a very warm welcome. He told to us have a shower and get some food, then we could arrange payment when we were rested... we didn't end up paying until a few days later. This has been the attitude of most Vietnamese people we have met so far ...

... but Broc decided his **** was a better option! we stayed there for the night! The Indoniesian guy got really drunk & Wayne (one of the lads) brought him to our hotel (cos he didn't know where he was staying)! Wayne was telling us, he got him a little up the stairs, but then the receptionist started going crazy & throw them out! Wayne got a map & your man lay on the pavement reading it & eventually sussed it out! On our way home we met two Aus girls at a Pho ...

... the Christmas holidays. I had hoped to go to Hong Kong for that break but plans can be changed. I may just go to the Sapa Mountains or Halong Bay during this holiday for a shorter period of time.

I’ll keep you all posted as things progress.

I hope all’s well back in the big Oh – I saw that the Bengals are 4-1 – how’d that happen? And UC is in the Top 10 – Go 'Cats!

... of time with our new friends from the tour.
We are unable to move down to Hue and Hoi An due to a typhoon. Friends who are down south, have been evacuated from the hostels and some have been told not to leave due to extreme weather conditions.
Therefore, no trains or buses are going down south at all. So we've stuck it out in Hanoi, drinking copious amounts and basically not doing much.
We're hoping the roads are better 2moro for us ...

... idea what was going on. The people sitting in front of us, a group of 4 young adults, were bored to tears and spent most of the performance slouched over the seat backs in front of them with their heads in their hands. We noticed others ducking out the exit door, and Bill kept whispering to me, "Can we bail yet?" However, we stayed till the end. I thought it was worth the cost, which was about $4 a head.

In bed by 10 p.m. with a wake-up call arranged for 6 a.m. Next stop: Halong Bay!

... cooks, washes, irons and helps deal with calling repairmen if needed - not bad I'd say.

It looks like the hash will have to wait a week (they hash every weekend here) so I can go apt/house hunting...I'm sure that's a down down.

I hope all is well at home and I love hearing from all of you so don't be shy. If you get Skype I can talk to you too..its free (and an easy download)!

Lâu dài như vậy bây giờ (So long for now)

... along the footpaths too - in fact most of the footpaths (when there are any) house repair shops, ordinary shops, food stalls, anything but pedestrians. Anyway it is hugely exciting - a really foreign country - such friendly people and so keen to speak English to use as practice for themselves I think.
A very rushed morning getting away from Singapore - Mike slept in - then it poured with rain - the whole population of Singapore wanted taxis at the same time ...

... more time in places we like less and are forced to rush though places we love (or at least leave earlier than we'd like) - though we didn't plan it, its been 5 days here in hanoi - only had 2 in saigon, and more than we had at any of our favourite beaches, but such is travelling on a weird sporatic schedule i guess! makes you find the parts you do like hidden beneath the traffic though.

part of the reason we stayed so long was we were trying to figure out what to do next ...

... cooked the different parts of the snake and brought the different dishes out. Snake is very nice there was some tough bits, but on the whole was all gd. While we were eating we were downing more rice wine. Very strong stuff, its from 40% up to 90% they say. Went back to the hostel that evening then had a bbq which we meet some guys from up north.They dragged us down to the local irish bar.

... formations and fairy pool, worship Mau (Vietnamese Mother Goddess). Bai Dinh deserves to be in the country's record books, says culturist and folklore specialist Truong Dinh Tuong. "The complex is a vast cultural and spiritual centre and full of typically Vietnamese features. The people of Ninh Binh are not alone in their pride, all Vietnamese people love this place. The pagoda lives up to its rich history and hands down the cultural spirit of centuries to the new generation."