The challenges of Two

Again, no new pictures because the internet is flakey.

This past weekend, we went as a family on a home stay out to a village outside of Hanoi. The village was beautiful and *quiet*, something you really enjoy after being in Hanoi for a little while. I really want to say something amazing about the trip, but the reality is that it was actually kind of boring. Even though I had asked our guide whether he was accustomed to small children, and even though he loves kids and spent much of his time with Tam, it wasn't a tour really set up for two toddlers who needed naps and to run around from time to time.

From Hanoi, we drove out to the town, which was 50 Km and took about 90 minutes to drive because everyone drives so slowly here. The town itself reminded me a bit of a small town in Italy, with narrow cobble stone streets lined by stone houses that came right up to the street. There was even a town square that looked like a piazza, although not quite as charming as an italian piazza. Patrick and I had a chance to wander a bit in town and enjoyed the mystery of discovering what was around the bend. All the people were so friendly and the children absolutely loved having their pictures taken. We spent about 15 minutes taking pictures of posing children and then showing them the shots on the camera - they thought it was so cool!

The kids both fell asleep on the car ride to town, so we went straight to the family's home. Of course, as soon as we arrived, they both woke up and that was the end of a nap for either of them. From there, we had lunch and then sat around for quite a while not really sure what was going to happen next or when it was going to happen. Eventually, our guide, Han, took us to a couple of temples, but the most excitement came when Anh and Tam had a chance to pet a baby cow, see a big frog, and pet a water buffalo. What more could a child really ask for?

After a quick tour through town with our guide, we went back to the home, where Han cooked us a wonderful meal that included dishes with dragon fish, beef, chicken, and lots of veggies. I think that Han's specialty is cooking, which he does really well.

We had a choice to stay at the home overnight, but because there were no real beds and no A/C, we decided to stay in a hotel close by. This was one of the most basic Asian hotels we have ever stayed in. Anh, Tam, Patrick, and I shared one queen bed - wow that was tight - and the bathroom was typical - a hose frome the sink faucet to a shower head that was placed in the middle of the small room, soaking everything. Have you ever sat on a toilet that was totally soaked by the shower? At least the place was fairly clean.

In the morning, we woke early to a downpour! We piled back into the car for the trip back to town and to the local food market. Han gave us a quick introduction to bargening for our food and then we purchased the ingredients for our breakfast, including fresh eggs and morning glory. All this while dodging raindrops :-)
As usual, the kids were quite the hit, even when Anh became really upset because he was so hungry (he is accustomed to eating as soon as he gets up in the morning). A couple of those UHT milk boxes did the trick on the spot until we went back to the home for breakfast. After the market there was more sitting around aimlessly at the family home until after breakfast. On our way back to Hanoi, we stopped at the silk village, which was quite a disappointment. It probably didn't help that we arrived close to lunch time, when everyone was closing for a nap. Even still, I was surprised that the shops there didn't seem to have the quality of clothing that you can find in Hanoi.

Getting back to the hotel in Hanoi was actually a relief. I never thought I would feel this way, but travel right now is very hard! Tam needs 2 naps a day, Anh needs 1 (and both at different times), and there is a constant need for food for both. Anh will sleep in the carrier, Tam barely even tolerates riding in the carrier, and get them together and there is fierce competition for laps, carrier, food, attention etc. Because of this and just wanting to get home to a routine, we have decided to come home as soon as Tam's visa is ready this week. I'm so sad about not getting down to Hoi An on this trip, but I also know it is the best for both kids - to get them home and back into a routine. Anh misses his preschool and friends and Patrick and I need to figure out our life as a family of 4!