Flew to Hanoi on 3rd August. Arrived in rush hour so it was a long bus ride to our hostel, but we arrived just in the nick of time for hostel happy hour. There we were meeting my wee brother Cameron and Amanda (from here on in referred to as C & A) and they were waiting for us in the bar with free beer...lovely!

The next morning (after the inevitable 'Good Morning Vietnam' to each other) all 4 of us got picked up to go to Halong bay. We had heard horror stories about these trips involving boats sinking etc so we booked quite a nice trip. But we were all pretty stunned when we saw our boat -- very flash! After a big seafood lunch on board, we spent the afternoon chilling on top deck whilst floating around the bay surrounded by the amazing karst formations. Later we kayaked (in double kayaks that had a reluctancy to go straight, leading to some bickering between most couples) to a lovely, albeit very busy, beach. After a quick lesson in spring roll making we enjoyed another great meal and some cocktails before bed.

The next morning was our 1st wedding anniversary. I woke up at 5am to take a peek outside as I'd heard that this was the best time to enjoy the bay. It was incredibly tranquil, with not a sound and I could see why the trip is so popular. We visited a gigantic cave, before half of our group left for home and 6 of us remained. We then docked on the largest of the islands called Cat Ba to cycle around paddy fields full of water buffalo to a small village. After lunch we kayaked to a private beach for some swimming in the warm water. There was nobody else around so it was pretty special! Afterwards, we docked in Cat Ba town to go to our hotel -- again very impressed. Pretty flashy for backpackers! The 4 of us hired a couple motorbikes to whizz around town for an hour, then out for dinner & drinks. Not a bad way to celebrate 1 year of marriage.

Headed back to Hanoi the next morning. It was raining so we were glad we were just travelling that day. We really lucked out as the bay was closed the week before due to a typhoon, and closed again the day after we left too. We spent the next day sightseeing around the city, trying our best not to get run over by the thousands of mopeds that occupy the streets. Some of which were complete with entire families, including their dogs, and carrying huge items like 10m long metal beams and even a full-size wardrobe! Crazy! That night we hopped on the overnight bus, along with C & A, down the coast to Hue, the historical capital. Pretty cramped beds on the bus but travelling this way was very cheap, and meant that we didn't eat into our precious remaining days.

We hired bikes and cycled around Hue to visit some impressive Royal mausoleums, and cycled back along the river. All very peaceful until arriving back in town at rush hour--the few traffic lights that exist seem to just be for decoration so we literally had to close our eyes and hope for the best. Pretty exciting!
We explored the ancient Citadel across the river. Very interesting but it was such a hot day that we didn't last long. We managed to haggle like pros and chartered our own boat with driver to take us for a 2 hour river cruise to see a hill-top temple, all for the bargain price of £6! For dinner we tried some local specialties at a wee traditional diner. The 3 old ladies that worked there were fussing over us so it was lovely.

Travelled down the coast to our next stop, Hoi An, on the back of 2 motorbikes. This was one of our trip highlights! Not least because the breeze was so refreshing on that 38 deg day, but also because they took us to a waterfall for a swim, to fishing villages for a very fresh seafood lunch, to beautiful beaches, and up windy mountainous coastal roads for unbelievable views. Great way to travel!

Went to the beach early to avoid the hottest part of the day but even at 10.30am the sand was unbearably hot. Gorgeous though. Cycled around town checking out all the beautiful pagodas, quaint little streets lit with brightly coloured lanterns, and all the river boats. Plus hundreds of tailors!

The next morning we dragged ourselves out of bed at 5am for a sunrise tour of My Son, ancient ruins of the Cham people. Very serene walking around the ruins at that time, so the early start was worthwhile. Cycled to a different beach with C & A later for a swim, and then had a really tasty Indian dinner.

On our final day in Hoi An we signed up for a Vietnamese cooking class. Started with a market tour where we saw all sorts including huge eels, intestines and animal heads. Luckily,none of our recipes called for anything too weird. We cooked 5 things which was great fun and so tasty. We just hope we'll get time to practice all this Asian cooking we've learned when we return home. Hopped on another night bus down to Nha Trang, a big beach town.

Arrived too early to check in so we headed straight for the beach at 8 (best time of the day for us) and stayed there under our big umbrella most of the day. It was our last night with the other two so went out for some drinks. Think we all had a few too many...

Early the next morning we tagged along on a dive boat to go snorkelling around the islands. It was a bit of a rough boat trip due to the antics of the night before, but the water visibility was great so it was amazing snorkelling. Jumped on another (and the last, thank god) night bus to head south to Ho Chi Minh City aka Saigon.

Arrived at 6 so jumped straight on a tour to the Cu Chi tunnels, the vast network of tunnels used by the Viet Kong people during the Vietnam War. Pretty amazing to see where these people lived for so long as the tunnels are tiny in parts, and it was scary to see the booby traps used for the Americans. Later we explored the city including the Reunification palace.

We said goodbye to Vietnam and flew to our last stop...Bangkok.