Hanoi day 1

I got up at around 11.30 and farted around the room for the best part of an hour. Afterwards I went down stairs to book my trip to SAPA for 4 days. The plan was to get some fresh air and exercise before Xmas, and the massive piss up that follows. I met up with Sam and Rachel and we headed for coffee to discuss the plans. It would seem that Rachel and Sam were the same sort of travellers as me, i.e. planned nothing and had suffered acute option stress when presented with more than one option ! Rachel was heading south for some sunshine and Sam was heading to Halong bay. We decided to have a smoke and head out to have a look around the town. Crossing the road in this state required serious concentration and the constant noise and traffic was a little overpowering. I could see that Rachel and Sam were both in the same position so I was glad it wasn't just me. With great relief we finally got to the sanctuary of the lake. We took a leisurely stroll around before retiring for some beers near by. Afterwards we got some dim sum and headed back to the hostel to get ready for the train. The train was clean and comfortable so I necked a nightol and got on with the important business of sleeping.