Good Morning Vietnam

After a short flight from Laos, we arrived in Hanoi, Vietnam. I went to the ATM and withdrew 2,000,000 Dong which should cover us for a while. A bottle of water cost 10,000 Dong, so the money goes a little faster than you might expect. We took a minibus to the Old Town and arrived just after dark. The streets are crowded, noisy and dirty. We found a not so great hotel for the night, but have upgraded since. We need to apply for our Chinese visas, so we are trying to get that done here. It's a hassle since we are getting special visas for working which means we need a letter. The good news is that we just found out that we don't need the original letter, the bad news is we have to wait until Monday to apply, since the Chinese Embassy only works until 11AM M-F and we came around 11:30 Friday. :(

Our plan now is to do things around the area. We will probably go to Ha Long Bay for 3 days once we turn in our visa applications.

Hanoi is not a nice place to walk around. The streets are crowded with honking, swerving scooters and the sidewalks are crowded with everything but room for walking. If you want to cross the street you cross your fingers and walk slowly. (I've lived in China for 2 years, Hanoi is much worse). The street is always littered with trash and wet. Besides the getting around, its a nice town. The people have all been friendly, the food is good and the hotels are decent for the price.