Tuesday 1/22/08 8:00 am local time Hanoi.
Hey everyone just dropping a line since we have some down time beore the bus takes us to our boat tour. Yesterday was good weather in Ho Chi Minh (80's and sunny). We ate at a nice restaurant in dowtown and had a great seat by the window where we could watch the traffic. Everyone rides scooters and they drive all over the plae wihtout regard for posted signs. The assortment of scooters is amazing an we both agreed we could sit for hours watching the traffic. We saw several people driving with young children on their laps or loaded down with water cooler bottles. It is not uncommon for women to drive with men on the backseat. And some guys ride pink scooters with pink helmets (the helmet law was recently passed with steep fines for anyone caught without one). Police presence is light, I saw maybe three all day. You must be 18 years old to drive but underage drivers cover their faces with masks to avoid the law. The traffic noise rivals New York except the horns are higher pitch. Most people use horns constantly, like the taxi driver we had last night.
Early last night we flew north to Hanoi after spending the day in the Ho Chi Minh. We stayed in "Old Saigon" where the streets narrow and winding. It kind of reminds me of SoHo in New York except much more poor. The weather here is markedly cooler in th 50's. It has been overcast and damp since we arrived. Today we are going to travel to the coast by bus and take a boat tour. I can't wait to get out of the city and hopefully get some quiet.
That's all for now our bus is scheduled to arrive any minute.
Hope you are all doing well!
Joe and Sophie
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