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.
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Monday, December 14, 2009
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.
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
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.
Sunday, December 13, 2009
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 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.
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.....
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.....
Friday, December 11, 2009
Day 10-Goodbye Cat Ba! Hello Hanoi!
The wake up call awoke me, and I quickly packed my things and prepared to head to the port to catch the boat that would take me across Halong Bay to catch the bus back to Hanoi with the rest of the Hanoi Backpacker Tour Group. (It is a really popular hostel here and they speak english and organize tours- 2 thumbs up).
I was disappointed when I looked into the dining room and saw there was no breakfast buffet! I didn't have time anyway, but that buffet was the only thing motivating me to to wake up at 6 am. I sadly checked out of the hotel and paid the $55 for the 3 nights Robyn and I had stayed. "Why was there no breakfast?" I uttered, just as a large blue bag filled with goodies was handed to me. It was filled with containers of omelette's and fresh fruit. Baguettes and a half finished jar of jam, along with some sort of twinky like snack were additional extras that were the icing on the cake! I was overjoyed that they had taken the time to make me a to go breakfast. It made it just that much harder to want to leave Cat Ba.....
I hopped on the back of a motorbike and gave the driver 10,000 dong (about .50 cents US) to drive me to the port where I got on a white transport boat that took me to Castaway Island to pick up the group of tourists that had just finished up their Halong Bay tour.
A few familiar faces appeared~ Mark and Stu who work there but got 2 days off to head back to Hanoi and the famous castaway Jenny who had been on the island for days when I first had gone there, but went back to Hanoi and decided to go back to Castaway Island because she had a budding romance with Stu.
The rest of the passengers loaded the boat tired and hungover recalling the wild drunken moments of the night before. It definitely never changes on Castaway Island! Every day is a new tour group who go through the same situations the group before had.... drunken romances, feet cut from the coral, starving from the small meals... always the same!
Everyone transferred to another boat, "The Junk" chinese inspired style, and slowly moved along Halong Bay. We sat on the top deck and I met quite a few interesting people, of course none of them were Americans. I have found that traveling SE Asia, very few people I meet are from the USA. Most are European or Australian. I was attempting to study my Korean and many people were curious to what I was doing, so I explained that I taught English in S Korea and told about my life over there. I listened to the stories of an Irish boy who worked as a security guard on the set of a movie because he couldn't get work civil engineering, and a British girl told about how awesome her experience diving in the Great Barrier Reef was.
Even though I have only been traveling for 10 days, I am really learning so much about myself and the world around me. I am starting to feel a calm sense of independence that I think I had lacked before.
After we arrived at the dock, we boarded the worlds most uncomfortable buses and headed to Hanoi. We got back to the Hanoi Backpackers hostel and I met Robyn and her friend that she had traveled through Cambodia with.
I luckily was able to then go purchase my bus ticket to Laos for the night bus which I will take on December 12th, Saturday at 5pm. I got the last ticket there was and felt super lucky b/c it only leaves on Saturdays and Tuesdays and my friend from Korea will be there so I will meet up with him. So, for $35 US I got the ticket from Hanoi to Vientiane, but it should be a long ride....24 hours!!!!!!!!!!!
Then I had my favorite part of the day- a fantastic jog around the beautiful lake Hoan Kiem which is in the center of the Old District. It is truly amazing at night because it has a temple with a bridge and a wonderful statue that are lit up. Along the way, I got distracted and succumbed to my urge to buy heels and a cute dress! I tried the whole "backpacker" thing, but I need to dress up and wear heels to feel normal. Walking around in sweats and flip flops for too many days will drive me to insanity, so now I am the owner of a fabulous black dress that is easy to pack and can be dressed up or down w/ accessories.
After my run, I went back and got ready and had soon drinks with Robyn, Jenny, Mark, Stu and Andy. We had disgustingly strong Hanoi Vodka and juice cocktails before we headed out to a bar called Hair of the Dog. It was quite funny b/c everything appears to close at 11 but really it is just a joke b/c Vietnam has a curfew. The bars to the bar rose and in we went. It was a normal evening except for a drunk Russian man in a Santa suit got too wasted from his bottle of tequila he was drinking and threw his bottle and made a scene!
But we all made it out ok and went home safely! Good night Hanoi!
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Day 9-Life on Cat Ba
Today I slept in and woke up alone here at Prince Hotel since Robyn had left early for Hanoi. I wanted to take it easy and enjoy my time with a leisurely run instead of pushing myself to exhaustion w/ a trekk or another wild motorbike ride with my hair salon owner/ motor bike tour guide friend.
(But he is wonderful and if you want to meet him his name is Khan and his mobile number is 0914.618308 -0169.30787768 or you can email him at khancatba@hotmail.com)
So anyway after I finally woke up I lounged around for awhile and studied some of my korean books and then made my way out of the comfortable hotel for a lunch at the restaurant/hotel down the street. I sat alone and gazed at the sea while reviewing my korean and waited for the delicious food to arrive. I ordered my favorite dishes (Vege Pho and Stir Fried Veggies) and chatted with the waitress. Soon we became best friends and she and I were taking photos next to the Santa Claus decoration and we were drawing pictures and trying to communicate our life stories. From what I got from hershe is 21 and her name is Hong. She drew some sketches in my travel journal and then laughed at everything I said. We had a good time and she enjoyed looking through my camera and was fascinated that I was studying korean. She taught me how to say a couple new phrases too
(But he is wonderful and if you want to meet him his name is Khan and his mobile number is 0914.618308 -0169.30787768 or you can email him at khancatba@hotmail.com)
So anyway after I finally woke up I lounged around for awhile and studied some of my korean books and then made my way out of the comfortable hotel for a lunch at the restaurant/hotel down the street. I sat alone and gazed at the sea while reviewing my korean and waited for the delicious food to arrive. I ordered my favorite dishes (Vege Pho and Stir Fried Veggies) and chatted with the waitress. Soon we became best friends and she and I were taking photos next to the Santa Claus decoration and we were drawing pictures and trying to communicate our life stories. From what I got from hershe is 21 and her name is Hong. She drew some sketches in my travel journal and then laughed at everything I said. We had a good time and she enjoyed looking through my camera and was fascinated that I was studying korean. She taught me how to say a couple new phrases too
Beautiful- Dep Gai
Handsome- Dep Jai
After my nice lunch experience I went back to the hotel and watched music videos for a few hours. My hotel has about 3 channels and they are all strange. MTV only plays bizarre techno songs I have only heard in southeast asia..... although I am starting to love them. The other 2 are terrible movie channels, so I end up catching up on the 3 years I haven't watched MTV for. Finally, at about 5 I decided I had to get out and see something before it got dark.
I set out for a run and went in a new direction than I had been before. I ran along side the limestone cliffs that curved along the bay of Cat Ba. I was surprized when I turned the bath on the cliff because what I saw was truly amazing! It was a beautiful private resort enclosed in hte limestone cliffs!!! I thought that this town was more of just a small fishing port with meager places to stay, but little did I know that there was beautiful, lavish resorts and private beaches! So much for backpacking I thought! I wish I had known about this private resort earlier! hahhahah Anyway, I ran along the beach and wandered over to the road where I kept running and saw signs for another beach. Once again there was another inlet and another AMAZING resort enclosed in the limestone hills of Cat Ba!
Do I really have to leave? I thought as the sun was setting on the island. I could picture myself jogging along the boardwalk daily and then suntanning at the resorts when I was bored. I already have friends (Khan and Hong), so I feel like it is silly for me to leave!
After my jog, I went back to Prince Hotel for a nice HOT HOT HOT shower (which can be a rarity in SE asia). I got ready and did my best to mask the fact that I am a backpacker. What I mean by that is that most backpackers can be identified by some obvious things-backpack, fisherman pants, flip flops, multiple rainbow colored string bracelets, teva sandals... etc. I do LOVE backpacking but to be honest I wish I had packed my high heels because I just am not cool with the 100% flip flop time and baggy non sexy clothing.
So once I got ready, I headed out for dinner, shopping, and finally internet time. As I walked on the street I decided to pick up some gifts for people. I would say what I bought but since the people they are for will probably read this blog I will have to explain what I bought at Halong Bay in a later blog entry! ANYWAY, after that I head to my FAVORITE restaurant on Cat Ba- Greeen Mango. I ordered the Green Mango Mojito and was in serious heaven! It was a mojito with fresh coconut shaving on top and was to die for! Also, I got some thai soup and a side of rice which was absolutely perfect. This restaurant felt like something I would go to in Seattle in a posh neighborhood, but it was literally 1/4 of the price! For my meal and drink I ended up paying under $10 and sat in a completely beautiful atmosphere of dark lights, red walls, asian inspired paintings, and a newly assembled Christmas tree decorated in a blue light theme.
The waiter came and asked me if I was a student and when I responded that I actually was a teacher he was shocked! That was all I needed to be happy today... a compliment from a 21 year old Vietnamese waiter trying to get some... hahahahh Nice try buddy
Tomorrow I leave for Hanoi and I am sad to leave my life on Cat Ba..... I want to stay! All good things come to an end and I know tomorrow will bring new possibilities as well.... Like hopefully a hair salon that can put some fresh blond highlights in this ruddy mess I have going on!
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