Wednesday 13 June
We both remember Reg's haircut in Lanzhou, China, when the barber's wife was so excited to have a "Westerner" in the shop, that she insisted on taking photos of Reg and me with her husband, then with herself, after the haircut.
Now it's my turn; the young man who is going to cut my hair looks very nervous, but he needn't be. I know that whatever my hair turns out like, I will feel cooler if it's shorter.
Reg decides he will read the English papers (downloaded on his smartphone every day) in the waiting area of the salon while I have my haircut. I'm taken 2 floors up to have my hair washed; I sit back in the special reclining chair and relax, enjoying having my hair washed and conditioned, and being given a head massage as well; the shampooist has an excellent touch and takes at least 25 minutes for rhe washing process, after which my hair smells wonderful and I am totally relaxed. At home my hairdresser comes to me, and I wash my own hair before he arrives; it's over 20 years since I've been to a hairdressing salon, and I'm thoroughly enjoying the experience.
I've drawn the haircut I want, roughly, on a piece of scrap paper- the stylist has a quick glance at my sketch and then proceeds to carefully and painstakingly cut my hair. He seems very serious and doesn't look at me or smile once while he styles my hair; but I can see the receptionist in the mirror, and she gives me an encouraging smile.
The young hairdresser spends about 20 minutes blowdrying my hair, once he's finished cutting; by the time my hair is done, I've been in the salon for over an hour. I'm really pleased with the result and tell the young stylist this; he smiles warmly for the first time. The man whom I take to be the owner or manager of the salon, who explained to me the previous evening how much my haircut would cost, walks in towards the end of my haircut and takes a photo of he finished result.
I tip the young stylist and the lovely young girl who washed my hair. As we leave the salon, I feel so much better. The young man has given me a really good haircut, and all for £10. Now all I need is a cup of coffee! We discover a cafe cum patisserie (there's a lot of French influence in Vietnam) and I enjoy a milky coffee - bliss! Reg has black tea.
Later we run into a couple we met in our last hostel in Guilin, China, and join them for a cool drink. Afterwards they go off to a museum, while we spend a relaxing afternoon beside another local lake. It's slightly cooler than yesterday, and there's a refreshing breeze.
Even our food is better tonight; we choose to eat from a roadside cafe, where we can choose our food, buffet style. The surroundings are much more humble than last night, but the food is much tastier. We sit on small plastic stools at low tables to eat our dinner.
Back at the hostel I write and post this blog as tomorrow morning we go to Halong bay for 3 days, and may not have any internet access; almost certainly not for the 1st night anyway, as we are sleeping on a junk.
We both remember Reg's haircut in Lanzhou, China, when the barber's wife was so excited to have a "Westerner" in the shop, that she insisted on taking photos of Reg and me with her husband, then with herself, after the haircut.
Now it's my turn; the young man who is going to cut my hair looks very nervous, but he needn't be. I know that whatever my hair turns out like, I will feel cooler if it's shorter.
Reg decides he will read the English papers (downloaded on his smartphone every day) in the waiting area of the salon while I have my haircut. I'm taken 2 floors up to have my hair washed; I sit back in the special reclining chair and relax, enjoying having my hair washed and conditioned, and being given a head massage as well; the shampooist has an excellent touch and takes at least 25 minutes for rhe washing process, after which my hair smells wonderful and I am totally relaxed. At home my hairdresser comes to me, and I wash my own hair before he arrives; it's over 20 years since I've been to a hairdressing salon, and I'm thoroughly enjoying the experience.
I've drawn the haircut I want, roughly, on a piece of scrap paper- the stylist has a quick glance at my sketch and then proceeds to carefully and painstakingly cut my hair. He seems very serious and doesn't look at me or smile once while he styles my hair; but I can see the receptionist in the mirror, and she gives me an encouraging smile.
The young hairdresser spends about 20 minutes blowdrying my hair, once he's finished cutting; by the time my hair is done, I've been in the salon for over an hour. I'm really pleased with the result and tell the young stylist this; he smiles warmly for the first time. The man whom I take to be the owner or manager of the salon, who explained to me the previous evening how much my haircut would cost, walks in towards the end of my haircut and takes a photo of he finished result.
I tip the young stylist and the lovely young girl who washed my hair. As we leave the salon, I feel so much better. The young man has given me a really good haircut, and all for £10. Now all I need is a cup of coffee! We discover a cafe cum patisserie (there's a lot of French influence in Vietnam) and I enjoy a milky coffee - bliss! Reg has black tea.
Later we run into a couple we met in our last hostel in Guilin, China, and join them for a cool drink. Afterwards they go off to a museum, while we spend a relaxing afternoon beside another local lake. It's slightly cooler than yesterday, and there's a refreshing breeze.
Even our food is better tonight; we choose to eat from a roadside cafe, where we can choose our food, buffet style. The surroundings are much more humble than last night, but the food is much tastier. We sit on small plastic stools at low tables to eat our dinner.
Back at the hostel I write and post this blog as tomorrow morning we go to Halong bay for 3 days, and may not have any internet access; almost certainly not for the 1st night anyway, as we are sleeping on a junk.
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