FootLoose in Asia This journal is primarily for family and friends to follow our progress on our SouthEast Asia adventure through Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, Laos, and possibly Malaysia and Myanmar (Burma). Hopefully there will also be some useful information to others planning a trip to thease areas.

Hanoi, Vietnam – 13 to 14 February, 2007 The flight to Hanoi from Hue was just about an hour, so we arrived about 10:00 AM. The car we had booked in Hue was waiting for us, but we found we had paid about double the price of booking a car at the airport in Hanoi. We thought we overpaid when we booked it, but thought it might be easier. The airport is just over 40 kilometers from the center of town, so it was about an hour ride to our hotel. We were in the midst of rush hour traffic, and it reminded us of Saigon, except for a higher percentage of cars. Along the route to town many streets were lined with stalls selling flowering shrubs, flowers, and fruit trees in preparation for Tet, the Vietnamese New Year. Every business and home has at least one flowering shrub or branch prominently displayed. Each type of flower or fruit has different meanings and is meant to bring good luck, wealth, happiness, etc. Quince trees that were just beginning to blossom and kumquat trees full of fruit seemed to be the most popular. It is amazing the size of the trees in ceramic pots that can be carried on the back of a motorbike. When we arrived at the hotel we found we hadn’t really received any discount by booking through the travel agent in Hue, but at least we had a hotel that was clean, and D liked the thick mattresses and double sheeting. The room was small however, and the bed took up most of it. It was only for one night as we were leaving for an overnight trip to Halong Bay the next morning, but were then returning to this same hotel the following day. After checking in, guess what we did? You must be reading these after all because you got it correct. We went for a walkabout. Our hotel was in the old quarter of Hanoi, and there was a small lake just a few blocks away called Hoan Kiem Lake. We decided to walk to the lake and then around its perimeter to get a feel for the area. We also wanted to look for the Water Puppet Theater which D had read about and originated in Hanoi. We circled the lake and found the theater which wasn’t far from our hotel. When we found the theater it was 1:30 PM and we saw that there was only one show that day at 2:30 PM. As we were not sure what our schedule would be, we decided to take advantage of the timing and bought tickets and attended that show. The show lasted about 45 minutes and D enjoyed it, but J wasn’t that impressed. It is unique in that as the name implies the puppets perform in a pool of water, and are controlled by a group of people wading in the water behind a curtain. After the show we wandered north of the lake past our hotel to try and find a brewery D had read about. Between a poor map and streets changing names every couple of blocks, we got thoroughly lost and had to retrace our steps. Once getting our bearings at a crossroads we could find on the map, we were finally able to find the Red Beer Brewery in time for dinner. It was not a place we would recommend however as it is overpriced and both the beer and food is only so-so. After leaving there we headed for a spot a couple blocks away called “Bai Hoi Junction” This is a location where a number of sidewalk beer vendors sell local fresh beer, just as in Hoi An, but Hanoi has a much larger number of vendors. The price is also better in Hanoi at 2000 dong per glass versus 3000 dong in Hoi An. That works out to 12 cents versus about 18 cents, so you get 3 for the price of 2 in Hanoi. Beer Hoi Junction was a great place to meet travelers from everywhere as well as many of the locals, at least those that could speak some English. From the junction we headed back to the hotel to pack for our two day trip to Halong Bay. As we were returning to the same hotel in Hanoi, we had arranged to leave our bags there for the two days we would be gone, and the hotel arranged to move us to a different room that had an internet connection in the room when we returned. We packed the basic necessities for an overnight stay and got ready for the minibus to pick us up the next morning. Next stop Halong Bay.