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We arrived in Hanoi about 6pm on a saturday, having met many an exciting character on the journey from Vientiane. Slightly psychotic aussies, lovely german girls, some cool dutch guys, posh surrey boy. I really liked Hanoi at first. It is a very fast paced city and it made a very good impression on our group as we began our introduction to Vietnam. Very charming people and a stunning city, where you're as likely to getcharmed by a street vendor as get knocked over by a motorbike, or as i did purchase a flashing clocking of Ho Chi Minh. We had become accustomed to market sellers everywhere in China, but Vietnam is on a diffrent scale and its fascinating. Every corner you turn, someone is selling SOMETHING. it doesnt seem to matter what and they are often items for which it would be hard to dream up any plausible use for them, but they are still offered. From vibrating bullets to badly photocopied novels to wooden carvings of animals, your every need is catered for in Hanoi. After a first night of english football with the dutch girls and a big celebration as the news came through that PSV had clicnched the Eredivisie on the final (karen is a massive PSV fan) we had a day of sightseeing on our first day, which revolves around the Hoan Kiem lake, in the centre of the city. Highlights include the Tortoise Tower, which does exactly what it says on the tin and the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum. Unfortunately we ruined our day in Hanoi by trying to be overcultural and embarking on a trip to the traditional Vietnamese pastime of the Water Puppet Theatre. Sitting next to me now, Punch speaks for both of us as he describes it as ''rubbish... a complete waste of time.'' Harsh but fair i feel. Not wishing to question the place of water puppets in Vietnamese society, perhaps this form of entertainmenmt however was not for us...
We would really have loved to have made a trip up to the far north of Vietnam and Ha Long Bay, which is a group of islands but unfortunately we were pressed for time and had to get going on our journey down through Vietnam. So after 2 days in Hanoi we reluctantly boarded the overnight bus, first stop Hue. Again little to report from this town. We had heard that there was not much to do in Hue and so we spent only the day there, moving on in the evening to Hoi An. While in Hue we visited the Citadel and Tombs, my particular highlight dressing up as a Vietnamese King. Arriving that evening in Hoi An, we hit the bars pretty hard and it turned out to be a pretty good place to go out. Its a very nice city with planty of moats, cafes etc and theres plenty to do of an evening (like in this case watch chelsea and man utd get knocked out of europe on consecutive nights with rubbish fake fans, brilliant!) Our first day in Hoi An was spent visiting a relic called My Son. We only went as i had got it confused with a town called Son My, a town 40 km south, where a massacre took place during the American War. En route we realised that we were instead visiting a World Heritage Listed sight, the ruins of the Cham Kingdom, nearly 2000 years old but it was a really great day, with our non-english speaking guide in tow. Our second and final day in Hoi An was spent seeing the sights of the city such as the Japanese Covered Bridge. We took the opportunity to hire motorbikes for the first time and managed toi escape relatively unscathed as we drove round the city and the beaches of Hoi An on our deathtraps (for anyone thinking of getting one however, dont leave your calf on the exhaust for too long as you get off the bike, its not pleasant). And so we had to depart with barely enough time for a last minute panic as punch and i lost eachother with half an hour to go before ourt bus left to Nha Trana and i had to belt it round random towns, looking for Hoi An. Not that i was lost or anything. It was a shame we could not spend longer in Hoi An as it was my favourite stop in Vietnam. Unfortunately many tourists visit briefly, using it as a stopover to picj up cheap suits from the numerous silk tailors for which the town is famous, but it is a genuinely charming, picturesque and lively town and we had a great couple of days there. It was on to Nha Trang next, beach capital of the south and yet another overnight bus....
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