Vietnam...at last.

It's hard to recall now how I imagined Vietnam would be but I'm pretty sure the real thing was better in every aspect. (Saw plenty of pet dogs - don't think I ate it - or even saw it on sale......thanks so much Mr Rhind for that story) Was raining when we first arrived at Hanoi airport but after an hour's taxi ride (bit worried by stories of taxi scams but we had no problem) into the Old Quarter, it was dry. That set the scene for our weather really - pretty mixed, especially while we were in the north, so unfortunately we didn't really see the full beauty of the Sapa area because it was foggy and rather damp for just about all of the time we were there and then a bit misty for our overnight cruise at Halong Bay. However, as we moved south to Hue, Hoi An and Ho Chi Minh (Saigon) it got much warmer but with some very heavy rain showers. Both Hue and Hoi An are in the area regularly hit by typhoons/storms and although it was clear by the time we were there, we could see the evidence in the damage to houses etc, high river levels and rough sea caused by the most recent one, just 9 or 10 days before.

Everywhere we went, although especially in the main cities, the streets were just so noisy and chaotic.....even worse than China. The traffic is amazing - it just flows, seemingly with no rules or regulation, in any direction - by far the majority is mopeds and they weave between cars, bicycles and pedestrians, constantly beeping and carrying every load imaginable. Crossing the road is an art form - you really feel a sense of achievement when you cross safely, but actually they do try and avoid you. It's like a constant flowing dance. You actually do spend a lot of time in the road because they seem to 'spill' out of their shops & houses onto the pavements to both live and work, and sleep! Their houses are tall and thin and they have few rooms, the ground floor is often a shop, dinining room and sitting room!

The Old Quarter in Hanoi is a maze of little streets so it's easy to get lost but we're getting pretty good at finding our way, over the couple of days we had there we wandered the government district, shops & markets, stumbled upon The Temple of Literature where there were seemingly hundreds of girls celebrating graduation with a photo shoot amongst the ancient temples, shrines and rows of turtles with stone tablets of 'knowledge' on them. The railway line criss-crosses the city and, while there are barriers which come down on the main streets, in the back streets the line runs just a couple of feet away from doors and we could see right into peoples living rooms as we travelled past on the train.

Speaking of trains, we did 3 overnights in Vietnam, making I think a total of 16 nights since we started and providing us with endless discussions on it's merits! Paul is still certain it's preferable to flying but whilst I appreciate it's a great way to see the country during daylight hours, I'm not sure that makes up for a very poor nights sleep! On our journey to Sapa the train left Hanoi in the dark ......we were sharing a compartment with two guys from Singapore (our companions for the tour, who we met for the first time at the station) .......it was supposed to arrive at 6am - it actually arrived at 9am so having woken at 5.30am (to make sure we didn't miss the stop - which when we finally arrived was obvious!), it was great to see so much countryside as we passed through but honestly I'd rather have been asleep!

When we finally arrived in Sapa (90 mins up the mountain from Lao Cai where we got off the train & incidentally, just a few miles from the Chinese border, despite the weather we enjoyed a couple of leisurely, (4hr & 6hr ) but up and down, treks visiting 4 different villages in the valleys and seeing rice terraces, Cat Cat waterfall and water buffalo up close. Our guide was very entertaining - watching him leap onto the back of a buffalo was a highlight for Paul - at least he knew how to do it when he got a turn down in Hoi An!! We also saw a local 'show' in a disused pumping station along the way - not so hot but amusing. When we left the hotel to start our walk on the 2nd day we were joined by a group of local ladies from one of the minority group (maybe Tay or Day tribe?) we were walking to. It took us 3 hrs to walk there - amazingly their daily routine is to walk to Sapa early in the morning, go to the market then join a tourist group for the walk back. During the walk they chat with you, picking up a bit more English (though they are pretty good anyway) but of course the main aim is to sell you some handicraft ......so we now have several embroidered items! Don't ask how easily Paul was persuaded he needed a handbag after all the fuss he made about me buying one in Japan - and he's not even used it yet!!

After another night on the train we arrived back in Hanoi to join our next group tour - 10 days down to Ho Chi Minh including a night on board a sailing 'junk' in Halong Bay - 15 of us Canadian, British, German, American plus our lovely guide, Nan, from Thailand.

We set off for Halong Bay, about a 4 hour drive from Hanoi, quite early the next morning and as I mentioned earlier, the weather was a bit misty but that actually gave the thousands of giant limestone karsts quite a mystical feel. Of course, although it was just our group on board our boat, there were probably about 50 other boats cruising around too, maybe less overnight and then it was surprisingly quiet. The scenery was a little similar to the river trip we did at Yangshuo in China - just bigger and more! After a lovely lunch we visited one of the caves.....which was huge and impressive - unfortunately, the photos don't really do it justice. The evening on board did feel a bit surreal .....with us & the other boats gently 'floating' peacefully with the massive hills looming in the darkness. Paul tried a bit of squid fishing from the boat but didn't catch anything! In the morning, we got off the boat to climb, I think the highest peak, Ti Hill....lots more steps - and it was quite steep, but worth it for the view.

After lunch on board it was back to Hanoi for a last look before boarding the overnight train (the less said about that the better) to Hue (pronounced 'way'), the capital city in Imperial times, arriving in time for breakfast. We spent just one night in Hue so our tour was a bit 'whistle stop, taking in the ruins of the Imperial Citidel, Thien Mu Pagoda (5 stories) and finally the Tombs of former Emporer's - ornate and very much embracing Feng Shui, but still no one knows where the treasures were buried.

The next day we headed off to Hoi An ...by private bus (Paul got the front seat and therefore a few good video clips of the road!! Fantastic views in all directions as we travelled through the countryside, particularly of the Hai Van Pass. There was plenty of evidence of recent flooding but also improving weather - by the time we arrived in Hoi An it was rather hot (tho humid) - I was also rather excited to find the hotel had a pool and the beach wasn't far away......finally real holiday stuff!

We really enjoyed Hoi An ....stayed 3 nights (quite a long time for us!! ) though in the end the pool and beach didn't really figure that much. On the first full day some of the group set off on bike ride into the countryside. For about an hour the sun was shining and it was great to see 'everyday life' - but just as we were thinking how lovely it was, it started to rain ......quickly turning into a torrential downpour ...... I decided riding water buffalo didn't seem such a good idea - Paul did it and somehow managed to make it look like he wasn't soaked to the skin. After the buffalo we had to ride through fields, by now rather muddy - we sheltered for about 10mins while our guide cycled off & bought raincoats then continued, fortunately on roads but it was still raining & through lots of deep puddles, to the river for a boat ride back to town.

Believe it or not, I still managed to get Paul back on a bike the next day when we decided to do our own trip to the beach, Cua Dai .....probably only 3 miles but much cooler than walking though Paul was quite upset that we had to pay for parking! The beach was lovely but we could only paddle as the sea was still too rough - just have to mention that for those who imagine we are laying on exotic beaches all the time this was pretty much my first opportunity....so don't expect much of a sun tan!!

Hoi An has strong South Chinese connections - it's UNESCO Heritage listed so there are plenty of interesting historic places to explore, but it's also a big shopping place......lots of tailors, ready to make to order within 24 hours but I'll probably remember it more for the beautiful silk lanterns that are on sale everywhere and in particular at the night market which makes for a colourful sight.

Another memory will definitely be probably the most bizarre meal of the entire trip.....at an open air restaurant in an Hoi An back street that Nan took us to. She told us the menu was 'set' but gave us no idea what to expect....we just ordered drinks then the table got filled up will various plates of meat, spring rolls, salad & dips. We had about 4 waitresses around the table who then proceeded take a rice paper pancake/wrap & fill it for us ....and in some cases feed them into your mouth - continuously,....literally as you finished one they'd have another ready, if you were lucky you were allowed to do your own - pretty messy either way. It all became quite hilarious as Paul's waitress started massaging his neck while he ate - and when one of the group said she needed a break the waitress said 'ok' but immediately made another wrap and put it in her mouth - you just couldn't say no!! - We walked away absolutely stuffed & not quite knowing how it had happened!! Typically it was just to the night we didn't have the camera but we're hoping that a friendly German will send the ones he took!

We flew from Danang (just an hour from Hoi An) to Ho Chi Minh (Saigon) previously the capital of the south and now a commercial centre so another crazy city, traffic wise! One of the main tourist 'attractions' is the Cu Chi Tunnels - used in the American/Vietnam war by 'the locals to keep safe' or 'the Vietnam Cong to hide'. A part of history that beforehand Paul knew far more about than me. I understand that, although they know their history, the younger generation are happy to look forward - as are the older ones but at the same time they have some fascinating stories. Our guide for the tunnels was perhaps the most interesting. Probably now in his 60's, he had fought with the Americans and whilst showing us around the tunnels and 'towing the line' he also gave us just a little of his story and frequently referred to the information at the tunnels and the War Remnants Museum as containing some propergander. After the war he had been in a 're-education' camp for a couple of years - I think he told Paul he weighed just 38kg when he left.

We said goodbye to our Vietnam group tour on Nov 28th (they were carrying on to Cambodia) and at that point I felt more than ready to leave Asia......however, we had a last tour booked for an overnight stay on the Mekong Delta and I'm so glad we stuck to the plan. It was a lovely weekend, perfect weather a really good guide and great to see 'life on the river'. On the way we stopped in the village of Cai Ba visiting a temple of the Cao Dai religion - very colourful and seemingly a mix of everything - Buddhism, Taoism even Christian. Once on the river we cruised along into the islands passing floating markets, fishing boats, etc stopping to visit a candy factory at CUULONG where they were making various all sorts of sweets/ snacks from coconut & rice - and wine with the various additions eg snake! We then stopped at a local home....I thought for lunch but it turned out to be tea and fruit (some we'd had before - papaya, mango & dragon fruit and also jack fruit & a lychee type one which tasted like a grape) while we were entertained with music and singing by the family. Then we cruised on to Anbinh Island for a delicious lunch - big prawns, spring rolls and the whole fish you can see in the photos - you'll also see Paul relaxing afterwards in the hammock. Once we'd managed to get him out we went on to our B&B a bit further into the islands. The owners were very friendly, think there were about 15 rooms but that night it was just us & another couple from France. I really enjoyed travelling on the river.....there was so much to see, both on the main, massively wide part - with bigger commercial boats piled high with goods, and in the island canals - smaller boats and where the land on either side seems to be brimming with life - human and plant....and especially delicious fruit!

So Vietnam, how to sum it up......crazy traffic, noisy cities, paddy fields, terraced farms, misty hills, muddy treks, tropical 'jungle', wide rivers, rain, sun, hot, humid, great fish and sweet coffee (then you add sweetened condensed milk - glad I drink it black).......would I go back??? Not sure....think I've seen enough for now!!