News on the grapevine is that travel on German trains from Sunday 9th December 2018 , and the next 6 months, will be available for booking from 16th October.
Recap of my trip on the 09.25 Hanoi to Hai Phong Train LP3, a 2 hours 35 mins ride - costing £4. It was raining cats and dogs in Hai Phong, as you can see!