GOOOOOOOOOOOOODDDD MORNING VIETNAMMMMMM!!!!
Sorry… I just had to.
Since we’re ahead of schedule we decide to sleep through the rooster alarms and wake up when we wake up.
Again this is another travel day, so Eric and I stumble our way along to the bus station. I use the word “stumble” because we have no map of the city and no idea where the station is – the only directions we have are pointing fingers and following other buses.
Eventually we find it and arrive just in time to catch a sleeper bus to Hanoi. A “sleeper bus” is a bus with beds instead of seats.
Yes, you read correctly...
Beds.
Mind you, they aren’t four-post canopy beds with spring-coil mattresses. They’re basically a bus seat with a long reclining cushion so you can stretch your legs outs in front of you. They’re stacked like bunk-beds along the sides and down the middle of the bus, and they have guardrails to prevent you from rolling off, which is a good thing with the way people drive over here.
5 hours later we arrive safely in Hanoi and walk out of the bus station only to be overwhelmed by the traffic… traffic like we have never seen before. We thought Jakarta was bad but this is absolutely nuts!!!
It’s a constant stream of scooters and taxis, honking and beeping at each other, weaving all over the road. It also doesn’t help that it’s about a week before “Tet”, the Vietnamese Lunar New Year, so there are a lot of people travelling and prepping for the weekend. We find a very nice taxi driver and join the chaos on our way to the Old Quarter.
After we get settled in, Eric and I brave the traffic and begin exploring Hanoi.
We soon discover we absolutely love Hanoi – it’s just a fantastic city!
The festive feel helps to sell it to us!
In Vietnam people work very hard, all year round. They rarely take days off, with the exception of about one week around Tet, so you can imagine the vibe. There are people everywhere smiling and laughing, meeting friends and shopping, and pretty much getting ready for their big break – you can just feel the excitement in the air!
We go to bed exhausted but excited for our next few days.
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