Hello again,

Vietnam installment number two! We have actually arrived in Cambodia now but will come to that in a mo.....

......so we left Hanoi and flew down to Da Nang, missed out a chunk of the coast doing this but was the quickest option for what we had left to see in Vietnam. Did not stop in Da Nang though, got a taxi straight to Hoi An, about half an hours drive away. Hoi An is a beautiful little ancient town on the river. We arrived here in the rainy season though. Had previously heard from travellers we'd met in Hanoi that it Hoi An was really badly flooded and we should not go but we did and it was fine for us! It drizzled a bit while we were there but not all the time and the only evidence of flooding we saw was the river bank had flooded onto the pavement so one street was a bit wet, but that was all. We even did a bike ride round the town and beaches one day and it was fine when we set off but rained on us during our ride, it was so nice and refreshing though, as was still hot, so we didn't mind. The locals were funny though as they were all riding round in their plastic macs and trying to sell us one, would've been even hotter in one of those!

The main reason to visit Hoi An is to get clothes tailored! There are hundreds of tailors on every street all with clothes on display. It is a great way to shop. You spot an outfit you like, go in, get measured and choose your colour and can vary the design slightly too if you wish, then they make it for you! Almost every shop we passed had a dress hanging up that I loved! Over the few days we spent here we both got a wool and cashmere suit made, Phil had some lovely fitted shirts made and me 4 dresses (thai silk) and a silk top. Dresses are for all the weddings I am attending next year (!) and Phil got ties made to match my outfits too! We could have gone completely mad but thought that amount was safe enough. I loved it though and could have spent up there!

Our next adventure was on an overnight train from here to Nha Trang, a coastal town. We got a sleeper bus down which was quite good, we each had a bed with a reclining back which was comfortable except for the fact that they were a tad short. Made for Vietnamese people not tall westerners! Phil had to hang his feet over the edge but it was fine, better than a normal seated bus anyway! Nha Trang was a nice place with a long sweeping beach. We spent one day exploring the town, visiting some pagodas, a huge white Budda up on the hill and a few hours on the beach but got harrassed a lot by the hawkers so not the most relaxing of times!

The next day we did a day boat trip which was great fun. We visited 4 of the islands off the coast of Nha Trang and went swimming and snorkeling in the South China Sea. Had a seafood lunch on board and were entertained by our crew who called themselves the 'boy band'. They had electric guitars and improvised with plastic containers and a metal sheet for a drum kit! They sang lots of classsic western songs for us and we all had a good sing-a-long whilst enjoying some local wine, included in our trip. ('last christmas' video by 'boy band' on blog) After this we had a couple of hours on an island so we had a go at Jet Skiing. Never done it before. We shared one and Phil drove, it was great fun until he decided to mess about and turn sharply and I flew off! All good fun though. Met a couple of fun Aussie guys on this trip too so met up with them later on that night in town. Phil had gotten a little drunk throughout the day though so needed a couple of hours to sleep it off before heading out!

Next destination was an inland town called Da Lat, in the Central Highlands. This was a few hours away by bus but not a bad journey. Da Lat is Vietnam's honeymoon capital and we thought it was the prettiest Vietnamese town we visited. It is high in the mountains surrounded by pine trees, has a lovely lake (which we walked round), is neatly built into the hillside, very colourful to look at and is very clean. There is a lot of money up here too as the coffee industry is big, so we saw the rich side to Vietnamese life as well as the poorer. On our bus up to Da Lat we met a nice English couple Chris and Amy and met up with them for dinner the 2 nights we spent there.

Back to the coast after Da Lat and spent some time relaxing in Mui Ne, a gorgeous beachside resort town. We stayed in a lovely place right on the beach and spent 2 days just sunbathing and swimming in the sea. Did some sightseeing around the area too - we had a local driver who took us, in a jeep, to the Mui Ne sand dunes which are very impressive. We didn't feel like we were in Vietnam, more like the Sahara! There were white and pink sand dunes and we had a walk up both of them. Also visited a place called the Fairy Stream which is a stream leading away into a hidden valley of red and white sandhills with palm trees along the bank. We walked up in the stream which is only a few centimetres deep to see the tranquil countryside and a waterfall. Were followed initially by a few little boys chatting to us who wanted to be our guides. The children here are very sweet and always chat to you, usually wanting to sell you something though, but bless them!

Wanted to stay longer in Mui Ne as it was so nice, but restricted for time we moved onto Ho Chi Minh City, still known to it's 10 million inhabitants as Saigon. Really enjoyed this city and ended up spending 5 nights here. Were lucky enough to meet up with Chris and Amy again (met in Da Lat) so that was a good night - found the cheap Bia Hoi bars, as had done in Hanoi. The streets were even crazier with mopeds compared to Hanoi, 4 million of them here, madness!

Had a day taking in the sights and saw lots of huge colonial buildings and big park areas, that's the French influence for you! Even the cathedral there is called Notre Dame! There were also a lot of christmas decorations in all the big department stores which was a bit bizarre, I've bought a santa hat to wear on the beach in Thailand though!

Wandered down by the river too and watched the constant flow of moped traffic zooming on and off the ferries crossing from one side to the other. Got a lot of men coming up to us wanting to shine our shoes! To say I had flip flops on most of the time I'd like to see how they'd do that! They also told Phil his shoes were 'no good, no good' as the trainers he has are falling apart a bit and they would offer to glue them back together! He's gonna buy some new cheap ones in Thailand instead.

Did a day trip from HCMC to the Cu Chi tunnels. This is where the Viet Cong dug a 250km network of tunnels during the war against America. It was really interesting and we got to see how this Vietnamese army fought against the mighty USA using guerilla tactics. Saw some examples of the nasty booby traps they would leave hidden in the undergrowth. Had the opportunity to fire some guns here and Phil did! (as boys love to play soldier!) He chose an AK47 and fired off a few rounds on the shooting range. It was SO loud! Of course we had the chance to crawl through a tunnel. We did 100m and it was small, dark and very hot. I was a bit unnerved at times as the tunnel went round corners and went deeper underground to a different level. We came out sweating after our short time in there so we find it amazing that the Viet Cong lived, fought and survived down here for weeks at a time.

The last area of Vietnam we visited was the Mekong Delta. This is a vast area, in the south, of rivers, canals, cities, floating villages and rice paddies. We had 3 days here and spent most of our time during the day on the water, travelling along wide rivers and smaller tranquil canals. Got to see close up how the local people live in the delta. Saw many villages of basic houses built on stilts (looked a bit unstable, but obviously aren't!), house boats and also floating villages/fish farms. The water is their life blood - they live, trade and travel on it, and even wash in it! It's not the cleanest water either but this is all they know so are used to it.

Had a homestay one night, staying with a local family as we had done in the north. This was slightly different though, a concrete house on the riverside. Was another great experience, we got to meet all the family, had a delicious meal of local cuisine with them (rice paper wraps with fish and noodles in, put together ourselves) and even played badminton with the kids! Had some more rice wine too, everyone brews it in Vietnam!

Left Vietnam by boat, via the Mekong river and arrived in Cambodia yesterday. It was a long journey involving a couple of boats and a bus to Phnom Penh, but it was really interesting as we got to see the locals living on the riverside. Every house we passed the children would come running out waving frantically at us and shouting "hello". They were so happy and smiley, we had aching arms by the end of the trip but it was worth it!

We'd had a fabulous time in Vietnam, 4 weeks in total, but would've loved more time there as there was still lots we didn't get to see. Have learnt a bit of the language and really enjoyed the cuisine, tried lots of local dishes and also snails, frog and snake all popular here! Tastes good! It's funny because the Vietnamese have a phrase that they use to the travellers "same, same, but different" and it's funny when they use it as everything is "same, same" (even if it's not!). We would definately recommend Vietnam to anyone wanting to travel though, we had a brilliant month there.

Had a night out with Chris and Amy again when we arrived in Phnom Penh, the last time we can meet them on our travels though. Tried a popular Khmer dish called Amock which is a lovely coconuty curry and ended up playing Jenga in a bar!

Our first full day in Phnom Penh has been nice and we like the city. Lots of mopeds, as in Vietnam cities, but also more cars here so a bit harder to negotiate the roads as cars can't swerve as easily to avoid you! The city is very clean and grand, with wide streets and impressive golden temples everywhere. We visited the Royal Palace today which is beautiful. (saw lots of monks there, as pictured) Cambodia is quite similar to Vietnam, the people are friendly and helpful and there are lots of street stalls selling little nibbles. The only difference is they use U.S dollars here a lot so you can pay for things in dollars and you get change in Riel, or you can pay half and half. So we've had to get used to 2 currency amounts after using Vietnamese Dong all the time! The ATMs all give out Dollars too - you can't even get Cambodian currency from a Cambodian cash machine, wierd!

Going to the Killing Fields tomorrow which I'm sure will be interesting but horrific too. Then we head north to Siem Reap and visit the World Heritage site of Angkor Wat.

On our last 2 countries now, so not long to go........

Hope you all have a lovely christmas

love us 2 X