After three early mornings in a row I was really hoping for
a nice long sleep Thursday night but although I was in bed early I didn’t fall
asleep until quite late and forced myself out of bed early enough to enjoy
breakfast. I then returned to my room where I took forever and a day to pack
before checking out of my room.
The slow pace of the morning continued all day. It was my
last chance to see Ha Noi but really there isn’t all that much to see there. I
sat downstairs in the lobby with Jacob and Claire, two of the people from my
room, for quite a while before Claire and I decided to head out. We walked
towards the lake and then to the water puppet theatre. I had heard that water puppets were a must
see so I approached the box office to learn that there was only one show before
I was meant to leave the city and the cheap seats had sold out. The good seats
really weren’t that expensive, they were about $5 but I could eat three meals
with that amount of money so I decided to pass on the water puppets. Claire
said I wasn’t missing out on much and it was all she could do to stay awake
when she went.
From there Claire and I wandered aimlessly for several
hours. We stopped along the way for some sandwiches that Claire had been raving
about. It was kebab meat with like 8 different types of cabbage on top. It
wasn’t really my cup of tea but I’m really making an effort to try new things
this trip so I managed to eat the whole thing without pulling too many faces.
We walked a bit further when I suggested we walk to the train station to make
sure I know how to get there because last night I walked with Jacob to go buy
my ticket and he lead the way. We bumped into Jacob along the way and had a bit
of a chat before continuing on. We found the train station without any problems
at all, which gave me a sense of relief, it seemed so confusing the night
before because we kept zigzagging across the street but really it was more or
less a straight line.
We continued to walk in no particular direction when we
bumped into one of the guys who worked at our hostel in a coffee shop. He
invited us to join him so we did. He asked us if we wanted anything to drink I
said no thank-you but still ended up with a drink in front of me. I really
don’t like hot drinks but I had to at least try it, it would be rude not to,
even though I said I didn’t want anything. It was peach flavoured tea and I
guess it was okay. I had a few sips and Claire ended up finishing most of it
after she drank her iced coffee.
We were both pretty tired at this point so we made our way
back to the hostel. I no longer had a room so I hung out in the lobby where I
was constantly being badgered by the staff. I know they’re just trying to be
friendly but I really don’t need a new cup of (hot) water every 3 minutes, I
also don’t need 8 members of staff all asking me the same 10 questions one
after another. Jacob came back from his
excursion so I chatted with him for a bit before he went upstairs for a nap and
I was left alone with the staff again.
The time for my train was drawing nearer so I head out to
eat an early dinner and to stock up on snacks. I tried to find the noodle place
I had eaten at twice before but it was nowhere to be found. I’m not sure if she
only opens at nighttime or if she moves her little set-up from time to
time. Either way I wasn’t getting my
street noodles. I searched for a substitute for a while before giving up and
going to the café I went to on the first day. I ordered fried rice but they
were all out. How does an Asian restaurant run out of rice? That just doesn’t
make sense to me at all! I ended up ordering a waffle with ice-cream and
spending way more on dinner that I had planned.
I head back to the hostel, grab my bags, and start the trek
to the train station. I some how manage to make it there with only a handful of
near death experiences and feel a sense of relief. Now I just need to figure
out which platform I’m leaving from, far more challenging a task than I had
previously imagined. There was no signage anywhere indicating where I should go
to catch this train. I'm not worried though because my train doesn’t leave for
almost an hour and I have plenty of time to figure it out. I find three women
with badges around their necks and ask them for help. Two of them walk away
without a word and thankfully the third stays behind while I fish out my
ticket. She looks at my ticket then points at the waiting room and says number
6. I head to the waiting room and a short while later door number 6 opens. I
ask every staff member along the way if I am getting on the right train and
they all confirm that I am. After the Japan fiasco I really don’t want to risk
it.
I settle into my bed and pray there is at least one other
backpacker in my cabin. No such luck. I am in a cabin with four very loud
Vietnamese people. I make myself comfortable and try to drown out the noise
while I read my book. I read for a few hours and then decide I should try to
get to sleep. I wake up frequently through out the journey, one time I even
found there were 8 Vietnamese men sitting on the two bottom bunks talking
loudly. Where did all these people come from? They were not here when I feel
asleep and this is a 6-person cabin and there is someone across from me and
someone above me, that makes 11 people. What the hell?
Eventually we stop I ask if we are in Da Nang (I read online
we should arrive in Da Nang around 10:30 but the lady at the station told me 6
so I’m not sure what to think) and no one answers. I keep repeating ‘Da Nang?
Da Nang?’ eventually someone tells me no and they all shuffle off the train and
I have the cabin all to myself.
I try to get some more sleep but its no use, I'm too worried
about missing my stop so I stay awake and do some reading instead. A few hours
later we pull into Hue, I manage to see a sign clearly marking the station,
which is a miracle, as this hadn’t happened at any other station and I now have
some idea of where I am. According to what I read online Da Nang should be the
next stop but you can never trust the Internet. The train stops a few times but
I can never tell if it is stopping to let people off or not. I keep poking my head out of my cabin looking
for someone to ask but there is no one around. I keep telling myself it’s okay
but I’m starting to freak out.
I stop reading, put my iPad away, and stare intently out the
window to make sure I don’t miss my stop. The train slowly inches its way
around the coastline offering some pretty spectacular views along the way. As
time goes by things start to look more built up and the forest turns into shanties,
which eventually turn into houses and apartment buildings. We pull into a
station around 11:30 I poke my head out of the cabin and many people are
scurrying about. I make eye contact with a woman and say ‘Da Nang?’ she tells
me yes and rushes over to help me with my bags so I don’t miss my stop. I thank
her and give her a wave as I walk across the tracks into the station. Someone
from my hotel is supposed to pick me up but I told them I would be arriving an
hour ago, I pray they are still waiting and thankfully they are because stupid
me didn’t write down any information about the hotel and I can’t even remember
the name of it.
We drive for just under an hour before arriving in Hoi An. I
am greeted with a glass of fresh orange juice and ushered to my room. I get
myself settled in then head out in search of food. Unlike my first day in Ha
Noi I want to eat street food on a chair made for a three year old. I wander
around town looking at the different shops along the way. I wander for about
two hours and don’t see any signs of street food and now I’ m starting to get
dizzy so I head to a restaurant. I still haven’t tried the Pho so that’s what I
order. I should have gone with my gut and ordered noodles, I was not a fan of
Pho, I ate it all though like a good little girl.
With food in my belly I headed back to the hotel to rest my
feet for a little bit. I seem to have made it just in time because about 20
minutes later it started raining down buckets and doesn’t stop for the rest of
the night. I contemplated heading out for dinner but I popped my head outside
and realized I wouldn’t be able to walk 10 feet without getting soaked right
through I decided to eat at the hotel restaurant and was surprised to find it
was actually reasonably priced. I
ordered cao lau, a Hoi An specialty. This was definitely a better choice than
Pho, it was sooo good. I found myself wanting more after I had finished.
I spent the rest of the evening finishing off my second book
of the day and catching up on TV shows. Not exactly the most productive couple
of days but they were enjoyable and I tried new things both days so I would
consider them to be a success.
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