Day 17-Tubing, Slide of Death...Ok lets go to Bangkok

Hangovers when on vacation are possibly the worst things ever. It wasn't even that it was a hangover necessarily, but I was not feeling good when I woke up for my third day in Vang Vieng. I had woken up early and made my way to my favorite internet cafe where I ordered my usual cappucino and sat trying to figure out my plan for after Vang Vieng.

The Gibbon Experience had emailed me and told me that they didn't have any availabilities for the rest of the month, which really frustrated me because I had counted on traveling up into northern Laos and doing that for my Christmas activity. Anyway, I figured that I might as well start thinking of other options, but nothing was really exciting me. Conrad strolled into the cafe and I greeted him and slightly vented my frustrations to him about my lack of plans and hangover from the tubing and buckets from the day before.

Conrad seemed to be feeling great, and I could tell he had his heart set on tubing. I honestly really wasn't feeling the tubing vibe, but I thought that it was at least worth a shot, so I got my running clothes on and chugged some vitamin water and set out for a run in hopes of clearing up my hangover.

The run was a new route which took me through the countryside in Laos. It was a beautiful, although unbearably hot run, with monks passing by in there tangerine robes on bicycles, families of goats grazing in the fields and many old women pushing carts down the road. The limestone hills and lush greenery were the backdrop for the dusty roads that I was pushing myself to run in on, in hopes of sweating out the Tiger whiskey and vodka and red bulls.

I felt alot better once I had returned from my run, and showered and quickly got ready to go to lunch. We watched another episode of friends in a small roadside restaurant as I ate my last meel of Laap or Larp, the Loas popular food, and drank a pina colado. We sat quietly and then got into a tuk tuk and traveled to the start point for the tubing.

Everyday must be the same with the loud music and masses of drunken 20 somethings. Conrad ordered a Lao beer and I got a delicious mojito bucket and we sat on the dock and watched the impressive stunts of people hanging upside down and doing multiple flips into the water.

Suddenly, I noticed 3 people who looked really familiar. It was York, Lars, and Yohan some of the people Robyn and I had met in Halong Bay on the Castaway Island. I had thought I would meet up with them sooner and was very suprized to see them. They were floating down the river in tubes, so I wasn't able to get their attention, but I figured I would talk to them at a bar down the way.

We continued to walk down to the next bar, where there was mud wrestling or mud volleyball. Normally, I would find that fun, but I wasn't quite feeling it. I convinced Conrad to steal some tubes with me. As we were about to do that, a man stopped us and said we had to pay for them. I convinced him to let us have the tubes for just 50,000 kip (about $5) and off we went down the river.

Then as we were floating down the river I saw my friends over on the side at a bar playing ping pong, so I suggested we stop and then we could get some more drinks and do the swings and everything. Conrad was chatting with some new friends he met in the drink line, and I got a new bucket and wandered over to where I saw the boys.

They were really suprized when they saw me. They had not expected to run into me again, because I had told them I would arrive to Laos on the 12th, but my plans had been delayed. Then they suggested I head with them to Bangkok to meet Lar's family and then go down to Cambodia with York, because he would be traveling alone.

"Sure! Sounds good!" I said, considering my plans to do the Gibbon Experience had fallen through.

And that was that! I would be traveling with a Danish boy, a German and a Swedish boy, leaving for Bangkok the next morning. The plan sounded good to me, considering I already had my visa for Cambodia and did want to see it.

I introduced the boys to Conrad and the party continued on. Conrad went on the swing high above the water and was swinging back and forth like Tarzan when the swing had a rope snap and became broken for the rest of the evening. Luckily, Conrad was ok but that left me only one ride to do..... The Slide of Death.

Everyone had said, "Don't do the slide!". It was supposedly really dangerous because of the angle it shoots you into the air at. York, of course, was all for pressuring me to do the slide of death, and so once the swing broke that became my only option for a water ride before we headed back before sunset.

I climbed up the ladder and traveled to the top. "Shit... relax, relax, relax and you won't get hurt," I told myself. Of course I have no travel insurance, so injury is not what I am trying to get. Anyway, 1,2,3 and down I went. I tried to keep my body in a nice torpedo like shape and when I got to the bottom, I relaxed and kept my body streamlined.

SMACK!!! My legs and butt smacked the water and were stinging in pain. Other than that I was ok. When I swam to shore, the back of my legs were completely red, but I was ok.


We headed down the river in our tubes and then left them on the shore when we saw a bridge we could cross. The bridge was probably the most dangerous thing I had ever seen and was pretty much equivalent of tight rope walking, but we managed to make it across safely and get tuk tuks.

I don't know why, but I thought it would also be a good idea to ride on top of the tuk tuk. I actually would advise against this under all circumstances, but York and I and another guy held on despite the tuk tuk drivers yells to get off.

We made it back and went to the hotel and relaxed before dinner. A noisy bar is where we ate at before heading to Sunset Bar for the night. Unfortunately, the bar closed early so we just had a few shots of the dreaded Tiger Whiskey and our last Laos Beer before heading in for the night.

Laos Swing over River

Day 16-Tubing in Laos

Feeling a bit on the slow side, I drug myself from bed and forced myself to go for a run. Dressed in my dryfit nike outfit, slathered in sunscreen and bug repellent, I managed to get out and jogging by about 10 am.

Vang Vieng is a small town that runs along side the river, so I wasn't sure how far I would be able to run. My run turned out to be quite interesting, as the tourists seemed to be still in bed but the rest of the town was just waking up. Roosters seem to be the pet of choice in Vang Vieng with a majority of households having one in their yards. Many families and businesses proudly had the red and blue Laos flag with the center moon symbol on a corner of their homes. Also, the houses which most seem shabbily built of thatch or something similar, were often sporting a satellite dish. It was a very interesting site.

I ran for about an hour and a half and was battling the sun the whole time, so when I returned back to the hotel I was pretty exhausted. Conrad had woken up and was ready to shower and prepare for tubing, so I went to use the internet and let him have time to shower. I returned and then he went to use the internet and I spent time showering and preparing my things for the "Tubing" experience. Zip lock bag, waterproof camera, lip gloss, and a bit of money and I was ready!

We stopped along the way at a nice restaurant for lunch. I got the traditional Laos food called Laap and a bucket of mojito. The Laap was amazing! I ordered it made with chicken, although I think the traditional Laap is supposed to be made with fish. It was chopped chicken, mixed with a variety of spices. After we finished our meal we got in a tuk tuk and headed to the river.

We got dropped off and could already hear music coming from where the party was. As we approached and saw the scene, I was seriously amazed! Masses of people were dancing on deck by the river, with people swinging through the air on swings and zip lines over the water. Girls were in bikinis and guys were shirtless and many were covered in writing or body paint. Everyone looked wasted and even though the party looked awesome, I have to admit I was quite intimidated.

Conrad went and got a bucket, while I finished up my mojito. Watching the people swing through the air on the swings made me worried because they all looked so drunk. How is it possible that no one is hurt?

We decided to move up the river to a slightly calmer bar to start and then try to find tubes. As we were walking, we had to stop because some people had decided to take up a spot in the middle of the path to "get to know eachother". I guess I wasn't drunk enough to find the humor in it yet, but I just felt bad for the poor girl that will probably regret that later.

After a few free Tiger whiskey shots, (the cheapest Laos liquor available that is given out at most bars) we were ready to have fun! We met some nice guys that had been traveling and wanted to try the swing over the river too, so we all drank our buckets in preparation.

Conrad decided to go first and I volunteered to make a video while he did it. Climbing up high above the river and grabbing onto the handle he stood about 20 feet over the river on a platform and then swung down over the river and finally jumped into the water.

I went next and my heart was racing, but I figured that everyone does it and so I bet it will be fun. As I jumped off the platform and swung over the water, I didn't really know what to do with my body, so I kinda just moved around like a ballerina. It was a really cool feeling, like a combination of flying and dancing. The only problem was, I had no idea when to make the final jump into the water. Eventually, I heard someone yell jump and so I kinda just fell clumsily into the water to end my first swing experience.

We drank more and then stole some tubes from the bar and floated up the river to the next location. We saw our Swedish friends, John and Dennis, and convinced them to stay and drink with us until sunset. John and Dennis tried to convince me to swing naked for a final time, arguing that they had already done it and it would be a great experience. They were making some good points, but I was fortunate that the sunset before I had been convinced to swing naked in public.

Everyone piled into a tuk tuk and we headed back to the city center. Conrad and I ate dinner while watching friends in a busy restaurant. I was pretty drunk but starting to feel the onset of a hangover. My evening ended early, while Conrad went out to experience some of the night life of Vang Vieng.

Day 15- Vang Vieng

There was no alarm clock or phone in our room, so Conrad and I were fortunate that I woke up at 9 am to get ready to leave for the VIP bus to Vang Vien. We packed our bags, checked out and headed to the bus.

The bus was a large, brightly painted charter bus that was filled with people all heading to the Land of Tubing. You will often hear backpackers say, "Have you been tubing in Laos?" and it is the kind of comment that is similar to "Did you see Mickey Mouse at Disneyland?". EVERYONE goes tubing in Laos, and this is the place to do it. It is also known for an anything goes sort of attitude. I mean drugs are illegal, but in this place you would feel as though that is quite the opposite, at least from the stories I had heard.

We got on the bus, and sat away from eachother because the bus was already packed. I sat next to a nice Swedish guy named Phillip, who was sleeping throughout most of the bumpy ride. Conrad sat next to a beautiful South African girl who had taught English in Japan, but was currently going back to school to study. The ride from Vientiene took us about 3 hours, and was a beautiful although bumpy ride through the Laos countryside. It was great although a chatty British or Australian girl behind me talked continuously, driving me to near insanity that even my Ipod could not cure.

Once in Vang Vieng, we found accomadation at a nice guest house with TV, 2 beds, a fan and a clean safe central area in the city. We dropped off our things and then wandered the small city in search of food. Everywhere you went there were open air restaurants serving a fusion of SE asian cuisine and playing old TV shows on large screen TVs that you could lounge about in the restaurant and watch.

We picked a restaurant that was playing a rerun of Friends (the one where Ross dresses up as an Armadillo) and ordered food. It was definitely cheaper in Vang Vieng! All the food was about 10,000 kip($1 or so), so I ordered a vegetable tofu soup, spicy bean salad, and a gin and tonic. Conrad got some spring rolls and sweet and sour vegetables and a chocolate shake. We ate in a calm silence as we just took in the surroundings.

Afterwards, we walked around the city and did some shopping. I was in HEAVEN! Flip flops, sunglasses, boardshorts, sundresses, everything I wanted to buy! I currently have bought 4 pairs of shorts and a tank top for under $20! Back in Korea, those things would have cost me over $300.

As the night was setting in, we went our seperate ways for awhile and each chilled out in computer rooms. I was dead tired, and almost fell asleep for the night but was motivated to get out and do something soley because I was hungry. I was walking back to the hotel and found Conrad, and we went in search of food.

As we were walking we ran into Bennet, who had a terrible day! He had gotten his expensive camera stolen from his friends bag in a tuk tuk. Then we ran into Adrianna the beautiful South African who was drinking a bucket of liquor on the street. As we were chatting with her, a friendly woman named Natalie approached us and offered us a free shot of whiskey. We took the shot of whiskey and then realized that she was a promoter for a bar across the river that is the hot party spot.

We all headed over there and it was quite a party! People who bought beer were also given a joint and I am sure plenty of other "happy" substances. I am crazy enough without substances altering my mind, and so is Conrad, so we opted to go and get some food before partying.

As we walked the streets, a tall blond boy looked quite familiar! John our swedish friend from the bus was eating a massive sandwich and wandering the streets looking for something to do with his friend. We all sat down and ate and chatted.

Eventually, we all made it back to the bar across the river and drank in a bungalow and chatted about all the "happy" substances around us that were making everyone dance strangly and sway to the music. Things closed down around 12, and Conrad and I headed back slightly drunk to prepare for the next day of tubing.

Day 14-Vientiane and Thinking Ahead

December 14th, Monday
I woke up extremely early and headed out to plan, write my diary and get going. I talked to the front desk manager and booked 2 tickets for Vang Viene on the 9:30 VIP bus that would be leaving the following morning for me and Conrad.

Then I headed to a cafe and sat down with a cappucino and ordered a tofu salad for breakfast. 2 nice Malaysian Volleyball officials came and sat down and chatted with me. They told me if I ever wanted to go to Malaysia they would show me the way, and asked me questions about my travels.

I made it to an internet cafe and was frustrated because I felt like I had so many emails to send in order to plan the rest of my trip, but in reality I wanted to be out sightseeing. I had to email The Gibbon Experience (http://www.gibbbonx.org/) because it is a very popular thing these days. It is in northern Laos and you get to sleep high up in the canopy and swing through zip lines and sleep in the houses with real Gibbon monkeys. I decided this is a once in a life time opportunity and tried to get a trip booked. The sad part about it is, I won't be able to see Cambodia on this trip. I have my heart set on going there at some point in my life, but with the time constraints and the fact I am traveling up Laos, it will be too difficult to make it down again to Cambodia and then to Koh Tao in time to get my PADI and back to Bangkok for my flight to Seoul on the 9th of January.

After I had sent out email after email I met up with Conrad and we headed to lunch. We walked along the Mekong and found a cute little tree house and had a beer served by the cutest little boy. He was about 4 years old and was serving guests and clearing tables while his mother smiled and helped him. I let him take photos on my camera, and he had a great time shooting photos of his shy little sister, the river, the baby kittens sunning themselves, and Conrad's monkey faces.

We went to the next restaurant down the road and had lunch. I ordered a delicious green chicken curry and an iced latte. We decided to go to a tourist attraction after that, but we were both so full that we opted to take a tuk tuk to get there.

We went to a place called the Patuxai, which is a giant arch that was made in 1957. It resembles the Arc de Triomphe in Paris and has some inspiration of "Kinnari" a bird women of some sort. Supposedly, USA donated the concrete to Laos with the intention for them to build a runway, but instead they built this arch, so it is said to be nicknamed the "vertical runway".

We shot photos and went to the top of the arch which gave a beautiful view of the city. Many different foreigners were crowded around this area and we met some boxing athletes that we took photos with. Afterwards, we walked back to the area of our hotel and I went back to use the computer again and try to sort out my plans.

For dinner, we searched our Lonely Planets and finally decided on a restaurant called Full Mooon Cafe. We sat inside amongst the cozy southwestern decore, and I ordered the Spicy Laos Salad and a Bloody Mary. Our food was delicious, although extrememly spicy! We both were trying to drink as much water as possible as the tears fell from the corners of our eyes.

We walked around the city, but everything was done about 11, so we ended up watching a lame but entertaining Mike Myers movie in which he plays an indian love guru of some sort and then fell asleep ready to head out early on the journey to Vang Viene at 930 the following morning.

Day 13-Crossing the Border and Arrival in Vientiane, Laos

We arrived early in the morning at the Laos/Vietnam border at about 7 am. I awoke crammed into the corner of of my sleeping bus seat, next to my gigantic Swedish friend Dennis. My sleep wasn't too bad, but not great either. We all were slightly cramped and nervous for the troubles that may lie ahead at the border. Fortunately, I had come prepared with passport photos, US dollars and Vietnam Dong.

The bus unloaded and we went into an office where we had to show our passport and give $1 to leave Vietnam. From there we had to walk a 10 minute walk down the road to another office where we were given 2 different forms to fill out and then we had to pay in US dollars the fee to get a Laos Visa which will be good for 30 days. The US citizens have to pay $35 which was one of the more expensive fees, and additionally we all had to pay $2 (one for a weekend processing fee and another for some random fee). I definitely recommend bring lots of change ($1, $5 notes etc) because they seem to be terrible about doing the math and it became really frustrating for lots of people. Also, you needed a passport photo as well.

The whole border crossing process went fairly smoothly for everyone and we probably completed it within 3 hours maximum. After I was all finished, I sat down at this small make shift restaurant just beyond the Laos border where the bus driver was sitting and had some soup for lunch with them. They attempted to teach me how to speak some words

Laos

Hello- Sabadee

Thank you- Khawp jai lai lai

It was a good time, and I could already tell that Laos was going to be great. We continued driving for a few hours with one rest stop along the way. The landscape was amazing, with farms, hills, and beautiful greenery everywhere.

4pm we made it to Vientiane, Laos. This was earlier than I expected and great surprize to me! The form of transport in Laos is tuk tuks, so a great of us got a tuck tuk to the city center and then went to a hotel that was recommended by the Lonely Planet.

The SEA games (SE asia athletic event) was taking place in Vientiane, so the city was full of tourists and accomadation was hard to find. I wanted to seperate from 3 of the people I had taken the taxi with (a loud, obnoxious New Yorker and 2 angry polish guys), so I said that I was going to look for a room myself. I told Conrad, the nice canadian, that if he wanted to share he could, but I couldn't handle the other obnoxious travelers.

I ventured to a mini mart to get a coffee and when I was inside I ran into 2 pretty australian girls that were friendly and suggested I stay at the Orchid Guest House next door. Orchid was decently priced (160,000 kip about $18 a night) for a double room with hot water, tv, and air conditioner.

Conrad and I were content with that and stayed there, and fortunately the others ventured elsewhere. I quickly got my running gear on and headed around the city to check it out before it got too dark.

As I was running through the city, cute boutiques, salons, martini bars, and massage shops tempted me at every corner. Smiling faces and a laid back attitude seemed to be the way in Laos. I was happy to be out of the chaos of Vietnam and felt overjoyed at the peaceful, classy city we had arrived in.

I managed to find an internet cafe and was emailing and such, when I looked over and there was Conrad. We walked back to the hotel together and I got ready and we went out for dinner. I was hungry but up for anything, so we decided to eat at the plastic tables that were set up along the banks of the Mekong River that runs next to Vientiane.

We drank Laos beer, and talked about traveling. When our food arrived we were amazed! I had ordered the Laos chicken soup, which came in a terra cotta hot pot and I got to cook it myself. Vegetables, chicken, and an egg I added to the pot while I let it cook for 3 minutes before indulging.

The night was perfect and the possibilities of shopping, sightseeing, and relaxing filled me with anticipation as I fell asleep for my first night in Laos.

Day 12- Bus Ride from Hell-The road to Loas

Saturday, December 12th 2009 was a strange busy morning! Robyn woke me up to say goodbye, but I was so exhausted I hardly remember her leaving. She left the room at about 645 and wished me well on my travels and then I was on my own.

I tried to sleep in because I was so tired but I had my daily wake up call of jackhammers next to the window, so I dragged myself out of bed and asked to extend the stay of my room until 5 (when I had to catch the bus to Laos) and I raced to the hair salon to fix my white stripes.

They were really kind and understood that it was a bit on the wild side. I was starting to get used to it and had even rationalized in my head that having white hair is sorta cool. I mean all people with white hair are famous right? No one messes with Madonna, Marilyn Monroe, Dennis Rodman, G Dragon... right? hahhahah Well, maybe but I still decided I might as well fix it while I was in Hanoi. So one hour later, they added some nice strawberry blond pieces in, so I look pretty normal although a bit on the bright and stripy side. But overall, the salon was fabulous and the peole there were wonderful! They taught me more Vietnamese, fed me delicious snacks and told me what to pay for souveniers.

I managed to make it out of the salon before 12 and headed back to the hotel to pack up and get changed and ready to go for my last run around the lake. At the hotel, I met a guy that I had seen on the Hanoi Backpackers boat back from Halong Bay named Bennett from Sydney, and he was also going to do the trip to Laos, so we decided to meet up at 4:30 and then try to face the horrid bus ride together.

My last minute shopping in Vietnam and last run was less stressful than I imagined. I walked into a few shops and got some great presents for my family and friends. I wanted a taxi to drive me to the post office since I was short on time and I wanted to find a guy to do it for 5,000 dong(50 cents) since it was so close. One motorbike driver would not budge his price but a friendly one offered to give me a lift. As he dropped me off at the post office he warned me to be careful not to burn my legs getting off and then tried to say something to me.

"What? Is 5,000 not enough?" I asked him puzzled at what he was trying to convey.

Then I realized as he pointed at the lake and then at himself and smiled, that he was the same driver that had driven me to the lake outside of the Old District my first day. I smiled, and felt like I was really a part of Hanoi. The people here are hard to handle when they bargain and swindle with you, but when you meet the right Vietnamese they are really great and loyal.

I got my packages mailed home for my boyfriend and my family and headed back to the hotel to prepare for the Laos busride. Along the way, I passed a beautiful flower shop with orchids and exotic flowers of all shapes, sizes and arrangements. I decided that the hair shop deserved a bouquet as well as the last hotel I stayed in, which allowed me to use their work computer past work hours to check my korean homepage and allowed me a 5 o clock late checkout. I dropped the flowers off at the hair shop and the staff was truly thankful and it made me feel great.

When I arrived at the hotel Bennett was already there on the computer. I hurried and got showered and dressed in comfortable clothes and we went and got a bite to eat before our bus ride. We were both worried when at 5:15 we hadn't even seen a bus, but then a worker from Hanoi Backpackers came and told us that we needed to follow a man on a motorbike down the street.

"Don't worry... it will seem really unorganized and confusing. It will seem like no one knows what they are doing, but don't stress, "said the Hanoi Backpacker employee as he motioned for us to follow the driver down the street.

We were confused, but hurried down the street and Bennett was a big help in terms of gathering my bags and keeping an eye on the hostile, rushed motorbike driver. I ran across the street to get some beverages for the ride, and when I came back the driver was yelling at us to get on his bike.

"What?!? We can't all fit on the back with all these bags," we replied, but had no choice and grabbed on for dear life, as the crazy driver sped through the streets with me sandwiched between the driver and Barrett, hardly able to hold my 45 liter bag on the side w/ one hand.

He yelled at us to squeeze into this small taxi, that was already full with angry passengers that had probably experienced the same thing. I was sitting in the passengers seat and trying to calm the others when I realized I had forgot something very important.

"OH SHIT! I think I have a big problem you guys, " I said, in fear that the other passengers were going to freak out at me.

"What?"they asked.

"I forgot my passport......," I tried to say in the calmest voice.

"I don't think it will be a problem, but I will just have to get someone to deliver it to the bus station," I said, thinking quickly of a possible solution.

In reality, I was quite worried! The other passengers were already angry and irritated. The driver didn't speak a word of English and I tried to get him to call Hanoi Backpackers, but he didn't understand anything. He pulled over and then the angry motorbike driver appeared with another passenger for our taxi. I explained my problem to him, and his response was classic! He stomped his feet like a child and flailed his arms about with a pouty look on his face. He called to Hanoi Backpackers and then demanded I get out of the taxi and get on the back of a different motorbike to get my taxi and meet everyone at the bus station.

The new motorbike driver was a kind, fast, and careful driver. My fate was in his hands, so I tried to remain calm and just trust him. We got my passport from Hanoi Backpackers in record time and raced to the bus station. Now, if you have never been to Hanoi, you might think this is a simple thing. But if you know Hanoi traffic and ridiculous driving practices, you can imagine the adventure I was in!

The race to the bus station was one of the scariest experiences of my life! I clung to the back of the driver praying that we wouldn't get run over by a bus or a giant cement truck. I was trying to assist him by doing traffic signals and motions when peole got too close. When we got on the freeway, I realized that this might be my last moments of life and I was thinking of everything I was thankful for. I even made a video on my camera at a traffic stop, sort of a goodbye in case it was my end.

Miracles do happen though, and passport in hand I made it to the bus station right when the taxi pulled up. Bennett had met some others that were on our sleeper bus, so we all waited together and then boarded the bus almost problem free.... for a moment! We got some comfortable seats in the back bottom corner and set up camp. We were joined in the back by Conrad a friendly Canada, 2 cool swedish guys named John and Dennis and a few polish guys and some Israeli girls.

The manager of the bus station was an insane, angry women who threw a fit in terms of where people were sitting and was being ridiculous. No one was sitting in their correct seats, but no one seemed to care except her. Finally, after she yelled and screamed for about 30 minutes the bus ride began.

We drove for about an hour or two and stopped at a rest station for food and to use the bathroom. We ate some sort of noodles and veggies, and bought snacks for the rest of the journey. After finishing a bottle of OJ and vodka and taking some "sleeping pills", we all passed out on our journey to the Laos border....

Day 11- Final Day in Hanoi

I woke up to the sound of a jack hammer outside my window at 7am and decided that I might as well wake up and get my day started. I wandered out of my first floor room to the adjacent kitchen setup and sat down for the complimentary breakfast, which was measly in comparison to the feasts I had been eating in Cat Ba. The Vietnamese workers were sitting next to me and talking loudly and laughing and making me feel very uncomfortable, so I decided I would take that as a sign that I should head elsewhere to eat.

I wandered the city, and was taking in the sites looking for the lake when I came across a hair salon that looked reputable and made and 11 am reservation to get back to blond with some fresh highlights. For the meantime I wanted to wander Hanoi and find a place to settle down and get a decent coffee by the lake.

As I was walking I felt that Hanoi had a really strange chaotic charm to it. I know that does not make perfect sense, but it was as though the city is always hectic with motorbikes, construction, noise, but the people seem to ignore it all and if you look carefully you can see the beauty in the way old women carry the fruit through the street, bicycles are loaded with birdcages for sale, and every street corner is a make shift restaurant with small plastic chairs just surrounding a pot of hot Pho soup and cheap beer.

I went to the cute cafe by the lake and then headed to my 11 am hair appointment. I brought along photos of how I wanted my hair to look and explained in detail to the hairdresser who spoke English. Helen (the british friend Robyn had met traveling) had a terrible experience in a Vietnamese hairsalon and ended up with a very unique style.... instead of the blond highlights she wanted updated she ended up with black streaks throughout her hair! Fortunately, Helen had a good attitude about everything and took it with stride.

Anyway, 5 hours later and my hair, eyebrows, and nails were complete! I had gotten the works! The staff had been amazing and at one point I think I had 5 people surrounding me and pampering me. It was also quite funny that while this was all going on they had on a cd with about 10 songs on repeat... one of which was "Short Dick Man". If you haven't heard it, the lyrics pretty much go, "I dont want no itty bitty teeny weeny short dick man" and so forth! Anyway, only in Vietnam I guess!

But, when I looked in the mirror I resembled G Dragon the korean pop star who bleached his hair white! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHGGG! I paid $100 to look like a white tiger! NO no no no! I had no idea what to do but at that moment, I just wanted to get out of the hair salon.

"Robyn, does this really look ok?" I kept asking her.
"Yeah, it isn't that bad... it looks like you normally used to get it," she replied.

Shit! I thought. I don't know what my hair used to look like but everytime I looked in the mirror I felt scared. I know that Helen could handle the black streaks but I am not going to be able to live with white stripes in my hair. I looked really ridiculous!

Anyway, I tried to make the best of it and Robyn, Mark, Andy and I went out for a last dinner in Hanoi. We went to 2 different restaurants in the Old District and had some drinks and then headed back to use the internet and relax. Robyn and I decided that we needed a last girls night out so we went for a magical bicycle ride through the city and then walked through the night market and sat down for our last dinner together.

Robyn was at the end of her journey and mine was just getting started. She was feeling sad to have to leave to Bangkok in the morning and didn't want her traveling to end. She felt like she had grown so much and wasn't sure how she would be able to handle the end of her travels. I asked her questions about where to go and what was her favorite parts and she gave me some tips for Cambodia and told me how much she loved volunteering for the school and seeing all the sights.

I went to bed and thought about how much I will miss Robyn, but I am ready to venture on my own. I am a stubborn one, so it is good when I can go off on my own and not piss anyone off. I will definitely never forget the fun times I had with her so far and I can't wait to see what lies ahead of me.....