Ok, so I was told a minibus would be picking us up from the hotel in Nha Trang and taking us to Da Lat, a journey of about 3.5 hours. So I had expectations of a private air-con minibus.

Well, strike that. A rickety old char-a-banc showed up with no air-con whatsoever - only open windows which I was invited to sit at, presumably to catch a 40c breeze mixed with diesel fumes, for the good of my health

This excuse for a vehicle then limped from hotel to hotel picking up 2 ppl here, 3 ppl there, until full. "Well, at least I'm not lying down trapped in a plastic coffin like the sleeping bus" I thought. Until it pulled into a yard and everybody got off, so we felt obliged to follow suit. After much excited yapping in the way Vietnamese do, I was delivered the news that we were now to transfer onto the coffin-bus. " Same last, time, sure!" my insanely grinning BF told me with an air of exhilaration that suggested he had somehow done exactly the one thing in the world that would please me.

Well, I must admit I briefly lost it - head on hands, exclaiming "No, No, No - for fuck sake! Cannot do! Not again! As seasoned observes of the Thailand scene will know, such a reaction only results in a bemused look, not any understanding of what you are trying to convey. "Go here, wait here" I was told. Around 10 minutes later standing under the raging sun you could have fried an egg on my head, but we are directed to a bus. Joy oh joy - it's not a sleeping bus at all! Don't get me wrong, it's not anything built before 1970 provably, but it has seats rather than glorified plastic bathtubs and I am grateful. Not so the BF - "Not happy" he says "I pay for sleeping bus, this is not right bus"! "Oh dear, how sad, never mind" I say "let's just get on".

On board the bus, any brief elation disappears. We have not only been allocated but I strongly suspect he ASKED for the 3 back seats. You know the ones - right against the engine, right? Did I mention the vinyl seats last time? Well you can draw your own conclusions as to how ideal those are on a non air-con bus. I feel like bursting into tears frankly but hey, ho - I sit on the very end seat which has at least the benefit, not of air-con as BF would have me believe, but forced air ventilation so that at least there's air from outside is blowing in your face. Unfortunately at this point it's hot air, rather like a hairdryer. Get the picture? Sitting there with my shirt stuck to me, I console myself with the thought that if the bus ever moves, the air might become cooler - and it last it does so.

As the bus travels along, it folks down to the point at which it's almost bearable. One hour later, it stops at a roadside canteen and the doors open (and remain open for 30mins whilst ppl pee or eat, or both, and hot, fetid air re-fills the bus.

I'd say it was about 2 hours into the trip that something miraculous happened - it got cooler! Furthermore, the more we travelled up these winding, mountain roads the cooler it became! Four hours into the trip and I feel like laughing hysterically - the windows are steaming up because it's cold outside! My shirt, shorts, underwear have all actually separated from my skin, and the Vietnamese are putting on overcoats. "Too cold, I think I die!" says BF. You don't know how close you were when you mentioned that sleeping bus, I think to myself.

So, 4.5 hours after leaving hotel in Nha Trang we have arrived in Dah Lat!

PS Must apologise for spelling errors, not used to ipad.