Journey's End

We are home now and it's time to complete the story. But first if you look back over the past few posts, as far as Mui Ne in Vietnam, you'll find a few photographs have appeared.

Our flight from Siem Reap in Cambodia to Bangkok was the shortest of the whole trip at just 35 minutes in the air - followed by an hour to clear all the formalities to be allowed into Thailand, then another hour in a taxi into the city to find our hotel. That was not as easy as we expected because our taxi driver had never heard of the hotel and couldn't find it. Eventually he had to phone for directions, but it was worth it. Last time we were in Bangkok (also on a brief stopover) we had stayed in one of the big luxury hotels on the outskirts and travelled into the city on the elevated railway called the Skytrain. This time Norma had picked out a "boutique" hotel near the river and the Royal Palace. It turned out to be practically in the river and had only 12 rooms, but very friendly and a similar standard to the other hotels we had stayed in. We arranged a late checkout and a return taxi to the airport for our flight home, scheduled to leave just after midnight the next day, and set off to explore.


Among other things we crossed the river to the Wat Arun temple at sunset, visited several markets including the Flower Market which was only a short walk from our hotel, took a trip upriver and back on the Express Boat (quite an experience especially the return trip at rush hour), and almost by accident found ourselves wandering through the main backpackers area.


Our flight back to London in a packed British Airways 747 was tolerable. Since it was overnight with a time shift of seven hours we both slept quite a bit of the way. Then finally it was on to Edinburgh, arriving about 9 a.m. This flight was also full, but the passengers were very different - all business suits, huge briefcases and no checked baggage. We felt a bit out of place, especially carrying a large coolie hat!

We collected the car, visited Uncle Tam who seems to have done well without us and arrived back in Kinnesswood by lunch time. Thanks to our kind neighbours, all is well at home. We now need to sort out our photos so we can find an unsuspecting audience to show them to. When we get to that stage, hopefully soon, we'll post some of them on Flickr and put a link up here.

Pythons in pots

We started the day early and were soon on our way to the further away temples. Each had been built in a different era and had different architectural styles. By now we were used to the carvings of snakes, gods, dancing girls, lions, crocodiles and other mythical creatures. The religious symbols were a mixture of Hindu and Buddhist with a few variations thrown in. The temples were largely abandoned hundreds of years ago and when they were discovered - and in some cases plundered - by Europeans the work started to reclaim them from the jungle. During the recent wars they were the site of some of the fighting between the Vietnamese army and the army of Pol Pot. You can still see some of the bullet holes.

Our next visit was to the Land Mine museum set up by a Cambodian who had lost his parents during the war and become a child soldier. He had set hundreds of mines himself and taken part in much of the fighting. Eventually he took his chance and defected to the Vietnamese army. After the war he could see the effect of the mines and started to disarm mines himself. His ambition was to set up a mine museum and a school for the child victims of landmines, which he did with the help of various agencies. We watched a film, narrated by a Scot, which interspersed shots of mine disposal with pictures of the children at the school, taking part in activities such as football on crutches and jumping into the river. It was a very moving visit and it is only when you see the results that you realise that the mines are still maiming and killing people. Enough educational material has been collected to give a few talks on the subject.

Our lunch was organised by the tour and was at a hospitality school organised by a French NGO. Students have to be suitable candidates, well motivated and have a reasonable education. They are given experience in hotel management, cooking, cleaning and serving at tables. All of the school's students have so far got jobs in hotels and restaurants. Our experience in restaurants here is that all staff are very well trained to please and try very hard to speak English.





As an addition to our tour we had asked to see the floating islands in Tonle Sap, Cambodia's own inland lake. We knew about Angkor Wat before we went but these were a complete revelation and a fantastic photo opportunity. The lake is extensive but the water is quite low at this time of year. We set off in a boat and on the way saw people swimming, mending nets, fishing, building houses and delivering groceries. However when we saw the first village on the lake we were astounded by the scene. It was not as colourful as Lake Titicaca but equally busy and on a much bigger scale - over 80,000 people live on these floating islands. There were children playing a ball game in a floating school, a temple on stilts, a crocodile farm and many small fish farms. Children here must learn to literally sink or swim at an early age. Health and safety did not come into it. The pots mentioned in the title were large aluminium pots just big enough to hold a small child with a python and a stick to paddle with. I think the idea was to offer visitors the chance to be photographed holding a python but we easily resisted the temptation. We thought of our four grandchildren in a similar scenario then thought "Oh no!".

Quite a day and not finished yet. We watched the sunset from yet another temple on a hill top (climbing again) then rushed back to shower and change for an excellent buffet meal and a show of classical Hindu dancing. Only Bangkok left now before our final flight back to UK.

Temples and more temples

We were again met by our guide, named Ti, and taken to our accommodation. He has turned out to be a most solicitous guide who gave us very strict instructions on putting our passports in the safe, charging up our cameras and bringing our hats. We got used to it after a while but it was a bit like going on a school trip. "Have you been to the toilet yet?"


He suggested a tour of the town and environs the first night so after a swim and a wander ourselves (which included a fish foot massage - you put your feet in a large tank and they are gently nibbled by dozens of tiny fish) we met up and he took us by Tuk Tuk (small motor bike transport) to the outskirts of the town where many hundreds of people were having what he called a picnic - it was a collection of stalls where there were spit roasts, second hand clothes, a fun fair and lots of dancing later evidently. Where they all came from we're not sure as there were still thousands in the town attending to the tourists.


We started the next day with the tour of Angkor Wat and Angkor Thom. They are as magnificent as we expected though there was a bit of a surprise that they were clear of all vegetation. These sites have been used in a number of films, including famously Tomb Raider. We could just picture Angelina Jolie in action here. We had a break for lunch and a swim to cool down before starting the tour again. Now we moved on to the smaller, less famous temples and there was greater evidence of jungle growth on these. Some even had huge mature kapok trees growing right out of the walls - pictures will follow, we promise.


The plan had been to return to Angkor Thom for the sun set, but dark clouds loomed and it started to rain - most unseasonal we were told and no chance of seeing a sunset, so we diverted to the museum in Siem Reap, before meeting up with our friends from Vietnam at the Blue Pumpkin. Since Dennis, who had suggested we meet there had last been in Siem Reap ten years ago something like eight other restaurants called the Blue Pumpkin had opened, but luckily we all picked the same one, and Dennis was the only one who had trouble finding it. We had a great evening and all felt like real world travellers.

Last look at Saigon

Our last night with the group in Saigon was celebrated with another lovely meal, a bit more pricey than on our journey but very nice indeed. It was sad to say farewell to the group and to Thuy but we have all their e-mails and we hope to catch up with Louise when she goes to Leeds University. There are also four others who are going on to Siem Reap and we have arranged to meet them at the Blue Pumpkin restaurant there on Sunday night.


It was quite a relief to have a long lie the next morning, collect our laundry and have a good look around Saigon. Following hints from one of the guide books we set off down to the river, following the "Quiet American Tour". We had coffee on the 5th floor of the Majestic Hotel, a bit more than usual but well worth it for the view of the river. Massive development is going on here and to go back in 5 years will probably see enormous changes to the city. It has a real buzz and we found it an interesting place to walk around, despite all the warnings we had been given beforehand.

Some last minute shopping was done, a last meal then we set off on Saturday for the airport. It is very modern and a pleasant place to pass a couple of hours. We even found some Illy coffee - pure heaven. Our flight to Siem Reap was on time and even arrived early. We had to join the long queue for visa on entry then came through the nicest airport building we have been in to be met by our Cambodia guide.

Cu Chi Tunnels

After our early start we drove about 70 kilometres to the area of Cu Chi. This is north west of Saigon. The people of this area, despite being in the south, were supporters of the communists in the north. During the fighting with the French some tunnels had been built in this area and were used to great advantage to conduct guerilla warfare. When the Americans came the tunnels were increased and to begin with no one even knew they were there. 16000 people lived down there during the war and proved a real thorn in the flesh to the Americans. We had a really interesting visit, starting with a propaganda film from the 1960's. We then saw how well hidden the entrances were and saw some of the weapons made, usually recycling ammunition captured from the Americans. The Viet Cong also set some horrific man traps and had every trick in the book for catching out their enemies. Dogs were used to scent out the Viet Cong but they started using American soap to fool the dogs and wearing uniforms captured from soldiers.


This picture shows one of our group trying out an original tunnel entrance. Not too many of us were small enough to fit through it, but the Vietnamese had thoughtfully widened a 50 metre length for the benefit of western visitors like us and we all duly crawled through. However there was an opportunity to come out about halfway along and several of us were very glad of it. We could not imagine living that way for literally months on end, only coming out at night to fight.

Some of the group also bought ammunition and had the opportunity to fire weapons on the range run by the Vietnamese Army. Our snack on this trip was to try tapioca along with some tea made from a local leaf. The tapioca wasn't too bad. It was a slice which we dipped in ground up peanuts - much better than the school dinner variety.

We were glad to see that this is now a peaceful area, very attractive countryside and mostly vegetable growing and rubber plantations. Our guide was a small boy living in Hanoi after the war and Thuy remembers that he only had one set of clothes a year, with new ones for the Tet holiday. There were also food shortages and rationing. He often had to get up at 1 a.m. to start queuing for food or his family might miss the chance that day.

This was our last trip on the bus and we were very appreciative to have had such a good driver who kept such a clean tidy bus and got us here in one piece. We heard the news about the boat sinking at Halong Bay and were glad this happened after we had been there as otherwise we would have been sleeping on deck or going by canoe!Darwin has had a cyclone since we left and record rainfall for the month so we were pretty lucky with our time there.

Dynasty Beach Resort

We moved on next to Mui Ne, a quieter but more modern beach resort, more of an old fishing village which has expanded. On the way we had superb views of the coast and the fishing fleets which have usually returned from their early morning trips by the time we are on the road.

We have also been learning about the crops grown along the way. After the paddy fields - and stopping to take pictures of water buffalo crossing the main highway pulling loads of sand - we moved on to a much drier landscape which to the Australians was reminiscent of South Australia. The main crop being grown there was tapioca (we can hear the groans of those who endured it at school dinners). Many crops like this were laid out on the fields to dry in the sun. Sugar cane is also grown here.

A downside of travelling through the countryside is the litter. It is everywhere, mostly plastic and it has been a constant part of our discussions. The towns, even when there is some litter - inevitable when there are so many street markets - seem to have an army of cleaners who sweep up, and there seem to be small businesses which recycle cardboard, cans, plastic bottles etc. In the rural areas however there doesn't seem to be the same effort put in and litter is everywhere.

As we approached a steep hill we met up with a bus load of touring cyclists who were obviously being given the chance to have a good long run downhill at the end of their day. They appeared later at our hotel, resplendent in their lycra.


Apart from the resort hotels the main attraction of Mui Ne is the sand dunes. After trying out the hotel pool (bliss) we set off for the dunes and after a steep climb saw the sun setting. We were then given sand sledging instruction by a couple of boys, one about the same size as Calum. Our sledges were flexible plastic boards with a couple of rope handles. The boys poured sand on the plastic, told us how to sit with the board curled up at the front then wheee - off we went. We both gave it a go but as you can imagine it was the young ones who kept going back for more.

Our meal that night was across the road and as usual it was a good choice. Although the lunch and evening meals are optional most people are glad to go with our guide Thuy's choice as he has given us lots of different experiences - hot pots, barbecues, grills, and even a restaurant in Hoi An where the owners rolled us pancakes and fed them to us with great gusto. Mui Ne was a very nice place, and the hotel was perhaps the best of the whole trip. We were sorry not to have more time around the pool. However the fleshpots of Saigon beckoned and this was not a sitting around holiday.

As we set off the next day we were told it would take 4 hours to do 200 kilometres. We were a bit dubious as we started on a dual carriageway where no one could come straight at us from the other direction and traffic was light anyway. Not only that but there were lovely gardens up the middle of the road being lovingly tended by an army of gardeners, planting and watering. There were also side roads towards the dunes but no buildings we could see. There were huge billboards advertising new resorts as yet mostly unbuilt. Golf courses were clearly to be a big part of these resorts.

After a few miles of this we came abruptly to the end of the gardens and the dual carriageway, and soon ended up back on the same old A1 road. This time there seemed to be even more pot holes and signs that it was supposed to be improved in the near future. It certainly took us a good while to get into Saigon where the traffic was even madder than before. A lovely evening meal followed though we were to have an early start in order to see the Cu Chi tunnels before the crowds arrived.

We'll try to add a picture or two when we can but the computers here leave a bit to be desired.

Mud mud, glorious mud

On the road to Nha Trang we had several stops for photo opportunities. We had asked the guide for a chance to stop and take really good photos of the rice planting. He must have taken the hint about this as he then asked the driver to stop at a place overlooking a fishing harbour. It was the most amazing sight to see the fishing boats which were unloading their catch. They are extremely colourful especially in the numbers massing in the harbour. They use small bamboo coracles to unload the fish from the boats. On the beach there was unloading of fish, mending of nets and general noise and colour. We were high above it all snapping away.

To our delight we also stopped at a fish market where the catch was being unloaded. We saw ice being chopped up and delivered to the hold of boats just about to go out to sea. Most of the fish buyers were women who were haggling over the price of the catch then loading it up in various ways to take to the local market. It was a shock to many of the group who were not used to the smell of fish in such quantities. We then stopped for lunch and guess what---it was fish. Usually we asked for the set menu for lunch though by now squid had lost its appeal. Thankfully Charles would finish off any squid left by the rest of us.

Nha Trang was a huge beach resort with all the usual attractions on offer, very different from the fishing villages we had passed. We took a walk along the front to see how the Vietnamese enjoy a seaside holiday. Our meal that night was a barbecue with clay barbecues set on the table in the middle of each group of four. It was a crazy experience----health and safety didn't come in to it and the food was really delicious.

The next day we had a boat trip out to a coral reef. Some people snorkelled or swam and there was an option of going in a glass bottomed coracle to view the reef. The surprise on board was a lady who offered to do a massage or other beauty treatments. To explain the boat had wooden seats which were then laid flat for the massage and then laid out as our lunch table. What fun we had as people took it in turn to have a massage, a pedicure, manicure or threading (when threads are used to remove hairs from the body). She was very good and great fun. Needless to say the men didn't go for the threading! There are not many secrets left among our group now.

The grand finale to the day was an optional visit to the mud thermal springs which nine of us took advantage of. We started with mineral showers then were given a mud pond to get in (nine person size) and it was filled with a mud mixture. Fifteen minutes in there then we had to dry off in the sun, water jets to clean us off then a pool of clean water. We finished the process with a swim. What a great time was had by all and after all this treatment we all slept like logs.

On the road to Saigon

We now set off for the longest day of road travel, made even longer by the roads being clogged up by people travelling back to Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) after the Tet holiday.The first real stop before lunch was to view the memorial site of the My Lai Massacre. We watched a documentary with an American presenter, linking a survivor of the massacre and a soldier who had taken part. We can remember the story unfolding in the late 60's. It was a sombre group who settled down to lunch and someone proposed a toast to peace. Our sights and sounds of Vietnam is certainly giving us a flavour of recent history and making us aware of the continuing effects of the Vietnam War such as the use of Agent Orange. There are still children being born who suffer the effects of this defoliant and some areas have not yet regrown.

On our journey there were so many sights to remember. We'll list a few:-

*People in the rice paddies planting rice, replanting where it is too thick and continuous working of the soil, all standing in knee deep water.

*Crazy traffic with lorries and buses overtaking other lorries and buses as well as the continuous line of motorcycles

*Bicycles and motorbikes piled high with vegetables, cardboard boxes, plumbing pipes, chickens by the dozen,pigs and anything else you might want to carry from one place to another.

*Children cycling or walking back from school in their neat school uniforms along Highway Number 1, even small children on their own, and needless to say no footpath.

*Potholes by the hundred, some as big as tank traps, on what is Vietnam's main highway.

*Many near misses.We will not be trying some of the manoeuvres at home or there would be major road rage incidents. They all passed with much tooting of horns and shrugs from our driver who was extremely laid back.

*Some spectacular viewpoints and road passes, but none as spectacular as the Hai Van Pass on the same road south of Hue.

We finally arrived at Quy Nhon to a hotel which was described as a "stopover" hotel, but it had a lovely swimming pool, and was an atmospheric place to have dinner.

Cookery School in Hoi An

First we should tell you that the previous post now has a couple of photographs to illustrate it.

Although our hotel in Hoi An was a very good one, it was very noisy during the night with a tour group arriving at 1.00a.m. and phones ringing at 6.00a.m., never mind the school next door starting at 6.30. Norma was O.K. because of ear plugs but most folk didn't have a good night's sleep. However after a splendid breakfast we set off on a walking tour of the town.

First stop was the market, particularly the fish and vegetables. As our guide said, no one shops in the supermarket and there are daily visits to the market to buy essentials. It was a wonderful experience of sounds, smells, and of course photo opportunities.

There are about 20 old houses to visit and they sell tickets in 5's. We saw a couple of houses still lived in by families, the Hoi An museum, an ancient bridge and a Chinese temple. The shopping opportunities were plentiful. The town is known for silk, pottery and lantern making. A few purchases were made and the bags must be getting heavier by now.

We had the afternoon free to look around on our own, take more photographs, including one with a couple of old ladies selling bananas. It looked for a moment as if Norma would have a new career in the fruit business. That is not a banana stuffed in her mouth.

The highlight of the day was setting off for an evening meal which we were to cook ourselves with the help of our Vietnamese chef. He provided the ingredients, the implements and a running commentary as we attempted to cook a chicken salad Vietnamese style, spring rolls, grilled fish, crispy wontons, and other delicacies. It was great fun as we took it in turns trying to manoeuvre the spring rolls in a wok with giant chopsticks. We all felt we had learned something and enjoyed the meal as well.

It was another early night as we had a long day of travel ahead.

Not the Ghan to Hue

What can we say about the train trip to Hue? Well it wasn't the Ghan. We were sharing a cabin with the guide rather than two other people so that gave us a bit more room. We had been warned to bring snacks for breakfast as catering on the train was quite basic. So were the toilets but they did keep working. To be honest we slept quite well and were better equipped than most for breakfast as we had found a pastry shop and bought some nice bread and a small banana loaf as well as orange juice which turned out to have yogurt in it. It was a long journey though the views were interesting and we were adopted by a little girl for part of the journey and kept her entertained with the help of William.

Lunch when we arrived followed by a shower and free time in a very nice hotel revived everyone. We took a boat up the Perfumed River, admiring the views and trying to ignore the sales talk. Every tourist visit is a sales opportunity for someone. Our destination was Vietnam's version of the Valley of the Kings - who needs to go to Egypt? - the tomb of one of the eighteenth century kings of Vietnam. We heard amusing stories about the number of concubines he had and learned that the statues of the mandarins guarding his tomb were so small because he was a little person himself so no statue could be bigger than him.

Our evening meal (all meals except breakfast are optional), was an entertainment as we were to dress up as mandarins. One couple became the King and Queen for the evening. We were adorned with robes and hats for the occasion, very splendid and more impressive than those of the Burra pantomime. We also had our own music group who played and sang traditional music while we ate. Hue has a music school so it gave some of the students a chance to play for an audience. We were a bit surprised when they finished by playing Auld Lang Syne. The food was excellently presented and delicious. One of the fruits which is quite common here is the dragon fruit, which we had never come across before but is obviously familiar to the Australians. The total cost of this banquet, including drinks, was about ten pounds a head. Food is very cheap so our day to day costs are not high. It was a great fun evening with lots of photos to prove it and much kidding on next day with our king and queen for the night.

Next day it was a morning bus ride to Hoi An, a lovely town, the old part of which now has World Heritage status. It was about 120 kilometres but the journey took about 4 hours due to the traffic and a couple of high passes. There were very interesting views on the way and a chance to observe the very rural way of life of most of the Vietnamese people, tending buffalo, planting rice and hoeing vegetables. It's a very colourful view as you pass, especially the markets. There are more bicycles in the country but still plenty of scooters and motor bikes. The loads carried are amazing.

Children were cycling home from school at 10.30-11.00a.m as they start at 6.30a.m. They also have an afternoon session which finishes about 5.30. We stopped at Da Nang, the third city of Vietnam and a main base of the US Air Force during the war. Lunch was a complete fish banquet, chosen if you wanted from the fish tanks in the hall of the restaurant. This blog does seem to have a surfeit of meal descriptions!

Our next stop was the Marble Mountain, both to admire the carvings and to climb the many steep steps up the mountain. We didn't know what to expect and it didn't disappoint. We approached a cave, went in and turned a few corners to find ourselves descending into a a large cave, reminiscent of "Raiders of the Lost Ark" We expected Harrison Ford to appear any minute. What gave it atmosphere were the huge carved Buddhas set into niches in the walls, adorned by the usual ornaments, offerings and joss sticks. After exploring one cave we were told to turn anoher corner where there was an even bigger Buddha-it was worth the climb! Our guide also pointed out the vantage point the Vietcong had in order to fire on the American base during the Tet offensive.

After arriving in Hoi An we opted out of the evening meal as we wanted something light and had a wander round the old town. It was very atmospheric with the lanterns strung across the street and the people gathering along the river bank, watching entertainment and taking pictures of each other beside giant lanterns, part of the festival.

More on Hanoi

As it is still the Tet holiday people were wearing their best clothes and posing around the lakes to take pictures of their families. This particular family were very photogenic.













On our tour of Hanoi with the group we queued up early along with several thousand others at the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum. We really had to stick to the rules, walking in twos, not talking and keeping our hands out of our pockets. Ho Chi Mhin's body was in a huge building which was built just for this purpose. We had read a book about the Vietnam War during our journey so realised how important a leader he was to the Vietnamese and his portrait is everywhere, including on the banknotes. Every October/November his body is taken to Russia for re-embalming. He died before the end of the war and did not want to find himself the subject of such a personality cult but his wishes wre over-ridden.


We then visited the Presidential Palace which was used more as an administrative centre, the small house which he lived in and then the simple house on stilts which he lived in for the rest of his life. Our final visit was to the "Hanoi Hilton", named as such by the American pilots shot down and taken prisoner by the Vietnamese. The most famous resident was Senator John McCain.We had also visited the Military Museum beforehand and seen many of the warplanes and helicopters which had been captured in the war. The prison was built by the French and in its time housed many prisoners, both criminal and political. The description of the treatment of prisoners in the days of Indochina were quite horrific.

We also visited some temples which are very colourful as you can see. They are also very busy during the Tet (New Year) holiday but no one seems to mind if we take pictures.

Our guide is very experienced and speaks very good english. Our fellow travellers include two Australian couples, an Australian family and two English couples and we think we will get on with them all splendidly. We were taken out the first night for a meal to get to know each other and it's very helpful to have omone who can advise on the local food. The second night we mostly went to the hotel restaurant where the speciality was a hotpot, a bit like fondue except you have a pot of stock and add whatever you choose from the vast choice of meat, fish and vegetables and finally you can drink the soup. It's a very sociable way to get to know each other. there wre very tasty little pastries to follow-the French influence no doubt.

Lastly that evening we had to gather our luggage and set off for the station at 11.00p.m. We were sharing cabins and off on a 12 hour trip to Hue, the ancient capital of Vietnam.

Hanoi Impressions

We have now been in Vietnam for a week and are still getting used to the traffic, the money and the food. After our trip to Halong Bay we returned to our hotel and had a couple of days to explore the place before we were due to head off to the Cuc Phuong National Park. Mostly we wandered around explorng the places mentioned in the guide book and missing out the ones at the beginning of our main tour. There are several large lakes in Hanoi, mostly in the middle of parks, and as it is still the lunar New Year holiday there were many people enjoying the activities on offer.

We realised we had to make an early booking for the Water Puppets which are a popular entertainment with locals and visitors alike. The puppeteers were waist high in water behind a screen and an orchestra played appropriate music for the action which took place in a water filled auditorium. There were several short stories which were explained in our programme. It was well worth seeing and we were even allowed to take photos.

We then went off with a driver and a guide on a private trip to the National Park. It was set up during the Vietnam War - a bit of a shock to think that it was happening then - and even opened by Ho Chi Minh himself. We went for a couple of walks which mostly consisted of going uphill to see an ancient tree and a couple of caves. We stayed overnight in a cabin by a lake and had an entertaining walk in the dark trying not to stand on the frogs which were congregating round the lake.

We were astonished by the number of young people who were visiting the park on their scooters and motor bikes. They were on holiday and it was probably busier than usual. Unfortunately they had not been trained in eco-schools and the amount of litter they left was pretty awful. On our last morning we visited the Endangered Primate Rescue Centre where we saw some rare monkeys, some called langurs, and learned about the programmes to save them from hunters and encourage a breeding programme.

We learned a great deal from our guide about education in Vietnam, the status of teachers (who are visited every year by their pupils either in the holidays or on a special day. They bring flowers and gifts though the teachers have to give them tea in return). However it is not a well paid job and our driver had given up teaching to take up driving. We hear there has been a lot of rain in Scotland recently. Maybe we should take up growing rice like they do here.

Back in Hanoi we joined our main tour group for the trip down to Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon to you and everyone else), starting with a formal Hanoi tour then an overnight train to Hue.

Good Morning Vietnam

We had to pay the balance of our trip to Halong Bay in cash, US dollars, as soon as we arrived in Vietnam, so we had drawn some cash in Singapore. A young lady arrived to collect it and give us our tickets, and we were to be picked up at our hotel at 7.45 next morning, so not much time to do anything else. It turned out there was an ATM in the hall foyer, so I drew out a little local currency to see us through the trip. I calculated that the Vietnamese Dong (yes no jokes please) came in at 2000 to the US dollar so I drew out 200,000 - that should do. On the way to Halong City we stopped at a rest stop and bought two coffees and a small bottle of water. They charged us 60,000 dong, or nearly a third of our money! Next followed a panicky recalculation. In fact there are about 20,000 dong to the US dollar - I had lost a zero. The good news was we had only spent about $3 or slightly over two pounds. The bad news? I had only drawn out $10 worth of local currency to last us three days, and we never saw another ATM. Luckily we still had about $85 in dollar notes which enabled us to pay our bar bill and a few tips at the end of the trip. Back in Hanoi we became instant multi-millionaires by drawing out two million dong - enough for a couple of days.

Back to the trip and it was quite a hair-raising ride to Halong Bay. Our driver headed down the highway, weaving in and out of traffic along with thousands of Vietnamese on motor cycles, more tour buses and all the other traffic, many making their way home for the Tet holiday and carrying gifts for the family on the back of the motor cycle, a traditional tree, a flat screen TV, or a mountain of vegetables. Three on a bike was not uncommon, often a small child sandwiched between the parents, mostly with face masks to keep out the traffic fumes, and sometimes with two children on board. Some of the adults wore helmets (though we believe it is the law to wear them) but never the children. We are still trying to figure out the rules of the road though we came to the conclusion that they must be very good drivers since no one seemed to hit anyone else. According to one of our guide books the first rule of the road for visitors to Vietnam is never to hire a car and drive it yourself, and we are inclined to agree.

Once we arrived in Halong Bay, in rather cold and wet weather, we transferred to our boat and met up with the other passengers. We were the only kayakers out of the ten in the group and not all were on the boat for two nights. Our fellow passengers on both nights were good fun, interesting people, Australians (via Germany and the Philippines), Californians, an Italian, New Yorkers, Hungarians and Norwegians (who had lived in South Africa and Hong Kong).


The weather improved as the trip went on. Our first afternoon was spent climbing to a couple of viewpoints, hard going but well worth it. It was all we expected and our kayaking trip was very special. We even had the chance to observe monkeys at very close quarters. The food was excellent as long as you liked seafood and gave us a chance to try things which we would not normally have ordered.

The pictures show the view from one of the big (and very popular) caves, our first night group having dinner, and one of the monkeys. Vietnamese (and co-incidentally Chinese) New Year arrived at midnight on Wednesday to much sounding of horns in the Bay. Next morning we found a small "lucky bag" with a piece of chocolate on our door handle, while meals were served to the sound of Abba singing "Happy New Year" continuously. Now we are back in Hanoi and enjoying a really foreign but surprisingly friendly city.

To Darwin and Beyond.....

In Alice Springs we had a day of sorting out, a little shopping and a bit of lazing by the pool in 40 degree plus heat. We also saw some of the reptiles we might have met but thankfully didn't in a visit to a reptile house, and then visited the museum dedicated to the Flying Doctor Service. It was all very interesting. We met a young couple who were just about to start working in one of the aboriginal communities, science teachers who were very enthusiastic about the year they were to spend there, including what they would learn about the outback. It was a refreshing attitude after seeing some of the social problems around Alice Springs. Education seems one of the answers.

We headed for Darwin by plane, a short and pleasant journey. Darwin gets a bad press between the weather, the crocodiles and the jellyfish. Well we liked the place. Although it was officially the wet season and the TV weather forecast had the usual rain cloud and lightning flash we had two days of sunshine with not a crocodile in sight. There is a new waterfront development with wave pools, lovely seating areas and expensive shops and flats. It was hot but not as hot as Alice Springs, maybe mid-thirties. We visited Lyon's Cottage, a small museum and art gallery and were interested to read about a family called "Bald" who had a residence here. After enquiring we found out that there were lots of roads etc named "Bald". More research is required.

Our hotel was quite luxurious - probably the best so far - and again a pool to chill out in, but it was only an overnight stop before heading to Singapore. We had a very interesting companion on the flight, a German lady who had retired from her job as a lecturer but was now travelling the world on cruises, lecturing about the countries she was visiting. She claimed to have visited 160, putting our 46 or so into perspective. Her open-minded, positive attitude to other countries and indigenous people was refreshing and entertaining.

It was only a few hours to Singapore and we arrived in pouring rain, which didn't stop the whole time we were there, but we were doing laundry and catching up in a very nice hotel with a covered link to a shopping centre, so it hardly mattered.

Next stop was Vietnam Airlines and on to Hanoi. It was a lovely flight once we left the turbulence behind. We would happily recommend Vietnam Airlines to anyone. The service was excellent, and the legroom on a modern A320 Airbus was the best we've seen. Arrival at Hanoi was trouble free and our visa on entry was sorted out by a collection of bored officials before our baggage had appeared. No more flights for three weeks thank goodness.

As promised there was someone waiting with a board with our names on it for our hotel transfer. He told us to wait and disappeared for a few minutes. Then he returned, moved us to another part of the airport and disappeared again. This happened several times until we were at the taxi rank, where we assumed he was finding us a taxi, but no, he turned up himself in an unmarked car and proceeded to drive us incredibly slowly down a broad dual carriageway towards the city, with other traffic whizzing past on either side with horns blasting, all the while talking away on his mobile phone. Finally he pulled over to the side of the road near a big junction and apologised for a two minute delay. A motorbike appeared from the side road and pulled up to the passenger door. Words were exchanged and we heard money being counted out and changing hands. Were we being sold into slavery? Was this part of a Graham Greene novel? Well no actually. The driver apologised again and drove us to our hotel at the same speed as the rest of the traffic, leaving us with an unsolved mystery. Maybe it happens every day in Hanoi.