Hey!

So we have finished the next section of the trip through Vietnam. The last time I blogged we were leaving for an overnight train to Nha Trang from Ho Chi Minh City. Well the train was actually quite nice as you can see in photos- there were 2 bunks per room and we even had some flowers. Unfortunately though the movement and noise of the train accompanied by the alcohol from my fellow travellers meant no sleep on that train! We arrived in Nha Trang very early on Tuesday morning. After waiting for the rooms(sleeping by the swimming pool) we managed to get some sleep before some of us heading to mudbaths. There was a whole system to the mudbaths with showering, mudbathing, drying in the sun, showering in mineral water, hydro-showering and soaking in mineral water (photos on phone rather than camera). All very fancy but unfortunately as it was "The tete" (Chinese New Year) it was absolutely crazy with all locals and we didn't get to explore around the massive swimming pools and massage areas. That night we went to a local restaurant where you had to cook your own meal! We all had our own BBQ's and you choose your meat, vegetables etc.

On Wednesday the group split different ways-Ryan went on a day trip on a boat snorkelling but as the water was rough I thought it wouldnt be a great idea for me to go. Apparently they didnt actually get to see much too. I just spent the day watching movies, at the pool and on the computer - loving getting a break for a while. The night we had another overnight train to Danang. The train wasn't quite so nice this time but I got about 5 hours sleep which was great as I needed it for all the Hoi An. We got a bus from Danang to Hoi An and again waited for our rooms to be ready (trains arrive 4am-5am usually). We left our stuff off and headed straight to the tailors. After spending time picking the design, material and price, 3 hours later I was on my way to having a new dress, suit, trousers, 5 shirts and a cardigan! We went on a river cruise late afternoon around the area and saw a local couple out fishing with the massive net you can see in the photos.

Friday we had 3 different fittings of all the clothes we ordered - they could literally make you a shirt in hours! We spent most of the day walking around the town of Hoi An which is so quaint and full of culture. On Saturday we had a 3 hour drive north to Hue in the morning. Unfortunately when I arrived I got sick and spent the rest of the day in the room and all of Sunday until we got the overnight train in the late afternoon.

We arrived in Hanoi early Monday morning and got straight on a 3 hour bus to Halong Bay. When we arrived at Halong Bay it was so misty we couldnt see anything but fortunately by the time we went out on the junk (local boat) it had cleared a bit. As you can see the photos from around the Bay were so beautiful. We stopped at a fish viewing area where we saw some weird looking crabs, octopus and fish. We also got to see around the caves inside one of the rocks in the Bay. The number of boats in the bay is unbelievable-there are tourists everywhere.

Tuesday morning we headed back to Hanoi where are tour guide took us for a walk around the town past the main markets and we had lunch in a local restaurant. It was the last night for some of the people on the tour so we went for a drink in a bar along a roadside and then onto one of the "Lonely Planet recommended" restaurants for dinner followed by a few nightclubs. Got back to the hotel on the back of a bike with 2 other people! Always interesting! On Wednesday we walked around town by ourselves and met everyone for a picnic alongside the river to say bye and also hello to a new British couple joining the group.

Thursday was spent all day in the bus getting to the Vietnam/Laos border. When we finally got there the money exchange was closed and as we had no dollars to pay for the visa into Laos we had to give all our remaining Vietnamese money to get into the country regardless of the exchange rate. They also make you pay a dollar at every border and put it in the pockets-just the start of corruption for these poor countries. We finally got to the hotel in Lak Xao and the boys went to play a game similar to French Bowls. That night we went to the "Only One" restaurant in town! The next day again was spent all day in the bus getting to the capital of Laos, Vientiane. Unfortunately we had another mishap with getting money and machines so spent most of the day sorting that out followed by getting a virus on memory card and losing photos from the last 3 days (which were probably the best as all taken in country of local people). Last night we had a lovely BBQ dinner by the Mekong River.

But lets just say that was a bad day and today is a new one! Most of the photos up our from Vietnam but there are a few days missing from the end of this blog. Sorry for any bad spelling/grammar very rushed! Hope you are all well.

Love Kimberly xox