Living the dream

Photos: Vietnam

storiesoutthesuitcase — Tue, 3 Feb 2015 22:38:00 GMT

Good morning Vietnam

storiesoutthesuitcase — Tue, 3 Feb 2015 18:35:00 GMT

Last night we arrived in Ho Chi Minh City. Neon lights, scooters everywhere,... Man, what a rat race! Checking in, meeting up with our friend and a quick shower to freshen up after a long long day of flying. Then it was time for a beer and the first look at local food. Our dinner was BBQ (and I thought we left Australia). We had goat, meat from the shoulder and fillets (if I understood it correctly). We tried it and washed it away with a Heineken.

Good morning, Vietnam! First day of discovering Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). We got some breakfast In this little French bakery. The plan was to hit the markets first and then go to the War Museum. On our way to those Ben Thanh Markets we were stopped by 3 guys on cyclos. These are bicycles with a seat in the front. The markets weren't open yet, so we decided to jump on those cyclos. They brought us to the War Remnants Museum, the Opera, the Notre Dam,...

We spent more than an hour in the War Remnants Museum. The amount of new facts about the war and all the photographs were impressive and overwhelming. The war in Vietnam started in 1959, when the communists tried to liberate the South. The North of Vietnam was supported by the communists and the South by America. The American army was more likely fighting an invisible army. All the houses in the Saigon area had tunnels, so people could escape when bombs went off. In total there were more than 250km of tunnels in the South of Vietnam, Cu Chi region. Up to 10000 people were hiding in and fighting from those tunnels. The U.S. Wanted to control from the air, so they bombed all the jungle in the south and in the middle of the country they sprayed tons of Agent Orange (with dioxin). Even today there are still children born with lots of different disabilities due to all the poison sprayed on the soil. We are 40 years later.

Over the years different countries tried to invade and conquer Vietnam, such as France, China, Japan, The U.S. Every time the Vietnamese people stood their ground and fought hard! At this moment you still can see some of the typical things from the French invasion. You find little bakeries, boulevards with trees and the Notre Dame. Although they used to talk French as well, that is gone now. The main languages are Vietnamese, Mandarin and English.

Cheers

Niall and Kim

Dream, book, fly

storiesoutthesuitcase — Thu, 29 Jan 2015 23:01:00 GMT

Last year my first WH visa in Australia was about to run out, the second year still had to be granted and work wise it didn't go as we both wanted. Our first reaction: Let's go to South-East Asia and travel!

South-East Asia is a region of beautiful countries with magnificent culture and long history. When we think of Vietnam we think of history, beaches, rice fields, people with pointy hats, movies as Platoon, Full Metal Jacket,… Or Cambodia and we see Ankor Wat, the jungle, the killing fields,…

So we bought a Lonely Planet and we started to read and dream, but then reality kicked in. We couldn't go straightaway. We needed a plan, but never made one. We went home for a couple of months, and came back to Australia. With a new home in Sydney and a new job, we settled down and the dreams were pushed aside.

Now, one year later, my second visa is about to run out and we need again a plan. So let's go travel. This time we started to talk about New Zealand, but not for long. At the time we were in Tasmania for the Christmas break and wanted something different. So the South-East Asia dreams came back. And now, we have a plan. Even better, we have an one-month visa, got the necessary vaccinations, booked flights and a hotel. We are going for a month to Vietnam and Cambodia.

We fly on Sunday! Only 3 more sleeps and dreams come true!

Life live the fullest…

Cheers Niall and Kim