Hello there.....
Last time I left you I think we were leaving China and heading into Vietnam.
After a bit of a nervy day waiting for our passports to be returned with the
visa for Vietnam we were ready to set off. We took a bus from Nanning in China
to Hanoi in Vietnam stopping to cross the border at the "friendship
pass"...which was anything but friendly. A rather large austere complex
where we were shipped about in golf carts till all the paperwork was checked,
checked and then checked again.
The first thing that really hits you when you arrive in Hanoi is just the sheer
volume of people whizzing past you from all angles on mopeds and motorbikes.
You soon learn that the only way to cross the road is by dodging them and
hoping for the best as they will certainly not wait for you. The other thing we
noticed straight away was how many more Western tourists there were having
spent the previous month in China. Fortunately, most of the touristy action in
Hanoi is in and around the Old Quarter and we really enjoyed walking the
streets, stopping to eat some local cuisine in the street cafes or sitting
around an old bar watching it all go by.
After a couple of days of checking out the city, we were then ready for our
trip to Halong Bay which is a must for any trip to Vietnam. The drive from
Hanoi to Halong Bay took about 3 hours and once we got there we were quickly
taken to our "Junk" (boat) which would be our home for the next 3
days. Our cabin, although small, was stylishly decorated and quite
luxurious….although if Veronika had known about the 3 giant flying cockroaches
I had to deal with while she was away (probably enjoying a glass of wine on the
sundeck) we might have been off the boat after 1 day. Nevertheless, within about
15 minutes of setting off we found ourselves in the type of spectacular scenery
that makes Halong Bay one of the natural wonders of the world...and amazingly
with no other boats/tourists in sight. Cruising through just some of the 3000
or so small islands full of wee grottos that make up Halong Bay was just
incredible. When we weren't cruising along in the junk we were able to go out
in kayaks and go exploring the floating villages nearby or just jump in the
water and go for a swim. On the second night we even went by small boat to one
of the islands where they had prepared a candlelit dinner for us (all 20 of
us....how romantic) in one of the caves. It was a very nice touch I must say
and only added to what were a great 3 days and a definite highlight of Vietnam.
Described as "the intellectual, cultural and spiritual heart of
Vietnam", the little town of Hue was always going to be on any agenda of
mine! The former capital of Vietnam set on the banks of the Song Huong River certainly
makes for a nice stop travelling from one side of the country to the other
(north to south in our case). We took a tour to see the ancient Royal Tombs
which were all set in fabulous lush natural surroundings outside the city along
the river and also visited the Thien Mu Pagoda (temple) where we took the obligatory
river cruise back to the town. However what I'm sure you really want to know is
that here we could go out for a nice dinner, couple of beers and still get
change from $10.
We then took a 5 hour bus from Hue to Hoi An on a bus that was brand new...about
30 years ago maybe. As one of the last to get on I had no choice but to take
the seat I did and quickly discovered why it was free. The seat in front was
completely broken and "reclined" till it hit me. As I wriggled about
in my seat trying to find an inch of room I broke my seat and was then forced
to spend the next 5 hours sitting sideways while everyone snoozed all around
me. However, the journey was worth it as Hoi An was great, a real gem of a wee
town. Set on the Thu Bon River, with great architecture and narrow wee lanes it
is just hard not to like it and find it charming. While we were here we visited
the ancient ruins of "My Son" which are outside the town. We also
took a cooking class here (no, that was not my idea) which was actually good
fun and we are now both experts in Vietnamese cuisine. An additional very
pleasant surprise was Cua Dai Beach which was only a 5km bike ride away. Lovely
beach, warm sea, cold beer, nice seafood made for a great day out!
The next stop on most itineraries on the way south is the beach town of Nha
Trang and we did indeed stop there on the way south from Hoi An. However,
instead of staying in the town we headed to Whale Island which is a tiny island
about 2 hours from Nha Trang. Here we stayed in a very basic wee thatched beach
hut right on the edge of the water. The little bay was really nice, with great
swimming, snorkelling and areas to go exploring. We spent 3 days just chilling
here but soon discovered it was not quite as relaxing as darkness fell. The
beach huts were basically open to any wee, or big, beastie that cared to
venture in and in the course of the 3 nights we were there we encountered bats,
giant spiders, cockroaches, geckos and also a scorpion! Although I must say we
were luckier than the French couple next door to us who had a bat fly into
their ceiling fan and drop dead on to their bed! Just when I thought the worst
of it was over, on our final day there, Veronika discovered the huge gecko (she
described it as a mini crocodile) which had been living in our bathroom as she
was getting into the shower. Sure enough she immediately dropped the towel in
the shower and ran for her life almost breaking her toe in the process. Even in
the water we weren't safe. We went swimming one morning out to the floating
raft about 100m from the beach. Just as Veronika reached the raft, and I was
still in the water, we both noticed an alarming number of jellyfish had
appeared from nowhere. With Veronika refusing to get back in the water we had
to rely on a couple of fellow tourists passing by in a kayak to take her back
to the beach while I heroically swam back through the jelly infested waters. I
could not escape them all though and I was stung once but thankfully did not
require the well-known remedy!
After all that we were ready for a nice safe beastie free hotel room which we
got in our next stop in Dalat which is in the Central Highlands. The welcome
respite was brief though as we then set off on a 2 day jungle trekking tour
which meant staying overnight in a tent. The trek was great though taking us
through minority farms, pine forests and thick tropical jungle that Vietnam is
famous for (and you see in the films). Thankfully staying overnight in the tent
was relatively free of beastie incidents and the only real issue we kept
encountering were the leeches as we went through the jungle section. The
warning signs had been there as soon we saw the guide take out his special
leech socks.
Before we had set out on the trekking tour Veronika had very cleverly hidden
our little laptop in the laundry bag, which was left in one of our rucksacks
back in the hotel, to protect it. What was not so clever however was when she
sent the laundry off with our guide who had kindly offered to take it to be
washed when we got back...with the laptop still in the bag. Not having a clue
where the guide had taken it we than had a frantic half an hour trying to find
a way to contact him to prevent the laptop being sent in with the dirty socks
and t-shirts!
From Dalat we took a short flight to Saigon (or Ho Chi Minh City to give it
its official name). The city itself it
huge and is just teeming with mopeds and motorbikes at all hours. We stayed in
the backpacker area which is full of bars, cafes and was a lot of fun.
Here, we were also joined on our travels
for a couple of weeks by Veronika's youngest brother Vincenz...who was delighted
to find out that beers here cost less than a dollar! We took in the sights of
the city including the War Remnants Museum which is a brutal and sobering place
but certainly worth a visit. I really enjoyed Saigon and thought it had a great
vibe though I can see why it might not be everyone's cup of tea.
To celebrate our first year wedding anniversary I had booked a few days at a
lovely romantic getaway a few hours up the coast near the small village of Mui
Ne....this was long before I knew Vinci would be joining us! Perfect timing
Vinci! Nevertheless, we had a fantastic time enjoying the pool, the beach and
beautiful resort as we graduated from backpackers to flashpackers if only for a
few days...even the cheap beer was replaced by cheap bubbly for a day. However,
we were quickly brought back to earth when the old smelly "sleeper"
bus came to pick us up to take us back to Saigon.
Our next and last stop in Vietnam was a 3 day cycling trip in the Mekong
Delta. After being picked up in Saigon we drove a couple of hours to our
starting point. We had not even gone 50 meters by the time I got a puncture and
the chain on Veronika's bike came off! With the guide and driver unable to
repair the bike we then spent the next hour at a little roadside mechanic.
Given that we were supposed to cover 50km a day, the fact that it took us 1
hour to go 50m was pretty worrying! However, we soon got back on the road with
the guide now seemingly intent on making up lost time given the pace he was
setting. The scenery was fantastic though as we cycled along narrow lanes through
lush mangrove forests, past rice paddies and alongside the Delta seeing how
simply the people lived there. We also took a boat trip out to the incredible
floating market Cai Rang, the biggest in the Mekong Delta. Here they come from
far and wide to sell their fruit, veggies etc in boats of various sizes and it
just makes for the most amazing scene. We also found the people of the Mekong
Delta to be among the friendliest in Vietnam. By the third day we were certainly
feeling the aches and pains of cycling 50km a day and when heavy rain cut short
the tour on the last day no-one seemed too upset!
After that it was back to Saigon and time to say goodbye to Vietnam as the
visa ran out and on to Thailand. We both really really enjoyed the month in
Vietnam and found it a very interesting and fun country to travel through and
certainly much easier than China!
