After leaving Laos we arrived in Hanoi after a pleasant 1.5 hour flight from Vientiane (unlike our journey 2 Laos!). Introduced instantly to the chaos that is traffic in Hanoi, no high way code applies in this city! scooters posing our biggest threat to life as we know it! Horns blaring constantly with no reasons, nearly losing our life's 3 times in our 1st night! We eventually made it to our hostel for our first dorm experience. We headed out for our first meal on the streets with what can only be described as play group style furniture meeting officially the 2 tallest British guys eating between their knees! Few drinkies later ended our first night in Hanoi.

Our first day was spent seeing the sights of Hanoi via the walking tour, revealing the specialist streets, our favourites including; "sweet street", "cookery street" and "shoe street". It opened our eye's to the fact that the pineapple ladies will do anything for money! (scammed again!). We then watched the famous water puppets show, a new cultural experience for us. Yet another market and then out for drinks with the hostel.

Halong Bay!!!! woop woop!!!!!!!!

Stomachs lined, mexican hats at the ready, the booze cruise began!

We new this was going to be a fun experience by the initial topic of conversation, naming the A-Z of Vagina's and Pennis' (obviously not initiated by us!). Eventually arriving at the Jolley Rodger, to be our home for 24 hours where the drinking began, just in time for lunch! Followed by jumping off the 5m high boat into the saltiest water ever! (Halong Bay), kayaking (crashing into a small fishing boat, not a bridge this time!), caving all of which continuing to involve the essential beer. Dinner was promptly followed by the largest game of "Ring of Fire" (36 people), which lead to awesomely drunken dancing into the early hours and someone vomitting profusely outside our cabin door at 5am! (?dward?).

The second started bright and early, taking a second boat to our very own private castaway Island. Here we relaxed and recovered before our "arm/jaw/eye threatening" (to some!) tubing experience! (not quite the same as Vang Vieng as involved a high powered speed boat, flipping us numerous times into the sea at high speeds! Again the drinking games were calling for us before dinner! Continuing long into the night, the formation of new nick names "kleenex and same same" (Maria & Amy) and lots of press ups!

Waking up to the sound of the waves in our beach huts was pretty amazing, before saying goodbye to our island with a beer salute at 08:30 to head back to Hanoi.Moving to the new Hanoi Backpackers on our return with our new ship mates (5 Ausies, and 4 English) for a much needed chill out.

Off to Hoi An!