After our delay, the flight was pretty painless, we had already booked our accomodation and a 3 day trip to Halong starting the following morning. We checked into our lovely room just after mid night, which had everything except windows and after one of the comfiest nights sleep yet it was off to Halong Bay on a 3 hour mini bus journey. When we arrived, we were filtered out onto our various boats and once we got going we were served a nice seafood lunch.
Po priletu do Hanoje s par hodinovym zpozdenim jsme se neco malo po pulnoci ubytovali v hotelovem pokoji, ktery mel uplne vse krome okna. Ale to nam moc nevadilo, protoze postel byla jedna z nejpohodlnejsich, v ktere jsme asi doposud spali a hned rano nas cekal 3 denni vylet do Halong Zatoky. Po snidani jsme byli vyzvednuti a mini autobus nas za 3 hodiny dovezl na misto urcene. Tam jsme byli rozdeleni do skupin a lodi, podle toho jaky vylet si kdo zvolil. Hned po tom, co lod zvedla kotvu jsme byli posazeni ve skupinkach ke stolu a byl nam servirovan obed.
After lunch we took in some sun and the beauty of the bay from the roof of the boat and got to know a few of our fellow boat trippers. After a couple of hour we stopped off at a large cave and an area for kayaking, it was at this point we came up with the cunning plan to buy vodka on the floating markets that were around the caves. We smuggled it back onboard (this was all due to the near criminal prices of dink aboard the boat) and after dinner got stuck into some drinking games . . . which led to karaoke . . . which led to serious hangover in morning (great night though).
Po obede jsme se vysplhali na horni palubu lodi. Nasat trosku Slunicka, seznamit se s lidma na lodi a kochat se krasami Halong. Po nejake dobe jsme zakotvili a navstivili zdejsi jeskyni a po nejake chvili jsme zakotvili znovu, abychom si mohli pujcit kajak a trochu se projet. V te dobe uz jsme meli v hlave plan, jak propasovat na palubu lahev vodky (udelali jsme to jen proto, ze ceny na palube byli nekrestansky vysoke a jako batuzkari mame urcity rozpocet), ktera byla hodne uzitecna pozdeji pri hrani pici karetni hre, coz vedlo ke karaoke a coz vedlo pozdeji rano i k dalsi cestovni opicce.
The next day we had some trekking to do on Cat Ba Island, and let me tell you, its not easy when you sweat cheap hanoi vodka. But we all got through it and it was a really nice day including a climb up one of the dodgiest looking watch towers i have ever seen but with stunning views as a reward. The afternoon we were dropped at our hotel on Cat Ba and had the rest of the day/evening free. We got settled and took a little walk around before getting ready for the evening. After a lovely dinner our guide picked us up and took us to "the place to be" in Cat Ba. Need i go into details? After the cocktails started flowing, it was hard to get Veronika away from the karaoke.The next morning was the same story as the morning before, except hangover worse for Veronika this time. We made our way back to the mainland, taking in final couple hours of the brilliant Halong Bay back on our spot on the roof of the boat and then before we new it we were whisked back to Hanoi.
Dalsi den nas cekal maly vyslap na Cat Ba ostrove, a reknu vam, neni jednoduche se plahocit do kopce, zatimco ze sebe potite Hanoj Vodku. Ale vsichni to zvladli bez vetsich potizi a rozhled z velmi, ne zrovna nejbezpecnejsi rozhledny, byl prekrasny. Potom jsme byli odvezeni do hotelu, kde jsme meli volne odpoledne. Chvilku jsme pospali a pak se sli projit kolem mestecka. Po moc dobre veceri nas nas pruvodce zavedl do maleho baru, kde meli dobry vyber alkoholickych koktejlu. Podle Peteovych slov v jeho odstavci, pry nebylo jednoduche me odtrhnout od karaoke mikrofonu. Rano, tak jak uz to byva, nebylo tak vesele a usmevave jako predesla noc. Celou cestu na zpet jsme prospali na horni palube lodi, pak poobedvali v blizke restauraci v pristavu a nez se nadali, byli jsme na ceste zpet do Hanoje.
We spent the next couple of days exploring the maze of streets around Hanoi and running travelling errands, arranging Thai tourist visa from the embassy, flight to Laos, trip to sapa, then in between, we had the worlds cheapest beer from Bia Hoi juction (3000VND = 10p) and saw a traditional water puppet show. Trying to find the puppet show was stressful but turned out to be one of the highlights of our trip so far. I walked on down the street with a map only to turn back see veronika asking for help from a local security guard. The scene was priceless, Veronika acting out with full on arm movements how she would imagine the puppet moving and the guy looking back at her with an almost scared look, not sure i've ever seen anything funnier.
Dalsich par dni jsme stravili v Hanoji, prochazenim ulic pripominajici bludiste, vyrizovanim Thajskych viz, zakoupenim letenek do Laosu a vyletu do Sapy a take jsme zabrousili do ulice Bia Hoi, kde se prodava asi svetove nejlevnejsi pivo za 3Kc, ktere dokonce i dobre chutna. Jedno odpoledne jsme si vyhradili pro shlednuti loutkoveho vodniho divadla. Asi po hodine bloudeni a naze najit divadlo jsem se rozhodla vzit situaci do svych rukou a oslovila jsem vietnamskeho bezpecnostniho strazce, ktery mi prikyvnul, na otazku, zda mluvi anglicky. Tak se ptam, jestli vi, kde je loutkove divadlo. On na me hledi, coz me nechalo na vazkach jestli opravdu anglicky mluvi. Kdyz to neslo slovne, rikam si zkusim to jinak a zacala jsem mu ukazovat jak je ta loutka asi vysoka a jak vypada, kdyz ji taha za provazky. Kdyz se otocim, vidim jak se na me Pete s uzasem diva. Chlapik nemel absolutne tuseni o cem mluvim a musel si asi myslet, ze me zrovna propustilli z blazince. Mohli jsme se s Petem smichy potrhat, jak jsme si tu celou moji show prehravali znovu v hlave.
Then it was the night train to sapa for our 3 day trip into the highlands and rice paddies. At the station we must have shown our ticket 20 times to the same woman, who would then group us together like sheep and there was generally alot of running around and chaos despite the fact there only appeared to be 2 platforms. But eventually we made it to our compartment which we shared with 2 snoring vietnamese guys (they later turned out to be the drivers on the 2nd shift of the night) and did our best to get a few hours sleep.
Ten vecer nas cekala nocni jizda vlakem, smer Sapa, misto zelenych kopcu a ryzovych policek jedno za druhym. Na vlakovem nadrazi se zdalo, ze organizatori to nemeli zorganizovane, tak jak by meli a po asi dvacete, co jsme jim ukazali nas listek se nas ujal chlapik a dovedl nas k nasemu vlaku. Kabinu jsme sdileli s 2 mistnimi chlapiky, kteri si pul noci pochrapkavali, nez se vymeli s dalsimi dvema, z cehoz jsme posoudili, ze to byli asi ridici vlaku a vymenili si sichty. Alespon ta druha pulka noci byla poklidna a bez chrapotu a tak jsme i trochu zaspali.
We arrived early the following morning where we were picked up and taken to the Sumit Hotel which would be a kind of base for the next couple of days. After we checked in, it struck us how much colder it was up here, for the first time since we'd been away I dug out my hoodie. We were put into small groups and given a guide from one of the local villages, our guide was Pam, and it seemed we also each had a companion as we had a another group of local tribe women accompanying us. We trekked through couple of villges to a waterfall and tried some local bbq snacks (rice in bamboo was pick of the bunch) and then as then walk was coming to an end our helpful tribal friends became ruthless saleswomen. In the afternoon we headed back to the hotel for lunch, a lovely hot shower and caught up with a little sleep before heading down to the market to buy some bargins. We took it easy that evening as it was freezing and we needed our rest as the followng day we had a 12km trek to our homestay up in the hills.
Do Sapy jsme dorazili v 6 hodin rano, kde nas vyzvedl minibus, ktery nas odvezl do Sumit hotelu, ktery byl nasi zakladnou na par dni. Bylo to poprve od te doby, co jsme vyrazili na cesty kdy jsme byli nuceni vydolovat z nasich ruksaku mikiny, protoze nam byla zima. Pote, co jsme se ubytovali, nas cekala mala prochazka. Byli jsme rozdeleni do skupin po 6. Nas pruvodce byla Pam plus se zdalo, ze kazdy z nas ma sveho osobniho strazce v podobe mistni vesnicanky. Prosli jsme par vesnicemi, minuli jsme maly vodopad a meli prilezitost ochutnat mistni barbeque. Prekvapilo nas jak dobre chutnala ryze v bambusu. Po prochazce jsme byli doprovozeni zpet do hotelu a z milych mistnich vesnicanek se staly neuprosne obchodnice nabizejici jejich rucni prace v podobe sperku a ruznych vysivek. Pak nas cekal obed a zaslouzeny odpocinek. K veceru jsme se vydali na trznici koupit par veci a pak studeni jak psi cumaci jsme skocili zpet do electricky vyhrate postele, aby jsme dospali to, co jsme ve vlaku nestihli, protoze nas zitra ceka 12Km dlouhy vyslap, kde nas na konci cesty ceka nocleh u mistni rodiny.
The following morning Pam was waiting for us out front of the hotel (as were the the little Umpa Lumpa sales women) and we had another couple added to our group. Both veronika and I were pretty concerned about the trek, not knowing how hard it was going to be, I had a pretty nasty cut on my foot banndaged up and veronika a strapped up knee, but it turned out to be fine and a absolutely brilliant day. Although it was cold and cloudy, when we reached certain points the views were stunning and the mist added a kind of magical feeling to it. Pam taught us some phrases to put off the tribes woman and then towards the end of the day we said goodbye to a few of our group and were picked up by our hostess for the home stay.
Jak jsme rano prisli na recepci, Pam uz na nas cekala a s ni mistni jarmark baby. Ze zacatku jsme byli s Pete opatrni pri kazdem kroku, protoze me porad zlobi koleno a Pete si zase nakopl palec u nohy uz asi po 6. K nasemu prekvapeni slo vse dobre a vyslap nebyl vubec obtizny. I kdyz byla zima a mlha, pohled na ryzove policka (i kdyz nejsou zelene a v sezone) byl krasny. Pam nas naucila par frazi v mistnim jazyce, jak odmitnout nabizene zbozi, o ktere nebylo nouze po celou cestu. Na konci vyslapu jsme se rozloucili s par lidmi z nasi skupiny. Byli to ti, co se vraceli na noc do hotelu, zatimco my jsme byli vyzvednuti nasi hostitelkou, ktera nas dovedla do jejiho domu.
The house wasn't at all how we imagined it, although it was pretty basic, it was spacious and comfortable and the beds were really warm. We sat in the kitchen and warmed up by the fire helping prepare carrots and potatoes. After a couple of hours we'd settled into the swing of things so much so that veronika was carving her carrots into flowers! We made some lovely spring rolls and other goodies in the wok and sat down and had a lovely evening feast followed by plenty of "Happy Water" (rice wine). Pam told us some fascinating stories, mostly about her life and the evening ended with the girls having a sing song back around the fire.
Dum byl mnohem "vic" nez jsme ocekavali, i kdyz vse bylo velice zakladni, dum byl velky a postele pohodlne s teplou prykryvkou. Vsichni jsme se sesli v kuchyni, kde jsme se ohrivali kolem rozdelaneho ohne, ktery byl hlavnim sporakem pro vareni nasi vecere, kterou jsme vsichni spolecne pomohli pripravit skrabanim brambor a mrkve, ze ktere nam bylo ukazano jak vyrezat kvetinky. Spolecne jsme tak ukuchtili zeleninove zavitky a spoustu dalsich dobrotek, ktere jsme zkonzumovali u dlouheho stolu. Po veceri nam bylo nalito spoustu stampli "stastne vody" (ryzoveho vina, ktere chutna jako slivovice, bez paliveho efektu po spolknuti). Potom, co jsme se vsichni zahrali jidlem a alkoholem, jsme si vykladali. Pam nam popisovala jeji zivot v horach. Bylo zajimave poslouchat jeji pribehy, ale taky tezko predstavitelne, jak zakladni zivot zdejsi lide ziji. Konec vecera jsme stravili kolem ohne s mistnimi detmi, ktere byli nadsene slyset nas zpev.
After a yummy pancake breakfast, we took another trek around the beautiful paddies, through some bamboo woods and over to another waterfall where we'd have luch at the bottom. At one point we came across some workman building a road, they seemed to be doing a lot of drilling. There was a really nice view at the edge and as we all stood there taking photos one of the workman came running over blowing his whistle. We took that as a "go go go, quickly" sign and quickly made our way towards the restaurant but before we were half way there were several massive explosions and rock flying from where we'd just been standing! It wasn't just drilling but holes for dynamimte. We were driven from lunch to the hotel, said our goodbyes to the brilliant Pam, showered, got some supplies and got to the train station to catch our night train back to the city. We had a much better sleep the second time sharing a cabin with an American lady and her German mother and arrived pretty fresh the following morning and got a taxi straight to the airport for our plane to Laos.
Po velice chutne palacinkove snidani jsme se znovu vydali na cestu pres ryzove pole, bambusovy lesik a kolem vodopadu, pod kterym jsme pozdeji zakotvili na prestavku na obed. V jednu chvili jsme se objevili na miste, kde byl krasny pohled na vesnici pod nama a spoustu chlapiku kolem, kteri udajne staveli cestu na vrcholku. Bylo tam celkem hodne hluku, protoze pouzivali "zbijecku", coz se pozdeji, (potom co zacali piskat na pistalku a kriceli na lidi kolem, aby rychle zmizeli) ukazalo, ze zbijecka byla vrtacka obsahuji dinamit. Vsichni jsme se zacli presunovat a netrvalo dlouho a prvni vybuch byl tu. Nastesti jsme ale vsichni byli daleko od nebezpeci. Jak jsme dorazili zpet do hotelu, rozloucili jsme se s Pam, dali jsme si sprchu a posledni veceri na hotelu nez jsme byli vyzvednuti a dovezeni na vlakove nadrazi zpet do Hanoje. Cesta vlakem na zpet byla mnohem prijemnejsi. Kabinu jsme sdileli se 2 zenami. Matkou (Nemkou) a jeji dcerou (zijici v Americe). Dokonce jsme i dobre zaspali a byli tak celkem cili, jak jsme rano dorazili zpet. Z vlakoveho nadrazi jsme si vzali taxi, ktery nas odvezl primo na letiste, protoze chytame ranni let do Laosu.
After the worlds slowest check in it all became a little chaotic, but we got through and just in time. Neither of us were overly impressed by the little, fairly battered looking plane but we figured it was only an hour or so and what can you do about it at that point. We took off and got stuck into some reading about Laung Prabang , our first stop in Laos, at least thats what we thought at that time . . . coming into land, you could see out the windows how thick the cloud was over the city below, the pilot tried once and pulled up, circled for half hour, tried again pulled up sharper, i'll confess - my palms were dripping with sweat. Over the speakers we get the pretty blunt message that the cloud is too thick to land in and we'd been circling the airport so long we were low on fuel, we were being diverted 30mins away to Vientiane, we were guessing we didn't have much of a backup plan left if this doesn't work . . .
Po nejpomalejsim snecim odbaveni na svete jsme byli skoro hned pripraveni na nastup do letadla. Pri pohledu na male "Jumbo" letadylko jsme se pro jistotu vyfotili (memorial z cest) a nastoupili na palubu. Je to jen 1 hodinovy let, takze asi nema cenu pilotovat neco vetsiho. Po vzletnuti jsme se pustili do cteni nasich pruvodcu o meste Luang Prabang, nasi destinaci. Potom, co bylo oznameno, ze se mame pripravit na pristani jsme proletali pres huste mracna, ktere se pilotovi nejak nezdali, a tak oznamil, ze budeme krouzit asi 30 minut a zkusime to pozdeji...po pul hodine a pokusu cislo dva nam bylo oznameno, ze pristani neni mozne, kvuli pocasi a ze musime letet do hlavniho mesta Vientiane, protoze nam dochazi palivo... tak zatimco se nase dlane zacinaji potit, premyslime jestli jsme radsi nemeli jet autobusem . . .
To be continued . . .
Pokracovani priste . . .
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