Journey to Peace Village

I had a fantastic journey to Danang and Hue. It was a great time there and I loved the festival. But the journey home was a tough, tough road.

I decided to save money and take a sleeping bus. Big mistake. It was worse than the sleeper trains in Viet Nam!

I hoped because it was a tourist bus that it would bemore comfortable, but actually I was stuffed into a small metal cot for 12 hours. Worse, it was an upper cot in the middle, so I hesitated to get down. There wasn't really any room to move in the bus, anyway. My backpack was bulging with souvenirs, I had a conical hat and a painting, so I couldn't even try to turn over. It's another one of those experiences I never would've imagined before I came here. (And I wouldn't think I could get through it, either).

To make matters worse, the bus took off with my luggage when we finally arrived in Ha Noi. I had to visit four different offices of the tourist company to retrieve it. By the time I got home I was exhausted and basically just zoned out the rest of the day.

This brings up a bit of advice for first time travellers to Southeast Asia. I would always advise going to Thailand first. The overnight train ride from Chiang Mai to Bangkok was a breeze compared to this (or the VN train). The seats converted into beds so you weren't lying down all the time. The buses in Thailand in general are comfortable and very cheap. And the mixup in the baggage? There's very little chance this would've happened, and retrieval would've been much easier. (although I have heard that there are problems with stolen baggage on long haul buses from Bangkok to Phuket/Krabi. In general, the infrastructure is better in Thailand and things are better organized. Vietnam is still very much a barter economy as opposed to a service economy.

But even with this rough return, my trip to the center of the country was fantastic. Once you get your feet wet and are ready for the adventure, come to Viet Nam!

Labels: Travel, Viet Nam