Hanoi, Vietnam, May 31, 2023

 Hello Again from Hanoi.  In my last update, I mentioned a "must See" here in Vietnam, and yesterday, Tuesday here, we did the trip to Ha Long Bay. The adult fare for an all day tour from Hanoi is about 75 Canadian dollars. We were picked up at the hotel at 08;45 and began the two and a half hour journey to the tour boat. The bus is air conditioned, and we stopped two times for restroom breaks. Upon arrival, at 12;00 noon, we went immediately to the cruise ship. Lunch was served as soon as we departed the port. Enroute, on the  bus,  the guide passed around a list for our names and food preferences. The vegetarians, (5) were seated at one table, and the rest of us were seated in groups of six to a table.

Our  first stop was at a landing where those brave enough to do so could explore a series of caves that extended for about two Kilometres with both Stalagmites and stalactites. Bedier does not do caves at any time, so I cannot give you any information here.

Ha Long Bay is unique in that the mountains come right up in the water and are so deep that we motor within meters of them. We had chosen a great day weather wise, and had no wind.....smooth sailing. We stopped at another landing where those that were interested could either rent a Kayak, or pay for a boat oared by a very healthy man...standing at the rear. All those that selected to do so got to go into a cave, and through to a large lagoon beyond. (The same cave rule applied here).

Six hours after going aboard, we disembarked and returned to Hanoi on our bus, arriving at nine P.M. It was a day to remember for all.

Hanoi, Vietnam, Sunday May 28, 2023

Hello all. On Thursday morning, we were driven by family to the Thailand end of the Thai/Lao International bridge. After clearing Customs and Immigration, we took a taxi to the Bloom Boutique hotel for one night. I had to get a Lao Visa for the one day stay, (40 U.S.)  while my Thai friends did not. The next afternoon, we flew with Vietnam Airlines here to Hanoi, getting to the hotel about eleven at night. I also had to get a Visa for the stay in Vietnam, it was about 60 dollars Canadian.

 To day is very hot here in this part of Asia. I am visiting this country for the third time, and thoroughly enjoy the scenery, people and the food. Yesterday, just a few city blocks from my hotel, we enjoyed lunch at a little place called Don Duck Restaurant. On the name sign was a statue of The Duck himself. I point this out for all those relatives and friends that have called me Donald Duck.....we are important. This afternoon, if the weather cooperates, we will visit the Ho Chi Minh park area, and the One Pillar Pagoda. We are in the old sector of Hanoi, so all the historic sites are nearby.

We are still having a time understanding and using the money here....too many zeros. Ten Canadian dollars is about 100 thousand VND....(Vietnamese Dong). A bottle of water is 15 thousand Dong. The smallest currency I have seen is a one thousand note. I have yet to see any coins.

One of the nearby places that I consider a "must see", is the Ha long Bay area, one hour drive east on the coast. If we get a forecast for a sunny , non windy day, we will take a one day bus tour there. The mountains rise from the sea, and the park is over one hundred square miles. We had a heavy rainstorm during the night, and more is forecast for today.....time will tell.

Take care;

S0 Phisai Thailand...Part two May 24, 2023

Hello again from this northern Thai community. I did not mention in my report of yesterday that the airport time in the screening process is now about 30 to 45 minutes longer than before the changes. This time is of course based on the number of passengers in the screening at any given time. When I passed thru, it was 30 minutes longer than before. Most of this time is waiting to be called to observe the luggage check. The check itself is just a few minutes. There was one irate passenger in the queue when I came through, and he was speaking his mind about a double screening. The agent was calm and cool, and just told him it was the new rules.

Tomorrow, 25 May, we will depart here at noon and be driven by a family member to the south shore of the Mekong river. There, we will clear  Immigration by Laos staff, and take a taxi into the nearby city of Vientiane. We cross over on a high level bridge, known as the International Freedom Bridge. It was constructed by the governments of Laos, Thailand and Australia. We spend one night in Vientiane, and at eight in the evening of 26 May, fly over to Hanoi with VietNam Airlines.

I will report in from Hanoi.

SoPhisai, Northern Thailand, May 23, 2023

 Hello All. This update is late because the internet here is totally unreliable. I have tried from my hotel and differe nt locations with the same results. Today, I found a place for coffee, called The Amazon Cafe, and all is fine with an hour limit.

A friend drove me to the Ottawa airport on the morning of May 16, and the procedure was quick as I had downloaded my Boarding Passes and thus checked in the night before. Security was another issue, however. Now, at least in Ottawa, and I was told for all airports in  Canada, one big change. After putting computers etc in a separate tray and along with you going thru the scanners, all luggage is taken onto another slide. The computer tray is set on a large table where all computers and anything with them awaits the owner. You must await until an agent brings your carry on luggage to a counter behind a glass shield. You go there and watch as the agent opens the luggage and goes through everything using a wand. if no problems, they give you the luggage, and you hope your computer, and wallets, etc are still on that table where you can now go and retrieve it. 

All flights were pretty well on schedule, however the Swiss Air from Montreal was almost two hours late in departing, which caused a lot of passengers to miss their flights from Zurich. I spent ten hours at the Zurich airport in the transfer lounge. That way, I did not need to go through Security and Customs again.

It is in the high 30s here in Thailand, with some rain forecast in the next few days. The rubber and rice season is in full swing here, so all are busy at that. 

I am getting internet interuptions so will close and write from Hanoi in about four days time.

One Week Before Departure. Ottawa, May 9, 2023

 Hello All;  It has been a busy time with all the minute details that needed to be completed for this trip, and tending to other work, like helping friends move, setting up new furniture, and so on. I will be doing some driving on my Thai family's farm, so I was required to get my International Driving License. My Ontario License was up for renewal, and it took five weeks to get that returned to me...yesterday. I went and got the International immediately. 

I did not state in my last posting, but I had an interesting experience when I booked my hotel in Hanoi, Vietnam. Since my first trip around the world in 2012, I have used a hotel booking firm called...Booking.com. One advantage here is that one can make changes without problems up to about 24 hours before arrival in most instances. This is great when we have to book far in advance, and always subject to flight changes, etc. On that first trip of 124 days, I stayed in units booked with this company for 120 nights. With my extensive travel, I now have around 700 nights booked with this company. Not long after, my first trip all the way around, they advised me that I was now a "Genius level 1, with 5 percent discounts at most hotels". When I was looking for seven nights in Hanoi, my screen lit up, announcing a deal for me, "our Genius level 3". They offered me the Hanoi Siva Luxury Hotel...five plus stars, for just over 300 Canadian dollars.....reduced for me by 2700 Dollars. Loyalty Pays. There will be a limo waiting for us at the Hanoi airport.

As I have noted before , my Thai friends have a large farm not far from the Mekong river, and close to Vientiane Laos. I will be driving the farm truck, and doing some driver instructions while at the farm for five days. 

We have decided that after returning to Thailand on June 9, we will spend the rest of my time with my friends down at Pattaya, a two hour drive south of Bangkok. This is where the Orphanage I sometimes work at is located. I will visit, but not work there as I did not get a Work Visa. Too much red tape, and over 60 U.S. dollars...to do volunteer work!. This is because of many neighboring country visitors come and work, taking jobs away from the locals.

I plan on doing regular updates while away, and the first should be from Udon Thani where I will end up after arriving at Bangkok, then flying another hour north on 18 May.

Take care