A very good sleep but with some early AM wake-ups included.
Today is another 'Travel Day' on this trip and there will not be much in the way of scenic photos today, likely, so I will ramble on...
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Why do people travel? A good question.
People travel for a number of reasons...
- To see relatives or friends.
- To see the world.
- To seek medical treatment abroad.
- To get to warmer, or cooler, climes.
- To be with friends while travelling.
- Just to do something other than hang around home.
- Because they can afford the time and money to do so.
No doubt there are other reasons as well. [We have travelled for all the above reason by some coincidence!]
This time, it is to see a place we have not really seen before.
People travel for a number of reasons...
- To see relatives or friends.
- To see the world.
- To seek medical treatment abroad.
- To get to warmer, or cooler, climes.
- To be with friends while travelling.
- Just to do something other than hang around home.
- Because they can afford the time and money to do so.
No doubt there are other reasons as well. [We have travelled for all the above reason by some coincidence!]
This time, it is to see a place we have not really seen before.
To us at least, all travel is an adventure, even if it is in a safe place. The trip we are on now is really not an adventure trip, except everything is an adventure every single moment while away. What I mean is that you do not really know what to expect, at every turn. Take for instance the coffee yesterday prior to landing, it was virtually undrinkable, to us.
And, yesterday in customs and immigration, the line up looked horrendous but we were through and up to the officer in no time. Next, going through my mind is 'I wonder if we filled the landing form in correctly?'
Next thing, looking for the hotel: 'How far is it to walk and will it be plainly marked/"
At the hotel: What will the room be like, and more important to me, will it have good internet connections?
Do not say, 'Why the heck does Doug travel if he worries about such things?' Because, I love it! It is not worrying, it is just different than home where everything is so predictable that it gets terribly boring!
A REAL adventure trip would be to Africa in a country that may have some security issues in some areas and, sleeping in a tent with strange animals prowling around. Now that is adventure!
Even a luxury cruise has a degree of 'adventure' [uncertainty] attached to it, including; accommodation, food, weather, fellow passenger compatibility, etc.
A REAL adventure trip would be to Africa in a country that may have some security issues in some areas and, sleeping in a tent with strange animals prowling around. Now that is adventure!
Even a luxury cruise has a degree of 'adventure' [uncertainty] attached to it, including; accommodation, food, weather, fellow passenger compatibility, etc.
** . ** . **
A casual observation at Hong Kong airport where I continue to write this: It seems to me, that since we flew in last night at the airport and the hotel earlier and now again, at the airport, the class of people we have been around are entirely different than we have seen in China before. The reason, I think, is that we are around the more affluent, educated and wealthier than the crowds at the Forbidden City and while traveling in the country etc. [My thoughts only.]
** . ** . **
Landed in Hanoi, a winter fog and 26 C. [Very warm...]
** . ** . **
Written in Hanoi a few hours later after a two hour flight and a very efficient and swift transfer to our most beautiful Hotel, here for two nights. We start touring tomorrow.
** . ** . **
Written later still after a walk-about and a bite to eat.
Boy, was I misinformed, or had my own opinion about Vietnam or what was formerly French Indo China. For any history buffs this place is steeped in it, after two wars, one with the French and soon after with the Americans to Jane Fonda, Charlie Chaplin, Joan Baez, Henry Kissinger and the Premier of France. They all stayed at this hotel.
We had a bite to eat in a charming building in the middle of a large courtyard, with lightly illuminated pathways etc. It has the charm and elegance of France and everything beautiful about French charm and beauty without some annoying French waiter ruining it! It was one of those magical moments in time for us.
The climate here, in their winter, is like being in Maui: Shirtsleeve weather, the quiet of the evening, no car noise or horns even though we are in a heavily populated area. As I said yesterday, you never know what you will experience when you travel.
A wonderful day for us!
At Hong Kong Airport heading to the Vietnamese Airline counter.
One of our stewardess, a bit more personal and human than
the Chinese stewardesses.
Hunkered down, not knowing what to expect in the 'Evil city of Hanoi.'
Taken by the stewardess who volunteered to take it.
Lunch on the Vietnamese Airline plane. Hmmm, is this Vietnam?
The bathroom amenities in the Hotel in Hanoi. Hmmm is this Vietnam?
The desk in the hotel in Hanoi.
Again, a Hmmm?
The bedroom in Hmmm?
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