Blog time once again! After Halong Bay our next destination was Ninh Binh, 4 hours by local bus which we shared with one other couple from Spain and the rest were locals. Ninh Binh itself hasn't much to offer but the surrounding countryside is beutiful. The sun began to shine and for the next 2 days we hired a scooter and explored. I kept the bike between the hedges, while Kim acted as my mirrors, navigator and photographer!

We went to Tam Coc caves where a little boat man (who rowed with his feet), rowed us through the country and into caves, alongside paddy fields and locals pulling up their nets full of snails. The scenary was magnificent as the pics will show. The next day we did a 150km round trip to a national park. Again getting into the country and seeing the people harvesting rice and kids cycling to school was great fun. We did have a moment of panic when we realised our tank was almost empty, but fortunately the people in the park were more preparde than us. There was also a monkey sanctuary here which was great. Funded by a German Uni, they take endangered monkeys/gibbons and house them with the hope of increasing numbers and releasing them again. A lot of their habitats were destroyed in the war, "destroying all resources the enemy may need".

From Ninh Binh we caught a 12 hour sleeper to Hue, which saw a lot of action during the war, and even the Imperial city (17C) got bombed. The main thing we did from here was a tour of the Demilitarized Zone created during the war, visiting some old army bases and Vietnamese tunnels that housed up to 400 people in fear of bombing. 17 kids were born in the tunnels during the period of the war. Makes you thankful that you were born in Norn Iron.

A 5 hour bus brought us to Hoi An, a fantastic town which fortunately was not flattened during the war, so has a lot of older buildings and quaint streets. It is touristy but not overcrowed. There are loads of tailors and upon arrival we seeked out a good deal. Kim got a suit and trousers made and I got a custom made suit too. In between fittings we frequented a beautiful beach (An Bang), tried some new beers (50p) and cycled around the town.

So that's all for now, we're just about to board a bus to Nha Trang.