……….bet you knew that headline was coming!!!  Actually it was evening  when we arrived and our trip from Laos to Hanoi was pretty smooth with the exception of a few minutes at the Laos airport when they seemed to be having trouble finding our reservation……..but we have learned patience in Laos and all worked out well.   It was just an hour flight that went quite smoothly but wish I could say that was the same for our ride from the airport to the hotel.   Forty five minutes of terror in the back seat as we watched our driver handle the roads and the traffic as he quite comfortably conversed with Jim about the city, the traffic and the country…….meanwhile Marilyn and I never took our eyes off the road.  He told us that Hanoi, and area, has about eight million people and there are over four million motorcycles and everyone of them came out to greet us the night we arrived.  There’s no way I can explain the sight as I was in awe of how they held the road and never crashed into each other. One of the things Jim had mentioned to us as we left Laos was the possibility of renting a car in Vietnam because that would save us loads of hassles that we experienced in Laos with getting around.  Then he read the guidebook that reviewed the dangers of not only driving in Hanoi but also the dangers of crossing the street as a pedestrian.  Apparently there were 13,000 fatalities in 2010 and that seemed low given the population and the way they drive.  Our taxi driver said the only rule was that the person who was out front had the right of way and it did not matter if it was a two street intersection or a six street  intersection ….basically it was survival of the fastest.  It was amazing to watch people with no helmets on, with a baby or another passenger with them while they were talking on their cell phone, weaving in and out of traffic and likely if it was a woman she would have high heels on.  I can’t even walk with high heel shoes on, never mind drive a motorcycle!

As we were driving to our hotel our driver was filling us in on the city and the area we were staying in.  He pointed out how the streets were set up, for example, one street was ‘card street’ where they sold nothing but cards; another one was ‘bath street’ where they sold only things for the bathroom and then there was ‘cake street’ where they sold nothing but cakes…….that one really got my attention.

We finally got to our hotel, booked in and went out to a neat little restaurant around the corner called “Marilyn’s” ……….just couldn’t pass it by as it had a good menu and we didn’t want to slight our Marilyn……..who, once again, is becoming almost as popular as Madonna……..I said, almost!   We ate a lovely little meal on the balcony overlooking the street and looking down at all the traffic, especially the motorcycles, it reminded me of an anthill that had been disrupted and were going all over the place in what looked like a disorganized fashion…….but disorganized it wasn’t as all survived and no accidents were witnessed.

The hotel was fine, a pick from the Lonely Planet guide, but it was quite noisy with a cat screaming in the night……….actually most of the night and it sounded like it was quite close and in pain.   As a result we woke up tired in the morning but headed out for a great coffee and breakfast and then to see the sights that Hanoi had to offer.   But first we had to figure out how to cross the street!  The Lonely Planet advises that you cross very slowly “giving the motorbikes time to judge their position so that they can  pass on either side .  They won’t stop or even slow down, but they will try to avoid hitting you.  Just don’t make any sudden moves” and good luck.  Let me tell you,  you need more than luck to cross the streets in Hanoi……it’s a skill and it may even be genetic.   We practiced on smaller streets, with Jim out front, and slowly we moved out of our neighborhood into larger streets.  Needless to say Jim got the hang of it fairly quickly and would often follow a Vietnamese person and then Marilyn and I would follow him and by using 150% of our senses and the help of Marilyn ‘s prayers we made it every time.  But once we froze, at least I did, and the horns were blaring and cars were scattering and I almost had a panic attack as I backtracked.   But after a few deep breaths and recalling what I had learned, ie.  walk slow and look straight ahead, I made it and from then on it was easy……….well that’s not true, but it was easier.

Given that we decided to spend just two nights in Hanoi that meant we had just one day to see some highlights and therefore decided to do a walking tour.  As Jeanette had mentioned on the blog the water puppets were worth a stop so we did go to see them only to find out they were sold out.  So off we went to St. Joseph’s cathedral, Hoan Kiem Lake and Thap Rua (Tortoise Tower), Ngoc Son Temple(yes, another one) and finally to Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum but unfortunately it had to close early and we could only be on the grounds.  By then it was time for our first pho, ie. Vietnamese noodle soup, and it did not disappoint.   Time for a little window shopping, a little reading and a siesta, or whatever they call it in Vietnam, and we were getting  ready for supper…..and as usual it was very good.

Over supper we made plans to leave via bus in the morning because none of us were that thrilled with Hanoi………too busy, too noisy, too dirty and overall just too chaotic.  Also it was the first time on the trip that I felt a little threatened as there constantly seemed to be people, mainly  men, watching us or our bags.  They also frequently came up to you just making small talk but in a phony way and even Jim was on alert and we would quickly  brush them off.  Shortly thereafter you would see them approach another tourist and you really knew they were up to ‘no good’.  So the plan was made to go out to Halong Bay, a Unesco world heritage site,  where there were over 3000 islands jutting out of the waters and where we could stay on a boat overnight, kayak, sail and do tai chi.  We were happy about leaving the noisy city behind but I was a little disappointed because although I looked, I never did find cake street!