So from Phnom Penh I left for the Vietnamese border on a nice air conditioned bus, a little worried about the crossing as I had been told it would be a difficult one. I was then pleasantly surprised to find that we spent no longer than 15 minutes at the border with no hassle whatsoever, and so we continued on to Ho Chi Minh city, which the locals still call Saigon. On the bus I met Mexican guy called Daniel who had studied at the LSE in London and ended up sharing a room in the city to save money. I didn't really feel too much like exploring the city as I was still on a bit of a low after Cambodia but booked an open bus ticket all the way to Hanoi with several stops on the way. I also booked a Mekong Delta tour for the following day, which turned out to be fascinating.

It was a two hour bus journey to get to the boat and on the way our guide talked to us about the city and the development under way there and I understood they hope to rival Bangkok in size in a few years. On arrival we got onto our motor boat and visited various sites of interest throughout the day such as a coconut candy factory (basically a group of four or five ladies making and packing the candy at amazing speed) where we were taken through the process and give samples of the candy and some rather interesting banana wine, which has a bit of a kick to it! We also watched a traditional c*** fight where we were assured the animals would not get hurt and they didn't appear to but the blood all over the keeper's shirt suggested that wasn't always the case. We stopped on another island for a short horse and cart ride to a local house where we were treated to honey tea and a selection of tropical fruits before having the chance to hold a snake (a python, of the sort I had eaten in Siem Reap) which I took to more keenly than some! We then had a short traditional music performance before finally heading back to our boat via local rowing boats, propelled with a single oar on one side at the back with a strange circular motion, almost a cross between rowing and punting. A great day out and thoroughly enjoyed.

Next day I caught my open bus to Miu Ne a small beach resort on the coast just a place to relax on the way to Hoi An. The bus was fantastic however. There is only really one train for traveling Vietnam so buses are more common and they really know how to do that properly. The tourist buses on the whole have 'sleeper' sections which actually have fully reclined beds as many of the buses travel overnight. I wasn't in one of these (to save money) but they were still a novelty to look at! Anyhow, I scoted through to Hoi An the next day as I didn't find too much of interest in Miu Ne other than the Sand dunes but the views of the coast on the drive out were spectacular and I remember thinking not all that disimilar from parts of Oz with the red soil. Hoi AN was great though. By this stage I was getting used to the commision scams that the bus companies run with certain guesthouses and hotels so on arrival I just walked away from the bus and the touts and found a hotel I had read about at a reasonable price and I ended up staying there for about five nights. It is a fascinating place to just walk around as it consists of rows of French Colonial buildings, in varying states of disrepair, but all very charming. The main trade in Hoi An tailored clothing and it is impossible to miss as every street is lined with tailors offering much the same thing. It really is a wonder that they all stay in business but they certainly seem to manage! After a couple of days exploring but with no real accomplishment I decided I could use a new suit so I shopped around and found a fabric I liked and managed to get a suit and shirt made for the Vietnam Dong (their currency) equivalent of 45GBP, and remember, that is fully tailored and decent quality! While tis was being made during the day I bought a local tourist pass and walked around several small local attractions , namely a Vietnamese arts performance, a trade ceramics museum (not half as boring as it sounds, covering the history of Hoi An as a major Asian Trading port and set in a traditional 100 year old house), the Cantonese meeting house, the Japanese bridge and One more old House (which has been lived in by the same family for seven generations and had markers one pillar showing the various record breaking flood levels way above my head, as the town floods every year).

The next day after I had collected my bueatiful new suit and shirt, Vikki, who was on the Kiwi bus with me in New Zealand, arrived in Hoi An and we met up to explore some more before she headed further south. We also bumped into Daniel from Saigon and met up with him and another friend Nienke in the eveing for drinks and a traditional meal, consisting of six courses, three of which were Hoi An specialities. We then managed to find a bar in the evening that served free (!!!) rum and coke between 10pm and midnight. On my last night in Hoi An we went out to spoil ourselves with some western food (pasta and pancakes...not at the same time) and we bumped into Nienke and her friend Tania and Nienke and I agreed to meet to find accommodation in Hue, the next stop fro which I departed the following morning.