The flight to Hanoi, Vietnam was a little late but it caught up most of the time in the flight over, arriving at 8:10pm which is two hours ahead of Japan time zone. I made my way through immigration and customs after picking up my bag during which time I had connected to the WiFi which enabled me to install my Vietnamese eSIM so I could contact Rhianon. I should have done it while on WiFi in Japan but forgot it needed a connection before it would load the new eSIM. All was ok, it downloaded immediately, connecting me to Rhianon who I was staying with in Hanoi, Vietnam. I had just had a strange experience when coming out of the terminal, there was a guy obviously waiting for someone who when he saw me said “Gidday Mate”. Thinking Rhianon was meeting me, I was a bit surprised but thought he must have known me. He didn’t, he must have somehow recognised I was an Aussie. Rhianon then replied to my message, saying her husband, Michael, was already there to meet me. I let her know I was waiting outside at the number 12 post where I soon saw him coming.
I connected with Michael who ordered a Grab car which took us back to the apartment building where they lived on the 25th floor. This is a two storey apartment with offices and a conference room-come-spare bedroom with bathroom, on the top floor. This is where I stayed. It was so nice knowing I didn’t have to pack my bags every day as I had while in Japan. Rhianon was already in bed having had a wakeful night the night before, as the dog she is caring for had an epileptic fit. It was after 10pm by the time I had a shower and unpacked a few things for bed.
I slept well till 4am so was able to get a lot done before Sunday church. Michael had gone before us on his scooter, Rhianon and I went by Grab. There are lots of different nationalities, some of whom are visiting, others work here in Hanoi. It was a lovely service with an inspiring message on going out to reach the lost around us. Rhianon had an art class after the service which took longer than she expected, Michael drove me back on the scooter stopping en route for some bananas. I spotted a vendor selling durian and had to stop. It was quite expensive but as I hadn’t eaten fresh durian for a while it was a treat. Later that afternoon I went out to explore the neighbourhood, walking down some of the back streets, checking out the shops and buying some fresh milk just before returning to the apartment.
On Monday I was invited to join Rhianon at a nearby coffee shop. Michael and I walked to the coffee shop and after coffee, Rhianon, her friend and I took a Grab to the old quarter where I had stayed last year. While they had a business meeting I walked back to the Golden Rooster Hotel where I was to meet Emma. She wasn’t free when I arrived so I continued down the street to my favourite ice dessert shop, Loc Tai House, where I could order one with durian. Here I met two Japanese ladies and sat with them telling them about my Walk Japan which they were very interested in. They were using the Duolingo to learn English so I invited them along to the church’s English classes. Walking back to the hotel, I had a lovely chat with Emma. She was busy with a Pilipino couple from Canning Vale, Perth. It was a short catch up as I was meeting Rhianon after her meeting and going back to the apartment. Then at 5pm I caught a Grab bike to the church where the English classes were held. There was a visiting team from the US, English speakers from the church and quite a few Vietnamese young people who came to learn and practice their English. It was a fun night with games, language video, questions and conversation. Some of the stories were very interesting. Then back to the apartment on the back of Michael’s scooter before crashing out around 10pm, exhausted.
I was awake again at 4am. Thankfully it was a quiet day with me working on a design for the Coastal Community Garden banner which I was thinking of getting done while I’m here as it’s so cheap. I also made some banana muffins which we had with lunch. That afternoon Rhianon took me to where the local ladies sell their fruit and veg and I bought fresh custard apples and Lychees before we walked back to the apartment. I had an early night while Michael and Rhianon went out for a farewell party.
I started the day at 3:45am with my usual routine. After an early breakfast, Rhianon and I caught a Grab across town, in the rain, to a coffee shop where she was having another business meeting. I ordered my favourite egg coffee and practiced my Indonesian for two hours from a balcony overlooking the Tây Hồ or West Lake. By the time Rhianon had finished her meeting, the rain had stopped, the clouds had gone and the sun was out. It had turned out to be a glorious day. We took another Grab around the lake to the Old Quarter to walk to the mausoleum of Hồ Chí Minh or great uncle as the Vietnamese call him. Then to the Museum which unfortunately was closed. We stopped for some of my favourite rice flour pancakes with pork and mushrooms which was delicious and then on to see the flag tower and more old French colonial buildings before taking another car to the markets in the Old Quarter where I was looking for another quick drying dress. I tried a few on but was not satisfied so instead we hunted down where they sold sharp knives as I wanted one like the one Rhianon had. From here we only needed to walk a little further to find my favourite ice dessert shop, Loc Tai House (Chè Lộc Tài). By this time we really needed to sit down, a cold dessert and the air conditioned room were exactly what we needed. Because the second hand markets were very close we wanted to take a look there as well. I was delighted to see a dress I might be interested in, the right colour and fabric. It fitted perfectly and was quite cheap except we thought it was new and when we got it home realised there were a few stains on it which Rhianon mostly removed with a little bleach stick. Rhianon also found a lovely red, leather bag. She had been searching for one for a while without finding what she wanted, it was less than $16, what a bargain.
We had had a very interesting and active day walking over 5km. When we had left the house we had thought we wouldn’t need our hats as it was raining so only took our umbrellas. We hadn’t needed the umbrellas for the rain but we certainly needed them to protect ourselves from the sun although whenever we could we walked under the shade of the trees or crossed the street to walk in the shadow of the buildings. We were both very pleased to get back and rest as at 6pm we were back out again. This time for drinks at the roof top bar with a friend of Rhianon’s, Julie from the US who has been here for over 30 years running the coffee shop we had been to the day before which employs people with disabilities. We had a great discussion while sipping on our drinks overlooking the lake and the city. Praise the Lord there was no rain.
Another lateish night followed with a 3am wake up! That’s when I decided to post the last update ‘Last Days in Japan’. When Rhianon was awake I asked if she had an old spare suitcase I could borrow or have. She said that they were planning to get rid of things and was sure she had one. Praise the Lord for answered prayer. It was just the right size to fit my big backpack in with room to spare for all the extras. Later that afternoon Rhianon flew to Ho Chi Minh City for a meeting.
That afternoon I went for a walk to Simple Coffee to buy some of their coffee which is grown here in Vietnam. I saw Julie again and told her about my bag splitting; she suggested I talk to Michael about getting their handyman to fix it as he had lots of contacts who were able to help with all sorts of things. From here I walked back to the small street taking me into a rabbit warren of little lanes between homes. It is here Rhianon and I bought fruit the previous day, I needed to restock with bananas and bought a bunch of about 6 for just about $1.20. By this time I was dripping wet from perspiration so headed home. I still needed to eat the fruit I’d bought on the last visit.
That evening I had a committee meeting via WhatsApp with the community garden. I had suggested I try to get some banners for our garden while I was in Vietnam as they were so much cheaper. The challenge I faced was not having the original logo images and the ones I had were very low resolution. I made up a mock image which had been approved by the committee but then had to try to find someone to help with the logos. Praise the Lord I had overheard Solomon at church say he was a graphic designer. Michael contacted him and he said he was willing to help if he could. I then sent him what I had to work on.
Although I had slept late during the day I was tired again by 8pm and slept through to 3:45am, waking to start my day but by 6am I crashed out till 8am. I had forgotten Michael was going to take me over to the Old Quarter to fix my bag and to drop me off for a day catching up with people I knew from the previous year. I hurriedly ate my breakfast then off on the scooter to try and keep ahead of the pending rain. We made it most of the way but had to stop to put on our rain jackets. Praise the Lord it wasn’t heavy rain. Michael dropped me off at Hanoi Egg Coffee before taking my bag to be fixed. Mr Tuân the owner of the coffee shop recognised me from the previous year and was happy to see me again. His egg coffee, is still the best I’ve ever tasted. I sat here chatting with a couple of 
French boys while it rained, enjoying my egg coffee then when it cleared up, just after midday, I walked the short distance to the hotel where I met Anna, another of the Golden Rooster staff, who was on shift that afternoon. From here I walked back towards the ice dessert shop looking for my favourite bánh mì along the way but it had disappeared. The rest of the day I looked out for a similar place selling the BBQ pork but there was none. The lady at the ice dessert shop laughed as I came in. I told her if I could I would try to return one more time before I left, but unfortunately I ran out of time. From here I walked towards the Museum to have some lunch at the bánh cuốn steamed rice-paper pancakes with mushrooms. I also tried to see the Museum again but it is closed Friday and Monday afternoons. Oh well, God willing there will be a next time. I then walked 8km back to the apartment which wasn’t too bad as it didn’t rain and was quite cool. It took me nearly one and a half hours. I passed along a very fascinating, very long one way street with little individual shops selling electrical goods, furniture, plants, fish, birds, ceramics, pet shops and all sorts of things. It was so interesting. Towards the end of my walk I had to cross a ten lane highway, with a central raised island separating the flow of traffic. It was very busy at this time of day and didn’t have any pedestrian crossing anywhere. I did see a crosswalk but it was recently fenced off where they divided the road, separating the motorbikes from the cars. Earlier there had been a very high pedestrian overpass crossing. I thought there would have been another but I was wrong. I was very happy to successfully maneuver the never-ceasing traffic, to safely reach the other side.
That night I completed the work on the community garden banner with the help of Solomon and Michael sent it off to the printer. What a blessing these two men have been. Rhianon was also back from her meeting trip although I didn’t see her as has I had tried to go to bed early and ended up doing my Duolingo language studies till 10:30pm because I couldn’t sleep! I finally slept after 11:30pm having taken a sleeping tablet. The next day Rhianon and I were taking a two day trip to Mai Chau, in the mountains south west of Hanoi.
Photos: 1. Redvein Chinese lantern – Callianthe picta 2. View from the apartment window 3. Mausoleum of Hồ Chí Minh 4. View from roof top bar 5. Street shopping Old Quarter 6. Plant shop along the road 7. Trimming bonsai plants
Prayer & Praise Points:
Praise the Lord for safe travels in Hanoi, and Mai Chau, Vietnam.
Praise the Lord for answered prayer in many areas.
Please pray for the next leg of my journey in Bali, and my stay there.
Please pray for all those who received tracts during my visit to Japan and Vietnam.
Please pray for Gayle who is returning to Perth this July for more medical procedures.
Please continue to pray for Jen and Ralf as they travel throughout Europe, may they be kept safe and enjoy their adventures too.
Continue to pray for the world peace and countries dealing with major disasters, wars and the unbelievable hardships they cause. Pray for all those caught up in the suffering these events have caused. Pray that God’s peace may be known by all people especially for those who live with despair, that they will find hope in Christ Jesus.
Please keep my sisters, Tricia, Jen and Kat, in your prayers. Pray that they will come to know the love of Jesus.