Whisk(y)ed Away 1

I can't believe how happy I feel! I've got a brand new 60 day Chinese visa in my hot big hands, with an entry date validity of 3 months. It's so great!

I'm actually relieved, in a way. Other travellers have received random knockbacks when they've applied for the visa, with no explanation given. I've travelled to China a few times, and to Tibet, and so things that potentially arise from those previous trips can sometimes be problematic.

Or it could just be something else random or weird in your passport. Like an entry stamp from Turkey, for example. You never know. Especially these days, as political security in China has tightened significantly.

So that's that. The deed is done! I've now pretty much done everything I needed to do in Hanoi, and can head back into the beautiful countryside.

I could easily stay here for ages longer though, there's so much to do and see here. And eat! It's pretty pricey though, compared to other places in the country. No surprises there, for a capital city.

Roaming

I did a bit of searching to find a good person to service my bike. The larger cycle shops, the ones with all the foreign bikes and expensive parts that expats and wealthier Viets use, tried to slug me an arm and a leg to service my bike. It almost seemed like they couldn't be bothered doing it, as they get enough people willing to throw cash at them that they don't really need my business anyway.

So eventually I found a guy in a backstreet, in a more regular suburb. But the way I found him was so bloody weirdly random.

I saw a sign in Vietnamese for bike repairs, so went down a laneway to find it, but couldn't. So I walked into a tiny hair salon and asked the hairdresser guy if he knew where it was.

The young-ish guy stumbled over to me, and immediately I smelt his strong rice whisky breath. He was absolutely shitface plastered tanked legless. The next thing I know, he starts attempting to speak to me in broken German! Yep. German.

It was just so ridiculous, as we ended up having a conversation in broken German, about all sorts of things. Well, I conversed, and he slurred and dribbled and tried to converse. As it turns out, he'd spent 5 years living and working in Frankfurt, but that was a few years back, and he'd hardly spoken any German since.

In the end he showed me to the bike shop, and then stumbled back to his salon, giggling like a baby.

The bike mechanic in the bike shop was the best guy ever, an old guy with experience, who took real pride in his work, and did the perfect job. At about a third of the price of the regular large bike shops. He was so lovely, friendly and nice, and beamed from ear to ear when I told him how happy I was with his work. What a guy.

Bewdy' s a new woman, I mean, bike.

Of course, checking out all these places means I get to ride around and discover different districts in Hanoi.

There's so many lakes around, and the lakeside districts tend to be rather well-heeled.

I rode past the mausoleum of Ho Chi Minh, where you can shuffle past his embalmed body and pay your respects, even though it's free.

I've done that before, and, given the long queues, decided to let him rest in peace this time.

A museum dedicated to Uncle Ho's life and work.

The aptly named One Pillar Pagoda.

There were some gorgeous gardens around there

Beautifully mosaicked fountain

Large new developments are popping up in some districts, but not at the scale of some other Asian cities.

Great spot to hang for lunch. The people were so friendly, the bánh mì delicious. I've noticed that the people in these little backstreet places tend to bend over backwards for you, they're not so used to seeing someone like me stopping at their hole-in-the-wall, and just keep doing nice things to make me feel comfortable. So sweet.

Gold ornaments are fashionable in homes here.

Cute restaurant

My bike was ready to be collected right on time for peak hour. Perfect.

If you're ever feeling bored, just jump on a push bike and attempt to ride through peak-hour traffic in Hanoi. It's a sure-fire way of instantly getting you peaked.

It's a complete thrill to be in amongst it, negotiating your way through the chaos, making quick decisions on the fly, just missing this and just avoiding that, by a greying whisker.

I've had a small number of scares here on the bike, but relatively few I guess, considering how much I've been on the road here. I've seen a number of motorbikes go over, but no major accidents. Not here anyway.

In fact my dodgiest moment in Hanoi was when I was walking on a busy narrow roadway (no pavement), and a car came past too close and nudged me with the edge of its bonnet, and, at the same time, actually ran over the outside edge of my shoe. That's not a lie. I was so close to being injured, I can't imagine toes or feet doing that well when they're steamrollered by a car.

But millimetres matter with someone this skinny, and I survived.

Back laneways in some random burb. I love 'em.

Balusters ready for bannisters

Furniture Making Street

My typical late brekky, from the sweet ladies next door. I went there every day.

Waiting for a Size 44 from another stall..

It really was time.

The biggest size they had. A bit of a squeeze, but ok.

And, fast forward a couple of days, this what my newbies looked like after my very first day's ride back in the countryside. Sad but true.

My girls would've loved this sticker shop once upon a life

Watching the world from a café balcony

There's so many bakeries here, with so many delicious things inside them. A few of them aren't quite as good as others, truth be told.

Looked way better than they tasted, disappointingly.

But I've gotta say, most of the pastries and cakes I've tried have been absolutely superb. Especially the Danish-style pastries and anything with custard. I'm loving it, while I can.

http://buymeacoffee.com/krolesh9

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