Good Morning Vietnam!

Hanoi, Vietnam - We have been in Hanoi for a couple of days now and slowly getting over the culture shock. I thought that Tokyo was a "loud" city but Hanoi is crazy. The constant honking of horns and incessant traffic, this place is crazy!

Crossing the street is a challenge in itself as there are virtually no stoplights and even the ones that are there are mostly ignored.The way to cross the street is to just step out and move at a constant pace and let the motorbikes, scooters and cars avoid you. Believe it or not after a day or so you do get the hang of it but the first couple of times are not for the faint of heart.

I am glad we came to Hanoi but I can't say its a particularly pretty city or has a lot of sights. I think after two weeks of traveling and constant cities (Tokyo, Singapore, Hanoi) we are ready for a more rural or quieter setting. Tomorrow we head to Halong Bay which is about 3 hrs from Hanoi on the coast where we embark on a 3 day cruise around the bay. Halong Bay which has been designated as a UNESCO World Heritage site is famous for its limestone karsts that jut out of the ocean. It should be very peaceful and beautiful for a few days.

One of the other interesting things about Hanoi is every morning between 7:30-8am and in the evening between 4:30-5pm loudspeakers around the city blast out the latest government edicts, news and play the national anthem. It is quite funny though it gets a little annoying.

Just an FYI that we will be posting more pictures soon. We didn't take a lot of pictures in Singapore or Tokyo as there are only so many city pictures you can take but we are taking more in Vietnam and they should be up soon.