Hanoi Destination: Hanoi – Accommodations: Sunway Hotel

We slept in and enjoyed a late breakfast. The hotel restaurant was empty when we finally arrived, so we enjoyed the peace and quiet.

We spent most of the day reading in the hotel, but we did take a walk around the neighborhood. It was a beautiful day. We skipped lunch and just had egg coffees.

We met friends for a light dinner and then Thanh took us to the airport for our flight. We couldn’t check in until 3 hours before the flight would be leaving so we sat and talked with Thanh for awhile.

Thanh gave us “money” for Tet which is the custom. After he left us at the airport, he was going to his grandma’s home for the celebration. They celebrate days before the actual holiday, cooking and eating special dishes every day and visiting with family and friends. It’s similar to our Christmas. He said his favorite dishes are the fish dishes. His grandmother already bought a lovely cherry tree to put in her home.

We told Thanh to go because he was celebrating tonight with his family. We hugged and wished him luck and as he walked an away, he was crying and wiping his eyes as he went out the door. What a gentle and sweet young man. He was so nervous when he first met all of our group, since this was only his second time as a guide. He had asked us numerous times for comments and suggestions that would help him be a better guide, since we’ve been on so many trips. I felt like a mom to him and we were happy to help him as much as we could

We breezed through security and we are now in the lounge waiting for our flight to Tokyo. Then we have a long lay over, but we can spend it in the lounge in Tokyo so that will be great.

The next time I post, we hopefully will be home.

Photo of one of our beer bottle caps from when we put them on the train tracks. Thanh said that they don’t put coins on the tracks since the coins sometimes bind to the train wheels.