Why does it always rain on me....
Trip Start
Feb 21, 2008
1
9
20
Trip End
Mar 18, 2008
Hue,
Vietnam
Friday, February 29, 2008
Off we went, the girls in their raincoats and me with my brolly ( I have a bag full of shorts and vests like a fool so no raincoat for me). So we got as far as the old city which is walled and had no idea where to go and were totally soaked so we stopped on the side of the road. I am like a magnet. They see me coming from miles away. "You want cyclo?". I had been fending off the cyclo men all morning by telling them we liked to walk but this one got me a at a weak moment and I chatted to him. SO before we knew it we were in the cyclos which seemed like a good idea cos it was lashing. Except they were leaky. Then your man in charge who was cycling Solenn's one took a shine to me. "What age are you? Twenty?" well of course I was delighted but I think that's the vietnamese chat up line because the bell boy in the last hotel tried that on me too. (Or it could be that i look about twelve in the ridiculous hoodies and comabats I have to wear because of the weather).
Well then he told me I am very beautiful. So I got his life story. And started telling my fortune (?) Apparently I was born in the year of the snake and I am very patient hhahahaha well I nearly fell out of the cyclo laughing. Normally when crazy randomers decode to fall in love with me I can run away, but I was pretty much trapped in this situation! The girls thought this was hilarious but luckily Solenn struck up a conversation with him so I had a bit of peace. Well he took us off to see a Pagoda and talk to the monks - Solenn was drinkig tea with them and everything. But we weren't getting any closer to the palace...so I had to put my foot down and tell him to bring us to the palace next, I wasn't feeling very patient. We would have been quicker walking! And drier.
Then at the palace we couldn't get rid of the cyclos they wanted to wait for us, so seeing as how it was all my fault again I had to fire them. My stalker was a bit put out. Got soaked walking around the palace again and covered in muck (my clean trousers!). Finally back to the hotel in a nice dry taxi and off on the bus to Hoi An.
Hoi An is the silk capital of Vietnam so I am in heaven. Off to get loads of clothes made.....and buy a new suitcase :-)
Our hotel is gorgeous. There is a pool and veranda for sunbathing but it's still too cold. We're going further South to the beaches in a couple of days woo hoo!
