Vietnamese cooking and stuff

It already seems like ages ago, but it was really just yesterday that I took a cooking class at the Red Bridge Cooking School in Hoi An.

The day started in the Old Town Central Market. I'd already walked through the market on my own because it was right next to my hotel, but the guided tour was definitely helpful. The guide told us the names of fruits, vegetables, and herbs that I wouldn't have known otherwise. He also told us some stories, like when we came across some baby ducklings. He said that when a couple is going to get married they buy a baby duckling and raise it up until it's big. Then on their wedding day they kill it and the duck is eaten during the wedding feast :(

After the market we took a boat trip up the river to the cooking school, where our class was taught in an outdoor traditional-style thatched hut. But, first we took a tour of the school's herb garden. I never knew what lemongrass actually looked like until now. Next we sat down to watch a demonstration of each thing we were going to learn, then we tried to make it ourselves. I really enjoyed the class and we got a copy of all the recipes, so I can't wait to do some cooking when I get home!

Immediately after the cooking class I caught a normal bus to Hue, where I connected to a sleeper bus to Hanoi. The sleeper bus was something I've never heard of anywhere else so I had no idea what to expect. I'd say it was a bunch of bunks but that wouldn't do it justice. You'll have to wait for photos. It was both nice and not. Nice that I could lay down for a 14 hour drive, but not nice because I was on a top bunk in the middle of the bus and afraid of falling off throughout the night because the bus driver did lots of swerving around other vehicles. I got into Hanoi around 6:45 this morning and spent the day walking around the city with a guy from Switzerland who I got switched into a room with. He just got here yesterday so I think he wanted some company. It's strange being in a two-person room with a male who is not my husband, but it's part of the adventure I guess. Plus, I'm only at this hotel tonight and tomorrow night, then I think I'm going to try to get to Ha Long Bay before heading to Bangkok. Laos is getting scratched from my itinerary because of travel logistics.