Two Peas in a Todd

Hanoi - Day Three Trip notes: -lined up to see a dead guy - touristy things -Temple of Literature visit timed with graduation day -met our bikes -street food & egg beer. Riding tomorrow!

Hanoi - Day Two One of us may have had a sore head this morning after last night's festivities. But the culprit will remain nameless. We changed hotels and then decided to find a fancy restaurant recommended by a friend. Pots N Pans is a glorious restaurant. Look it up. Get to Hanoi and then eat there. Incredible. We then went to a water puppet show and took a stroll around the nearby lake. It was lovely to see all the kids hanging out in the waterfront on a Saturday afternoon. What a great spot. Back to the hotel to meet our tour group and go through the details of our trip. A wander through the old quarter followed by a fantastic dinner. Touristy stuff in the morning, then we get to meet our bikes! Exciting. -Todd

Hanoi - Day One. We touched down in Hanoi at about 11 in the morning. Entirely pleasant flight made all the better with great tunes (Washed Out's new album) and numerous Bloody Marys. Customs was alarmingly soviet, but we got through no problem. Once we'd collected our baggage we were met by a super smiley tour guide then showed to a van. A whole van. For just us two. Great. Totally fitting in already. So, we need to talk about the traffic. OH MY GOD WE'RE ALL GOING TO DIE. Cars and scooters and trucks in every direction. The lane markings are purely decoration. Horns blaring constantly. It's bedlam. There is a hell and it's the roads in Vietnam. And it's actually, alarmingly, efficient. There is a rhythm to it. It's incredible to watch. But all I could think is: we have to fucking ride through this shit. On bikes. Oh god. We checked in to our super fancy hotel in the old quarter and then headed out for a stroll around the neighbourhood. BAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Again, bedlam. The footpath is not for feet. It's for bikes and shops and cooking and cleaning and children and anything other than walking. Cars and motorbikes and scooters screamed past us in all directions. Overwhelmed. We're Tasmanians god damn it. We aren't used to this kind of madness. We beat a hasty retreat back to the hotel to fortify ourselves with beer. Many beers. Prompting the compliment "you are good drinkers" from the lovely girl bringing the beers. We are. Fortified, we trekked out to look at the night market before heading out to meet a friend in Tay Ho district. Being the good Australians we are, we went bearing gifts of Vegemite and Timtams. National pride right there. She was delighted by our bountiful gifts. Huzzah. After many drinks and stories we all jumped on scooters and headed to a bar right on the lake full of drunk English, Irish and Australians. The view was beautiful, the patrons boisterous. More drinks were had and then these two pumpkins went back to the hotel to sleep the sleep of angels. -fin- Todd.

Trip Notes - in transit -Singapore Slings over Adelaide -Jon Hopkins beats mingle with Paul Auster's words -Sister selfies -Deep thoughts at high heights -Gins & giggles -Love songs at 40,000 feet -Rickrolled at 7am in a Singapore cab -Washed Out in the sun as we descend into Vietnam x Toddy & Todd

Two sisters. Alike in giant stature and whiteness. Embark upon a great journey: Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh by bicycle. In two weeks. United in beer, skin sensitivity and blind terror. Join us for the amazing awkward adventures of Todd and Toddy.