Hanoi. We finally found a place we don't like. Its not that the food is bad (though it does make me miss Thai food). Its not that our sleeping situation was horrible. Our money goes pretty far here. And Vietnam is unarguably a pretty, green country. But, you get the feeling very quickly that these people just don't want you here (Do they really think we don't get it when they stop in the middle of a conversation to mock us in Vietnamese?). Thankfully, we left the place on Sunday and took a package tour north to Halong Bay and Cat Ba Island. The next few days allowed me to warm to Vietnam just a little bit. Yes, the Vietnamese we met were still trying to lie and steal every penny from us, but at least we had 3 days and 2 nights of mostly hanging with westerners. What a relief.
From the moment we shook hands at the Kangaroo Cafe, things were better. We spent our time knocking back tigers, playing uno, and trying to keep cool. Along the way, we visited a few unspectacular caves and floated in majestic, but crowded Halong Bay. While not such impressive activities by themselves, they did allow us to see more of the country.
"Sailing" in the reproduced Chinese Junks in Halong Bay was fun, even though its like a cruise in the Caribbean. You never really go anywhere, just far enough to be out of site of town and you're clearly not alone (There are thousands doing the same exact thing at the same exact time). Still, we did enjoy popping open Halidas while hanging on to a kayak in Halong Bay. We had a fanta and vodka-fueled karaoke night pushed on us by one of the English guy's new Vietnamese girlfriends (Of course I had to drop my Fresh Prince of Bel Air on them). We swam off of Monkey Island and came out of the water with the black grime of the boats docking nearby. We played frisbee with the kids of Korean tourists. At night on Cat Ba Island we had pizzas and more Tigers while watching the summertime-at-the-boardwalk family atmosphere devolve into a catfight (complete with flying plastic chairs) before hitting up a disco and jammin' with a 5-year-old and then doin' the Cosby with Cat Ba's gay scene.
This was one of those rare times when we were so glad to have chosen a package tour. We probably couldn't have done these things much cheaper, definitely not easier, and we got to hang out with some fun, easy going people.
From the moment we shook hands at the Kangaroo Cafe, things were better. We spent our time knocking back tigers, playing uno, and trying to keep cool. Along the way, we visited a few unspectacular caves and floated in majestic, but crowded Halong Bay. While not such impressive activities by themselves, they did allow us to see more of the country.
"Sailing" in the reproduced Chinese Junks in Halong Bay was fun, even though its like a cruise in the Caribbean. You never really go anywhere, just far enough to be out of site of town and you're clearly not alone (There are thousands doing the same exact thing at the same exact time). Still, we did enjoy popping open Halidas while hanging on to a kayak in Halong Bay. We had a fanta and vodka-fueled karaoke night pushed on us by one of the English guy's new Vietnamese girlfriends (Of course I had to drop my Fresh Prince of Bel Air on them). We swam off of Monkey Island and came out of the water with the black grime of the boats docking nearby. We played frisbee with the kids of Korean tourists. At night on Cat Ba Island we had pizzas and more Tigers while watching the summertime-at-the-boardwalk family atmosphere devolve into a catfight (complete with flying plastic chairs) before hitting up a disco and jammin' with a 5-year-old and then doin' the Cosby with Cat Ba's gay scene.
This was one of those rare times when we were so glad to have chosen a package tour. We probably couldn't have done these things much cheaper, definitely not easier, and we got to hang out with some fun, easy going people.
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We miss you guys! The churros in our bellies say hi too.
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