Well, we’re still in Vietnam and as they say, time does heal wounds. Hanoi is crazy. Not Delhi crazy, but crazy none the less. Population is three million and there must be about two million mopeds buzzing around. Most don’t bother paying attention to traffic lights so at cross junctions motorbikes from four directions pile on in, and miraculously after a lot of weaving most come out the other side unscathed. Despite this crossing the road is not a problem. One just walks across as if crossing a stream, and the traffic flows around either side.

Hanoi is quite cool actually. Both the French quarter and old quarter are fascinating places to stroll around, with old colonial buildings and a maze of old trading streets respectively. I was disappointed by the Ho Chi Minh museum though. Full of artifacts and news paper cuttings in French, but no real information. I left knowing as much about “Uncle Ho” when I left as when I went in.

I must admit, arriving in Hanoi I feel tired. Three months on the road is a long time. I’ve seen so much since I left Europe, yet I never have any time to take in what I’m seeing. I’m tired of haggling for everything. Tired of being pressured into things. And tired most of all from the journey from the border crossing to Hanoi. Don’t get me wrong, many many great experiences, and I wouldn’t change it but I just have no home to turn to. I can’t curl up on my sofa and watch a film. Due to our budget most accommodation is very basic and not overly comfortable (often with shared bathrooms). In fact I think Paul Theroux summed it up quite well when he said “Traveling isn’t glamorous until you get back home”.

For this reason we splashed out a bit in Hanoi. We’ve stayed in a nicer hotel than normal with luxuries of a TV, fridge and a bath. We’ve also been to some nicer restaurants sampling some Tapas and Aussie grill bar goodness. Apart from that I’ve not done much really. Just recuperating and catching up. I’ve been well and truly rinsing the free Internet connection at the hotel, hence the multiple successive posts (don’t let the dates fool you). In the background I’ve also been able to upload hundreds of photos so some more galleries should appear soon.

Oh, and Alan, Raul and Robbie. It would appear the Vietnamese government don’t want their people reading about your opinions. All blogspot sites are inaccessible from here.