Hanoi – very messy place …

Hanoi – very messy place … Hanoi, Vietnam

Hanoi, Vietnam

Day 21 – Vientiane to Hanoi – 011208

Had to fly into Hanoi in the evening for a night’s stay before heading out back to Singapore the next morning. Won’t say so much about Hanoi except that the traffic was terrible … lawless I would say. The old town has also changed a lot compared to a few years back … a lot of more trendy and upmarket shops have taken over the town … pity … Not much time to sight-see, that’s for sure.

By the time I checked into the hotel and got ready to go out to grab dinner, it was already 9 pm. Bumped into a kid (well, ok, he says he’s 21) who took me around with his scooter for a pretty reasonable price. Asked that he take me to a few bars with good live bands … most notably ’17’. Band was good, but one can tell that the social transformation of Hanoi could be spiraling out of control … or is it? Those who frequent Hanoi will know what I mean …

Asked the boy to take me somewhere, anywhere, to have a good bowl of Pho, which was what I really wanted. He brought me to one along the roadside not far from ’17’, near where he stayed. The Pho was good, very good.

I asked to see where he lived, since he said it was nearby, and if he would be ok to show it to me. He obliged, though surprised as he said tourists never ask for that ever. 🙂 We walked into the side streets, into very narrow lanes, some unlit, in between densely packed 3-4 storey houses/buildings, till we came to a small building. Inside, a room no more then 4 by 4 metres, climbing up to a platform which formed the mezzanine floor, was where he and 8 others share a room. My goodness … it was just way too cramp but that’s all they can afford. I did not bring my camera for I wasn’t expecting to see this. It would’ve been a great pictorial and a reminder to us who live in cities not to take things for granted. But it was just as well I didn’t take any pictures for I have been intrusive enough as well.

Went back to my hotel before midnight, as I had to be at the airport at 7am the next morning. Gave the boy a good tip for taking me around and making such a short stay interesting enough, and not getting me killed in the process (trust me, the traffic is bad …) 🙂

Day 22 – Hanoi to Singapore – 021208

I’m going home … time for some takeaways from a longer than expected trip.

I’ve met some very nice and fun people along the way, made some good friends, seen things which most others might choose to ignore, no matter how close they are to it.

Learnt and improved my photography, and took some great pictures along the way. I really like Laos … Luang Prabang in particular. I would want to go back again, and maybe visit during one of the festivals to get more colour around the life there. It is still untainted by economic development, though this might not be the case for much longer.

Luang Prabang is very similar to Hoi An, very chill out town, but with nicer weather this time of the year and a generally nicer feel to the place. Laos is also very safe so far. I’ve walked along the streets at any time of the day and night, crowded or alone, without fear for my safety. Most foreigners living there will attest to that. Again, I’m not sure how long that will last … I hope it will continue for a long time.

Always buy travel insurance … you never know when you’re gonna need it … :-p Came in very handy this time, indeed.

Last but not least, I don’t buy postcards anymore.