Vietnam

Before the rush hour



The first thing we did when we arrived in Ho Chi Minh (Saigon), the capital of Vietnam, was to try and get used to their money – the Dong. We felt rich in this country because we had a few million Dong in our wallets. Ten Norwegian kroner (about £1 or US$1.65) is worth 34,619.41 Dong! From the airport we took a taxi (147210 Dong) to our hotel in District 1 where we would be staying for 3 nights. It doesn’t take long to understand that there is a lot of traffic on the roads in HCM, particularly mopeds! There seemed to be no public transport system so instead of having thousands of people sat on The Tube, like in London, everyone had their own moped so that there was an endless river of mopeds on all the main roads at any one time.

Surely there's room for the kitchen sink

HCM has a population of about 7.5 million and it seemed like all of them owned a moped. Like many other countries in Asia, they try to squeeze as much as possible onto their moped, like all family members and just about everything else imaginable. We had to learn from the locals how to cross the road. If you stop and wait for the road to be clear then you will never get across. You simply launch yourself into the road and then either walk very slowly or stop every couple of steps. The mopeds will just pass you by on either side. If you keep walking then most of them aim to drive behind you. Obviously you have to pay attention all the time since not all the mopeds manage to steer behind since there are too many mopeds around. After a while we got used to crossing the road. There are so many mopeds that they can’t actually drive very fast but we manged to see a couple of accidents. At cross roads there were either traffic lights that they took no notice of or no traffic lights. The mopeds just seemed to mingle in and come out in the desired direction. This was probably more efficient than stopping at the lights.

On our first night we decided to go out and taste the local food. However, there are so many restaurants and various other street stalls to choose from that we didn’t know where to start. Wireless internet was available in many places so we decided to trust our luck to the Restaurant guide on TripAdvisor. This was quickly done and we spent the next half an hour trying to find it. When we finally found someone that had heard of it and we discovered to our dismay that it was down a little lane right opposite the hotel! At least it wouldn’t take long to get home. We are not that used to eating Asian food and so it was difficult to choose from the huge choice on the menu so we stuck to the recommendations on TripAdvisor. The meal was good although we seemed to eat a lot less than everyone else. They had several plates of various delicious looking food on the table that they all shared from. We also had the usual discussion about why they like eating with chop sticks when it would be so much easier to use a knife and fork!

Outside the War Remnants Museum

It’s not possible to be in HCM for long without being reminded of the Vietnam War. We were very young whilst the war was reported in the media so we found ourselves having to read up on what the reasons for the conflict were. We visited the War Remnants Museum which had many disturbing pictures showing the realities of war. The museum presented everything from Vietnam’s point of view but despite this it was clear to see that both sides suffered a lot during the war.

After walking around the streets of  District 1 in HCM it felt like it was time to get away from the noise and all the traffic. We booked a three day two night trip to the Mekong River Delta. This involved a 3 hour drive south to join the first of many small boat trips in the huge Mekong River Delta area of southern Vietnam.

Iren enjoying the ride



There were many stops along the Mekong River tributaries such as visiting a bee farm and tasting the honey, listening to traditional Vietnamese folk music, sampling various fruits and tasting home made chocolate coated coconut sweets straight after they were made. One of the stops made an impression of Phil since there was a friendly Python there. Phil does not like snakes but after seeing other people survive holding it draped around their necks he decided to have a go. It was heavier than it looks and it didn't remain around his neck for long before Phil generously gave it to the next person that wanted a go.

Floating Wholesale Market

The women do all the hard work

The next morning we cruised off to a floating wholesale fruit and vegetable market. There were hundreds of small boats selling their wares and trying to get noticed. Most of the small boats were powered by women standing at the back of the boats with the oars crossed and then pushing forward. They seemed to be very strong as they never stopped paddling between destinations. They deserved their tips at the end of the trip!

Lunch with a Vietnamese family

Cheap and tasty in a Chau Doc restaurant!

There were several stops for meals and at one of these we were lucky enough to sit with a Vietnamese family who could explain to us what we were eating and how we should eat it and gave us a lesson in how to use chop sticks. 

The video above is a short clip from an early morning boat trip to a floating fish farm. The women paddling the boats were in good humour.



The Mekong River Delta trip ended by dropping us off in Phnom Penh in Cambodia. Look at the post for Cambodia to read about the trip there. From Siem Reap in Cambodia we flew back to Hanoi in northern Vietnam.

Hanoi Water Puppet Theatre

In many ways, Hanoi was similar to HCM in that there was a lot of traffic on the roads consisting mainly of motorbikes. Our hotel was in the old quarter in central Hanoi close to the Hoan Kiem Lake. In this area was the traditional Water Puppet Theatre. We managed to buy some tickets since some people didn't turn up and found ourselves sat right at the front with an excellent view.  The picture to the right doesn't show the puppets very well. The puppeteers stand in the water behind the screen and operate the puppets by moving rods. Traditional song and music is performed at the side of the stage. The stories were based aound different historical events and myths from farmers and fishermen. It was different and we enjoyed it although we didn't understand much of what was going on. 

A popular stop at some limestone caves

It was Christmas whilst we were in northern Hanoi and we decided to spend it by taking a two day one night cruise in Halong Bay just south of Hanoi. The bay is characterised by 3000 very small islands. It is a beatiful place and is a Unesco World Heritage Site. The islands are predominately made of limestone and have been eroded by the wind, rain and sea for thousands of years turning them into what they are today. The boats are modern although they are made to look like traditional "junks" with sails. Our boat was full with about 18 guests. Unfortuanately our room was next to the engine room which could be easily heard through the wall. Since the boat was full there was no chance of changing the room but we were pleased to hear from the guide that the engine is turned off at night and the boat anchored at sea so that it would be quiet by bedtime.

Making the perfect Spring Roll

Early moring Chi Gung on deck

There was a full programme on the boat with a cookery class on how to make Spring Rolls, a visit to a huge limestone cave, a visit to a floating village and its fish farm and floating market, kayaking and a Chi Gung lesson on deck before breakfast on the second day. The meals on the boat were excellent.


Float fruit market stall



The junk in the sunset

After lunch on day two there was just enough time to sit in the sun on deck before the boat got back to the port and the 3 hour drive back to our hotel in Hanoi. The next day we took a short flight to Hue, approximately in the middle of the country on the eastern side.

 

Hmm, who's copying who?

Who are these two?

Hue is also a World Heritage Site with numerous palaces, tombs and pagados. We saw quite a few of them in our 3 nights in the town. We left by car and were driven south for about 3 hours to the coastal town of Hoi An. Both Hue and Hoi An were much quieter than Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh. Hoi An was probably our favorite place to stay of the places we visited in Vietnam since didn't have much traffic and the town was old and quaint to walk around. The river going through the middle also gave it charm and it had a beach that was only 10 minutes away.

A pagoda outside Hoi An

The river in Hoi An

We spent New Years Eve in Hoi An and watched the locals float candles in small cardboard boats down the river. Our time in Vietnam and Southeast Asia was soon to be over. The last couple of days was spent in Bangkok before our flight home. It was 33 degrees C in Bangkok and -5 when we landed in Oslo!