i'm back in china, didja miss me? in my last few days in vietnam, i did the activities i initially thought i'd skip when i headed south, halong bay and sapa. i'm really glad that i ended up changing my plans, because those were definitely the highlight of my time in vietnam. by the time i got back to hanoi from hue, the taiphoon was just about over. i had to wait a day for my halong bay trip to leave, which i spent watching L word with a pomona student. i know, i know, i didn't give finding the "real" vietnam much of a shot, but sue me. i walked over to the history museum, but it was tiny and unimpressive.
i'm really glad i did the cruise, if only because it gave me the chance to have a real vacation within my "vacation." that is to say, i splurged about on the trip, which was all inclusive, so i got to eat some delicious seafood and lounge on a fancy cruise ship. i also had my only big night of drinking since i've been travelling. trying to keep to my miniscule budget has made the expense of going out drinking with foreigners seem excessive, but once stuck on a boat with about 15 europeans, it seemed like the only option.
the night i came back from the bay, which is, by the way, filled with limestone karsts that emerge from the water in various beautiful shapes, i was booked on a night train to sapa, which is on the way to the chinese border. i was a bit nervous about having booked a hard sleeper, which i've heard is a big step down from china's hard sleepers, and where you are enouraged to have company to prevent your stuff from being pilfered. on arriving at the train station, however, i was told that due to the typhoon, the hard sleeper was overbooked and i was being upgraded to first class! and not only was it first class, it was super first class, the soft sleepers on private cars reserved for specific fancy travel companies. i even got a free banana! this was, possibly, the best thing that has ever happened to me in my life.
i got to sapa, which is a beautiful mountain town most notable for the large number of montagnards (minority peoples) that come to sell their wares in the market. i was only there for a day, but i had a wonderful time, saw some beautiful countryside, and slapped high five with a friendly h'mong woman.
from there, it was a full-day trip to kunming. crossing the border, the third overland border i've crossed (one in lao, two in 'nam) i booked myself on the next bus over, and waited with some americans studying chinese in kunming. the ride wasn't bad, though it did take 12 hours, the first four of which passed through breath-taking mountains on frightening roads. on arrival in kunming, i found i didn't have enough money to get to my hostel, but luckily the americans took me there and paid for my cab. i cannot stress how helpful it is to make friends on trains and buses.
so here i am now, and i'm plotting my next step. i wish i had bought the new lonely planet china while in vietnam, but i was worried about it getting taken at the border. so hopefully i can manage sans LP, which i imagine must be possible. well, i'm off to get some money from the atm, bye.