Vietnam day 8 – Hanoi

There has been torrential rain all through the night and it is still pouring down this morning.   CNN are reporting widespread flooding through central and northern Vietnam particularly in Hanoi where there was 300 mm (!) of rain yesterday.  The worst of the flooding has been south of West Lake to the west of the Old Quarter, where the water has been waist deep and homes have been flooded. All caused by a high pressure front over the South China Sea.  There appears to be no immediate end in sight;  the long-range weather forecast is for rain through to the middle of next week.  Someone forgot to tell the man who manages the weather that this is supposed to be the dry season and instead we experiencing the worst rains in 20 years.  We decide to postpone our trip to Sapa until Wednesday.  This afternoon the rain stops (hurrah!) and we go out for a walk.  There are few signs in the Old Quarter of the flooding of yesterday:  a tree has come down blocking one of the streets, there is mud deposited in the gutters and Hoan Kiem lake has broken its banks, otherwise things seem to be back to normal.  But it has started raining again this evening so who knows what awaits   us tomorrow.