Hanoi

I am finally here in Hanoi, on day 2. The flight on Cathay Pacific was really pleasant. The service is the best I've had so far in the air and the food not too shabby. The 17 hour flight to Hong Kong really wasn't bad at all and I ended up sleeping the whole way. It was the final 3 hours that was the hardest as I got so restless and anxious. I had to transfer to Vietnam Airlines in Hong Kong for a 2 hour flight to Hanoi. The stewardesses were so pretty in their maroon ao dai. Upon on our descent, there was a rainbow playing against the vibrant green fields. It was quite breathtaking!

I'm staying at a really great hotel next to Hoan Kiem Lake, near the Old Quarter. The staff's been super friendly and really helpful. They're so surprised to see that I actually can speak Vietnamese even though I've been living in the States for so long! Also, there's free internet so I'm taking advantage of that.

The traffic here is so chaotic!! Imagine hundreds, thousands of motorbikes racing through the streets. Now, imagine trying to cross the street with all those motorbikes coming at you! It truly becomes a game of Frogger. I ended up getting a free motorbike ride through the city yesterday. It was so much fun.

My first meal here has been pho ga. It was really good and so cheap! For a bowl of pho and a coke, it came to 25,000 VND (less than $2 USD). In these 2 days, I have not even spent $5 USD yet on food/snacks!

I spent most of today at the Museum of Ethnology which features Vietnam's many Ethnic Minority groups. It was quite interesting to see the diversity of ethnic groups here. The jet lag, I believe, finally caught up with me and I passed out at my hotel afterwards.

Tomorrow, I'm heading out to Ha Long Bay very early in the morning. Ha Long Bay is an UNESCO site with thousands of limestone rock islands jutting out of the sea. It's a 2 day/1 night tour, sleeping on the boat, and kayaking through the caves and rocks. I've got my dramamine ready!