keep the lights on

A nugget of advice to all hotel operators: PLEASE DO NOT LOCK YOUR GATES AND SWITCH OFF YOUR LIGHTS. EVER.

Because we were locked out of our hotel yesterday night. We had to knock vigourously at the steel gates before the person who operated the place (“Oh you are 22 years old, born in 1986, I am 22 too!”) woke up and greeted us with a slight smile. We were walking around for about 45 minutes sweating like pigs (ok pigs don’t sweat) thinking we were lost because we thought that we were on the right street but couldn’t find the hotel.

It turned out that our navigational skills were not found to be wanting but rather the hotel has TURNED OFF ALL ITS LIGHTS AND CLOSED ITS GATES. Since Hanoi streetlights do not operate at 11pm, the hotel melts into the dark rows of shophouses that lined the streets.

We arrived in the Old Quarter after much waiting; we took about an hour to claim our luggage and the airport minibus service did not move until the vehicle was filled up (staring at conveyor belts fervently hoping that the next bag that pops up is yours is not my idea of fun).

The driver left us at the hotel that we are staying in and we immediately checked in. We knew from our experiences that walking around with large bags searching for a place to crash in the middle of the night is not a very nice feeling.

In any case, the rooms cost 10USD per person. In comparison to the rooms we had in Siem Reap, they pale significantly in comparison. The showers work inconsistently and the air con is not cold. At least the beds are comfortable and clean, and I think we slept pretty well despite the lack of hours.

Our adventures last night explains why I am posting so late. When we returned from dinner at 10pm (porridge and noodle soup), the computer room is already filled with hotel employees sleeping on the floor. We couldn’t just run in and blog about our first day, lest we annoy them.

We just had breakfast at the hotel, and we are moving out not to explore the town. Bye bye.