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Hanoi, Vietnam Liked: The sights At long last, after two days spent in the air, we arrived in Vietnam. I was travelling with Anne, Seòras and Niall, the cameraman. We got to know eachother on the way - spending one night in Dubai and another night in Bangkok. They're all very personable and I have no doubt at all that that we're going to enjoy travelling together. But we're also going to be travelling as part of a bigger group and it's in Hanoi we're going to meet up with them. Twelve of us are going to spend a fortnight together, travelling through Vietnam, China and onto Hong Kong. Most of the group are from Australia and a couple are from Sweden. We all took an instant liking to them all. Our tour guide, Erin, is American and she is both helpful and fun. I instantly feel I can trust her to take care of us all - a good thing! Anne and Seòras waste no time in integrating with the rest of the group. Although we had informed the rest of the group of our intention to film prior to setting off on the trip, I was still slightly worried that they would feel uncomfortable once the camera was present. Luckily, it doesn't seem to bother them and they welcomed us with open arms. I am happy that we feel like we're part of the bigger group. I had worried that we would feel slightly outside of it but that isn't the case at all. There's lots to see in Hanoi. And plenty to assualt the ear! I've never heard so many car horns blaring in all my life. The Vietnamese don't use indicators, it seems. Instead, they use their horns to alert other drivers to their presence whenever they decide to change lane or take a turn. After an hour or two my ears are ringing. Despite this, I really like Hanoi. There's very little you're not able to buy here and the locals are certainly interesting! We spend some time in Hanoi trying to find Niall some new clothes. 'Air Asia' lost his bag somewhere between Bangkok and Vietnam so unfortunately all he's left only with the clothes on his back (and a camera). Not a good thing considering that China can get pretty cold in January! At one point I feared he might have to buy traditional Vietnamese clothes but thankfully we managed to find a shop that sold more familiar attire.. although I think he did rather fancy the idea of wearing a 'Non la' (a traditional cone-shaped Vietnamese hat)! Already I get the feeling that the trip isn't going to afford people much privacy! I am forced to spend the night in a room with Niall and Seòras (the hotel had made a mistake - 'Anne' is a man's name in Vietnam). I must admit it was a little strange to be sleeping in a room with the guys - we've barely known each other two days! Anne slept in a room with two Australian girls. She's made a friend or two already! The next morning as we prepare to leave Hanoi, Minh, a Government press officer, arrives at the hotel. In Vietnam, it is forbidden to film anything unless supervised by an official . We must pay Minh $800 for the pleasure of his company for the duration of our stay in the country. However, Minh has other ideas. He has decided not to accompany us. This I was quite happy with. Not quite as happy when he had the cheek to demand the $800 anyway! I decided not to pay him but I had a feeling I'd be seeing more of Minh somehwere along the line…. Halong Bay Liked: The amazing caves On the way to Halong Bay, we stopped briefly at a Humanity Centre where many people work at making clothes and many other kinds of arts and crafts. Many of those working there have disabilities but they certainly don't let those disabilities hinder them. I really liked the place. It felt safe, colourful and comfortable. I still can't believe how beautiful all the embroidery and other merchandise was. After that, we arrived at Bai Chay where we boarded a boat. I'm beginning to get used to the way things work in Vietnam. I've learnt that there are always questions about money. I wasn't in the least bit surprised when we had to buy two tickets per person before they would let us on board! I feel sorry for poor Erin - she has to sort everything out everywhere we go and has to make sure we don't spend every dollar we have before we've even left Vietnam. Once on board, the boat itself was beatutiful (although I was scared stiff trying to negotiate my way on board as the steps down to it had worn away!). The boat took us to some amazing caves that reminded me of the inside of a church. They were peaceful and warm. Looking around, you could see weird shapes here and there. A truly special place… That night, we experienced our first karaoke. Oh dear. It was definitely an experience. I must admit it's not one of my favourite pastimes but you can't be heard saying that in this part of the world. Apparently they'll take it badly! Cat Ba Island Liked: The small villages Cat Ba is the largest island contained in Halong Bay (there are around 3000 of them!). We're staying in the main town, Cat Ba town. It's evident that this is a town used to tourists. Practically everywhere you look there is a hotel. Fortunately, we get the chance to travel outwith the town. The small villages dotted around the island are far more interesting. I loved seeing the hens and animals running around. The people here are poor but what wealth they have in terms of the beauty and friendliness to be found in abundance here. Anne made me laugh when she went to use a public toilet. She literally screamed when she was hit by the smell. She was forced to tie a scarf around her nose and mouth. She's not too fond of the squat toilets. I've heard that they're even worse in China…. We spent an hour or two climbing a very steep hill. Niall and I had to try and run ahead of the Anne and Seòras so that we could get shots of them approaching. And boy that wasn't easy! My legs were shaking by the time we got to the top. At night, we dined out in Cat Ba town. What a racket! More awful music. We were trying to chat to each other but you couldn't hear anything over the screech. I must be getting old! Lang Son Liked: Karaoke We had to spend one night in the town of Lang Son in northern Vietnam. It was freezing! You just know your room is going to be cold when you're presented with a flask of hot water on arrival at the hotel! I swear it felt colder inside than it did outside. After dining that evening, we paid for a private karaoke room for a couple of hours. Just to keep warm, you understand! I must admit that I throughly enjoyed it (which surprised me). There was only the 12 of us in the room so we all sang a song or two. The rice wine helped warm us up too. On returning to the hotel, the receptionist handed me a note. It was from Minh. Turned out he was in hot pursuit having come all the way from Hanoi, determined to get his mitts on the $800. When I went down to breakfast the next morning at 7.30am he was waiting for me. Tired and cold after spending the night in a room that was more like a fridge, I handed him the reduced sum of $500. For that sum, he said that he would ensure that we were allowed to take our tapes containing all that we had filmed in Vietnam with us over the border to China! To make sure we left the country, he even accompanied us on our bus jouney to the border. On arrival he disappeared pretty sharpish - didn't even say goodbye! Certainly didn't hang around to make sure we crossed without a problem. Butterfly Valley Liked: Peace and quiet We spent our first day and night in China in Butterfly Valley. A small but very beautiful place. We spent the night in small 'Dong' style wooden houses on stilts, with two of us sharing each of the houses. Each one had a toilet but unfortunately the toilet had no door. More on that later…. After the din of Vietnam, this was a wonderful place to be. A little peace at long last. It was very cold though. There was no heating at all in the rooms and all meals were eaten outside. Luckily there was a little fire outside that we could sit round. Despite that, everyone went to bed early to keep warm - some went as early as 7pm! Definitely too cold for a wash or a shower. I was sharing a room with a member of the group I didn't know too well. Unfortunately, my tummy decided to play up. Not very nice considering the toilet had no door! And especially because it was a squat toilet. If she's reading this I apologise profusely. Liuzhou Liked: Hot water and a shower In contrast to the tranquility of Butterfly Valley, Liuzhou was loud, lively and colourful. It was fabulous to get to the hotel and discover that not only was there heating but there was also hot water! I was particularly grateful for these things as I was suffering with a cold. A group of six of us went out for a meal in the evening and boy was it tasty. Even with my cold I could taste how wonderful it was. I ate some buffalo and really enjoyed it! There were plenty of other tasty things on the menu too. In China you share different dishes with the rest of your dining companions so it's a great way to try out new food. Stomach full, I went back to the hotel for an early night to try and shake off my cold. The rest of the group went ten-pin bowling before moving on to a nightclub. Apparently a good night was had by all! Chengyang Liked: Mrs Wu's cooking It was almost dark by the time we reached Mr and Mrs Wu's hotel in Chengyang. From the outset it was very cold. Although the hotel was new, it was extremely cold. When we sat down to eat, there was a fire underneath the table to help keep us warm. A few people actually burned their socks in an effort to get their feet as close as possible to the heat of the fire. Mrs Wu's cooking is fantastic and Mr Wu tries his best to keep us warm by offering us his rice wine. Oh well, anything to keep the cold at bay! Not much happens in Chengyang. We are visiting China during the coldest winter they've had for 50 years. We had electricity for a while in Chengyang but it wasn't long before it cut off. Then it got really, really cold. The village relies on tourists for income but there are precious few here. And it's no wonder - it's freezing. The people of the village put on a cultural show for us which provided some much needed colour. It's hard to keep spirits up when conditions are so extreme. Anne was getting tired of doing very little and Seòras had started to worry me. He'd been suffering with the cold and had a very bad cough. We all took to sleeping fully dressed with as many layers on as possible. It was too cold to get undressed. Nobody took a shower for the 3 days we were in Chengyang. Not that there was hot water anyway to wash with anyway! There was collective disappointment when we were told that roads were too icy for us to travel to the rice terraces at Longji. That meant that we spent a lot more time in Chengyang than we had originally planned. Yangshuo Liked: The many activities After 3 days, we finally managed to leave Chengyang and travelled to the town of Yangshuo. It's a fairly large town, with an economy again very reliant on tourism. But whilst there was little to do in Chengyang, Yanshuo leaves you spoilt for choice. There are numerous activities and excursions. From tai chi, cookery lessons and shopping, there was enough to keep Anne and Seòras occupied. I thought Anne ws going to throw up when we visited the farmers' market. I must admit I had very little appetite left myself after seeing it. From dogs, rabbits and who knows what else, it was unlike anything we're used to. The thing that got to me most were the turtles that had had their shells removed in preparation for someone buyng them to make soup. They were still alive and moving around.The poor things! Hong Kong Liked: Everything! After a hassle or two, we finally managed to make it to Hong Kong. The overnight train we had hoped to catch had been cancelled due to the bad weather. In the end, we flew there instead. I had always wanted to visit Hong Kong so I was a little disappointed that we were to have less than 24 hours to spend there. However, we made sure that we crammed as much into that time as possible. We were all so grateful to be warm again - Hong Kong was much more comfortable. We all dined together in the evening and had a fabulous night, although we were a little sad that it was to be our last night together as a group. After spending a fortnight together, it was quite difficult to say goodbye. Although the thought of returning home was beginning to become quite appealing! So we had a good end to a good trip. I resolved there and then to return to Hong Kong some day. Soon. I think Anne and Seòras got a lot out of their experience. I know I did. It was great to spend time with them, Niall and the rest of the group.
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