Tam Coc, Hanoi

Hello everyone,
we have arrived safely in Hanoi and have experienced a lot in the last 2 days. After our Camilla was in the workshop, the vibration stopped, but it was still very difficult to shift gears. No mechanic wanted to help us with the problem (they said you can still drive with it, what's the problem), so we decided to look for one in Hanoi first. But before that, we wanted to explore the area around Tam Coc. It consists of a very flat plain, with huge limestone cliffs rising up out of nowhere. And we climbed up one of them, with a total of 500 steps and about 250 meters of elevation. Once at the top, we were rewarded with a fantastic view of the area. Afterwards, we continued to visit a temple, which seemed to be very deserted. Through the rice fields, you have a great view of the cliffs almost all the time in Tam Coc. For lunch, we dared to order another Vietnamese dish, namely goat (a specialty in the region). We were pleasantly surprised as it tasted very delicious! Then we continued to another temple, which was partly high up in the cliffs and could only be reached through a cave entrance. In general, we discovered many caves, and this was confirmed on the subsequent boat ride. We took a small boat along a river through 3 completely unlit caves. The third one was probably 200 meters long and a little creepy with a few bats;) But it was overall a very nice ride in one of the traditional boats, which are rowed with the feet. In the evening, we tried the second specialty right away, a crispy duck straight from the grill on the street, which also did not disappoint us. Afterwards, we made a sales sign for our Camilla, because now we have to part with it after the long journey (though we didn't really have high hopes of selling it at all). The next day, we set off early towards Hanoi, and we made good progress on the relatively well-developed road. The accommodation for the night was also booked on the way, and so we went the last 20 kilometers into the city. Once there, Julia had to search in mini alleys, while Matthias waited on the street with the motorbike. When Julia returned, Matthias was already introducing our Camilla to two backpackers who discovered our sign. And so one thing led to another, and after a test drive and a short negotiation, the motorbike was sold before we even checked in properly. With one less worry, we then went in search of a travel agency that can extend our visa. We found one here too, and so we were able to stroll through Hanoi in the afternoon and fully enjoy the day. In the evening, we sat on small plastic stools by the street with the locals and drank lime juice and ate sunflower seeds. Today, we will continue to explore the city (now on foot) and then report back to you.
See you soon,
Malia