Vibrant Vietnam

Laos to Vietnam is quite a transition with the roads becoming increasingly manic, piles of rice spread out along the roads to dry out and the landscape dotted with people fishing or harvesting wearing the traditional conical straw hats.  Our first stop in Vietnam is Hue.  We arrive later than expected but after a few phone calls to our friendly and helpful hotel they arrange a selection of snacks and beverages to munch on before we take our weary bodies to bed.

Rice drying on the road

Simon & Jo inspecting the rice

A tour of the DMZ, the De-militarized Zone is arranged for the next day. Here you can see the Vinh Moc tunnels where people lived during the Vietnam war. Although conditions were cramped they had everything they needed to survive, including a hospital that was fairly rudimentary, but anything is better than nothing. We also learnt how they moved supplies from north to south by boat out to an island during the night and sunk the boats during the day to avoid detection. After the tunnels we then went on to Khe-sahn one of the American fire bases which was heavily fought over and even captured by the Viet Cong.

Khe Sanh

American bombs left at Vinh Moch

Bomb shells at Khe Sanh

DMZ tourers

Julie, Simon, Andy & Yvonne at Vinh Moch tunnels

Julie, Pernille, Yvonne, Simon, Andy, Phil, Dav, Becs, Louise & Jo at the DMZ

US chopper in the DMZ

Yvonne, Dav, Becs & Lou

Thankfully our next drive day to Hoi An is incredibly short! On the way we stop for a quick break at a marble statue shop where some of us considered the shipping costs of sending one of the magnificent sculptures home. Not long after arriving at our hotel Alex, Fiona, Spike, Dav, Andy and Julie dash out to arrange tailor made clothing. Sir Spike had the same tailor in mind that he visited some years ago with his daughter and was most pleased to find they were still up and running and able to fashion an identical pair of his favourite shorts.

Teresa rubbing the Buddha's belly for luck

Yvonne considers purchasing something for the garden back home

Incredible bridge enroute to Hoi An

Mahala at the tailors

Andy is pleased with the first shirt that has ever fit him properly!

Cooking courses, shopping and eating were all on the itinerary as well as hiring bikes and scooters to zip down the beach for sunbathing and swimming. The best thing about our hotel was the free cocktail hour, which brought everyone back together in the evening to play pool and consume the delicious rum and banana smoothie type cocktails that we all learnt to love! Spike Andy and Julie had a great day diving whilst in Hoi An, Andy so much so that he went again the next day.

Hoi An harbour

Julie karate chopping a fish

Spike

We found Nemo!

All OK with Andy

Hoi An beach

Dav, Yvonne & Jim

Jo and myself missed out on an evening’s cocktail drinking when we went on a motorbike food tour. We didn’t mind though because we were shown all the best places to eat in Hoi An and tried many different foods that we probably wouldn’t have thought to before, including a boiled duck egg in its developing embryo stages! Everywhere we went was full of local people so we knew we were experiencing the best of Hoi An food and being lead by two Vietnamese English students trying to improve their language skills was great fun.

Hoi An market

Jo is ready to go!

Jo with our tour guides

Local delicacy that is good for the heart - duck eggs at embryonic stage

A closer look at the egg...

Our guides enjoying the eggs

Teresa enjoying

Teresa not enjoying quite so much!

Streetside food stalls

Even though Hoi An is a fantastic place we were excited to leave because the next destination was Jungle Beach!  Run by a French- Canadian man called Sylvio who spends his time wandering around in just a sarong and barking into an iPhone, Jungle Beach is a magical slice of paradise. Sleeping in simple bamboo huts with no air conditioning just a few metres away from a quiet secluded beach scattered with bamboo shelters for shade, it feels like getting back to basics.  Snorkels were free to take as well as surf boards and hammocks were strung outside every hut, shack, shelter and tree. This is proper chill time. We didn’t need to worry about food, it got served at the same time every day, and when the sun set and the hour turned to Rum o’clock we head down to the beach for bonfires and night swimming where the phosphorescent algae glows and sparkles like an underwater disco light show.

From the peace and tranquillity of Jungle Beach we head to the hectic, buzzing city of Ho Chi Minh, previously known as Saigon. A tour out to the Cu Chi Tunnels was top of the list of things to see. These tunnels were different from the Vinh Moc tunnels as they were used for hiding and moving around undetected and therefore were a lot smaller. The War Remnants museum was another must-see. Reports from other people that had been there before let most know that it wasn’t going to be “enjoyable” but there is really nothing anyone that can say to prepare you for the horrors that you see within this modern looking museum. The ground floor gives a gentle introduction to the history of the Vietnam War and as you ascend the stairs to the floors above the information and visual aids get increasingly harrowing. I highly recommend that everyone who comes to this city at least visit this one museum if nothing else. On a lighter note Fiona and Al and the girls (Pernille, Becs and Lou) found a small cinema in the street close to our hotel so as a fun, mood lightening activity some of us tagged along to go the see “The Worlds End” starring Simon Pegg. The street came alive at night with plastic chairs spilling out on to the road, bars heaving with people drinking draft beer, scooters and motorbikes buzzing past and shrill shouts of “MASSAGE! SIR!”.

Notre Dame, Saigon-style with Jo & Andy

Scooter chaos

Anna on a vespa tour of the city

Vespa touring

The roof of the War Remnants museum

Streetside beers

Phil, Simon, Yvonne & Andy

Jo, Julie, Spike

Is there someone behind me?  Spike & Andy trying to distract Teresa

Next stop - Cambodia!

Planes, trains & automobiles - a new era of adventures!

So leaving the chaos of India behind us we boarded our plane bound for the bright lights of Bangkok.

Upon arrival we were immediately struck by how organised and quiet this bustling city is, which is the exact opposite of what most travellers will tell you I know, but compared to the utter chaos we grew accustomed to in India, Bangkok was a pleasant change. In our time here many of us sent yet more parcels home as bags were bulging at the seams!  Then it was off for a tour of the city’s temples and river canals.  We visited the Grand Palace (Wat Phra Kew) – dating back to 1782, the grounds are full of beautiful temples and stupas.  We also visited Wat Pho, home of the reclining Buddha which is remarkable both for its size (a massive 46m long, so big it was hard to see all at once!), and the 108 mother-of-pearl Buddhas on the soles of its feet.  Time for one final temple, the Sun Temple (Wat Arun), before taking a boat trip around the canals of Bangkok to a floating restaurant where there was good food aplenty.

Anna, Mary & Mahala

Dragon dancer

River boat

From Bangkok, we took an overnight train to Chiang Mai, Thailand’s second city, located in the north of this elongated country.  The train journey started well as we boarded our train and settled down in our bunks in our lovely air conditioned carriage.  As some of us sat up for a drink or two the train ground to a halt, but eventually we were on the move again and it was time to head to our bunks and sleep, but when the aircon stopped working a short while afterwards, it turned into a pretty hot and sticky night!  Our scheduled arrival into Chiang Mai had been delayed by 2 hours meaning we would be on the train until later in the afternoon, so the rest of trip was spent by many either hanging out of windows or standing on the foot plates to get a welcome breeze – something that would never be allowed in Europe!  Another thing that is unlikely to have happened in our home countries, was when the conductor came around writing out refunds on our tickets for the difference between the cost for non AC which could be collected at the station when we arrived. We finally reached our guest house for a much needed shower around 4pm in time for food and a good night’s sleep.

Julie & Andy minding the bags

Waiting for the train

Time to board

On the night train

Chiang Mai has many activities to do and the group spread out to indulge in their favourite activities including cooking courses, jungle treks, looking after elephants and even hiring a scooter. During our couple of days here we celebrated Kelly’s birthday with a trip out to the riverside restaurant with incredibly helpful staff managing 21 separate bills and getting it pretty much right first time!

Jim & Dave cooking up a storm

Chiang Mai cooking class

Trekking

Jo getting ready to go biking

Spike on a bike

On the way back from mountain biking

Kelly's birthday drinks

From Chang Mai we caught the first of our private hired buses for this new sector and it was a hit, a 40-seater coach which meant the drive down to Chang Khong flew by!  Along the way Jo got to quench her craving for hot springs with a paddle in a thermal pool, and later on we stopped at the White Wat or to quote its proper name Wat Rong Kuhn, in Chiang Rai. This is a very strange place and is as much an art project as it is a temple.  As the temple’s creator, Chalermchai Kositpipat, has had no outside funding he feels he can do exactly as he likes, so inside you find murals containing images from Star Wars, Hello Kitty and Michael Jackson to name a few.  It is also a surprise when you walk through the door to see the Dalai Lama sat on the floor until you realise that this is a very life like wax model!

Jo and her hot spring

James & Mahala at the White Wat

The White Wat

The next day we crossed the river into Laos and set out on our 2-day boat trip down the mighty Mekong River, stopping overnight in Pak Beng and finishing in Luang Prabang. Not much to do while aboard the boat other than relax and take in the beautiful scenery (tough, I know!).  We also had a quick stop at the Pak Ou Caves on the second day, where over the years people have deposited Buddha statues which has amounted to an impressive collection. 

On our boat

Phil

Photo time - Dave, Simon, Andy, Jim & Alex

The fast boat

Pak Ou caves

From the caves it was only around an hour to our final destination Luang Prabang where we had four nights to relax, go trekking, visit an elephant sanctuary, hire bikes and swim in waterfalls.  Many of us got up early to see the local monks receiving alms which is nice to see the local community supporting their monks. Oh and most importantly obtain our visas for Vietnam. Luckily the consul was the most helpful and nice of all we have had dealings with on our journey and had a pile of application forms ready for us, and allowed the crew to submit on behalf of the group meaning everyone had three whole days to enjoy themselves. 

Dave at the waterfalls

Pernille, Bex & Lou

Jo, Anna, Hayden, Kelly, Jim & Mahala

Stunning waterfall

Morning alms giving

The Reclining Buddha

Our next destination was Vientiane, the capital of Laos.  The group all headed off to go and see their preferred sights, although many ended up running into each other at the COPE Museum.  This moving museum was all about the after effects of mass bombing during the Vietnam war and how the charity helps people get over the trauma of losing limbs to land mines. Being an ex French colony Vientiane also has its own version of the Arc de Triomphe, very strange but a great piece of architecture all the same. On our final night here many of us got together for an evening of 10-pin bowling and beer which was a big hit with high fives a plenty.

Arc de Triomphe - are we in Laos or France?

Phil, Julie, Dave & Andy

Teresa & Simon

Bex

Bowling!

Jules & Al

Pernille in action

Bex & Andy challenging for a race

Phil, Alex & Teresa

Yvonne, Pernille, Bex, Phil & Lou

From Vientiane we said goodbye to cities for a while and headed to Phu Hin Bun National park.  Our accommodation here was basic but in a beautiful location and the two main things to do are relax by the river and visit the cave system.  To reach the caves we hopped back on the bus for the short ride to the entrance and soon boarded boats which would be our main form of transport through this cavernous cave system carved by the river through the sandstone.  For some of the group this turned into a bit of an adventure with their boats bouncing off rocks and another having its engine stop, but it was soon up and running once more.  

Anna & her snail

Mahala & Teresa before the 7km boat ride

On the way back from the caves

An afternoon of relaxing by the river at our lodge followed, the next day would see us cross into country number 13, Vietnam.

Cocktail anyone?  Mahala & Dave

Pernille, Alex, Fi & Bex (and an unsuspecting puppy!)

Beers with the locals

Dave & his new friend