"Beautiful Hanoi" Hanoi by WOOFWOOF

Our overnight train arrived in Hanoi in time for us to witness the daily early morning exercise ritual of the Hanoi people around Hoan Kiem Lake.

Badminton, tai chi, aerobics, yoga, martial exercises, weight lifting and dancers....we saw it all. The weight lifting was interesting. Most of the weights were made of concrete.

Thank god Megan could paddle

Naturally while in Hanoi we were shown where Ho Chi Minh lived and where his body is displayed. They say he is taken to Russia each year for..ahem...restoration. Call me a cynic but I'm not convinced the body displayed in the tomb is really Ho Chi Minh. Looked more like something you'd see in Madame Tussauds to me.

The next day we journeyed out to Halong Bay where we stayed overnight on board a junk and kayaked in the evening amongst the dozens of junks anchored for the night and all lit up. What a beautiful atmospheric place....perhaps the highlight of the trip.

Last dinner together for our Intrepid group

We stayed an extra day and a half in Hanoi after the tour just to make sure we saw everything here we wanted to see. I was extremely impressed with Intrepid. Well organised, a great guide, and an itinerary that covered the major sights but didn't shelter us from some of the challenging aspects of Vietnam. There are some that criticise tours but in the right circumstances they can be a god-send. I highly recommend Intrepid for anyone not quite ready to make their own way around the world, which in many cases can be time consuming and frustrating.

Oh..and it's a bonus if you happen to fluke a great group to travel with. Fortunately we did.

• Pros:Hanoi has style...and a good feel despite all the motor bikes
• Cons:The western influence is encroaching
• In a nutshell:Hanoi has a great vibe