Tuesday, August 07, 2007

Last Day in Hanoi

I'm leaving Hanoi tonight, and I think I've had the perfect amount of time here. I'm a bit sad to leave, there are more things I could do, but I'm ready to move on. The part I'm not looking forward to is sleeping in the airport in Kuala Lumpur tonight. Why, you might ask, would I fly from Hanoi to Malaysia only to fly back to the north of Cambodia the next day?Well, the airline I'm flying (Air Asia) has a promotion each summer and gives away thousands of "free seats" (I just pay the taxes). As long as you know when it is, are patient and persistent in trying to get onto the website, and make a quick decision, you can get free flights. So both return trips are "free" as long as my departure is from KL. And the sleeping overnight in the airport part is just me being cheap. I actually slept in this same airport last year and was amazed by the fact that about 200 other people had the same idea! (it's a small budget airlines terminal).Anyway, my last morning in Hanoi I was up early (the power went out at the hotel so I woke up in a sweat without a fan, and my room doesn't have a window). First I walked to the lake and had some coffee here:And then I ended up having another cup of coffee sitting on a little plastic chair on the sidewalk here:This coffee was special Chon coffee. The guidebook says that they feed the coffee beans to rare Vietnamese Chon weasels who "digest" the beans before they make the coffee! Well, when I read that I knew I had to try the stuff, and it was actually a very nice taste.

Posted by Kathleen @ 2:15 PM