Lost

Trip Start Jan 02, 2008
1
41
75
Trip End Jun 17, 2008

Flag of Vietnam  ,
Monday, March 10, 2008

I liked Hanoi as soon as I arrived, even if I was completely lost and had absolutely no idea where to start looking for accomodation. The bus dropped me miles out of town and because I'd done no research, not even looking at a map of the city, I didn't know where to go. There weren't many tourists on the bus, but I met a Japanese guy, Tomoyasu, who was heading into the city centre. So I tagged along with him, even though I didn't know whether this would lead me to accomodation. It was just luck that he was going to a cheap hostel and this is where I ended up staying.

I was in a much better mood than I had been in Hue. The fact that it wasn't raining was enough to make me happy. But it also helped that I met some great people as soon as I arrived. I am staying in a dorm and have 2 roommates; Bill from Hong Kong, and Takamasa from Japan. I also found out that Gunta had changed her plans and instead of going to Laos, she had decided to stay in Vietnam longer. She was still in Hanoi and I was so happy to meet up with her again.

I spent my first day in Hanoi with Bill. We went to see the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum. I wasn't actually expecting to see his body, so it was a little weird. Spent the rest of the day wandering around The Old Quarter and Hoan Kiem Lake, going to markets, drinking Vietnamese coffee, which is far too sweet and too strong, and trying not to get run over by the hundreds of motorbikes. In the evening I went out for beer with my roommates, as well as a few other people I met at the hostel. The following day Gunta and I had a lazy day, just catching up on what had happened to us during the long time we had been apart! The only productive thing we did all day was to book a tour to Ha Long Bay.
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