Once again, time to get up early. My taxi was to pick me up at 6:30 and I needed some time to enjoy one of these Vietnamese coffees. The ride to the airport was shorter than expected and I arrived half an hour before check-in opened. That’s something new for a change, usually I queue up half an hour before they close. There was still a million and a half VND floating around in my wallet so I utilised the time to have a look for an exchange booth.

Hanoi’s old quarter is a busy labyrinth of small streets packed with shops and people. My hotel is somewhere in there and I just have to step out the door to be in midst the chaos. Before doing that I needed a coffee though and Vietnam is a good place to get one. Vietnamese coffee has a unique flavour, a bit sweet, and is extremely strong. Somewhere between a triple espresso and eating coffee ground.

5:30 in the morning, my alarm is ringing. Good thing my room has a window showing the sunrise over the Mekong - additional incentive for getting up. My bags are already packed (mostly), so half an hour later I’m ready for pick-up. Pretty much on time (for SEA standards) my lift arrives at the hotel and delivers me to the bus station. The company looks considerably more serious than the jokers that took me for my first ride here in Vietnam.