Mental

OK, it's official. Hanoi is mental.

We arrived about 3pm local time, after a journey involving way too many different airports, airlines, and meals on a tray.

After a quick restorative nap and a shower, we headed out for our first quick expedition. Wow. Hanoi is utterly overwhelming. The heat, the smells, the colours, the noise, all combine to leave you totally gob-smacked.

We had a brief wander around the old quarter of the city, dodged about a million scooters, and then sat down to a wonderful meal of noodles, rice, fish, beef, chicken (well, everything, really), that cost practically nothing, including wine and beer.

Tomorrow, we've a full day planned of exploring the city with our guide, Huan. Assuming we can keep dodging the scooters, that is...