Overnight train to Saigon

I wasn't planning on writing a post on our train ride to Saigon, but after actually taking it, I thought that I would share the experience. 
We boarded the train in Danang.

Click on the photo for large pics

The train we were waiting for was an express train that rides between Hanoi and Saigon and is suppose to be one of the best trains available.
The train was an hour late on arrival, so we finally could board at around midnight.

The compartment we reserved was already slept in by someone and there were dirty sheets on the beds. Our first thought was, of course, that once the train will start riding again the personnel will bring the new ones. So we waited.

The train was really old and dirty and created an impression that it wasn't washed even once in the entire time of its existence. Anyway, we were laughing about it and making jokes until someone from the train personnel showed up to gather the bed covers. The guy took the dirty sheets and started to walk away. Then the following conversation took place:

Us: Eehh, what about the pillows and the blankets??

Guy: Ah, don't worry, they are okay..

Us: Sorry??? But there were people sleeping on them..!!

Guy: It's okay (big smile on his face)

Us: You mean that you are not going o change them at all..?!?!

Guy: It's okay (with the same smile)

The guy walks away.. This was our reaction...

So, we decide that nothing can be done about the pillows and the blankets, but at least we will be getting some clean sheets, and that we would just sleep in clothes to stay warm (AC was working like crazy and we were half frozen in less than 20 minutes).

Then the guy shows up with "clean" sheets, which looked exactly like the ones he took away, only folded. We tried to unfold one of them but it was full of hair and extremely dirty. Another conversation:

Us: The sheets are dirty, you didn't change them. We want the new ones!

Guy: It's okay, sheet clean (even bigger smile)

Us: What?? There is hair and they are dirty!!!!

Guy: It's okay.. (with slight annoyance, but still smiling)

Us: no, change them!

The guy takes the sheets and walks away, coming back 5 min later with the same sheets. 

Us: This are the same sheets!!!!

Guy: It's okay, now clean.. (big smile)

Us: is this a joke?!?! We gonna complain to the management!!!

Guy: It's okay (turns around and walks away)

 

After that we started to laugh hysterically and couldn't stop for the good 10 minutes.

We had two sheets with us and they were given to the girls, the guys decided to use the ones brought and just sleep fully clothed. We put the pillows in the t-shirts making some kind of pillow-cases.
 All together it was a long night and we hardly got any sleep. In the morning everybody was hungry and we bought some corn as all the other food choices weren't much appetizing. The moment we put the food on the table a whole family of cockroaches came running. In a split second we were out of compartment screaming. Guys returned to deal with the cockroaches, but the idea of still having to spend more than 6 hours in that compartment wasn't very comforting.

At some point we were so tiered and wanted to sleep so much that we pretty much stopped carrying about the dirt and about the cockroaches all together.

This train ride we had from Danang to Saigon definitely qualifies as the worst one in my life by a mile, but... It taught me a good lesson that we are quite spoiled after all and that we simply forgot that in many other parts of the world things like comfort cannot be taken for granted. Nonetheless, I was very happy to get out of that train when we finally arrived to Saigon.