Saigon was alot more modern than we expected and completely different to Hanoi. We was wondering what our 5 day stay would be like as we entered the tiny back street alleys in search of our hostel. Checking in however we soon realised that we was situated in the centre of the city and there would be plenty of activities to keep us occupied for the following days. As we arrived quite late that day we decided just to relax and looking through the guide book spotting a popular Sushi restaurant to try. A nice meal full of different sushis we retired for an early night in preparation for the following day of exploring! Waking early we set off to the War Remnants museum. The museum detailed the Vietnam war with a main focus on the crimes committed during it. There was heavy documentation of the US influence and looking through the information and photographs on show left you stunned at the effects the war had on the Vietnamese people. Torture instruments were also on show: a small barbed wire cage used to fit 5+ people inside, and jagged strips of metal which people where made to roll across tearing their bare skin to shreds. The museum also showed numerous collections of photographs; Exhibits about the chemical weapon Agent Orange and photographs of people that had disabilities because of it. There was photos of bomb explosions, people being hurt and grieving for the dead, and a large section of photographs which where from photographers who died while trying to capture the war on film- Probably the most powerful photo exhibition I have ever seen. As well as all the photographs there was other artefacts to look at such as army planes, helicopters, guns and a large guillotine, each with a plaque telling you in graphic detail about the way they had been used and the damage they could cause. A really interesting museum and definitely made you feel rather lucky in comparison to how some of the people have suffered and are suffering still. Leaving the museum we continued our walk to the Reunification Palace and the beautiful Notre Dame cathedral. Finishing the day nicely we retired to relax for the following days trip to the Cu Chi tunnels. Continuing our examination of the war we arrived at the tunnels and It was amazing to see the underground network that was created. The guide took us through the various parts of the forrest showing us underground pits that was used for ambush and booby traps used to maim and capture people. Finally it was our turn to go down the tunnel. The tunnel was tiny and very claustrophobic. There was over 200km of tunnels created and we ventured through about 20 metres of them, which was quite enough! You had to crawl through them and as they went deeper and deeper it became uncomfortable and hot and you constantly banged your head. I don't know how they managed to cope in these tunnels within the war as the 5 minutes we was crawling down there for we was ready to emerge as quickly as possible. While here we also had the chance to shoot a gun. 10 bullets for £10 for a go with an AK47. Jonathan was in his element and used his bullets up fairly quickly. We have fired Rifles and Magnums before but there was something about this gun that was fairly frightening as it kicked back with such force when being fired. Because of this and the deafening bangs it made (even with ear defenders on it was still too loud) I decided to let Jonathan have my bullets as I don't think I'd have managed it. A great day out in all and again gave you a great insight into the war. We rounded up the day with a trip to the amazing water puppet show. We had both heard great things about this show and it didn't let us down. Great talent was shown to us as the puppets danced through the water to Vietnamese singsong and music. Even though you didn't have a clue what the story was about through not talking Vietnamese, each legend was cleverly acted out and for 50 mins it was fun to watch and we both enjoyed it thoroughly.
The following day we had planned a trip to the Mekong Delta. This trip took us to a part of Vietnam called Ben Tre. Arriving we boarded a little boat which took us across the river to some islands. We sampled and looked at how the locals made honey and the bees and hives they kept. We was also taken to a Coconut candy workshop to show us how they made local Coconut sweets. After lunch we fed some crocodiles with what can only be described as a wooden fishing rod and line with chunks of meat as bait. As the crocodiles snapped away and finally crunched down on the bait you could feel the power of the animal as it took the meat and nearly the rod itself. Jonathan however thought it would be fun to tease them and he hung the bait in front of the crocodiles nose and then moved it away with each strike. Doing this caused a frenzy between them all and they thrashed about wildly. Finally after tempting the crocodile some more, the lizard eventually won and got the bait. The afternoon ended with a cruise on a little boat down the river canals and a afternoon tea of exotic fruit and locals singing some songs to you. A pleasant day out and was nice to see some countryside and the locals way if life.
The last day we couldn't decide what to do as we had seen many of the sights in Saigon. On the map it showed a Botanical gardens and Zoo so we thought that would be nice to walk around for our last day. Viewing the many species it wasn't the best kept zoo and you felt a little sorry for some of the animals there. Only charging 24pence a ticket made you wonder how they could actually make money to do up the enclosures. It was quite funny to see some of their health and safety measures as we stood 1metre away from a large submerged hippo with only a waist height hand rail separating us, something which would cause an uproar in England!
The weather had been turning mostly everyday at around midday and bang on 12:30 again Thunder and lightening crashed through the sky and the heavens opened. A mad dash back to the hotel to dry off.
That night Jonathan decided to try karate; A class of about 8 people for an hour and a half on the nighttime. He came back panting and puffing and saying how out of shape he was. Apparently not as good as the classes back at home but he still enjoyed it. Unfortunately though I don't think he enjoyed it in the warm temperatures as the instructor turned off the AC half way through!
Anyway after a busy week of sight seeing we was finally on our last day in Vietnam with our visa due to expire. Crossing into Cambodia we are firstly heading to the southern coast to meet up with a friend from England. Vietnam was amazing and our time there will never be forgotten. It was the ideal place for our wedding and we couldn't have imagined anything better than the way the day turned out, and it was great that our family was there to experience it with us. We are definitely sad to be leaving.
Now to Cambodia, Hayls and Jonathan x