Member Since: 11 May 2006
Location: Off again! :-)
Posts: 73007
And greetings from Hanoi main railway station.
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7 hours as a guest of VN Railways ahead. Great way to see the country.
Nice soft AC seats.
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Hard AC seats.
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Not sure if they have it on this train but the other non-sleeper class is hard non AC seats, sauna class. Now that would be a fun journey all the way to Saigon.
PS Tom & Jerry on the TV, AC/DC on the headphones, epic travelling combo.
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28th Oct 2019 1:46 am
DSL Keeper of the wheelie bin
Member Since: 11 May 2006
Location: Off again! :-)
Posts: 73007
A couple of pics from a little place called Vinh, still in what was the old North. 7 hours was enough time in the train, another 7 tomorrow down to Hue. Tucked up in a nice 3* hotel a couple of hundred metres from the station for princely sum of £17, incl breakie.
Had a wander round the local market, these peeps don’t see many tourists so there’s lots of hellos and waving which is really nice. A couple of pics from the market. Really nice walk, just have to watch out for the motos, they like to do their full daily shopping without getting off their rides.
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28th Oct 2019 12:10 pm
DSL Keeper of the wheelie bin
Member Since: 11 May 2006
Location: Off again! :-)
Posts: 73007
Another day, another Vietnam Railways train. Vinh to Hué today.
Interior is not quite as nice as yesterday. Bit more compact and certainly fuller than yesterday’s train after we got shot of a load of western tourists at Ninh Binh.
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And gratuitous views out the window, first complete with water buffs.
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29th Oct 2019 7:42 am
ianm27
Member Since: 02 Jun 2016
Location: Hertfordshire
Posts: 2154
Slumming it in non 1st class AC??
Although I note the use of improvised curry hooks Uncle Ray's spare wheel protector
Limo Tint
Blackvue front & rear dashcam
Cruise control switch pack
Bodsy's remote for FBH
29th Oct 2019 2:05 pm
DSL Keeper of the wheelie bin
Member Since: 11 May 2006
Location: Off again! :-)
Posts: 73007
That is 1st class!! It’s a bit cronkier than the one we got yesterday, plus it was a little late. First taxi ride today, something we’re trying to avoid.
I’d clocked this tank (not my pic) just N of Dong Ha railway station on the last trip so kept an eye out for it.
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I even tried to get a pic. Or it’s a piece of modern art.
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Now in Hué, back in the Saigon Morin Hotel and with a great view of the bridge & the river.
PS Re the bags to hold phones and stuff on the coat hangers, they are ideal if the cable is too short. As the journey goes on, more & more electrical stuff is hanging off those few sockets.
29th Oct 2019 3:52 pm
DSL Keeper of the wheelie bin
Member Since: 11 May 2006
Location: Off again! :-)
Posts: 73007
And greetings from a bit of a wet and rainy Hué. No Hué I hear you say but yes it’s true.
And that’s the last of the Hué/way jokes, honest.
Everything is a bit grey & soggy, the weather forecast in the hotel says “tropical rainstorms” & “thunder storms”. We got caught outside in a thunderstorm on last trip in Dalat, not something we want to repeat!
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They know how to scare folks here. No not this ......
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....... but this!!
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Luckily our hotel is a good way away from the “action”.
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Lovely old ex-colonial pile with a bit of history, incl in Tet Offensive.
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Love the fact that they celebrate 118 years.
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Great watching traffic from the room, we’ve got one on the top floor in the above pic.
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Note Interflora VN style.
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And also the good folks of Hué will be glad to hear that laundry has been dropped off. They weighed it on the way in, priced by the kg. It would have been a good deal cheaper if they weigh it after it’s washed. We recon most of the stuff could have made it to Singapore on their own. Ah the joys of travelling light.
PS And we know when it’s raining as the scooter riders pull over to poncho up. Might need to takes the hotel brollies with us next time.
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30th Oct 2019 4:34 am
ianm27
Member Since: 02 Jun 2016
Location: Hertfordshire
Posts: 2154
That is a great looking hotel and congrats to them on 118 years
Is the Perfume River still sweet smelling?? Uncle Ray's spare wheel protector
Limo Tint
Blackvue front & rear dashcam
Cruise control switch pack
Bodsy's remote for FBH
30th Oct 2019 12:05 pm
DSL Keeper of the wheelie bin
Member Since: 11 May 2006
Location: Off again! :-)
Posts: 73007
It does indeed smell sweet. Luckily it doesn’t really smell of anything which might be due to lots of recent rain. Thunderstorms forecast all day today so we’re not planning to venture out too far. We were going to spend the day wandering around the citadel but in this weather it would just be miserable. This is meant to be the start of the dry season, no one told the weather here that.
PS Pretty angry Perfume River at the mo, it’s blowing a hooooooooolie.
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Deffo a day for slobbing in the room, watching whatever’s on the movie channels and planning the trip further down the line, like in Jan. However we had to venture out to get the rest of our cloths washed.
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We try not risk all of our clothing in one laundry drop, whilst SWMBO should be OK I’d struggle to replace stuff if it went wrong. This is the 2nd just under 2kg bag, not bad for 50p a kg with all washed, dried and smelling sweeeeeeeet. All that laundry might do us until we hit Singapore just before Chrimbo.
Gratuitious pic out on the mean streets. Pretty grim out there, less motos but not sure they see that well when caped up. They still use their horns as glorified echo locators though.
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And this is the movie in the hotel’s restaurant tonight.
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I think we saw it when we were here 6 months ago. Steak and chips with lots of VC (the vin rouge type) last night, could well be the same tonight. Oh, and I think it was steak and chips 6 months ago. The power of advertising.
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31st Oct 2019 3:14 am
DSL Keeper of the wheelie bin
Member Since: 11 May 2006
Location: Off again! :-)
Posts: 73007
Poor things, the cycle rickshaw drivers and their passengers. That must be thoroughly miserable.
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Zoom in on another pic as the pics just don’t do the rain justice.
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We occasionally get drivers trying to offer a 60 minute tour round the old city, it’s pretty half hearted considering I’m prob well over double their body weight. One of these days I’ll say yes.
PS Just looked at the rain figures for Da Nang & Nha Trang, the next 2 destinations. I just hope the Nha Trang rain total for today is a pooter glitch!!
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Not looking forward to going out at 4:30 to go and pick up our laundry.
only double their body weight ? with all the food pics, I'd bet on triple.
31st Oct 2019 7:34 am
DSL Keeper of the wheelie bin
Member Since: 11 May 2006
Location: Off again! :-)
Posts: 73007
Bit of a combination of I have the body of a god and my body is a temple. Buddha & doom respectively.
We did have a look at the two treadmills in the hotel’s fitness centre. We couldn’t get one to work at all and the other was far too scary with the belt slipping. Running outside was not an option, would have been more like a standing swim.
31st Oct 2019 7:54 am
Gareth Site Moderator
Member Since: 07 Dec 2004
Location: Bramhall
Posts: 26761
Get rid of that rainy season Del!! I’m on my way to Thailand in less than 2 weeks for some golf, hoping for some sun 🌞
31st Oct 2019 8:21 am
DSL Keeper of the wheelie bin
Member Since: 11 May 2006
Location: Off again! :-)
Posts: 73007
It doesn’t look that good for the next week or so.
After that it’ll be fine honest. We’ll be in Cambodia when you’re in Thailand, almost next door neighbours.
It’s a bit like up in the Heelands where peeps say “you should have been here last week”. It’s slackened right off at the mo, but we know it’s just getting ready for 4:30pm when we go & get our laundry.
Another little bit of housekeeping being sorted as I sit in hotel’s reception, form for proxy vote in next Gen Election bring printed. We might be several thousand miles away but going to get that vote in.
31st Oct 2019 8:29 am
DSL Keeper of the wheelie bin
Member Since: 11 May 2006
Location: Off again! :-)
Posts: 73007
SWMBO’s just found a forecast for Da Nang, it doesn’t make good reading. Just glad we’re not going to be there on the 9th Nov!!
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31st Oct 2019 9:46 am
ianm27
Member Since: 02 Jun 2016
Location: Hertfordshire
Posts: 2154
I don't imagine weather forecasters in VN are any better than in the UK
Positive thinking Del...... it will be dry & sunny & hot........it will be dry & sunny & hot.......it will be.....
Uncle Ray's spare wheel protector
Limo Tint
Blackvue front & rear dashcam
Cruise control switch pack
Bodsy's remote for FBH
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