Food walking tour of Hanoi - white wearing walking guide

Our first guide walked us to the meeting point. There we met the evening guide.

Problems
 It is hard to understand a guide whose first language is Vietnamese. Our guide explained the Vietnamese learn grammar in school but have little practice in conversation, like the Brits in the old days learning French at school but unable to speak a word.

Pleasures - wearing white walking guide
Our two walking guides led us safely across the mad motorbike roads. They held out both arms horizontally. I noticed one of our guides was wearing a long white jacket. When a shop tried to sell me the traditional robe of a long white tunic with mandarin collar and matching white trousers, I rejected it on the grounds that it was hard to  keep clean, especially as many of them say dry clean only or wash in cold water by hand.

However, from the point of view of road safety, where white at night used to be the slogan in the UK. That white dress could be a life saver. At least it sets you up conspicuously like a lollipop lady when marshalling a group across the zebra crossing.

Our first stop was rice paper rolled around vegetables. We'd seen something smiilar before on the ship to Halong Bay.

Our guide solved one mystery. I asked: Why do restaurants and cafes have the tiny chairs?' (I didn't say, like footstools for toddlers in toilets or toddler seats.)

She explained, 'The rental for buildings in old Hanoi is so high that the narrow-fronted, long back buildings extend upwards, as far as five or six storeys high. The restaurants use tiny seats to cram in as many diners as possible. They spill illegally across the pavements. Every now and then the police come around and make the restaurant retreat behind the front doors.'

Night Bus from London's Trafalgar Square to Edgware - wear white at night

Problem

How do you get home at night in London?

Answer

A night bus.

A bus service, Route N5, runs from Trafalgar Square to Edgware.

The stops are:

Edgware - bus station 

Burnt Oak, 

Colindale, 

Hendon Central Station, 

Golders Green - bus station

(then Hampstead, Camden Town,

Leicester Square Station

(more or less along the Northern line train directions)

Trafalgar Square - for Charing Cross Station

Here's a list of stops in both directions:

Route record

Edgware - Colindale - Hendon - Golders Green - Hampstead - Camden Town - Trafalgar Square 
Edgware Bus Station - Station Road - High Street Edgware - Burnt Oak Broadway - Watling Avenue - Montrose Avenue - Lanacre Avenue - Grahame Park Way - Colindale Avenue - Edgware Road - The Hyde - The Broadway - West Hendon - Herbert Road - Wilberforce Road - Station Road - Vivian Avenue - Hendon Central Station - Queens Road - Brent Street - Golders Green Road - Golders Green Station Bus Station - North End Road - North End Way - Heath Street - Hampstead High Street - Rosslyn Hill - Haverstock Hill - Chalk Farm Road - Castlehaven Road - Hawley Road - Kentish Town Road - Camden Town - Bayham Street - Crowndale Road - Eversholt Street - Euston Square - Euston - Euston Road - Gower Street - Bedford Square - Bloomsbury Street - Shaftesbury Avenue - Charing Cross Road - Leicester Square Station - Charing Cross Road - St Martins Place - Trafalgar SquareWhitehall (for Charing Cross Station)

Trafalgar Square - Camden Town - Hampstead - Golders Green - Hendon - Colindale - Edgware 
Trafalgar Square East Side (for Charing Cross Station) - St Martins Place - Charing Cross Road - Leicester Square Station - Charing Cross Road -Tottenham Court Road Station - Tottenham Court Road - Euston Road - Euston - Euston Square - Eversholt Street - Camden High Street - Camden Town- Chalk Farm Road - Haverstock Hill - Rosslyn Hill - Hampstead High Street - Heath Street - North End Way - North End Road - Golders Green Station - Golders Green Road - Brent Street - Queens Road - Hendon Central Station - Vivian Avenue - Station Road - West Hendon - The Broadway - The Hyde - Edgware Road - Colindale Avenue - Grahame Park Way - Lanacre Avenue - Montrose Avenue - Watling Avenue - Burnt Oak Broadway - High Street Edgware - Station Road - Edgware Bus Station.

You need to go to their page to check out the times and the bank holidays when they run more or fewer or no buses.

Night Time Safety Tips

What can you do to be safe from traffic when walking around at night? The nights are light and long in London in summer. But still remember to wear white at night. Then the traffic can see you. Stay safe.

I looked up the origin of the phrase 'Wear white at night' which I was sure came from a British road safety campaign. On YouTube I found two videos. One from 2015 gave the shocking figures that nearly 400,000 were killed on the roads, 200,00 thousand children killed or seriously injured after dusk.

An earlier film was from the 1970s or 80s. What could that tell me and you? It suggested that if you were not wearing white, you could carry a newspaper.

Tips

http://www.londonbusroutes.net/times/N005.htm

Author 

Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker.

Driving in the UK, Europe, Romania - each country's costs and quirky rules

Problem
In the UK and some former British rule of the road countries such as Singapore we drive on the left. Other countries in Europe drive on the right.

France and Accidents
I remember reading that a high proportion of accidents in Europe are near the ferry terminals. People drive off the ferry from the UK to France. They are not yet attuned to which side of the road they should drive on.

Of course, there are now signs.

France and Fines
Another concern of Brits going to France was that drivers had to buy breathalyser kits for their cards in case they were stopped by the police. Later this law was dropped because they could not produce enough breathalysers. Better check with the AA or RAC or the country concerned before you travel  to France or any country what the latest laws are.

If you own or hire a car in the UK and drive across to France through the tunnel or take a ferry, you are in a car with the steering wheel on the wrong side. When you fly drive, it is easy to know which side of the road to drive.

Driving with the driving wheel on the correct side makes it easier to overtake. The driver is in the middle of the road and can see the road ahead and any traffic in the overtaking lane or, in a two way road, in the approaching lane.

If the driver is on the kerbside, the passenger my be responsible for saying if there is any vehicle coming.

Romania
When we drive in Romania, what are the rules of the road? What does a driver need to carry?

The websites telling you about driving in Romania point out that you need a warning triangle. You might think that if you hire a car that would automatically be provided. It is in your interests to check. As where it is. You might need it in a hurry and you don't want to cover it with a suitcase. Does it fold out?

The high visibility jacket is not something I expected to have to provide and wear on a motorway even in daytime. Very sensible. But In an accident that means I can't jump out and run back to fix up the warning triangle without it. So where do I get one?

I recently narrowly avoided hitting a pedestrian who ran across the street wearing dark clothing. It gave me quite a turn. You can buy armbands to go over clothing or be sewn on, specifically for safety. Another option is decorative patches which glow in the dark. Or wearing white at night.

Is there anything I hadn't thought of?

Answer
The RAC (UK's Royal Automobile Club) has a handy website about Romania. It covers what you want to know and things you didn't know you need to know.

I wanted to know about parking and fines. It told me which side of the road to drive on, that if you stop for more than five minutes you must be in the same direction as the traffic. (I believe that's so vehicles approaching from behind can see your reflectors.

You need to carry your driving license, insurance, and ID (passport).

Seatbelts are required in the back as well as the front.
(Incidentally, I am often told by taxi drivers and private car drivers worldwide that the seatbelt is stuck under the back folding seat but 'it doesn't matter'.

It does matter. I insist that they stop and sort out the seat belt. Why?
1 A friend of mine in the middle seat was thrown forward in a road traffic accident and several injured.
2 I read that the front seat passenger can be injured by the force of a body thrown forward from behind.
3 If you are not wearing a seatbelt the insurance can refuse to pay up or reduce damages on the grounds that your injuries were not caused by the driver but by your failure to wear a seatbelt.
4 You or the driver could be fined.

In Romania, according to the website, you also have to keep your lights on even in day time and you are not allowed to hoot your car horn day or night in some places such as a central city.  Whether you are seeking safety or to avoid being fined, better safe than sorry.

In the UK we have the AA, the Automobile Association. In the USA we have the American Automobile Association, AAA.

The first thing the AA website told me about driving in Romania was that drivers should be asare that NO alcohol is allowed. So you can't have just one drink.

The money supermarket site has handy information on the USA. It reminded me that you should not have alcohol in the car, even unopened. Keep it out of reach, in the boot of the car (which in the USA is called the trunk).

DIRTY CARS BANNED!
The most surprising thing is that Romania forbids driving with a dirty car. (That's the sort of rule I would expect in Singapore.)

Russia is another place which bans dirty cars. Why? Your numberplate or registration number must be visible.

Stopping When School Buses Are Stopped
Another important note in the USA is about not overtaking a stopped (and flashing light) school bus, whether you are behind it or approaching from the other direction. You have probably guessed that this measure was introduced for the safety of children who alight and run into the road without looking, or even do look.

Some countries require you to carry a first aid kit. Always a good idea. Others require a sign of a regulation size and colour and design, not just a red balloon, or white fabric handkerchief, on a bicycle or projecting object on the back or top or anywhere on your car.
Anything which promotes safety is good.

It's also a good idea to carry the number of the emergency services and have it handy in your phone.

How much will a high visibility jacket cost? I was amazed to see how widely they are available, from Sports Direct or Alibaba. The price for a sleeved jacket was about £20, and a sleeveless vest was reduced from about £6 to £2.50.

For more details see:
https://www.rac.co.uk/drive/travel/country/romania/
http://www.theaa.ie/aa/summer-driving/romania.aspx
http://www.theaa.ie/travelhub/hiring-and-driving-a-car-in-europe/
http://www.moneysupermarket.com/c/news/driving-abroad-the-rules-and-regulations/0014407/

Tips
http://romaniatourism.com
https://www.duolingo.com/
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker. Please share links to my posts.