Same Same but Different

We have arrived in Asia safe and sound. The flight was a slog, but Bangkok was a welcome sight. It was a city that was familiar but different. All the usual suspects were there, the braying traffic, the smell of the humidity, the drunken Brits weaving down Khao San, all of it. And yet everywhere it was a little less. The lack of tourist bustle was palitable. The rest of the city carries on, but the tourist spots are quiet. Marina and I got all our errands done, buying items that were cheaper to buy new than pack, and then moved on.

We caught a flight at 5:45am to Hanoi. Booking in Bangkok cost us more than doing it online from home. Whoops. But we caught the flight and everything seemed to be coming up Ben and Marina. So much so that I had to comment on it. And, abruptly, it stopped. Marina and I argued on the plane. A traveling argument. The type that always happens when you spend every waking moment with another human being. Shit comes up. We arrived in Hanoi and our luggage, and the luggage for the entire flight, was delayed. A half hour. One hour. We stood and stewed silently. Two hours. We started quietly questioning whether this whole trip was a good idea. Two and a half hours. Like a miracle our luggage pops up.

Then we get flagged by a driver from the hotel with a placecard reading "Marina" (the best feeling when arriving in a new country) and walk outside into the blazing sun. It is hot. We drove past a sign on the freeway that said 52 degrees Celcius. It was, of course, wrong but another later said 38 degrees, and it was right. It felt like somewhere between the two. The sun here seemed brighter and our moods darker. We then got somewhat ripped off on the cabride (16 dollars!?, a bus would have been 3) when we arrived at our hotel. After begrudgingly paying the man we settled into our lovely, lovely air-conditioned room. We made up. I havd a beer and Marina had cold coffee and we were happy and in love again.

And in Hanoi! We are nestled in the Old Quarter and it is great! Old European style buildings, narrow lanes shaded by large over-grown trees, scooters beeping and weaving everywhere, bicycles, children, roosters and dogs, people eating and chatting on the sidewalks, sleeping in their store fronts, and everywhere bustle, bustle, bustle. It has charm galore. The Vietnamese are beautiful people. Good-looking beautiful and kind beautiful. As any of you that know Marina know that she appreciates beautiful woman and points them out to me whenever she has an opportunity. Well, she had many opportunities here. A gorgeous lake centres the Old Quarter and Marina and I woke up at 6 to walk around it. Even at this early hour it was hot, but the cobblestone parks surrounding the lake were filled with the old and young jogging and doing weird Asian calesthetics.

The traffic is intense in the Old Quarter. Like India busy, but everyone drives faster there than they can there, making the crossing any street a tense affair. More tourists are injured here in traffic accidents than all other injuries or illnesses combined. Every moment you walk the street you must keep one part of your mind on the traffic while you are trying to absorb the sights. But once you find the rhythm it is easy. The locals just walk out into traffic and the vehicles flow around them. As long as you walk steadily and with a purpose no one will hit you. It is all very Zen. Aside from the incessant horns honking.

Marina and I have walked as much as we could without suffering from heat stroke. We have eatten at a few Lonely Planet recommended resturants (mediocre and over-priced affairs) and eatten on the street (de-ricous and cheap). We have napped in our air conditioned rooms a fair bit and read our books. We have enjoyed each others company. And we have fallen hard for Hanoi.

Early tomorrow morning we are heading for Cat Ba Island for some kayaking, caves and deserted beaches.

P.S.- Marina will probably be mad at me for posting this, but it is a cute story. Every time we travel Marina gets plenty of stares from locals (and often tourists too). It was very intense in India, less so in Thailand and Laos. Here she has been getting stared at by men and women alike. I think it is because of a combination of factors: her beauty, her pale skin, her body type. There just aren't many tall, busty, pale-skinned beauties in Southeast Asia. So yesterday, as we're leaving the hotel, the girl at the desk says, "Miss. Miss. You very beautiful. Angelina Jolie. Same same." While the staring often wears on Marina, I'm sure that complement will stay with her awhile.