Oi gioi oi

Oi gioi oi! Oh my god!! One of the few things in Vietnamese I remember. Halong Bay was phenomenal. Quick recap: Lots of young people, about 26 of us I think. Split evenly between guys and girls, cold, rainy, absolutely stunning, great Canadian tour guide (huge crush), kayaking to caves, hiking to breathtaking views, booze, games, and fun. Yup, that about sums it up.

We got on the 3.5 hour bus journey to Halong Bay from our hostel (great fun hostel called Hanoi Backpackers) at 8 am. Once on the boat our Scottish tour guide introduced himself, said he was pretty shattered from the night before, but his sole purpose was to make sure we had fun. After a pretty terrific lunch on the boat, and getting to know a few of the other passengers we all hoped in kayaks for a trip around some of the Islands, and a walk around some natural caves. The weather was misty, cold, and had a majestic feel to it. The clouds were low, but transparent enough to see several mountains and islands in the far distance. The Kayak was great, thank goodness it wasn't any more hot, because working against the current is quite an exercise. We walked around some caves about an hour into the Kayak, and everyone debated stalactite, or stalagmite. Leonie enlightened us all with her Dutch theory that "tite" means tit and tits hang. So therefore, stalactite in from the ceiling. Leave it to the Dutch to make things clear.

That night, after another great meal, and a party on the boat, craziness ensued. Aussies were jumping from the top of the sail, bongs were being ripped not with pot but with this local tobacco that gives an immediate high for about 45 seconds. People were falling, breaking things, skinny dipping, and just being young and free. (cheesy I know, but true).

The next day everyone was nursing their hangovers, and what is the best way to get over a hangover??... (besides drink more) Exercise. The group split into two and our "Scottish" guide, (who came clean that he was really Canadian the night before) took about 10 of us on a hike on Cat Ba Island. (The biggest Island in Halong Bay) The top of the hike was really quite gorgeous. The majestic feeling remained, and it was a stunning 1 hour trek. The second night we spent in a hotel on the island, and the following morning we left for another 3 hour boat ride, 3 hour bus ride, and arrived back in Hanoi about 5 pm. What a terrific trip, what an exhausting trip. Oi gioi oi!!!

Also in Hanoi I saw Ho Chi Minh's dead body... Yeah wierd. He is in a freezing cold room, surrounded by 4 guards, in a glass case just lying there. Bizarre.

Heidi and I arrived by plane yesterday afternoon to Vientiane, Laos. Last night we went bowling at the local bowling alley after meeting up with two Danish girls we keep running into. Today at 2:00 we head off to Vang Vienne to go tubing, and trekking. Cant wait.

Oi gioi oi this trip is flying by!