Vietnam has been on my bucket list for ages, but I never made it this direction. Not even when I was living in China. Back then I went twice to Hong Kong and once to Macau, but Vietnam should remain a dream destination for the future.
I had even considered getting a teaching job somewhere in Vietnam, but the wages were really low a few years ago. Not even that Teach & Beach programme sounded appealing. Wages have gone up in the last few years and in some cases they have doubled. But my priorities have changed in the meantime, and I am not looking into teaching in Vietnam.
It was a bit over a year ago when I was getting some Instagram ads about the Halong Bay marathon, but last year I wanted to run the Athens one and didn't pay much attention to the ads. But I saw a small article about the Halong Bay event in the Runner's World magazine a few months ago and it raised my attention. A few months later, I received a promotional email with a few races and Halong was one of them. So I had a longer read this time and thought it's now or never.
The Instagram ads seemed to know that I would be going there. It looks like it was their revenge for not paying attention to them. You ignore us? You'll see ....
I registered for the half marathon, booked a package over the marathon weekend, with pick-up in Hanoi, hotel in Halong, boat trip over 24 hours in the bay, drop-off in Hanoi and many other perks. I then applied for a visa, which came via email two days later, bought the Lonely Travel Vietnam guide and booked a plane ticket with Turkish Airlines. I had never flown with them, but read that it's one of the best airlines in the world. And boy, it is!
My dream has been to enter the country either in Hanoi or in Ho Chi Minh City, rent a motorbike and travel across the country. But since I have given up driving completely, I had to give up on that dream. If I ever change my mind and take up driving again, I might jump on a motorbike and travel from edge to edge.
The big day finally came and I got to the Athenian airport yesterday evening. Check-in process was quick if you travel business. The poor people who travelled economy had to wait in a very long queue. Going through the controls was also hassle-free and quick, due to fast track. The Gold Air lounge I had to go to, was opposite the gate. The lounge is quite luxurious and there were only a handful people in there, so it was a pleasant stay.
Boarding was quick as well and to my surprise, the plane wasn't a regular one you get on European and short distance flights, but a really big one with three doors, even though only the middle one was used for boarding. The business class was different as well. Unlike the normal seats with extra legroom and no middle passenger you get on short distance flights and the ones within Europe, here the business was a proper one. For a start, it was detached and divided by a corridor from the economy. Meaning, enter the middle door and turn left. The seats were proper armchairs if you can call them so, the service and food were top notch. The flight to Istanbul lasts a bit over an hour, so the fun was quickly over.
Ever been to the new airport in Istanbul? It's massive, isn't it? When we landed, the plane had to taxi roughly 25 minutes to reach its parking position and then we were allowed to exit from the first door, separated from the economy class.
While walking down the endless corridors to the lounge, I had this curiosity: Imagine you live in the city and work at the airport. It takes you one hour to drive to work and possibly another hour of walking within the airport. That's four hours every day!
The airport however, is in a class on its own. Sheer luxury! The lounge is the same. There are two lounges I was told. The one I went to, was on the upper floor and it was massive! There are so many kitchens and bars in it, with food from all over the world. There are fridges with drinks and stands with newspapers and right at the entrance is a piano, where somebody played when I walked in.
However, my stay in the lounge was short, as I had to walk 15 minutes to the gate and boarding took place an hour before departure. First we were driven by bus to the plane and then several hundred people had to board. The business class was even more luxurious than on the first leg and the service was better, too. Since it was an overnight flight, lasting 10 hours, departure was at 2:20 am local time (23:20 GMT), the members of staff put a blanket cover over the seats, distributed pillows and blankets, slippers and headphones (noise cancelling ones), along with a Versace sponge bag (toiletries bag for the American readers) had been distributed earlier.
Like many passengers of the half full business class, I didn't bother with dinner and had something small to eat along with my glass of single malt. The chef went round and took orders for breakfast and asked if we wanted dinner. The stewards brought drinks and something small to eat. I had my glass of whisky, drank some water, turned down my seat in a horizontal position and had a long and relaxing sleep thanks to my earplugs and sleeping mask.
When I woke up many hours later, it was almost time for breakfast. We still had another 3 hours to go, which passed quickly with eating and reading.
Like in Istanbul, we were allowed to exit the plane through the first door and were the first ones to leave. It was a long walk to the visa desk, but there I didn't have to wait long. From there you have to go opposite to customs and then to the belts. Everything went smoothly and quickly and my driver was waiting on the other side.
The ride to my Airbnb flat lasted a bit over half an hour and was amazing. I thought there were zillions of scooters and motorbikes in China, but there seem to be more of them here and they drive like crazy. So does everyone else. And honking seems to be the favourite pastime of the drivers.
The driver dropped me off just outside a building and explained that I had to go through a very narrow alley (I'll post a photo next time). I had to go to the end of it and then climb to the second floor with my heavy luggage - no lift! I managed to get it and a few moments later somebody delivered a SIM card to me. The host and I were in constant contact and he even booked me an appointment at a massage place across the road, where I saved some money thanks to him.
The massage place was a very basic one, like the ones you get mostly everywhere in southeast Asia, but the massage was really good and economical. Just over 20 pounds for two hours isn't bad at all.
The flat is in the old town where all the bars and the action is. It's 11:30pm now and I am going to explore nightlife in Hanoi.
So long everyone!
I had even considered getting a teaching job somewhere in Vietnam, but the wages were really low a few years ago. Not even that Teach & Beach programme sounded appealing. Wages have gone up in the last few years and in some cases they have doubled. But my priorities have changed in the meantime, and I am not looking into teaching in Vietnam.
It was a bit over a year ago when I was getting some Instagram ads about the Halong Bay marathon, but last year I wanted to run the Athens one and didn't pay much attention to the ads. But I saw a small article about the Halong Bay event in the Runner's World magazine a few months ago and it raised my attention. A few months later, I received a promotional email with a few races and Halong was one of them. So I had a longer read this time and thought it's now or never.
The Instagram ads seemed to know that I would be going there. It looks like it was their revenge for not paying attention to them. You ignore us? You'll see ....
I registered for the half marathon, booked a package over the marathon weekend, with pick-up in Hanoi, hotel in Halong, boat trip over 24 hours in the bay, drop-off in Hanoi and many other perks. I then applied for a visa, which came via email two days later, bought the Lonely Travel Vietnam guide and booked a plane ticket with Turkish Airlines. I had never flown with them, but read that it's one of the best airlines in the world. And boy, it is!
My dream has been to enter the country either in Hanoi or in Ho Chi Minh City, rent a motorbike and travel across the country. But since I have given up driving completely, I had to give up on that dream. If I ever change my mind and take up driving again, I might jump on a motorbike and travel from edge to edge.
The big day finally came and I got to the Athenian airport yesterday evening. Check-in process was quick if you travel business. The poor people who travelled economy had to wait in a very long queue. Going through the controls was also hassle-free and quick, due to fast track. The Gold Air lounge I had to go to, was opposite the gate. The lounge is quite luxurious and there were only a handful people in there, so it was a pleasant stay.
Boarding was quick as well and to my surprise, the plane wasn't a regular one you get on European and short distance flights, but a really big one with three doors, even though only the middle one was used for boarding. The business class was different as well. Unlike the normal seats with extra legroom and no middle passenger you get on short distance flights and the ones within Europe, here the business was a proper one. For a start, it was detached and divided by a corridor from the economy. Meaning, enter the middle door and turn left. The seats were proper armchairs if you can call them so, the service and food were top notch. The flight to Istanbul lasts a bit over an hour, so the fun was quickly over.
Ever been to the new airport in Istanbul? It's massive, isn't it? When we landed, the plane had to taxi roughly 25 minutes to reach its parking position and then we were allowed to exit from the first door, separated from the economy class.
While walking down the endless corridors to the lounge, I had this curiosity: Imagine you live in the city and work at the airport. It takes you one hour to drive to work and possibly another hour of walking within the airport. That's four hours every day!
The airport however, is in a class on its own. Sheer luxury! The lounge is the same. There are two lounges I was told. The one I went to, was on the upper floor and it was massive! There are so many kitchens and bars in it, with food from all over the world. There are fridges with drinks and stands with newspapers and right at the entrance is a piano, where somebody played when I walked in.
However, my stay in the lounge was short, as I had to walk 15 minutes to the gate and boarding took place an hour before departure. First we were driven by bus to the plane and then several hundred people had to board. The business class was even more luxurious than on the first leg and the service was better, too. Since it was an overnight flight, lasting 10 hours, departure was at 2:20 am local time (23:20 GMT), the members of staff put a blanket cover over the seats, distributed pillows and blankets, slippers and headphones (noise cancelling ones), along with a Versace sponge bag (toiletries bag for the American readers) had been distributed earlier.
Like many passengers of the half full business class, I didn't bother with dinner and had something small to eat along with my glass of single malt. The chef went round and took orders for breakfast and asked if we wanted dinner. The stewards brought drinks and something small to eat. I had my glass of whisky, drank some water, turned down my seat in a horizontal position and had a long and relaxing sleep thanks to my earplugs and sleeping mask.
When I woke up many hours later, it was almost time for breakfast. We still had another 3 hours to go, which passed quickly with eating and reading.
Like in Istanbul, we were allowed to exit the plane through the first door and were the first ones to leave. It was a long walk to the visa desk, but there I didn't have to wait long. From there you have to go opposite to customs and then to the belts. Everything went smoothly and quickly and my driver was waiting on the other side.
The ride to my Airbnb flat lasted a bit over half an hour and was amazing. I thought there were zillions of scooters and motorbikes in China, but there seem to be more of them here and they drive like crazy. So does everyone else. And honking seems to be the favourite pastime of the drivers.
The driver dropped me off just outside a building and explained that I had to go through a very narrow alley (I'll post a photo next time). I had to go to the end of it and then climb to the second floor with my heavy luggage - no lift! I managed to get it and a few moments later somebody delivered a SIM card to me. The host and I were in constant contact and he even booked me an appointment at a massage place across the road, where I saved some money thanks to him.
The massage place was a very basic one, like the ones you get mostly everywhere in southeast Asia, but the massage was really good and economical. Just over 20 pounds for two hours isn't bad at all.
The flat is in the old town where all the bars and the action is. It's 11:30pm now and I am going to explore nightlife in Hanoi.
So long everyone!
Gold Air Lounge at Athens Airport
Business class from Athens to Istanbul
Business class for business people
The menu
Dinner on the way to Istanbul
Business class to Istanbul
and again
The plane to Hanoi
Business class on the way to Hanoi
and again
The taxi driver
The flat
Right hand side are the stairs that lead down to the other room and the second bathroom, the yellow - blue door left leads to the kitchen and the bathroom
Kitchen and bathroom
Jail? Nah!
The door opposite is the room downstairs. I have the one upstairs.
This way please!
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