Arriving into Vietnam

Country No: 3 We arrived safely in Ha Noi, Vietnam, after a mamoth journey leaving from Phonsavan at 6am. We got on our bus to Vinh and after picking up 15 people in phonsovan - all locals, we set off on our way. We got to the border at around 11.00am, and after a thorough bag inspection, and filling in our details we got into Vietnam ok. The border crossing itself was easy enough: get off the bus; do the official business, and get back on about an hour later. We eventually arrived in Vinh after many winding roads, and near-death experiences at around 8.30pm to be met by a guy called Hai, pronounced Hi, who informed us that we could get a minibus through to Ha Noi at a cost of $10, the 9.30pm minibus would arrive at around 3.00/3.30 in the morning. Yes, we decided to do this as we didnt want the hassle of finding a place to stay in Vinh only to pack and leave early in the morning the next day. So we were picked up at Ha Noi bus station by a guy from the same tour /hotel company who showed us a guest house which was reasonably priced for a nice room. We crashed and burned big time.....never ever take sleep in a nice bed and a hot shower for granted!

Arriving into Vietnam

Vinh, Vietnam