Ha Noi’d
I was lucky to have an entire seat to myself on the 13 hour bus ride from Hue to Ha Noi. The seats are built to the SE Asian average body size and it is quite impossible to fit my legs under the reclining back of the one in front of me. Even a bottle of Dalat’s finest wine couldn’t induce sleep however. But that’s not the fault of the bus – it’s always been difficult for me to sleep in a bus or plane.
Sometime around 1AM, the bus blew a tire. It was one of dual rear-tires, so we were able to limp along until we came to a tire-repair shop. Of course, it was closed for the night, but that didn’t stop the driver from waking up the owner. As it turned out the spare was also flat. The inner tube of the flat tire was shredded, and the tire itself had a serious hole, so the tube was pulled from the spare (also punctured), it was patched and the hole in the tire sealed and we were on our way in just over an hour. The air compressor at the shop was made from an unexploded American bomb. The owner had stenciled ‘Mad in the USA’ on the casing.
The bus arrived in Ha Noi around 8 in the morning – but not in the central Old Quarter where everyone wanted to go. The streets in the quarter are too narrow for a big bus, so we all had to jump in these 3-seat mini-taxis to get downtown. Yes, there were 5 of us (and luggage) in our cab. I rode shot-gun along with 2 backpacks.
The bus company also runs a series of hotels and travel agencies in each town along the way. Naturally, they steer you to these hotels. For the most part, that has been more than OK. Just about all of them have been clean, nice, and staffed with friendly and helpful people.
But lately, there have been a few minor problems. The most common one is being told one price on the way to the hotel, but then being told another price when you are shown the room (and have carried your bags up 5 flights of stairs). Usually the extra few bucks can be negotiated, and it’s no big deal.
Here in Ha Noi, the price was 3 times the original quote. It was an easy decision to just say no and begin to turn around. The tactic worked because the price immediately fell to something more reasonable.
The hotels want you to book any and all tours/activities through them. They get a commission, of course. Out of politeness, I usually see what deals they offer and then comparison shop. At my hotel, the Ha Noi Lotus, the deals weren’t great and for flights, visas and etc, the prices were way too high. So, I took care of my arrangements by myself.
Because of this, I then got evicted. So did the other Americans. They gave us one day to clear out. Dave and Jonna just packed up and left. I was able to find a nicer place just a few blocks away, so no big deal.
One more thing about Ha Noi. They have this police unit nicknamed the ‘Fun Police’. Every night around 11 they go around and shut down all of the clubs and pubs. The town just shuts down at mid-night.
That’s past my bed-time anyway.
Tags: bus, hanoi, Travel, vietnam
jpb
November 30th, 2006 at 8:01 pm
Damn you’re witty with those titles! Have fun on your remaining time truckin’ around Asia and I look forward to reading your latest stories.nrnrBy the way, your truck says hi.