Vietnam-Laos Border to Hanoi

Hello Everyone,

Once crossing into Vietnam, we made our way to Mong Lay. This town will soon no longer exist, as the government is building a huge dam that will flood it. Thats fine with me though, as the only hotel in town had awful service. It took us 45 minutes to get just rice one meal!! Plus, I had an upset stomach, so I didn't get to see much. From there, we got ripped off three times by bus drivers on our way to Sinho, which is annoying, because you know you are getting ripped off, but can't avoid it as they threaten to kick you out of the bus in the middle of no where if you don't pay. Out early experiences in Vietnam made us suspicious upon getting to Sinho, which was a shame, as Sinho is lovely.



In Sinho, nobody speaks English, and we did not see another white person in our three days there. It is very beautiful, though unfortunately it was foggy. There are many ethnic minoriteies who dress in their traditional clothing regularly, making the markets a vibrant place. WE went into a small restaurant, and tried to order just a bit of food, but they brought the three of us 6 dishes. WE thought they would then try to overcharge us, but in the end, the only charged us 50 000 Dong (about 3.50) total because they were honoured to have us as guests!! The food was delicious and we went back there again for an equally good meal. We also got called over one day by a soldier, who invited us in for dinner that night, and pointed out the chicken we were going to eat on his lawn. We spent the evening eating and teaching his children English. WE also went on some spectacular walks through the scenery and nearby villages. After our poor experience the first few days, it was nice to see the good side of Vietnam.

From there we went to Son La, a newly constructed town. We ended up spending an evening with the hotel owner, who offered us some Bee wine. I thought he meant honey wine, but when it came, the bottom half of the bottle was full of dead bees. I drank it, but could help but feel that little bee wings and feet were going down my throat, which was a little disconcerting.

We stopped for an afternoon in Sapa, which was freezing!!! It was around 3 degrees and rainy, which is really cold when you have no warm clothes and no where warm to warm up in. We had to buy some warm clothes before taking the overnight train to Hanoi, Vietnam's capital. Overall, I would highly recommend northern Vietnam, but at a warmer, less rainy time of year.



In Hanoi, we immedietly joined a three day tour of Halong Bay, shortlisted for the new 7 wonders of the natural world. Though crowded, the limestone caves we visted were quite impressive. I also had my first conversations with other tourists, as we hadn't seen very many until this point. WE then returned to Hanoi, and Don, Nika's father, left us for Canada. It was fun travelling with him,, and we were sorry to see him go.