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travel > vn.
Andy, Just returned (totally sleep deprived) from 30-hr trip from
Hanoi to Boston at 2AM this morning, having spent 4 weeks South to
North. Your note of last week was among hundreds I'm trying to get
to. Excuse sloppiness, please.
Had perfect!!! accomodations in Saigon (US$25/day), Hue and Hanoi
(US$10/day). Food a snap if you have desire to meet new.
2nd-best of my 28 year-end trips to new countries (Bhutan was best).
Will send more if you want, telling me when you must hear by.
Warmly,
David J. Hogarth
MIT E40-315
77 Massachusetts Avenue
Cambridge MA 02139-4307 USA
<email>
http://web.mit.edu/davidh/www
>Can you recommend reasonable (ie not 5 star) hotel/ guest houses in
>Saigon and Hanoi.
How to get to/from the airport and the costs inolved? Saigon: Taxi,
negotiating rate down to $US 7-8 before starting trip
>Hanoi, arranged through Queens Cafe for $21 for 3 to 25-km distant
airport.
>Hue, Reunification express train from Saigon $90 for best class A/C
4-people sleeper 22 hrs. Meals (bearable) included.
Hotel 2 blocks on foot from train.
>Hanoi via train 17 hrs from Hue $60 for best, for foreigners (3x the
cost to VN locals). You can go for as little $60 for whole trip on
half wooden seat if you're a mosochist - 6 classes of travel.
>un-official rate? No such thing - DON't deal with street money
changers; much of their paper counterfeit. ATM machine at ANZ bank
Hanoi will access your bank acct, give you $'s in 20 seconds.
Current rate $US 1.00 = Dong (pronounced DOM) 11,400. When rate is
quoted in $, expensiove items cost 10% more in D. At shops, $1.00 is
treated as D10,000
Food >Buying Pho & other local foods -vegetables, chicken,
fish, crab, pork, dog, rice, noodles - from street stalls cost
$.50-$1.75 per person for a meal, including beer (don't use ice
ever!!!) or bottled water.
>Things to see and do, the cost of travel and food would also be very
>helpful to me. What's the weather etc.
Now in Saigon 70F nights, 85F days; muggy, NO rain; Hue 65F night,
70 day, immense rain every day; Hanoi 3 hours of rain in 10 days, 70F
days, 65F nights.