I think the weather is finally starting to change in Hanoi - I had to wear a cardigan today! Sadly all week the skies were lovely and blue, but now it's the weekend it's just dull and grey. Still, at least the change in weather should help me get ready for the UK - it definitely won't be t-shirt weather there.  2 weeks til I'm flying back home!!

On Tuesday it was Vietnamese Teacher's Day and from my 3 different classes I got given 2 scarves, some nail polish and a massive bunch of flowers:

I've included my hand so you can see just how big they are.  Pretty awesome!!

Last month the family came out to visit and we travelled around Vietnam. It was a lovely holiday and I got to go to lots of new places in Vietnam. We spent the first couple of days in Hanoi then got the overnight train to Sapa. It was nicer than the train to Hue last time but still not a pleasant experience. It was worth it though to spend some time up in the north of Vietnam. We arrived in Lao Cai ridiculously early in the day and met our tour guide then headed to Sapa to have breakfast. After that we went for a walk to a waterfall in the mountains, then we had the rest of the day to ourselves. We went for a walk to the lake in Sapa - it was much nicer than the lakes in Hanoi! Not nearly so many pieces of rubbish and dead fish floating on the lake!

The next day we went back to Lao Cai and up to the border with China, then we went to Bac Ha. We missed the big market but it was still a nice place to spend some time. We went for a walk in the hills around the town and as it was time for the rice harvest there was lots to see. We walked past fields and went to a small village, and had a chance to go into a local house to see how the local rice wine is made.

It was a really nice walk in a pretty place, and then in the evening we went to a nice restaurant for a Vietnamese feast. Bac Ha is pretty cool!

The day after that we set off on a long drive to Ha Giang via windy mountain roads. We went past lots more rice fields in the mountains on dodgy roads, and at one point got stuck in the mud and had to be pushed out by a bunch of passing bikers.

It was a long journey until eventually we arrived at the eco lodge we were staying at. It was a bit grey and damp and a bit of a strange place, but I suppose it could have been worse! It was in the middle of nowhere with nothing much to do other than walks in the surrounding hills but as I was having issues with my feet I couldn't go on the walk so it was a bit boring.

Ha Giang was our last stop on the tour of the north - after that we went back to Hanoi for another couple of nights there. I went for Japanese food with my sister, and we all spent some time in the Old Quarter. We also went to Derry's, the pub by my apartment that I used to go to all the time but haven't been to for ages.

After some time in Hanoi we flew to Phu Quoc, an island in the south of Vietnam that's actually closer to Cambodia than Vietnam. We had to go via HCMC, and on the bus from the terminal to the plane the driver had his pet chick on the dashboard next to him!

When we first got to Phu Quoc it was raining so we didn't really do much other than hang out at the resort. The next day we headed into the town for a couple of hours. The weather was a bit grim at first:

but as the morning progressed the rain cleared away. We crossed the river and walked to the sea where there is a lighthouse, then went back into the town and found the Cao Dai temple. The guy there offered to take us up to the top of the temple to see the views over the town and that was quite nice.

We also hired motorbikes one day to drive around part of the island but as my motorbike was a bit crap we didn't get very far. Other than a trip to the night market, we spent the rest of the time at the resort. It was quite a nice place with huts close to the beach and a couple of bar/restaurants. It also had its own beach so we spent some time in the sun once the rain had cleared. It's also a good place for a nice sunset! 

This is the hut we were staying in. Other than the river that runs underneath when it's raining, it was a nice place to stay.

The last stop in Vietnam was HCMC. We stayed in a very nice hotel with a rooftop swimming pool. On the first evening there we went to the tall tower that you can see in the picture below. The city looks much nicer from up high at night! 

As we'd all been to HCMC before and seen the sights we didn't do much there other than go to the tower and the market, and walk around the city a bit. On the last night we had dinner at a nice Thai restaurant then headed to the airport for our flight. I left the family behind at Bangkok and spent a couple of days there doing some shopping. Found a shopping centre there that has themed floors, one of which was London so there were loads of sights like below scattered all around the floor.

I also took advantage of a classy cinema and supermarkets full of goodies from the UK, and found a pub for a roast dinner on Sunday before flying back to Hanoi. A nice end to a nice holiday!