Saying goodbye to new friends
I had a nice lie in today, I can never deny myself a lie in when the chance comes. In fact, when we finally got up and ready, we had lunch at our homestay once we had checked out. We had a train to Thanh Hoa today, a city further up North. I spoke to a chap from Couchsurfing who said he’s willing to show us around and host of for the night. After having checked out, we visited some shops along the main road, we needed to stock up on some supplies.
Once we were stocked up, we decided to wait at a popular hostel in the middle of town. This is where our bus will wait to pick us up to the train station. It just so happened that Ben and Anna turned up out of the blue. So whilst we were chilling, we decided to teach them how to play rummy and blackjack. These are the 2 card games Mat and I play the most. We played and chatted for around an hour before our bus showed up. They really are a pair of great people, it’s a shame to be leaving them so soon.
Late trains
The problem with our train to Thanh Hoa, is the fact it leaves quite late. It means we have to get to the train station, then wait for so many hours. The bus took us to a city called Dong Hoi, it was only a 45 minute trip. After we were dropped off, a relative of some girl on the bus came to meet us. She owned a hostel and restaurant just across the road, somewhere we could hang out. It was only a small room with a couple of tables, but it was cosy. Her kids were playing and watching videos on their phone, one was very young, the other perhaps 10 years old. Check out our sleeper train experience in China.
After a while, we decided to eat, and the menu was varied and looking tasty. We both decided to have a burger with chips, something nice and basic. I wasn’t expecting much, but the burger and chips were both delicious. The chips were cooked just how my Auntie Jackie made them when I was a kid. We spent several hours here, just chatting, or playing with the kids.
Killing time
To kill a bit more time, we decided to go for a walk around the neighbourhood. We found a small collection of shops where we got dessert. I also found some chocolate that I’d been looking for, all over Asia. It’s called Butter Biscuit from Ritter Sport. I’ve had it from Lidl in the UK, and it’s one of the nicest snacks I’ve had. Since coming to Asia, I’ve seen plenty of other versions, but no the butter biscuit, and that’s the one I found. Only one left too! I snapped it up…it won’t last long.
After we concluded our walk, we headed back to the hostel as it was nearly time for the train. We bid the family farewell, then walked about 100 metres to the train station. All we had to do now was wait for the train to Thanh Hoa. It wasn’t too long until it came, so we boarded our carriage and settled in for the night. I was hoping I’d be able to get some kip.
