Crossing Borders

Greetings from Luang Prabang, Laos!

We have so much to talk about, but first, here's how we said goodbye to Vietnam:

We had dinner at an amazing restaurant in Hue (our one fond memory of the city) at a restaurant run by a deaf man and his family. Not only was the food amazing, but the restaurant was also famous for its friendly staff and cool bottle opener- a piece of wood with a nail attached. They give you one to keep and write the name of the restaurant and date of our visit on it. The family had albums of pictures from all over the world with past customers and their bottle openers. Way cool- good food, a one-of-a-kind souvenir and a family that spoke a language that could be understood by any traveler.

We arrived in Hanoi at 6am and immediately didn't understand why so many people told us that they didn't like the city (more on this soon). We got Northern style Pho (still good, but different) and walked around the lake in the Old Quarter which was surrounded by people doing Tai Chi and playing badminton. That day, we had an extremely French experience in Vietnam: we got coffee and pastries at this AWESOME French cafe. I had a Mint Frap and my taste buds went all crazy because it'd been so long since I had Western food. We lunched at the Green Tangerine and had beef carpaccio and pork ribs and french fries (see Dan's post for pictures). We had coffee at another French cafe, then Italian food for dinner with a good childhood friend of mine who is doing research in Vietnam for the summer. After three weeks of only Vietnamese food, the day was an adventure for our tastebuds.

Then, we left for Ha Long Bay which completely lived up to its already high expectations. There were 13 of us and our awesome tour guide. We spent the morning in awe of the limestone and exploring the famous "Surprising Cave" which only got bigger and bigger as it continued. In the afternoon we went kayaking and swimming in the Bay, and that night, we slept on the boat. I felt a million miles away from the world. The next day was crawling with activity, to say the least. Another couple, Dan and I and our tour guide did a 6km trek in Cat Ba National Park. How do I even begin to explain how very rugged our "hike" was? Everything was covered in bugs- wasps, spiders larger than my hands, armies of red ants, butterflies, and about 50 species of bugs I had never seen before. It's pretty humbling when a rock wedged in mud is the only thing that is keeping you from tumbling down 2 km of limestone. To top it all off, the area is roaring with the sounds of the insects. You can only imagine how estatic I was about the whole thing. :) Another swim and a night in a hotel in Cat Ba was more than welcome after that. We were really sad to leave Ha Long and recommend it to any traveler; it really was one of my favorite things to do in Vietnam.

Our last day in Hanoi, the city itself and Vietnam as a whole really started driving us up the wall. We did our last Vietnamese food tour (everything was still delicious), but I'm surprised we even survived the city. The drivers are just as crazy as Saigon, but the major difference between the cities is that there are no sidewalks in Hanoi. It was impossible to get anywhere without fearing your life and no relief as it was always (and I mean ALWAYS) rush hour. We saw a tourist get completely side-swiped by a moto while he was walking. The cheating was also so much more blatant to me as all that the Northerns needed to do was speak quickly enough for me not to understand their accent. In conclusion, we were so over Hanoi the 2nd day.

Vietnam was an amazing learning experience, mostly thanks to my family. We really got a chance to learn about the country, the system, and the lifestyle thanks to the awesome conversations we had with my cousins. As nice as it was, Dan and I were really ready to get on with our trip. And let me just tell you, Laos is incredible. An hour flight out of Hanoi and we crossed into a completely different world. Luang Prabang is clean, adorable, quiet and so peaceful. We are staying in an adorable little guest house for $15 a night across from one of the 32 Wats in the city. I woke up at 4am this morning to the sound of drumming as monks walked through the city and received alms from the townspeople. The streets are quaint and clean, there's no loud honking and the Laotian people are friendly and sweet. Originally, we were planning on staying 3-4 days, but now we're extending it to 6-7. I am sure we will so much to post on again soon.

Miss you all!!!