VIETNAMMMMMMM IN YOUR FACE!

excuse me for a minute but...HOLY SHIT. hanoi is nuts.

vietnam didn't welcome me with open arms. when i went to apply for my visa, i had to pay $25--specifically in USD. i only had $16 USD (maybe i brought this for show and tell? i dunno, that was 11 months ago version of nicki), but i figured lots of people would have this problem so the airport prob had an exchange place right next to the visa window.

NOT. two people ahead of me were short on cash, too. when they asked the visa guys what to do, they sort of shrugged like, "welp, guess you're SOL. no vietnam for you." lucky for them, two canadians with extra cash were standing nearby. when my name was called, i went up to the window and asked if i could use thai baht. sure, they said, for 1000 baht. that's a $5 rip off, but i didn't have a choice.

already, vietnam? really? you couldn't make this easy, could you?

i got my bag--one of the last three on the thingy--and proceeded to the exit. first, to get some vietnamese dong. this is money. it's a hilarious name for currency and it will never NOT be hilarious. anyway, i got over four million dong and told the exchange guy they had crazy money. he laughed. i walked away and this guy walked up to me offering me a taxi. yeah, i'm going to the old quarter, where friggin everyone goes, you can take me there? i dunno...but he was really nice, and because i've been living in thailand for a year i'm used to nice people being genuinely nice. so i said ok, let's go.

he and his pal took me upstairs. i waited outside a door by what looked like the exit ramp from the airport. the main guy went outside to get his friend. all of a sudden his pal grabbed my bag and was like "LET'S GO!" and rushed outside. main guy hopped in a taxi and a guard type figure started blowing his whistle and pointing angrily at us. main guy got out and the taxi drove off.

BAD SITUATION, NICKI. stupid. of course this is a scam. i told the guys i forgot, i wanted to get a sim card, i'm gonna go downstairs and get one. "they're twice the price here..." i heard them say as i dashed off. idiot nicki. this is NOT the southeast asia you know.

so i go downstairs to ask the information girl about  a taxi. she says i should prob call my hotel first to make a reservation cuz there's this big celebration going on and there might not be room. i'd read it's hanoi's 1000th birthday or something, but i didn't think it'd be a big deal allllll year long.

NOT. super nice information girl and i spent an hour trying to find a hotel with an open room. she must've called at least 10 different places for me. sweet, sweet girl. finally we found one that was semi-affordable (free breakfast/internet/tv though!) and in a good location and had a room.

by this time it was almost 6 pm. i'd arrived two hours ago. as i got into the cab with the driver who spoke basically zero english (and i absolutely zero vietnamese), i was starting to think hanoi was a mistake. this city is too fucking crazy, especially by myself, and it's already been hard and expensive and maybe i should just look for the next cheap flight out of here. i was stupid for coming here alone.

but then i got to the hotel. and it's a sweet room with cable tv. so i sat down for a minute, wrote in my diary, literally screamed a bit to let out some frustration and shock, and calmed down.

this is what traveling is. it's hard. it's being stuck in a situation you can't find an easy way out of. it's being wildly uncomfortable. it's not knowing what to do.

it's figuring it all out anyway.

i decided i couldn't take the wussy way out and stay in my hotel room all night. after all, i had to eat. so i went out of my room and turned left. i didn't see anything and the traffic was crazy and i was terrified of getting lost, so i turned around. whatever, i'll go hungry.

no, nicki, don't so that. i went the other way instead and came across this HUGE shopping street, peds only. hundreds and hundreds of shops, thousands of people. there were kids, babies, teenagers, grandparents, locals, tourists, sellers, buyers, EVERYONE. i smiled a gigantic grin. yes, this is insane, but you're not gonna die. i walked down the street about half a mile and i don't think i stopped smiling the whole time. i got a kebab (OH MY GOD it was good) and some ice cream. as i was walking back toward my hotel, fireworks started going off. everyone started screaming and running toward them.

instead of going straight back, i followed the crowd. there are literally thousands of people out right now, watching fireworks, shopping, eating, doing god knows what for this celebration. i stood at an intersection filled with cars, motorbikes, and tons of people (everyone was right--traffic in this city is something else) and just laughed at it all. a few people caught me and laughed with/at me.

hanoi, you're a tough one, but i think i'm gonna love you.