*oasis*
Hanoi, Vietnam
The house is so big I hardly hear the children. They are upstairs in their own “suite”; we are down a floor, but still three floors up from the ground.
I shower (under the massive-est shower head you’ve ever seen!) and head downstairs. Strains of Vivaldi drift from an open door. Sunlight catches the polished wooden floor framing the persian rug. Beautiful artwork adorns the walls. I stop to admire, and wonder if actually everyone is still upstairs. It is all so quiet. No harm in wandering downwards and so I continue. There they all are, looking eva-so-civilised, seated around a huge dining room table laid with crisp white and blue embroidered linen, silverware sparkling (not a chopstick in sight!!), a huge platter of watermelon and pineapple set centre-stage.
Surreal.
A world away from the bamboo huts where we overnighted in the hills of northern Thailand not so long ago. A world away from our suburban kiwi life too.
But we feel at home. An absolutely delightful homely German family has welcomed us into their lives for a few days and they have spoilt us rotten. From the BBQ-ed kebabs that were cooking when we arrived to “a whole bed each”, from little wooden mice to greet the children on their pillows to piles of books and board games to play, from water bottles to bubble mix, from a trampoline to washing machine and drier; we have been indulged in pleasure.
We just hope they come to New Zealand some day and allow us to give them such a relaxing time too.
You want to know how we came to be in such a nice place after months of squishing in guesthouses, don’t you? We could make up a fancy story, but actually we were simply looking for a floor to bunk down on for a couple of nights through the couchsurfing network…..and these guys said they had room…..I wonder if the floors we have booked in Hong Kong are going to be as pleasant?!
Tags: children, housing, postcard: Vietnam
rayres
ooooo lovely!! that’s more my style 😉