NB For Short

-


We enjoyed another special Vietnamese breakfast. This time bread and vegetables (we think maybe some type of potatoes) followed by ice cold jack fruit. It was yummy and we ate the lot all washed down with a strong Vietnamese coffee! We had to say goodbye to our friends and their delightful doggie as we were leaving Hanoi for our next destination. Our bags were packed once again and we headed into the centre of Hanoi on the number 34 bus. We saw it as it started to leave but managed to jump on before it left the station. 

We had one final place to visit in Hanoi - the dessert restaurant! We made our way along the railway tracks and around the corner to the cafe. We ordered 2 different desserts and sat chatting to the owners. They explained how they peeled a pomello and used the inside of the skin to make the gloopy yellow stuff in the dessert. It really does have a weird consistency! We shared drinks together which they kindly offered us as a gesture of friendship and listened to UB40 again on Youtube - with lyrics. The time came to leave so we said our goodbyes as we headed off to catch the train to Ninh Binh.


The train was pretty good. Air conditioned, comfy seats, restaurant service and an all important toilet. We left on time and all was good. The journey improved when the lady opposite offered us one of her peanut and sesame sweets!

The 2 hour journey came to an end pretty quick. We jumped off in Ninh Binh and started the taxi negotiation aided by 2 friendly French backpackers. They were heading the same way so we all shared a ride. We were dropped off at our homestay and they continued on to theirs.

We met the owner, did the normal booking in stuff, checked for messages online and then headed out to find food. We were not sure where we were going and the road was quite dark. We eventually stopped at a small store and bought a bao bun. We then went next door and bought some rice crackers too. We continued down the road and stumbled across a restaurant just packing away. We managed to get an omelette and some green stuff which tasted really good. They did translate what the green stuff was using their phones - apricot leaves apparently!


After eating we continued our walk into the small town of Tam Coc and came across 2 bar buses all lit up, one was packed with people as it is Halloween! 

Popular posts from this blog

First Day Explorers

-
Image
After a good night's sleep, we woke early...ish for breakfast. We were hoping for a traditional Indian spicy fair but got a traditional boiled egg, bread and jam. We washed it down with a hot cup of Chai, so all was good. We ventured out in search of a few sites, however were easily distracted by fresh fruit platters, mango lassis and mobile phone cover shops. Next, an ATM stop to test various SBI machines. One small branch failed but the head office one worked. This was near the Mumbai stock exchange, complete with bull outside. We ended up at Horniman circular garden. An interesting name but the garden was being 'refurbished' - dug up. Marine drive is famous amongst the people of Mumbai. A huge boulevard next to the sea for romantic strolls. The stroll today wasn't filled with romance, more noise pollution as the whole sea defence boulevard was being fixed. Almost all of it for mile after mile. We had to walk on the dual carriageway but soon got fed up and headed inla
Read more

Le Havre to Nevers (7th-18th March)

-
Image
We have been cycling for 2 weeks now and have covered a lot of ground.  We have had varying weather of heavy rain, scattered showers and dry but cold.  Night's in the tent have been pretty cold! THE ROUTE (Le Havre) After our last night in a 'proper bed' for a while, we stocked up on food and headed out of Le Havre. We cycled through farmland to a pretty little town called Harfleur and then on to Lillebonne. We saw 2 massive birds nesting at the top of a post. Our first night camping was beside the river, very tranquil. (First night camping on the River Seine) We followed the Seine down to Rouen. This is funky town with lots of bars and restaurants all along the river. Unfortunately the heavens opened just as we approached so, after taking shelter for a while we continued on to find a camping spot for the night, this time near a railway line. From Rouen we headed throy St Aubin Les Ebeuf and Les Andleys following the river.  We saw lots of beautiful houses and chateau
Read more

Around Valence 22nd March to 9th April

-
Image
We are now staying with friends. One lives one side of the Rhone in the Ardeche and the other on the other side, in the Drome Region. We had originally planned to visit for a few days, however, due to the weather we have been here over 2 weeks! The day we arrived we had blue skies and sunshine, which lasted the first day! Since then we have had a lot of rain, thunder, lightning and hail. Our friends have very kindly said we can stay as long as we like. We have spent some time mending broken things eg. the bike repair kit bag, which virtually disintegrated and the sleeping mat, which we have now accepted cannot be fixed easily! We went to the Salon des Vin de France for a wine tasting event and tasted many wines from around France - some good, some not to our taste and not worth the high price. One sunny day we explored Valence. There are some very pretty parks and lots of historical buildings. We saw the Maison de Tete and a house where Napoleon used to live. We wandered the
Read more