Profile
Blog
Photos
Videos
It seems it's been almost 3 weeks since the last entry. That's been quite the blur, to say the least. I will endeavour to make this blog relatively brief.
I mentioned at the end of the previous entry that I was spending a few more days in Hanoi, prior to meeting friends. I did that. I can't remember what I did in those days, but I think I just chilled by day and partied reasonably hard by night. Hanoi remains a wonderful city.
A friend from Pai, Woody, arrived early in the morning on the 18th and we were headed straight out to meet the second friend, Hannah, in Ninh Binh. The previous night was St Patrick's day and I made friends with an Irish lad, so I rather stupidly indulged for a bit longer than was wise. That made for a challenging bus journey to Ninh Binh, but I made it in one piece! We met Hannah and a couple of other people when we arrived in Ninh Binh. We only stayed there for one night but the place we stayed at was magnificent - it was kind of in the middle of nowhere but the view was brilliant. We chilled a lot and then did a little climb up a mini mountain, which I already did on my previous visit. We also ended up chilling again on day two because the weather wasn't very helpful, before getting on a bus to an island called Cat Ba.
The bus to Cat Ba was much more enjoyable than the previous one! On Cat Ba, we stayed at a place called Woodstock, where Hannah stayed previously. It had quite the hippy vibe and it was actually a nice place to be around. I believe we stayed there for 5 or 6 nights. We chilled a lot by day, especially in the first couple of days there.
At some point, a few of us went to look at a couple of caves. One of them was called Hospital Cave. It was very interesting because it was a concrete field hospital built into the cave during the was. It isn't what I expected to see but it was worth the visit. The next cave (the name escapes me) was more standard. It was nice but nothing out of the ordinary compared to other caves I've seen previously. We ended up heading back to Woodstock after that.
The next few days are too much of a blur to accurately details, so I'll pick out a couple of details! Woody is an international drum n bass DJ and on a night out, he offered to DJ at a bar/club we were at the following night. That came to fruition. It turned out that Vietnam, including westerners visiting Vietnam, isn't ready for drum n bass. My friend Woody effectively cleared the place apart from our group. It was most hilarious and not something that will be forgotten quickly! He also thought it was hilarious.
On our final full day in Cat Ba, we hired a private boat to go out to water. It's the same area as Ha Long Bay, but I think it has a different name. It was far less touristy than the cruise I went on previously. We ended up spending the majority of the day at a place called Freedom Island. It was an incredibly fun day. The highlight was probably kayaking whilst semi drunk. I was with Woody and we went upside down into the water a couple of times. That was also hilarious, especially when our glasses sank to the bottom! Luckily, both pairs were rescued successfully. We also made it back to shore alive, so all was well! We had a good meal that night, followed by more drinks. It turned into quite a long one by the time me & Woody finished!
The following day, we headed back to Hanoi. My visa in Vietnam was due to expire the day after that. My friend Hannah is cycling from Hanoi to London (bit mental) and she was due to leave on April 1st. At some point on Cat Ba, I decided that I wanted to be around to see her off. That meant that I had to do a "visa run". I thus flew to Bangkok, Thailand when I arrived back in Hanoi, spent the night in Bangkok and then flew back to Hanoi the following morning. It was remarkably smooth!
The following day, I showed Woody a couple of places in Hanoi because he was due to fly home later that evening. We had another good meal and a few drinks, before saying the first farewell when Woody left.
The next few days were spent predominantly chilling and hanging out as a group. It was very pleasant and very relaxing. Very little else to report!
That brings us to today, the day in which Hannah departed on her mission. There was a lot last minute preparation to be done, but as a team we got there in the end, before saying the fond farewell, for now! I've tentatively said I may pop up in Iran when she's there. That will make for a story I reckon, if it materialises.
Tomorrow, I'm headed to Singapore for a couple of days before New Zealand.
But for now, this brings me to the end of Vietnam and South East Asia in general. I've been here in Vietnam for a while, but my word time has flown. Spending extra time here and especially in the north has made me conclude that I love the country and especially the younger people here. They are so incredibly nice, friendly, open and free! And in Vietnam as a whole, I haven't seen a single homeless person. The west could learn something from that, surely.
Goodbye for now, Vietnam. I will be back.
- comments