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We're back online, with another lengthy (hopefully enjoyable) update to the blog!! Super busy, jumping from city to city with equal wonder and at least some confusion! Currently in Ho Chi Minh City (formally Saigon, capital of South Vietnam) and having a really cracking week!
We hope you are all well - less than a week left for us now, seems like its all happened too quickly!! Love to you all, very much looking forward to telling a few tales first hand! xxxx
Like the final chapters of a favourite book, or perhaps the last mouthful of a perfect meal, there lies a certain uneasy satisfaction in conclusion. A slight tinge of sadness that touches you briefly. You have enjoyed every last minute of the time elapsed, yet somehow wish that you could pause the ticking clock for just a moment longer, prolonging the sensation for a stolen second. I think thats pretty much how we're both feeling right now, sitting here in the delightfully homely Long Guesthouse, dead centre of the busiest of Vietnamese citiies, Saigon (Ho Chi Minh, depending on which side of the border you hail from!!). Its certainly been the adventure we were craving, both culturally and environmentally. From the steaming heat of Hanoi, to the gentle beauty of Ha Long Bay, from Imperial Hue, to cosmopolitan Hoi An, through the paradise beaches of Nha Trang, to our present location in Saigon, we can admit to loving every second of a journey well spent, yet perhaps wishing we could wind back the watch and start all over again!
We left you last time in Hue, a glorious city set upon the banks of a muddy, fast flowing river. We marvelled at the Imperial legacy left by a thousand years of Chinese rule and were left humbled by the tales of the bitter fighting that threatened to consume this most spectacular of cities; the damage from a thousand tonnes of American bombs still being painstakingly repaired. Hue was very much at the centre of the war in the 1960's, with both sides desperate to wrestle control of the first major city south of the former north/south border. The land to the north of the city, that of the DMZ (De-militarised zone) was to provide the backdrop for yet another tour (oh how we have grown to enjoy a coach trip...). Enormously popular with most visitors, especially our dear American friends, we piled onto an olive green, slighty sweaty tour bus to begin the journey north. Fueled with rich local coffee and eggs of one description of another, we were greeted on the bus by our guide for the day. Now, there are the party faithful in my book, then there are the party faithful. This chap was indeed the latter. Quick to point out the huge loss of life on the American side, mixed in with graphic portrayals of war crimes committed by young Texans, he continued with some delight to reel off a short, one sided history of the conflict, which seemed, from his perspective, to have all gone rather swimmingly from the North Vietnamese perspective....! However, he was quite entertaining and certainly opened our eyes to another side to this well recounted story! We stopped to take the obligatory photos at some former US fire-bases (over-run and captured by the glorious revolutionary armies of the North of course..!) and managed to drop in to visit a traditional ethnic village, where smiling children quickly sought to relieve us of cash, sweets and anything else of percieved value! There was a small museum at Khe Sanh with some captured military equipment (cue many photos of standing next to smashed helicopters) and some fairly graphic images of the carnage that once raged throughout the now quiet valleys. We were struck by the stillness and silence here, scene of one of the bloodiest sieges of the conflict. Similar to the poppy fields of Flanders, pock marked with un-natural shapes of explosions, the erie quiet seems to bare witness to the lives given during darker days of battle. Back on the bus, we wound our way down green gorges and beautful mountain scenery, passing a hapless tanker that had overturned on one of the hairpin bends. Into a small cafe for a pre arranged lunch, we headed to the tunnels of Vinh Moc, part of an elaborate tunnel system used by the Vietcong to conceal themsleves from the US forces above ground. Stiflingly hot and blacker than a night in Gosport, the tunnels were quite an experience. Guides, some of whom had been born in the tunnles themselves and had been rendered deaf by US bombardment, showed us round the complex warren of underground alleyways. Facinating, but we were more than glad to reach the surface again! Quite what it must have been like to live in the darkness, 30 metres underground, fighting for your very existence is perhaps unimaginable for us, yet it gives some idea as to the depth and resolve of the Vietnamese population. Exhausted, and a little overwhelmed with what we'd taken in that day, we retired to the hotel after being dropped off by the bus. Milling about in the hotel reception, we decided to settle up with the manager as we were due to leave. $40 please..............check pockets........no wallet...........check again.......not there.....hmmmmmm!!!. 'Robust' discussion between the two of us, each seeking to blame the other for the loss of the wallet! Get the bus company on the phone........what's that.......it's not their bus and they don't know where it is.....? Mild panic now. Enter hotel manager, proactive and efficient. I was quickly handed a helmet and told by my beloved to recover the wallet at all costs.....holiday bliss was on the brink of collapse if I failed. Jumping onto the back of the manager's motorbike, we raced off into the swirling evening traffic - exciting stuff!!. A haze of streets, sirens and two stroke smoke filled the air as we darted through back streets, the manager determined to discover the whereabouts of the missing bus. We sped deeper into the city, through darker streets and un-paved roads, the warm air rushing around us, until suddenly we arrived in a hail of gravel at a small bus garage, where low and behold, our bus was being cleaned! The driver, who also turned out to be chief cleaner, was not a happy chappy. Restrained by the manager, I nipped past him and onto the clean bus, muddy flipflops sadly undoing much of his work!! Nothing on the floor, lots of shouting in Vietnamese, feeling a little out of my depth. Reach down the side of the seat in a last gasp effort.......result!! A familiar shape in my hands, I pulled the wallet from its hiding place, fending off the furious driver who was now demanding payment for my footprints. Not a chance. We roared back to the hotel with high fives and yelling all the way home; the majority of which coming from the manager himself! Wallet safe. Job done. Marital bliss restored.
We left Hue behind with another coach journey, again an early start the following day. Funny that we had always planned to travel by rail, yet we are still yet to physically see a train of any description! Our next stop was Da Nang, a beach resort famed for its hospitality of US soldiers during the war. Uneventful journey, broken once again by the shabby beauty of the landscape. Jagged mountains, lush rainforest, running rivers. Arrived in Da Nang at around midday. Scorching heat, bags off the bus and ready to take a taxi to our luxurious beach hotel, reccommended to us in our trusty guidebook. Small lesson learned here. When the description of the hotel in the book states that its 35km away from the airport, it tells no lies. Furthermore, make sure that its not 35km away in the direction you have just travelled. Much amusement from a band of locals vying for our custom!! Into a taxi, off we go. Arriving at a rather shabby hotel, the driver assures us that this is us, promptly collecting his fare and disappearing in a cloud of dust. Stroll casually up to the front desk, show them our reservation number.....blank faces. "You want the hotel of the same name, 1km down the road"................!! Two hotels of the same name, in the same tiny resort........Only in Vietnam!! Total. Turkey. Tempers starting to fray a little, we hiked with all of our worldly possessions, now larger in number due to over-zealous souvenir purchasing, up the road in the afternoon heat. Upon reaching the other 'Beach Resort Hotel', we were a little unimpressed by what we found. Surly staff, tacky accomodation and a very bizarre atmosphere. Gut feelings were not right and we made a snap decision to carry on to Hoi An, our next destination. Afetr a heated discussion with the management, we were booked on another bus. We decided NOT to eat lunch in the hotel, for fear of retribution!! Fortunately, a small cafe down the road fed us delightful seafood with a few cold beers to calm the slight tension in the air!! Back on ANOTHER bus, back through Da Nang (past the same bemused old men that had helped us four hours previously) and onto Hoi An. Our accomodation for Hoi An was booked, but not for that night. Luckily, the bus stopped at a reasonable hotel in the middle of the city that happened to have a preferential rate (and a nice pool!)!! Heads down, start again in the morning!!
After the trials of the previous day, we were only too happy to have a lie in. After a phonecall to remind us to check out, we were soon in a taxi and on our way to our booked accomodation. Smiles all round. We had picked the hotel specifically on reccommendation and were not left disappointed. Great staff, great hotel, great pool, lovely 'princess' bed........ just what the doctor ordered!! We had very much been looking forward to Hoi An, having heard so much positive hype surrounding its 600 tailors and relaxed, coastal traditions. I don't think I have ever fallen for a town quite as quicky as we fell for Hoi An. The beautiful, pastel colours. The coloured lanterns adorning every tree. The smiling faces on every corner.................This is what everybody seemed so in rapture with.
Sorry......fell asleep there.........hope none of you are nodding off!!
Our fist full day in Hoi An was manic, but possibly one of the most enjoyable of the trip. Determined to experience the famous tailoring for ourselves, we hired bikes and wobbled our way into the old town with not a clue as to the whereabouts of a reputable tailor. We needn't have worried. Greeting us on Le Loi Street were tailoring shops, large and small, with bands of respective employees dragging passing tourists inside to be fitted for clothes. Large, imposing and sitting right on the corner of a busy crossroad, Kimmy Tailors looked busy and successful. We were soon sat down inside and leafing through various styles of suit, dress, overcoat, shirt, with the ever enthusiastic workforce tending to our decisions with thoughtful 'Yes, that looks good' or 'No, I don't think that would suit..' Eventually, after much wrangling, I settled on a tasty blue pinstripe cashmere suit, cut in the style of D&G, with a pink tailored shirt. Joey decided upon a smart cashmere shift dress, with a well cut shirt to match. We were comprehansively measured, told to come back tomorrow, parted from our money, and we were off.........into a bespoke shoe maufacturer...........matching his and her's high-top trainers were designed, sizeed and ordered.........who says a little retail therapy is bad for the soul!! We hit the markets, bought some local clothes and sat down by the river, eating, drinking and generally having a pleasant time! We popped into a well-loved curry house for an evenig feast and staggered back to the hotel, full of Indian and thoroughly content with the days purchasing.
The following day in Hoi An was again very relaxed, with morning swims taken before breafast. We lazed around the hotel for several hours, before heading into town for a first fitting of the suit and dress!! We couldn't wait to see the results, and, when shown upstairs barefoot, we couldn't have been happier!! Beautifully cut clothes lay ready to try on - Jo's dress fitting perfectly and my suit needing minimal adjustment (Round the back end embarrassingly!!) Very pleased, we grabbed tasty street food and rented (another...) scooter, making a short 9km trip down Highway 1 to Cui Dai beach, where we played in the surprisingly strong surf, tossed by the waves like small fishing boats in a storm! Curiously, it was only the Brits and the token Aussies brave enough to tackle the waves, the locals choosing the safer option of palm tree shade and ice cold beer! We shot back into town to take part in the local festivities, celebrated once a year. Bands of excitable children, some in costome dressed as dragons, some banging rythmically upon drums, fill almost every street. We pause to take photo's on the exquisite Japanese Covered Bridge and scrambled for a table by the water. Hundreds of tiny paper boats, each carrying a small candle and the wishes of its owner, float peacefully amongst the fishing boats, their twinkling flames bringing smiles to every face we can see. Our restaurant peace is interrupted by a dragon show, brightly cloured children storming around the small tables. A crowd gathers in sight and we sit back to admire the spectacle. Set against a backdrop of coloured lanterns burning in every tree, we find it hard not to pinch ourselves, this is just too perfect! Rain begins to fill the air, but does nothing to dampen the spirits. We grab a taxi and head for the hotel, our hearts just a little fuller than when we had arrived.
We had only planned to stay in Hoi An for two nights, but so enthralled by what we had experienced, we decided to stay on another night. After another leisurely morning eating and swimming, we sauntered into town to pick up the suits and shoes. Totally impressed by what they were able to achieve in just two days! I now have a perfect pinstripe suit, and Jo has a rather lovely cashmere shift dress for the impending days of labour ahead!! The weather was great, thus we decided to get out of the city and take a look at the marble mountains, back towards Da Nang. Scooter rented, we hit the highways, mixing with huge trucks and an army of other scooters, slowly making sunny progress North. We rode through bustling village markets and sleepy hamlets, quite content with the pace of life. A quick converstaion with a fellow rider and we were soon pursuing her, through an industrial zone selling about the largest collection of marble statues I have ever seen! You need a 25ft marble lion for your garden? I know the place! We reached the marble mountains, sticking out of the land like giant teeth in a desolate mouth. Paying a small entrance fee, we climbed the 200 or so steps to the first shrine, carved by hand into the heart of the solid rock. Incense was lit, a routine that we had learned in a bhuddist temple in Hue performed and we were off, climbing up towards a spectacular pagoda of Chinese origin. As time was getting a little tight, we decided to push for home, not before stopping at our new friends conveniently located store to buy a few trinkets. We trickled back to Hoi An and our belongings at the Hotel, grabbing a hastily made sandwich before boarding another night bus. Rain streaked down around us as the bus made meandering progress through the night, spectacular streaks of lightning roaring above our heads. We were sad to leave a city that had welcomed us so readily, but owards we must push, Nha Trang our next stop. The bus journey was as frought as before, the poorly surfaced roads of the countryside not exactly built for comfortable sleep!! At more than one point, I was bounced clear of my seat, daylight briefly visible between my backside and the cushion! Joanna on the other hand, seemed to sleep a little better, though it has to be said that neither of us really felt at all rested upon our 6am arrival in Nha Trang.
Even through sleep deprived eyes, it was clear to see that we had landed on our feet in Nha Trang. Beautiful blue skies gave way to deep turquiose sea, each vying for the affection of the sun. We climbed aboard two scooters, somehow squeezing all of our gear onto tiny green Honda 50's, making a short trip (round the block as we later discovered..!!!) to our hotel. The staff themselves were only just waking and were startled to see us standing at their door. Nevertheless, they helped us inside and quickly showed us to a very pleasant, modern room. We took the opportunity to get our heads down for a few hours, the sleep well needed after the discomfort of the night bus.
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