Day 10 - China to Vietnam

This is Vietnam, man. Roll with it. I crossed into Vietnam today, and after a couple of taxis I got on a minibus going to Hanoi. After we had been on the road for about 15 minutes our van was pulled over, two guys in military uniform got on and made us turn around. They took us to this shady looking compoud where everyone and their luggage was taken off and the van was searched. Nobody else seemed to be freaking out, so I figured I could wait until someone else was worrying before I started. After about 10 minutes of having no idea what was going on we got back on the van (minus two people and a lot of packages) and were back on the road to Hanoi. This is Vietnam, man. Roll with it.

This morning I woke up really early, lightened my load by about 10 pounds by leaving the China Lonely Planet (goodbye, old friend!) on the nightstand, and caught a train to a town right on the border with Vietnam. We passed some beautiful countryside. Steep black mountains shooting up out of thick rice paddies. There were hundreds of these mountains, but they didn't seem to follow any ridgeline or range. More like weathered old men standing watch over the fields.

The terrain in Vietnam is much more mountainous. Steep, rugged towers huddled together on one side of the road. The other side of the road is dotted with smaller hills and terraced rice paddies. The houses here are very different from the ones in China. All along the road and in towns along the way the same style of house dominates. An apt symbol for Vietnam and its people, these structures are very utilitarian under a facade of bright colors and ornate decorations. Three sides of these houses are all the same square, gray pillbox, but the fronts have been made bright and unique reflections of their owners. Bright teals, yellows, and oranges, with decorative trimming and ornate stucco mouldings. It's quite a contrast to the run-down apartment blocks in China.

I finally made it to Hanoi and met up with Matt at our hotel. It's SOOO great to see a friendly face and hear a North American accent. In nine days of traveling in China, I only met two Americans. I really think I was starting to pick up an English accent. I'm gonna miss China, but I'm glad to be in Vietnam. English is more widely spoken here and it's much more user-friendly than China. In fact it's a completely different atmosphere. There are more tourists, coffee shops (say what you will about the French, but they really had the cafe and lounging culture figured out), and a much more western or European feel to it. It's a nice change of pace.