It feels really good! After several...and several... weeks of hectic activities at the job and practical arrangements, such as meeting with friends for a farewell beer/coffee/party, getting the last shot of vaccination on the day before departure and packing my suitcase a couple of hours before I have to leave my home in Stockholm, I am finally on my way to Arlanda Airport =oD I have been looking for this moment for the last 5 months. This is going to be my first trip to Vietnam - a country I have wanted to visit for some years. I will be working for two months for a Danish non-governmental organisation (NGO) called ADDA (abbreviation for Agricultural Development Denmark Asia).
However, well arrived at Arlanda Airport I created some fuss at the check-in desk by not having any visa to Vietnam. The problem was that the date on my departure ticket from Vietnam extends the 15 days Scandinavians are allowed to stay in the country without a visa. Though, my original plan was to get a tourist visa for two months at the migration office when I arrive at the airport in Hanoi. What was the problem? To make a long story short and several phone calls later, I was finally granted to go to the gate half an hour before the departure time. But I had to promise the very lovely check-in lady to go to the Danish Embassy in Hanoi as soon as I arrive. They will help with the visa - and two days after my arrival will be too late, was the anxiouse words I got. I got into the plane, but apparently the Finnish couple which kept me with company at the check-in desk for a couple for hours did not made it. They had the visa, but no departure tickets from Vietnam, since they wanted to take the train from Vietnam to China. So their task was to buy flight tickets somewhere in Arlanda Airport within 45 minutes. I wonder whether they managed to take the next flight...
