Views, planes and shopping

 Saturday November 18 - Hanoi

Yes a different town, two different towns as a matter of fact , I did make it safely to Da Nang. The hotel in Hoi An canceled both days without penalty so that is that.

The taxi drive was uneventful for the most part. Some Google Translate, but nearly in complete silence. Neither of us could get past the Tower of Babel.

There was one detour to be made within the city due to the road being washed out. Mr. Driver expertly took me up in the hills and around that part of the problem and then two thirds of the way on a major highway we came to a complete stop behind a string of semi trucks, of course there were the other cars that knew the road blockage only impacted semi trucks and not all four wheeled conveyances , I think they were surprised to come upon a shoulder to shoulder landslide that, yes even blocked the way for them. A couple chapters in my Nook and our lane was let through. A 4X4 could have been better for passing that part of the highway, but we did weave our way through, bouncing all the way.

Da Nang came into view about an hour longer than scheduled, but at the absolute minimum I was no longer locked in Imperial Hotel jail. I got to be locked in Marriott hotel jail.

Da Nang is flat, flat. Away in the distance are hills, but the city is flat. Except for the billions of dollars in high rise buildings. If 1967 American G.I. Could see it today they would faint dead away. The Marriott is located on an island along with the Sheraton and other names your recognize. It is too far to walk to the actual city of Da Nang, that is why I say another hotel jail. Similar to Las Vegas where the next hotel is just over there, and it turns out it is a 20 minute walk, so is this island in Da Nang.

The rain was still coming sideways, but without as much fury as 24 hours previously. Getting a sandal full of wet sand from the beautiful beach didn’t appeal to me. My new cell was on the 25th floor with a beautiful view of the long white crescent of beach below.

I did the usual while in jail. Had a drink, watched a show or three on the iPad and did something completely out of character — I ate a bag of nuts from the mini bar. It wasn’t as good or satisfying as mini bars seem to have an aura of.

The morning, breakfast. I didn’t need to be out of the room until noon. The hotel provided a traffic report form for the in the room that broke down the congestion expected at various hours of the morning for the breakfast dining room. I’m too smart for such frivolity. I definitely should have headed the report. They weren’t the usual ravenous locusts, but there sure were a lot of them.

It was the expected spread, and ate my expected amount.

Noon came and the taxi was waiting. The 3:15 to Hanoi Gate six. You know what to expect here …..  ZZz…… an airport waiting area is the same from Los Angeles to Laos. Some are bigger, some smaller. Some clean some not. All seats uncomfortable and consumables are expensive.

Gate change, but airplane left timely and safely landed. The flight was an hour and 5 minutes and I was in economy. The row directly in front of me was an exit row, mega leg room. I am 26C, Mr. 25C nods off quickly and Zee’s his way until water is offered. He is awakened, took the proffered water and immediately slams his seat back! Lucky for me a motorcycle accident in the 1970’s broke my nose so it might be a hint smaller the the factory built one, and this seat back missed my nose. No one else in that row reclined, just Mr. 25C.

The 'Bitch of 26C', woke up within me. Fear her wrath! I have traveled with children in the seat directly behind me on aircraft and know how that can be. Drop the tray table. Put it back up. Take things out of the seat pocket. Shove them back in. Take them out again and then drop the tray table.

This bothers Mr 25C and he leans forward on his knees to try and get back to sleep, I stop.

He then leans back. Rinse and repeat. What does it take for this guy to get a clue? My bet is on ‘Never’ and I win. Until the landing instructions came of the seat back remained back. Yes, I feel bad for my childish actions, but they felt so good at the time.

Airport to city Uber was 300 Ho’s, 390 Ho’s for nicer car, taxi 500 Ho’s but he was there and I didn’t have to remember a license plate number. Traffic from 4 until 6 or 6:30 is rush hour in most cities, except for Seattle when it is is all the time. Hanoi is the same and then there is the construction. The 50 minute drive turned into more novel reading. The guy earned his Ho’s for this ride.

This hotel in Hanoi is different from the previous one. Mostly contrast and compare, but with the added bonus of being in the heart of the action. Well there is a big difference in similar priced hotels in the same general area in Hanoi, and I picked a winner the first time. The elevator is small. The hall is small. The room is small. The breakfast is small. The only thing not small is the price. This place must have gotten it’s stars on TripAdvisor from people who hadn’t stayed elsewhere in Hanoi. Room to value minus 5.

This morning I had some trinket shopping to do. My recently discovered (5 years is recent isn’t it?) second cousin remarked on the silk lanterns in one of the snapshots I sent her. She has a new home in need of more things to take up space. My plan was to get them in Hoi An where they are the city’s symbol, but that fell through because of the Noah’s Ark situation in Hue. There was a shop that caught my eye last evening on the way to dinner on Beer Street that held promise lay just down the block. They had exactly what I was looking for and the price was reasonable. So I hope wearing my heavy clothes home allow me to transport a fragile silk lantern home in my over packed main bag.

Then some real coffee after the awful hotel fare. The included breakfast was so lousy I didn’t eat it. I didn’t know you could fry an egg until the yolk turns to powder. A local coffee shop did alright. Still that strong chocolate notes at the end. Not a bad thing, but not what I was looking for.

Then off for a mile walk to Dong Xaun (Don Juan?) a huge shopping machine. An entire city block, three stories high. Merchandise sacked almost to the ceiling, the aisles one person wide and hand trucks in the aisle with man sized bales of tightly wrapped mystery. I tried to explore but was overwhelmed with the magnitude of the machinery of retail and wholesale embodied in these walls. I know I am a little claustrophobic and have had a panic attack so maybe a short visit to Dong Xuan is enough. Yes, it is enough.

Hanoi has 3 Michelin starred restaurants and 15 Michelin mentioned ones. Gia I tried to get reservations at while still home in the States but failed. I thought I’d drop them a quick email saying if the have a cancelation to call me. I also did this with a different starred restaurant. The second one got back to me, but their starred eatery was not available, but the main dinning room was well it’s better than Pho with your chin on your knees. I had also left emails at one or two of the 15.

Te phone rang with an unknown title. The woman said she had a 7pm available and I told her I had already made reservations at Kiki. We hung up and I checked my email and saw an email from Gia. They had a 7pm opening. Crap that was Gia !! Quick as a viper I called Gia back, and the spot had been filled. Darn, darn, darn.

I re-sent the email for tomorrow, but am not holding out any hope.

Killed a bit of time in the room and walked to tonight’s restaurant. They said Smart Casual, I should have worn a formal and tiara. The meal was really excellent, service not the same level. In A Chorus Line there is a song “Dance 10, Looks 5” totally sums up this meal.

Time to pack up my iPad and head on back to Smallville, without Clark Kent.