Hanoi won't let me go (19/2/14)

Woke up late today and missed my free breakfast. I should have seen this as a sign for today's plan for me. My first task was to get all my belongings back in one place as I hadn't retrieved my rucksack from the other hostel yesterday and I also had washing to collect from the laundry service at the hostel that I'd put in on Monday. I walked from last nights hostel, with all my things, to the hostel where my stuff was being stored. I went to the desk to get the washing knowing they'd had two days to do it and it only takes 24 hours so didn't have any doubts it would be there. They couldn't find it. After a 10 minute search I had a look myself on their laundry shelves and found it still in the bag I'd given it to them in, unwashed. They apologised and said it would be done by 2 and so come back then. I left them to it slightly dicked off. While I was there I spoke to them about getting a refund for my Halong Bay trip, which I'd organised through them, as it hadn't happened. Some of the others I'd spoken to hadn't even got out the harbour so we had been quite lucky. I'd also heard the others on my trip had had a full refund so was hoping I'd get that. They eventually came back with a refund for me. It was only the full amount. So I got a free trip to Halong Bay. This was the highlight of my day. I then went to see how things were going with my bike as I was now in Hanoi and could help if necessary. All the bits had been sorted on it and it just needed to be dropped to the station between the required times, already given to the bike company, to get it on the train. The girl took it to the station while I was there but half an hour later came back with it. The train company said she should have been there this morning and it now couldn't go on. So me nor the bike had tickets for tonight's train. It wasn't the bike company's fault they had just done what they were told. The train company, it seemed, had changed their minds. The bus was now my only option. The Vietnamese girl at the motorbike company made a few phone calls and managed to get me and the bike a ticket for the half 6 bus to Dong Hoi. Initially we were going on different buses which I didn't like the idea of but eventually we were on the same bus. I had to be back there at 4 to sort money and I'd find out times after that for the departure. In between all these events I grabbed food and tried as best I could to organise all my things into one rucksack and dropped my big and small rucksack to the motorbike company as this was where I'd be picked up from later. Before I went back there at 4 I went to get my washing at around quarter to 4 from the hostel which was way after their 2 o'clock estimate and so must be ready. It wasn't. I told them I was trying to get out of Hanoi and one of their English speaking staff, Sam, overheard and stepped in to help. After some phone calls they told me an hour to dry it. So I went to the motorbike place and found out I would be collected at 6. I went back at 5 to the hostel. No washing. They now offered me a refund. I took it. They asked what time I'd be leaving and I said I had to be away by 6 and was told it would definitely be ready by then. Went back at 5.45. Guess what? No, go on guess. It wasn't. It was now 6 and my bus bloke was now waiting for me, I wasn't there and my washing wasn't ready 4 hours after they said it would be. Holy Jesus titty fuck. I just want to get out of Hanoi, tonight, with all my stuff. Why is this so hard? In the end I'm offered a free nights stay in their other hostel in Hue and they'll send my clothes there for when I get there. I have the word of Sam who totally accepted that I had every right to be seriously fucked off now as it was the second time it had happened with a different branch of the same company. And he understood why I had zero trust in the fact that my clothes would be there waiting for me at Hue. So I turned up at the motorbike place got most of my stuff on the bike and waited for the bus guy to come back yet again as he had disappeared off somewhere else briefly. He eventually turned up, I thanked the Hanoi motorbike staff for all their help and followed the bus guy on my bike to the pick up point round the corner. I got chatting to a couple from Brighton before the bus turned up and then we all got on and picked a  bed for the night. They were surprisingly roomy compared to the Sa Pa bus and so I actually got a half decent amount of sleep. I couldn't believe today's stress levels and was glad it was over. I hope to god tomorrow's better.