An advantage of being an energetic two year-old who wakes up very early is being the first person on the beach in the morning:
Good Afternoon Vietnam
Happy New Year.
Having stayed put and kept working through the festive period it is time to sally forth in search of a quick holiday. The window between Christmas/New Year and Lunar New Year seems a good one to aim for and we have packed our buckets and spades for the coast of Vietnam.
At time of writing we are waiting for our domestic flight to Nha Trang having landed at Ho Chi Minh City. The flight here was reassuringly unremarkable: crisp new A321 aircraft, friendly service on board and minimal hassle in the terminal at either end.
Switching to the domestic terminal at Ho Chi Minh City has been a step back in time. The building is as badly lit and rectilinear as only a (post-)Communist state or Heathrow can offer and it looks tired. A brand new bright brown (yes there is such a shade) Ford Fiesta on a plinth is a jarring sign of modernity in the check-in hall.
Upstairs air-side the tone is set by the ear-piercing announcements that are issued every ten seconds via the very loud, decidedly tinny and old-tech sounding public address system. Luckily we have found a lounge to hide in and quiet reigns. Medina is asleep (I could not write this otherwise) and the wifi connection while slender appears to work. What appeared to be a news programme anchored by a beautifully presented young woman in a military uniform has just finished on one of the many modern flat screen televisions showing various channels around the room.
Goodness knows what the flight to Nha Trang is going to be on (more likely an other crisp, new Airbus than an Antonov to be fair) but I am sure it will be good and we have a recommended beach resort to look forward to when we get there. All being well, more news will follow shortly.