April 3, 2007

Water Puppets

On our last day in Hanoi we went to see a water puppet show. This is a North Vietnamese tradition.

The Puppeteers stand in a big tank of water, the water is about knee deep and then they stand behind bamboo screens so you can't see them. The puppets are on long sticks so they are controlled from behind the screens but come in front of them.

We weren't to sure what to expect, we thought it might be a bit like a Vietnamese Punch and Judy but it was actually very impressive. It started with a Dragon dance where four dragons danced around in and on the water then went on to many other scences.

Most of them were just simple parts of Vietnamese life like planting rice or catching fish.

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March 30, 2007

Ho Chi Minh (Katy)

Yesterday we spent the day doing touristy things around Hanoi, mostly, in fact all, to do with Ho Chi Minh.

We started off the day by visting the Mausoleum. Well, we started the day by queing for about an hour and a half to get into the Mausaoleum. There were so many people. You can't take anything in with you so you have to check bags into a little kiosk, then go through security gates, more strict than most airports, and then we found our queue was one of two that had to merge again after security. The other one was for Vietnamese people and that was even longer than ours. Eventually we got in and filed round in silence. You're not even allowed to put your hands in your pockets.

I'm not sure what I was expecting but the whole thing was quite like Madam Tussards, Ho Chi Minh was just lying (obviously) in a glass container with dim red lights shining on him. I think you must have to be Vietnamese to appreciate it.

I was reading in the guide book that although the same became of Lenin, Ho Chi Minh actually wanted a simple cremation. I wonder what he would think if he could see all this??

Next we went to see the place where Ho Chi Minh lived and worked when he was in power. Instead of using the presidential palace, he had a small simple building with only three rooms built especially for him to live and work in. This was good to see but it seemed like every school child in Vietnam hed been taken here today.

We also visited the Ho Chi Minh Museum. This was good but very random. There were a lot of artists interpretations of different parts of Ho Chi Minhs life and the ideas he had and the things he did. I found the giant table, chairs and fruit particularly interesting...

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March 29, 2007

Fancipan (3143m)

We left Sapa at about 9.30am and headed up the mountain pass by jeep. After about 15min we stopped as the road had not been finshed and we had to wait for the bulldozers to move. We arrived a little time later at the park entrance where we set off for our two day trek to the top of Francipan, Vietnam's highest mountain. We'd walked about 5km before the guide said it was time for lunch. We had to have a giude as we would not be allowed in the park without one.

Luch was good with fresh bead and fruit. After the guide had slept we eventually set of f again and expected to be walking for a good few hours but we were told that the camp was about 15min away. We arived at about 2pm, sorted the gear out and had a walk into the jungle.

We headed up to a pass at about 2300m where we saw a herd of water buffalo, which was pretty cool, until they started to walk up the path we were walking down. I just got some photos and moved away from them.

That evening the guide cooked us the one of the most amazing meals of the trip. We had fresh spring roles, fried pork and loads of rices and some of the local rice wine.

We set of from the camp at 6.30am to get to the top by midday. The guide said that it would be at least 4 hours to the top. The veiws were good and the path was steep but not as bad as everyone had made out. After 3 hours of walking we reached the top of Fracipan. It was good to get there at last and it was cold so we had a early lunch took photos and then made our way down back to the park entrace where the jeep was going to meet us.

It took about 5 hours to get back to the park entrance. We were glad to have done it and ready for food and a shower, and then the train back to Hanoi.

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Sapa

We arived in Sapa after a jourrney on the night train from Hanoi. The train was good and we even maneged to get some sleep. We arrived in Sapa at about 7am and first impressions of the place are good, like alpine resort with mountains all round.

We booked into our hostel and had breakfast - the usual egg on french bread. Then we headed into town to sort out what we where going to do for the next few days. The whole place is on the side of a hill and the hostel is at the bottom. Sapa is mainly on one road. When we arrived we couldn't see much due to really lthick fog, but apparently this was normal - the fog would close into about 10 a m and then clear to give way to amazing views of the mountains.

We walked up the road and found the loacal market. Its definitely diffent to back home.Meat is on wooden tables and they use every single bit of the animal which is a bit odd, but the most odd thing was the stall that sold roast dog not just individual cuts but the whole animal. Apparently in the north of Vietnam dog is eaten a lot but there's no chance of me trying it.

After a day in Sapa we decided to go to Bac Market which is about 110km from Sapa and is an amazing place. The local tribes head there every Sunday so the woman can sell the meat and crops and the men can drink rice wine until they fall over and then the womae put them in crates and take them home. Another intersetring thing - apart from this was the colourfullness of local dress. They wore layer after layer and they must of been so very hot. That Sunday was about 35c.

After spending the day at Bac we aranged to climb Fancipan, Vietnam's highest mountain. The trek was to take two days so we had a early night after packing up the kit for the trip.

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March 28, 2007

Fansipan (Katy)

While in Sapa we decided to climb Mount Fanispan. It's 3,143 metres high and the highest mountain in Indochina. We got a guide because it's really difficult to organise the trip without one and decided to take two days to climb the mountain.

The first day we met our guide and got in a Jeep to go to the national park. On the way we were stopped in a road block. It turned out to be road works, and apparently they frequently get stopped for an hour or so. We did as everyone else and went and sat down at one of the stalls that had appeared at the side of the road. Eventually we got to the a National Park and the start of our walk.

After about 20 mins of slow walking our guide decided we should stop for a while. We said we didn't need to rest but it turned out we were almost at our destination for the day. After another 10 mins walking, an hour stop for lunch and then a final 10 mins we arrived at our campsite. It wasn't much after 2 pm!!

We had a bit of an explore of the area. We were just walking back along a little path when a herd of water buffalo appeared coming towards us. They only went slowly but I got a bit scared when I saw one of them had a small calf. They just looked at us suspiciously and carried on.

Later on our guide, Joun, cooked us tea. It has to be one of the best meals we've had in ages. We had chips to start ( random!!), then home made spring rolls, then three different meat dishes, two different vegetable dishes and the biggest pot of rice ever - and all cooked on a camp fire. They also got out the rice wine!! - which tasted a bit like very bad Vodka

Next morning we had an early start. Breakfast at 6 am (Noodles)so we could start walking at 6.30am. As we had only walked 5 km the first day, we had to walk 19km the second day. 7km to the top then 12km back to the road. The walking was very steep in places but not continuously so we made good time. The mountains looked amazing with the mist coming and going. We reached the top in just under 3 hours. (They told us it would be at 4hours) and had lunch on the top. It was only about 9.30 am but Joun seemed adamant that it was lunch time. The mist came right in just as we reached the top and we couldn't see anything so after a few pictures and a quick sandwich we started to descend.

We reached our campsite again by about 1 pm and had a rest there before the final 5km. We reached the park entrance at about 3pm but our jeep didn't turn up until almost 5pm.
We had to catch the bus to the train station at 6.30 so we were starting to get a bit worried, but there's nothing you can do. You just have to sit back and get in to the Vietnmese way of thinking. We did just make it in the end, with yet another stop at the road works.

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March 25, 2007

Bac Ha Market (Katy)

Today we went to Bac Ha market. It's about 110km from Sapa so took over 3 hours to get there.

The market was amazing though. It was full of the hill tribe people in their traditional dress. They are related to the tribes near Sapa but the clothes they wear are much more colourful. In Sapa are the Black Mung people and in Bac Ha there are the Flower Mung people.

Their clothes are embroidered with brightly coloured flowers. It was amazing to see. They all come in from the surrounding hills on Sunday to buy and sell what they need at the market. As usual it was the women doing all the work while the men sit together drinking rice wine. Some of them looked very much the worse for wear after lunch.

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March 24, 2007

Halong Bay (Joe)

After a night in Hanoi we decided to book a bus to take us to Halong city. It took about three hours on a mini bus. Once we arrived in Halong city we quickly found a place to stay on the water front.
Halong city is not so interesting. We were there less then 24 hours and we had done everything there was to do, We did book a boat out of Halong Bay to drop us off at Cat Ba island.
After a good nights sleep we headed down to the docks where we saw about two hundred traditional boats all tied up. After a bit of trouble trying to find out what was going on we got on the right boat and set of into Halong Bay.

The weather wasn't too good but still loads better then the UK. The boat was a tour boat which was good as we where heading to some cave in the bay, Along the way we saw some amazing rock towers and a few big birds of prey - not sure what kind but they were big. After an hour or so we arrived at the cave. From the outside it looked really interesting but once inside we saw that stalagmites had been smashed down to make way for a concrete foot path and tourist shops. It was such a let down to see an amazing cave destroyed for tourism.
We headed back to the boat and cruised through the bay for a few hours before we arrived at Cat Ba island docks. As docks go it wasnt too bad with a good view over Halong Bay. We spent the next three day on Cat Ba Island.

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Sapa (Katy)

This morning we arrived in Sapa. We got the night train last night from Hanoi. I was so tired after a full day of travelling, I slept really well. We arrived at Loi Cai at aout 6.00am then had a 45min bus ride to Sapa. The bus ride was pretty amazing, up in to the mountains, along all the little mountain roads and into the mist. A lot of the hillsides have terraces built onto them so rice, or other crops can be grown.

Sapa, and the surrounding area is home to many different tribes, many of whom still wear traditional dress.

The town is pretty small, and quite touristy, but still friendly. Every few mins the mist comes in and you can't see anything, then a few mins later it will clear to bright sunshine.

Today we are just spending our time exploring. Tomorrow we go to a market then the day after we will climb Fansipan, Vietnams highest peak.

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March 23, 2007

Costa del Cat Ba (Katy)

Just arrived back in Hanoi after 4 days on Cat Ba island. The island and surrounding area has to be one of the most amazing places I have ever seen, but the town completely spoils it. It's full of flashing lights and high rise hotels.

We planned to go sea kayaking for a day when we were there but unfortunately the guy gave us a boat with a hole in it so after 10 mins paddling we were half full of water. This would have been okay, if there had been anywhere to stop and empty out, but all of the islands come straight out of the sea into massive limestone cliffs. Eventually we found a rocky ledge to balance on and managed to get rid of most of the water. After an hour or so of this we decided to cut our losses and go back. The guy we had hired it from still insisted there was nothing wrong with it and quickly hired it out again to another customer.

After 4 days of episodes like this it was quite a relief to get back to Hanoi.

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March 21, 2007

The Weather (Katy)

Since we reached Hanoi, last week the weather has been pretty poor. There was quite a lot of rain to start, and now it's a bit dull and misty. Now when I say poor, by Engligh standards it's probbably pretty good. We were sitting outside a cafe the other night, complaining how cold it was and I looked up and saw a thermometre. It said 20 0 C. And this was about 8pm!! So it's not that cold really. I think we are just feeling it more because we weren't expecting it. We weren't prepared. Apparently though we should have been. The weather here is always like this at this time of year, and doesn't get hotter for another month or so.

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Cat Ba Island

We are currently on Cat Ba Island, an Island in Halong Bay. We arrived here on Monday evening after a long boat trip from Halong City.

We stopped a couple of times on the way, once to see a massive cave on one of the islands. It was very impressive but you could see a lot had been ruined in order to put a path and lights in for tourists.

We stopped again in the middle of a load of little islands, where a guy from the fish farm came over towing loads of double kayaks. They then said anyone who wanted to could go off kayaking for an hour. No buoyancy Aads, no instruction, no guide, just go where you want and be back in an hour. Of course me and Joe took full advantage of this and went off to explore. It was amazing to explore around all of the islands and into the little caves and lagoons.

Eventually we reached Cat Ba town which, although is in the middle of this amazing place, looks a bit like Blackpool. At night there are thousands of flashing lights along the sea front. Why do they do that?

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Cat Ba Biosphere Reserve

Located in the north west of Vietnam, about 50km from Halong city and ajacent to the Halong Bay world heritage site, the Cat Ba archipelago is internationally important for its limestone karst hills and islands. It is one of the best examples in the world of a karst landscape by the sea. The 366 limestone islands contain landforms, caves and cave deposits that provide evidence of a long history of erosion and landscape evoluton. Many of the small islands rise steeply or vertically from the shallow marine waters and are the distinguishing feature of the region. The bigger of the islands, including 285km Cat Ba island itself, are covered by evergreen monsoon forest.
The archipelago is of global importance due to the high number of species found nowhere else. The golden-headed langur is one of the ten rarest primates in the world due to its resticted range and small population size. There are also regionally important habitat types including fringing coral reefs, mangrove forests, sea grass beds, willow swamp forest and tropical limbstone forest. Most of the habitats are under severe threat, especially due to encroachment. With these special values Cat Ba was acknowleged as a World Biosphere Reserve in 2004.

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March 18, 2007

Halong Bay (Katy)

We left the hotsel in Hanoi at about 7.15am to catch our bus to Halong bay. Of course they didn't tell us that the bus wasn't actually going to leave until 8.30am, so as usual, lots of waiting around. The bus journey was unusally uneventful and we even arrived in Halong Bay at the time we were told. That was a first.

Unfortunately it is raining here too, but the bay still looks amazing. It looks a bit like the south of Thailand, with lots of bit limestome outcrops coming straight out of the sea, but there seems to be loads more of them. I can't wait until the fog lifts and we can actually see it all properly.

Tomorrow we a going out on boat to one of the islands - Cat Ba Island - and hopefully we're going to stay there for a few days

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Hanoi (Katy)

We arrived in Hanoi at about 5.30am yesterday morning. I must admit, first impressions weren't all that great. First of all it was raining, dark, the taxi driver couldn't find the hostel then we had to wait nearly 3hours for a room. After a fourteen hour train journey we were just a bit tired.

It continued to rain but we managed to sort ourselves out a bit. We didn't really explore to much, apart from the Old Quarter. We did however manage to get hopelessly lost (more than once). All the streets look the same. We managed to walk round in circles, just missing our hostel everytime.

After visiting many tour operators we managed to find one that would sell us just a bus ticket to Halong Bay, not the whole package tour. Most of the tour operators simply wouldn't allow it. Why didn't we want to go on their whole tour?

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Train to Hanoi

We left Hue at about 4pm by train. The journey would be about 14 hours so we booked a soft sleeper which was a four bunk bed room with air/con.
We boarded the train and found our room easily. We were sharing with two Vietnamese people, The Vietnamese seem not to like to sleep on the top bunk so we slept there. After we set off the guard came round to take our tickets and he gave us a bottle of water. The train started really slowly but it was still so much better then being on the bus for 14 hours because we could sleep properly. After an hour or so food was given out. It was good and there was loads of it. We thought we'd be charged for it but it was in with the ticket which was a nice surprise.

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March 16, 2007

The Citadel and the Imperial City (Katy)

So yesterday afternoon we eventually made it to the Imperial City. The floapole was truly enormous, I don't know how we missed it.

The Imperial City really is like another small city inside the city. There is a big moat and a wall around it, as well as the moat and wall that surround the whole of the old city. On the way in there are nine "Holy" cannons (not sure how cannons can be holy) that were put there to protect the city but were never fired. Four of them on one side represent the four seasons, and five on the other represent five elements.

Inside the Imperial City there is a large lilly pond with a bridge over it. Apparently only the King was allowed on the brigde, everyone else had to walk right around the ponds.

A lot of the building inside the walls have been destroyed, due to heavy fighting in the area but some buildings still remain and others are being restored for tourism. Until relatively recently the buildings were left as ruins because the government saw them as reminders of the time before "Liberation" and communism. The thought of attracting people and making money from tourism soon changed their minds.

On the way out of the Citadel we were feeling pretty tired and hot and as usual we started getting harassed by Cyclo's (men with bikes with a big seat on the front that ride you around), so we thought why not. Usually they only take one person but this guy had adapted his to take two, so in we got. It was quite interesting, if not a little scary and I couldn't help feeling a bit guilty as this guy stuggled though the traffic in the mid afternoon sun. Anyway, he got us back safely, even if he did look like he was about to pass out.

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March 15, 2007

Hue (Katy)

Had a bit more time to explore Hue, well I say explore, we've actually had a bit more time to get lost around Hue. We set off this morning to find the Citadel (walled city), which we did find but couldn't find the Imperial Enclosure, which is somewhere inside. It only has the tallest flagpole in Vietnam, you would have thought we would have seen that, but no. We tried asking for directions but no one will give you them without you paying to be taken there. Eventually we gave up, left the walled city and bought a map. Of course on the way out I spotted the flagpole!!

So we haven't actually visited the Citadel yet but we know where we're going now and are heading there next.

Hue was historically quite a significant city in Vietnam and was the capital city for many years (early 1800's I think). The emperor lived here during that time, hence the walled city and tombs nearby. It was only when the French took over that they made Hanoi Capital.

During the war with the America Hue was also in the firing line because it was so close to the boarder and Demilitarised Zone. Hue was the only city in the south to actually be taken by the North. In 1968 the Communists stormed the city and took it over, flying their flag from the flagpole (the tallest in Vietnam) for more than 3 weeks. At which point the Americans used their massive fire power to win back the city.

Hue was also a centre for education during the 1800's. The children of Vietnam's most powerful people were sent to Hue to get an education.

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March 14, 2007

Vietnam, some observations

Having spent a bit of time in Vietnam, these are some of the things I've noticed.

Every where we've been in Vietnam so far, whether it's been city or countryside, coast or inland,
it seems to be the women who do all the work. They row boats and fish on the sea and rivers, they work the paddy fields, they work at the markets, they work on building sites with what seems like very little help from the men.

Although the currency in Vietnam is the Dong, and they do always use it (not like in Cambodia),
they often give you prices for things in US dollars, which means you have to multiply the number they tell you by 16,000. Why can't they just make things easy and just tell you the amount in their own currency?

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Hue (Katy)

We left Hoi An at about 8am this morning, and yes, it was another epic bus ride. They told us it would take about 3.5hours, which we thought wasn't to bad, it turned out to be so much longer.

We started to get a bit worried when the bus, having dropped us off at one of our many toilet stops, disappeared. Usually the drivers get straight into the cafe for their free meals but this time the bus and the drivers were no where to be seen. He said we'd be there for 45mins. After 1.5hours, still no sign. Eventually the bus turned up, apparently it had been in for some emergency repair and luckily our bags were still there.

We eventually reached Hue just after 1pm and have vowed never to take any long bus journeys again.

Hue seems like a nice city, although at present it's very quiet. It says in the guide book that it's a city of culture, but we haven't had time to explore yet.

Posted by admins at 8:06 AM | Comments(0)

New Clothes

We went to collect our new jackets yesterday. They are really nice. Joe decided that he wanted some new shirts as well, so the woman said come back in a couple of hours. When we returned there they were. It's amazing how quick it was. And we got two jackets and four shirts for less than the price that you'd get one jacket for at home.

I think it was quite lucky we were only there for a few days. The way Joe was going he would have spent all our money on made to measure clothes.

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March 12, 2007

Hoi An

Last night we got the night bus out of Nha Trang. It took us a long 12hours to reach our destination, Hoi An. The bus journey could have been worse but we got hardly any sleep. So we arrived in Hoi An at about 7.30 am and found a hotel straight away. We did just book in to the first cheap one that we found but it turned out to be really nice. It even has a swimming pool and we're only paying $12 a night for the room. That's only 3 pounds each. It's going to be so hard going back to England and paying proper prices.

We had some breakfast then went to explore. Hoi An is an ancient place with lots of older buildings. In many areas the older buildings were destroyed in the war.

Hoi An is also the place in Vietnam to have clothes tailor made. Not wanting to miss out on the experience, Joe and I decided to get a Jacket each. Again they were so cheap, it was hard to say no. They are going to be ready tomorrow, so I'm quite excited about it.

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March 11, 2007

Boat Trip from Nha Trang (Katy)

After three days of diving courses I needed some time to relax so we booked on a boat trip. It was pretty cheap, so we weren't too brothered about what it was like.

It started off okay, but we soon realised that it was going to be more expensive than we'd originally though. Every time we jumped off the boat to go swimming or snorkelling, it cost us money. It wasn't much money though so we just paid and carried on.

After lunch the guides on the boat, most of whom only spoke Vietnamese, picked up microphones and instruments and started to sing. It was one of the funniest things I've seen in a long time. We were on a boat, in the middle of the sea and these three guys started singing the Rivers of Babylon. They were really going for it as well. I thought one of them was going to break his drums.

After the enertainment was happy hour. This consisted of a floating bar, serving free wine and pineapple. Everyone was given a rubber ring, then you swam up to the bar for your drink. Well I say everyone got a rubber ring, apart from one poor guy who had to try to drink his wine while treading water. The current was quite strong so it was advised that he hold on to others.

Obviously we don't advise this type of behavior for. Drinking while swimming, especially in the middle of the sea is very dangerous and should never be allowed.

With happy hour over, we stopped at a few more islands, which we had to pay for, then eventually made it back to the harbour.

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Boat trip Nha Trang (Joe)

Not very much to say about this trip but the whole thing is a bit of a scam. You only pay 2.50 (pounds) for the day but then everytime you go for a swim you have to pay again.

Apart from that it was pretty funny to be in the middle of the South China sea with three middle aged Vietnamese men thinking that they where Rock & Roll.

The whole day we pretty much about having a big party while travelling round the local islands. It was ok once, but never again. The photos are really funny.

Posted by admins at 4:48 AM | Comments(0)

Suba diving Nha Trang (Joe)

When we in Thailand a few months ago we were told that the diving in Vertnam was rubbish, there was nothing to see and the visbility was not to good. However, I think the diving is so much better here than Krabi, Thialand. The water is warm the people are very friendly, the diving is very good. There's loads to see from small Clown fish (Nemo) to 6ft long Moray eels. The vissibility does change a lot but in the two days we dived it was up to 20m and the water was warm. This was really good for me because most of the diving I have done is in freezing cold water with visibility up to about 5metres.

We went by boat to a place called Temple Rock. It took about 40mins from the harbour, just time to sort kit out and sit in the sun. Once there we descended to about 15meters where there where loads of really amazing looking fish. I even saw the odd lion fish. I spent most of the dive looking and taking photos of the small clown fish (nemo) - they are really friendly. They will try to come right up to you face and are not scared at all.
The second dive was at Morrey beach, where I saw a massive 6ft long Moray eel. It seemed pretty friendly but I wasn't going to put my hand anywhere near it.
Day two diving the visibility wasn't as good as yesterday as the wind had got up but it was still about 10m which is ok. The first dive was at a place called Small Wall, not sure why because it was massive, about 30m high. The dive was good - not so many little colourful fish but a lot more biger one such as Wrass, Parot fish and some big Lion fish. We followed the wall to meet the boat.
Second dive was with Katy at Fishermans cove. The dive was good lots to see lots of small fish and loads of diffent colours, even saw a razer fish which was pretty good.
It's well worth going for a dive here. There are loads of companies in town but a lot are really expensive. The one we used was Scubazone. All the staff are very good and friendly, the kit is all up to date and the cost is half of some in town.info@scubazone-vn.comwww.scubazone-vn.com

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March 9, 2007

I am an Open Water Diver!!

I have just finished and passed my Padi Open Water Diver Course!!

I went out on the boat again today and did another two dives. I didn't have nearly as many skills to do today so I was a bit more relaxed.

On the first dive they tested me on a few things then we just went for a swim around. I saw loads of amazing fish, two Moray eels, loads of clown fish and angel fish, some kind of puffer fish. I could adjust my buoyancy a lot better today l which meant I could get a lot closer to the coral, and the fish.

The second dive, I did with Joe, well I tried to but he kept disapearing off to take pictures. I had finished all my skills so we could just have a swim around.

After the second dive we came back to town fof lunch. Then I just had my exam and quiz to do. I was pretty tired by this point but thought it would be better to get it out of the way. I was glad I did, I got 90% for one and 100% for the other. I Passed!!

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March 8, 2007

My First Day Diving (Katy)

Today I had my first day of proper diving. I'm currently doing my Padi Open Water course. Yesterday I did lots of the skills in the swimming pool, and today we went out on the boat. I was a little bit nervous to start with, but I think I'm getting to hang of it. Once under water I had to do skills like taking of my mask and putting it back on and emptying it out. There are all kinds of other skills as well.

The fish down there are pretty amazing. I even saw some clown fish (just like Nemo).

And there was loads of coral and anenomes. The colours were amazing.

I did two dives altogether, and I have to do another two tomorrow to finish off my course. I'm pretty tired now but I'm over my nerves asnd starting to enjoy it a bit more.

Posted by admins at 8:37 AM | Comments(0)

March 7, 2007

Just arrived in Nha Trang

We arruved in Nha Trang yesterday after a bus journey from Dalat. The journey wasn’t too bad and only took about 5 hours. This is the first time since Krabi we have been near the sea.

We were innundated with tour operators trying to get us to stay at their hotels as we got off the bus. we ignored them and set of down the roadto find somewhere to stay when a guy pulled up on a scooter next and started to talk about his hotel. For some reason, not sure why, we went to have a look at the hotel. He said it was a nice hotel and thought that was funny!! Then, as we pulled up at the hotel I realized why. It is called The Nice Hotel, Nha Trang. It is definitely not the type of place we would usually stay - 4or5 star by UK standards, but we had a look at the rooms and they where amazing with air con and sea views and balconies. I thought by Vietnamese prices it would be about 30/40 pounds but its only 5 pounds per night so we're really happy about that.

We've just had breakfast (eggs and French bread). Katy’s just started an open water diving course, and this afternoon I think they're doing the first pool session so that should be good. Tomorrow we are both heading off to do two open water dives off the back of a dive boat. We've heard there are lots of fish around including a family of Napoleon fish which are about 5ft long so should be interesting. I've borrowed an underwater digital camera so hopefully I will be able to put some photos on the blog.

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March 5, 2007

Lang Bieng National Park (Katy)

Today we went walking in Lang Bieng National Park. It's about 10km out of town so we hired a motorbike to get there. We've hired bikes before, in Thailand, and thought that was bad but the roads are so crazy here, I was a little nervous. It was only 60,000 Dong to hire a bike for the whole day. That's 2 pounds.

Everything was fine though and before we knew it we were in the car park at the bottom of the hill. Well I say a hill, it was actually 2169m, so more like a mountain, but we did start quite high.

The first bit of the walk was up a road. This wasn't too bad until Jeeps started flying up and down past us, taking tourists to a restaurant on the other side of the mountain. Soon we turned off on to a small path and that's when we started to climb. It was really steep and the sun was so hot. Some parts were like going through a forest, or jungle but at least it was shady. Once again I was a bit worried about the snakes, but again I didn't see any.

Eventually we came out though the trees and climbed the last bit to the top. The views were p amazing but we couldn't stay too long. It was way to hot.

After climbing down the steep bit we followed another path over to the other side of the hill. This gave us a really good view over a lake so we stopped here, in the shade, to have something to eat.

From there it was an easy walk back down to the bottom and then back on the bike to Dalat. We filled the bike up with pertol on the way back. It cost 30, 000 Dong (1 pound). If only it was that cheap at home.

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March 4, 2007

Climbing (Katy)

Today we went climbing. Apparently there is some law in Vietnam saying we can't go climbing without a guide, not sure what it's all about. It seems daft because you don't need any qualifications to be a guide. Anyway, we needed some kit (a rope mainly) so we got a guide but he said he would just come along and show us where the climbing was. It turned out to be pretty lucky that we didn't need any instruction seen as he forgot his harness.

The climbing was in a national park with lots of massive waterfalls. It's pretty spectacular. We walked though a jungle to get to the first site. I was a bit worried that we might see snakes but luckily we missed them today. (I know they're out there though!!)

The first climb was good, when I saw it I was sure I wouldn't even get off the floor but I got up most of it quite easily. I was quietly impressed with myself.

After going to a second site we went for a swim in the pool at the bottom of a massive waterfall. It was an all or nothing jump off the rocks and it was really cold. It was good to cool off through. It was over 35 0 C most of the day.

The last place we went was the most amazing setting. Right next to the river, You even had to step over a narrow stream onto the rock. I struggled up most of this one and didn't make it to the top.

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Rock climbing in Dalat

We left at about 8.30 am after having breakfast in a Vietnamese greasy spoon café. We set of up the national park and paid the park fee (25p) then headed into the jungle to find the first climbing site and this was we past some amazing water falls.

After walking for about 2km we arrived at a place the locals call Tiger Rock. This was to be our fist climbing area. The rock was pretty good and I set off up the first rough. It wasn’t to bad - about 6a and the holds were good but the sun was really hot. We both climbed for a while until we got really sun burnt and then headed further into the jungle to the next area. The second was very different. The holds were more jug like and it was really good climbing. Again we stayed till we were too hot to climb and then we headed to the river for a swim. At first I wasn’t all the sure about swimming in the river in the middle of the jungle mile from anywhere, but it was very refreshing and we felt so much better.

After an hour or so we walked a litter further into the jungle to the final climb area. This was only short and rough but pretty technical and over the river. We had lunch and climbed here for a short time. We were really tired after this and ready to head back to town. We walked out of the jungle and went back to the hostel. It’s been a really good day and excellent climbing.

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The Crazy House Dalat

Just outside of the centre of town there is a pretty odd hotel designed by a Vietnamese woman who studied for a PhD in Moscow, then she moved back to Dalat to build the Crazy House Hotel and this place IS really crazy.

Each room has its own theme from the bear room with a life size model built into the fireplace to the ant room with a troop of ants walking over the ceiling.

The place is a cross between Alice in Wonderland and a theme park gone wrong. We spent about an hour looking round and it is pretty cool with lots of little hidden place and rooms. She said that the hotel would be competed by 2010. I don't know if I would stay here - it’s a bit scary, but it’s definitely worth having a look.

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March 3, 2007

Crazy House - Dalat

Today we went to a place called Crazy House, and I think it was truely the caziest house I've ever seen.

It's going to be a guesthouse, but it's not finished yet. One of the buildings is quite like a tree, and you follow little passageways through the building. Each of the rooms has a different model of an animal in it, that is made, somehow, in o the fireplace. Some of the rooms are quite scary. The whole thing is very Alice in Wonderland and strange.

The woman who designed it and lives here is an architect who studied in Moscow. She's also the daughter of a former Prime Minister ( the one after Ho Chi Min). She is still working on it. It won't be properly finished until 2010.

It was really good to see but is so random and I think it might be a bit scary to stay there.

Dalat has some other really ramdom attractions, like a park with lots of giant concrete chickens in it. And a place called the valley of love, I don't know what's there....

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The Road to Dalat (Joe)

What a nightmare the journey was yesterday, we boarded the bus at about 7.30 in Saigon. It was was pretty good (air con) and not too many people on but the journey which should have taken about 5-6 hours, which would have got us there at about 2pm and would have been ok because we would have time to find somewhere to stay and have some food and have a look round the town, instead took about 9 hours and the road there wasn’t all that good so no chance of sleeping!!! I tried to pass the time by reading a book about odd travel journeys round the world which seemed quite fitting, but I went for the cheap option with the book and bought the boot leg scanned version from Saigon with some pages missing and many of the words missing. It did pass the time trying to work out which words went where. After a few hours I gave up listened to music. I think I know know every word to all the newest Arctic Monkeys album. We also had a French in 30 days CD which I thought would be good, but after a while it just put me to sleep.

After a few hours we stopped for food. It was good and really cheap.

Eventually we arrived in Dalat at about 5.30pm and found a really nice hostel in the centre of town run by lovely peole and we even have hot water. A little later we headed in to town. There aren't many westeners just lots of Vietnamese on holiday. It looks a good place to spend a few days. Hopefully tomorrow we are going rock climbing in the jungle just outside of town, should be good.

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Dalat and our Jouney here (Katy)

Yesterday we arrived in Dalat, after a nine hour bus ride. We'd been expecting 5 or 6 hours, but not 9, and the roads were just so bumpy. It's hard to read because you're bouncing around so much. Anyway, eventually at about 6pm we made it here and we found the hostel that we'd booked into easily.

The weather here is a lot cooler than anywhere we've been so far. It's probbably similar to a hot summers day in Britain. Still shorts and t shirt weather but not so hot that you have to stay in the shade the whole time.

Dalat seems like an interesting place, although we haven't had much time to explore yet. It's quite a hilly area and the town is next to a lake. There are lots of Vietnamese people on holiday here.

We've heard that there's some climbing just out of town so we're going to try to go there tomorrow. We're hoping that we're both going to be really fit so we'll be able to climb really hard. We'll have to wait and see about that.

Posted by admins at 3:09 AM | Comments(2)

Ho Chi Min City (Saigon) - Joe

Down town Saigon is one off the most random places I have ever been. The traffic is on rush hour mode all the time. One off the guides who lives in Saigon told us that there are 8million people living in the city and there are 4 million scooters, and on an average day 20 people are killed on the roads around the city.

Apart from all the chaos Saigon also is one of the nicer cities I have visited. The people are genuinely nice too, and not because they want your money. Even the book sellers on the street don’t hassle you.

Around the city there are lots of interesting places such as the war museum. Just in the centre of the city is the main post office and it seemed a bit of a waste of time to go and look at a post office, but this one is an exception. It is massive and as you walk though the big front door you can see a large painting of Ho Chi Min at the far end.

The roof it made out of large sheets of glass with metal girders. It is was well worth having a look round and taking some photos.

As a city Saigon is quite modern and it’s still one of the cheapest place to stay.

The food in the city is really good there’s not just local food like frog, dog and pig head, you can eat pretty much anything from pizza to pie and chips.

We head off tomorrow and head offtravel north to Dalat. That should take about 5 or 6 hours.

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Reunification Building -Saigon

While in Saigon we visited the Reunification Building. This was the home of the South Vietnamese President and his government. In 1975 when Ho Chi Min made Vietnam one country, there were famous pictures of tanks ramming through the gates and a soilder flying a flag (North Vietnamese) from the balcony. Since this time the building seems just to have been left, exactly how it was. And apart from the tourists and the occasional dinner, it is unused.

It is a huge building, built in the 1960's. There was a similar building there before, home to the South Vietnamese President but he was so hated that it was bombed by his own troops, in an attempt to kill him. He escaped but when the palace was rebuilt he ensured it had a bomb shelter underneath. By the time this building was finished he had been killed, by his own army so never got to live in his new palace.

The place has an strange feeling to it. The network of tunnels and bomb shelters underneath are quite scary. As Joe said when we were in them, it would be the pertect setting for a horror film. Upstairs there are lots of reception rooms and then furthur up there are dance halls, a casino and a cinema. There's even a helipad on one of the balconies with the shell of a helicopter on it.

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Cu Chi Tunnel (Joe)

The Cu Chi Tunnels are about an hour by bus ride outside Saigon.
The tunnels where build in the Vietnam war to protect the Cu Chi local villagers from the American troops. They are really amazing, set in the countryside with some up to 4 floors deep. There are about 200km of underground tunnels which house everything from sleeping to cooking and some people even got married in the tunnels.

They are really well thought out with very small entrances so that the small Vietnamese peple could get in but the bigger Americans couldn't. If anyone did get into the tunnels there were traps and trapdoors stop them from passing in to the main system. They made use of everything they found during that time. They used old parachutes for hammocks, old bombs were cut up and made into other weapons to be used against the Americans.

It is really amazing to think that they lived underground like this for ten years while the war was on.

If you get chance go and see them. They're amazing.

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War Remnants Museum (Saigon) - Joe

The war museum is located just off the backpacker district of Saigon.
It is set just off the main road in a small courtyard and as you walk in you see tanks, helicopters and some large rocket launchers.
The place is split into 6 rooms the first of which has photos of the start of the war. Each building is set in a different phase of the war. The museum seems to be quite anti American.

The most interesting but the most disturbing aspectis the information on the Agent Orange which the American army dropped on Vietnam to kill troops. Agent Orange, when it was let into the air, polluted everything in its path. The effects are still visible today with people with missing limbs and other defects. Agent Orange wasn’t tested by the Americans and they dropped it, not just on troops but on villagers and schools. The photos in the Museum show the ongoing effects of Agent Orange.
The Museum is well worth visiting and it is very interesting to see the point of view of the Vietnamese, and not just the western side which we see in all the films.

Posted by admins at 2:36 AM | Comments(0)

Vietnam (Katy)

We've been in Vietnam for about a week now and we're starting to get a feel for the country so here are a few things to pass on to you about Vietnam.

The currency in Vietnam is the Dong, and there are 30,000 dong to the pound. This means Joe and I are currently millionaires. Some people do want you to pay in dollars, especially street sellers and small souvenir shops (I think it's worth more for them), but generally the rule is to pay in Dong.

We've just spent a few days in Ho Chi Min City, which everyone still calls Saigon. I think unless you're filling in official forms, it's Saigon. Saigon was the capital city of South Vietnam, when the country was split in two and when it became one, Saigon was renamed Ho Chi Min.

Ho Chi Min has become a national hero in Vietnam, which seems weird to me because he fought and fought to bring communism to Vietnam. The people hated communism but have found from somewhere an overwelming respct for Ho Chi Min.

After the Vietnam War in 1975 North and South Vietnam became one communist country under Ho Chi Min. All of the land was taken from the owners and all private businesses were closed. For 15 years they struggled through then in 1990 there was a change. The government realised that communism as they saw it wasn't going to work for them so they would stay communist, but in name only. They gave back the land and gave incentives for starting buisnesses. Since then the country seems to have grown economically at a great speed. It certainly seems a lot more like Thailand, than like Cambodia. Vietnamese people can be seen on holiday and going out to restaurants, things that very rarely happen in Cambodia.

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February 28, 2007

Wednesday 28th Saigon and Cu Chi Tunnels (Katy)

We've just been to see the Cu Chi tunnels. These are a network of underground tunnels made by the Communists (North Vietnamese) during the war here (1960s and 1970s) so they could escape from the bombings of the American Troops who were supporting the South Vietnamese.

Just when I was starting to understand what happened in the Khmer Rouge Regime, we come here and I'm back to square one.

The local soldiers of the Cu Chi area (communists who supported Ho chi Minh) built a network of tunnels that they sometimes lived in for weeks on end. They had three different levels, air holes and escape roots. There are about 200 km of tunnels.

Today we got to see a few small sections of them. The entrances are really small so the Vietnamese could fit down but the Americans couldn't. We also saw some of the weapons and traps that were used, some of them looked pretty horrific.



We also visited the War Remnants museum. This has pictures of the war and the after effects. They showed people effected by Napalm bombs and there were photos of children born with deformities because their parents had been exposed to Agent Orange (a chemical pesticide used by the Americans)

As with Phnom Penh, these things are depressing but unmissable.

Posted by admins at 11:53 AM | Comments(1)

Tuesday 27th (Katy)

Today we visited the floating markets. Our boat was small, just wide enough to fit two people side by side, but pretty long. The seats were wooden planks and you couldn't hear yourself think because the engine was so noisy. The floating markets were good though. There were lots of big boats with big bamboo poles sticking out of the top. Hanging on the pole was whatever that boat was selling. All the boats sold some kind of fruit and veg with lots of water melons and tomatoes. In between the big boats lots of little boats were being rowed around.



They stand up on the back of the boat and row it, only facing fowards (the opposite to rowing). These people were obviously shopping and some were filled to the gunwhales with all kinds of fruit and veg.

After the boat trip it was another long bus ride. This time it was to Saigon, but it took over 5 hours. We made it in good time considering we had to stop a few times and change buses on the way.

Conveniently, we were dropped off by the buses just metres away from the hostel we'd booked and within minutes we were in our air conditioned (!!) room. The room even has hot water, the first hot water we've had since Thialand.

Saigon is an interesting city. It's a lot more like Thailand than Cambodia. It's a lot cleaner and more organised. Within an hour of us arriving we'd found our hostel, booked a tour, booked a bus to leave on Friday and put washing in . That would have taken two whole days to complete in Cambodia.

Posted by admins at 11:39 AM | Comments(0)

February 26, 2007

Monday 26th (Katy)

Yet another early morning, and the next day of our journey. Straight after breakfast we went off on a boat with our trusty guide Dong. He introduced himself by saying "When you bang a drum you hear my name, Dong, Dong, Dong, Dong". He took us to see a fish farm, one of the biggest industries here in the delta. People make cages under their floating houses and farm the fish in there, whilst living over them. Vietnam export a lot of fish to other countries especially America. We also went to a little village where the 'Chan' people live. They live on and around the Delta and are mainly Muslim.

Once off the boat, another bus ride, this time to Can Tho. This is a much bigger place than Chou Doc but still in the Delta. Arriving here, the differences between Vietnam and Cambodia are becoming more clear. Apart from the obvious like the people wearing pointed bamboo hats instead of the checked scarfs (Krama) that the Kmers wear, there are many other differences. Vietnam is a lot cleaner, they seem to have some kind of system of waste disposal instead of just throwing rubbish into the streets. I think it may be that Vietnam is just one step higher on the economic ladder.

Anyway, just one night here in Can Tho and then we'll visit a floating markets on the delta tomorrow before heading up to Ho Chi Min City (Saigon)

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The Mekong and Vietnam (Katy)

Another early morning before another long bus ride. After three hours we got off the bus and onto a boat. The boat was small and cramped with lots of people on it .
It was good to be on the Mekong again but the river was so wide by this point that you couldn't really see the sides
After 2 hours on the boat we reached the Cambodian border control. We went through quickly, stamp on your passport and off you go. Back on the boat for another 15mins then off again for the Vietnam border control. This took a little longer. We went through, got our pasports stamped, had our visas checked then, for some reason they collected in all of our passports and said whatever they had to do with them would take about half an hour. We waited in a conveniently situated cafe, and eventually the passports came back. Then it was off to put our bags through the security before getting on another boat. This journey was to take about 2 to 3 hours and would take us to Chou Doc, our final destination for the day. The boat wasn't too bad although it was so noisy, you couldn't speak to each other and we were sitting right next to the engine so it was very hot as well.

When my sandal fell into the engine!!! I thought the day might end in disaster . I had visions of it catching fire and the whole engine going up with it. Luckily we stopped to get fuel shortly afterwards and Joe picked it out for me. There wasn't even a mark on it!!

For most of this journey we were in the delta, on much narrower rivers that all link up together. This was a lot more interesting as you could see much more. Children swim and adults work or prepare food all the way along the river bank. You can really see how the river is the life blood for people here

Eventually we reached Chou Doc. It is essentially a town grown for the docks, but there are also lots of floating houses and house boats on the river around here.

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Just Left Cambodia (Joe)

We left Cambodia at about 6.30am on Saturday 24th February, heading towards Vietnam.
We booked to go all the way to Saigon wich will take four days.

Day 1
Left Siem Reap about 6.30 on a small bus from the town. No one had clue what was going on including the people running the trip, so we just followed on and were herded like cattle onto a bus heading to Phnom Penh .The journey took about 5-6 hours. We did stop once for some lunch at the side of the road and I tried some deep fried tarantula. It wasn't as bad as it sounds, just a bit crispy.
Once in Phnom Penh we had a few hours to have a look round and took a sun set cruise on an old fishing boat with three plastic chairs.

We then headed to the backpackers area of town to eat. The food was ok and there were lots of westen bars.

Day 2
Set off from Phnom Penh at about 7am and again we were herded on to buses. The journey was about 3 hours, this time to the river, where we checked on to a boat on the Mekong. The Mekong is massive it must be about 3km across at some points.



We set off down the river for about 3 hours . It was amazing being on a boat on the Mekong. We arrived at Cambodian border control where they stamped our passports and we got back on the boat to head of to the Vietnam border. The boat journey this time was only abou ten mins. Once at to border we showed our pasports to the officer who didn't care if the passport and the person where the same. Then at last some one stared to tell us what was going on. She said that our passports would take abou 30 mins to process so we could go and eat at her friend's cafe.

We got our pasports back and got on a different boat to head to Chou Doc which was about two hours away. The boat trip started to get really good now. After about ten mins on the boat we when down a side river. It was amazing to see all the houses on stillts and people living by the river.

We arrived at Chou Doc, not much here, just a small fishing port with not much else to to see but that was ok we were pretty tired by then.

Day 3
Left Chou Doc at about 7am. We stopped at a fish farm on the side of the Mekong. There were hundreds of fish of all sizes. We stayed here for a while before heading back to get a bus to take us to Can Tho.

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