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Hello Vietnam!

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  Waiting for driver at Hanoi Airport Our home for the next six nights While we waited for our room to be ready, we both had a fantastic foot massage - great thing to do after a long-haul flight.  So far I've visited a massage spa three times and there'll be more! On Thursday we attended a cooking class nearby,  Apron Up . It was very good and I rate it highly.  First thing up was buying the ingredients at the neighbourhood market stalls - noodles are made fresh daily.   All set up for us. We were pleased when she said first to we were asked to wash hands with soap & water before touching any food.  Peter put together the Egg Coffee - it didn't sound very nice but we thought it was yummy - tasted a little like tiramisu so would make a lovely dessert.  Our cooking group -  Nicki from Balmain & Robyn, an Australian Dr working in Hong Kong. and  two girls from Paris.  The final product: Pho bo - Hanoi beef noodle soup ; Bun cha...
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Amsterdam -

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  We caught a 7.30 am AirBaltic flight from Tallinn to Amsterdam (excellent airline). Before we could leave, the wings had to be 'de-iced' by hot steam (below).  Goodbye Tallinn Hello Amsterdam Our Amsterdam apartment was located in a great neighbourhood outside the tourist area. However, carrying the bags up the stairs was a bit of a challenge.  Peter did a splendid job (the site did warn about the steep stairs 3 floors up).  While it was about 10 deg warmer than Estonia, the weather changed every five minutes. Quite regularly we'd find the sun shining, next thing it was raining. Apparently, this is very common at this time of year.  On our first full day in Amsterdam, we went to the Van Gogh Museum (tickets purchased weeks earlier). Wow! we were blown away by the beautiful artwork he created, despite his lifelong struggle with mental illness, which resulted in his death at only 37. He sold only one painting while he was alive.  Museum Foyer These are just...
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Hello Tartu

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 After a scrumptious breakfast at the Nunne Hotel (smoked salmon, spinach rolls, mustard herring and more - I like to eat traditional local food as much as I can), we caught the bus for the 2.5 hr trip to Tartu.  We had a very early dinner at Restauran Pompei, a lovely Italian place five mins walk from our apartment. The food and service were amazing. The staff were so friendly which is something you don't always find in Estonia.  We shared the grilled red pepper and anchovies on house-made bruschetta - I savoured every mouthfull!  Then grilled octopus, 'nduja-wine sauce & pine nuts - nearly licked the plate - with a kale and beet side. We finished off with the tiramisu, made with their house-made mascarpone.  We didn't plan it but found ourselves back the following night where we were greeted warmly. I had popped my head into the kitchen the previous night to say how much we enjoyed our dinner and Richard, pictured on the left, said he met his wife in Broom...
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