Our hotel is in Hanoi’s historic old quarter, across from Hoan Kiem Lake. This morning after breakfast we walked around Hoan Kiem Lake. At the opposite end of the lake from our hotel we crossed the Huc Bridge and visited the Ngoc Son Temple.

After visiting the temple we continued on around the lake and stopped to have coffee and juice.

Tonight we had a great dinner at a restaurant called Link Bistro, not far from our hotel.

This morning after breakfast we checked out of Saha Casa Boutique Hotel. That’s where we stayed for our five nights in Da Nang. It was a very nice hotel and the staff was fantastic..

We took a Grab to the airport. (Grab is the Vietnamese equivalent of Uber.) Then we flew Viet Jet to Hanoi. In Hanoi we took another Grab car to our hotel in the center.

After resting a bit we went out for a walk along the lakeshore across from the hotel. It was very hot and humid so we didn’t go very far.

This evening we went to a Jazz concert not too far from the hotel.. It was a good day.

We woke up to beautiful blue sky this morning. It was the first cloudless sky we have had since New Zealand. Today was museum day. We started at the Da Nang Museum of Cham Sculpture. The Champa Culture was in Southern Vietnam from the 2nd through the 19th centuries.

Then we went to the Da Nang museum. It was all about the history of Da Nang over the centuries.

Finally we went to the Da Nang Fine Arts Museum

For dinner we went to a Michelin listed restaurant, Bép Cuôn. We had to wait about 35 minutes for a table. We had a very tasty meal.

We had another day in Da Nang without rain. We even had some sun! This morning we went for a long walk along the waterfront. At out turnaround point we stopped for iced Vietnamese coffee.

It was very hot and humid again today. We were each dripping wet from sweat when we got back to the hotel.

This afternoon two of the very friendly and helpful young people who work at the front desk asked us if they could interview us for a school project. We had a very fun conversation.

For dinner we went to a restaurant called Nha Hàng Madame Lán and had a fantastic meal.

Their equivalent of Uber here is called Grab. It makes getting around so quick and easy.

We had a busy and enjoyable day. It was very hot and humid, but it didn’t rain. Thank goodness. This morning we walked to the Han River to check out the Dragon Bridge.

This afternoon a guide picked us up and gave us a tour. We visited the Lady Buddha, a 220 foot statue set in the grounds of the Linh Ung Pagoda.

Then we went to the Marble Mountains. There are 5 limestone and marble hills. We climbed into several of the caves in Water Mountain. It was hot and very humid. Sweat was dripping off me. The caves were used by the Viet Kong during the Vietnam war and have multiple Buddhist altars

Next was the town of Hoi An, about an hour south of Da Nang. Hoi An is an ancient trading port. We had tea. Then, when it was dark, we walked along the river and watched the boats and floating lanterns. Finally we had an authentic Vietnamese dinner.