We took the fast train from Guilin a lovely quiet city to Nanning another big populated city. We decided to book in an international hostel we might meet travellers like us. I could not find the address on Google Maps. At the train station the driver rang the hostel number and was clear where the address was. He dropped us off but it was a hotel not our place. I asked a few people and they pointed to the tall building. A lovely young Chinese girl spoke a little English helped us find this place, we walked about 400 meters through some crappy conditions and went up to the 27th floor found a sign to the Hostel but no one there? The girl rang the guy and we followed her out of the building and he met us on the street. He spoke some English and showed us to another building making some bullshit story aunty did not arrive to clean the place and we could not stay in the building. Well this is no International Hostel just a Chinese doss house. We have a double bed mattress very hard you can play the drums on it. It is 14 C in the room no heating had to get more duvets to use on the mattress and keep us warm. There is a hand towel each that is all. Asked for a heater there are none. It is cold grey wet here and I just want out of China had enough and really don’t like the food over all.
I emailed again the travel agent in China we have used for trains and flights and eventually told them to cancel our train ticket to Hanoi for next week and refund us the money US$140. Went to the train station very close to where we are staying and got 2 tickets for tonight train leaving at 18:05 arrived close to 07:00 tomorrow morning. It cost US$68. I informed the travel agent I bought them and for how much. Unfortunately we had to buy these tickets before we could apply for the Chinese visa. Apparently we have about 4 hour wait at the border as they process all the people on board. Penny bought some excellent tea which she tasted in Guilin and it comes shaped like a pancake all wrapped up got it for £37 hope it tastes good but she is happy that is what counts.
Have booked a night in Hanoi we might stay 2 nights see how we are, looking at going to Ha Long Bay for 2 nights temperature mid 20’s and some sunshine. Then we will have to go back to Hanoi and possibly fly down to Hoi An for 3 nights and then on to Ho Chi Min City after that. With out a visa we have 14 days in the country. We plan to go to Cambodia after Vietnam.
Maurice's Travel 