January 17th - Back to Shore

After a pretty good night's sleep we wake to a much brighter day. R heads off to Tai Chi class again where she has the tutor to herself. We have a light breakfast as our next meal is just over the horizon. The program gives us over two hours to pack our kit which seems a tad excessive. Most of that time is spent lounging on our balcony, enjoying the look of the limestone in brighter, warmer light. At 9.30 we leave our bags in the corridor and head for Brunch where just about everything is available. The fried spring rolls and made to order omelettes are particularly good.

Full of Brunch we sit out on deck to enjoy the last half hour of the cruise. The sun breaks through the cloud and we get some blue sky at last. We have a last trip on the tender from cruiser to wharf and reclaim our bags, taking great care to get the right ones, and walk back to our coach. Ten minutes along the road we pull into a pearl farm where we are shown how cultured pearls are created. This is followed by a retail opportunity but there is no pressure to buy.

Our run back to Ha Noi takes a different route and is uneventful. We are dropped off at the Water Puppet Theatre and told we have free time for an hour before we take in a performance. Having not seen much of the Old Town earlier, we head that way and do some tourist gawping at the ironmongery shops. We discover what has happened to all of the wild birds. They are in cages hanging outside shops, nearly as sad as being eaten. There is just time for a refreshment at our favourite lakeside hostelry before we have to report back to the theatre. 

We are not really looking forward to the Water Puppet performance but it turns out to be well worth it. Legroom is a bit deficient but the seats were soft and the ambiance cosy. A group of very talented musicians perform an introduction and then the puppets take to the rather damp stage. We are entertained with stories from everyday village life and Vietnamese legends, all performed with a humourous edge. The puppets are brightly coloured and manipulated with great verve. Some of the effects are spectacular. At the end of the show the puppeteers come forward for well earned applause and we leave well impressed.

Tonight's supper is at quite a smart restaurant, where we work out way through another banquet of Vietnamese specialities. On the way to supper we have the traditional whip round for the driver and afterwards we tip the guide. They have earned it. The last coach trip drops us at Ga Ha Noi (the station) for our overnight train to Hue. After a bit of messing about we get to platform 4 where out train is waiting. Our sleeper coach has only been in service for a couple of weeks and the first impression is good. The buffet trolley sells us a couple of beers at a reasonable price and we are set. As we prepare to turn in we discover a stowaway.