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Published: February 16th 2008
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So, last blog was from Saigon where we were drunk. From there we moved up the coast to Mui ne where we got, you guessed it folks, drunk! It was Anny's birthday though so we had an excuse, just like we did for Tet; just so happened that one followed very quickly from the other. We celebrated Anny's birthday on a beachfront restaurant with a six course meal and several bottles of Vodka (costing about $2). We had help though, from David and Davina from Liverpool. David being a bit of a lightweight dropped out early but we managed to keep going into the small hours. As for exactly what those small hours bought I have no idea, how we managed to get home is still entirely unclear to both of us! We do remember leaving the restaurant, we do recall breaking into one of the super posh resorts and swimming naked in their pool, vague and hazy memories return of trying to find an empty room in said resort but I think we only manged to wake up happily snoozing couples! We had an excellent night though that, if evidence were needed, our hangovers the next day could happily testify
to.
Mui ne itself we didn't particularly like. It seemed to be a rich Saigonese coastal gettaway, a bit like Brighton is for Londoners but not nearly so nice. The beach was better though. The place had zero character, just one road that was full of resorts that were way out of our price range, it didn't help that it was still Tet and consequently completely fully booked. We, after searching for two hours, were taken pity on by some dude who moved out of his room to sleep on the floor, allowing us to use his room. His motives were far from benevolent, he just fancied the large amount of Dollars he knew he could charge us. Still, a room is a room. We got out on the bikes for a great day, travelling to see some huge red sand dunes and some even bigger white ones. The fishing village was also pretty interesting.
Next up, after another mammoth and none too pleasant 16 hour bus journey, we arrived in Hoi an. It is a pretty and well preserved old town that was largely untouched by the war, leaving many beautiful wooded houses just as they were
a couple hundred years ago. Well I say just as they were, but I doubt every one had made to measure boutiques in them then. This is the other thing Hoi an is famous for and probably more of a draw than the town itself. For exceptionally reasonable rates you can have any garment you please, in any style you care for, in any fabric you like, tailored to your exact measurements. I spent $110 and had a suit and two shirts made. I went for the highest quality fabrics and, after two fittings, now have a seriously nice suit that fits perfectly. Anny, for a little less money, got a dress, a pair of trousers, a top and a coat that all look amazing.
Then to Ninh binh which we used as our base to explore the gorgeous, limestone rock formations of Tam coc. We again took a bike and then hired a couple of boatmen (well a 70 year old dude and his daughter) to row us up the river and through three caves. The weather then, as it is now, was cold and misty but this lent a certain bleak romanticism to the soaring landscape. From
there we went to see some ancient capital which, to our small financial annoyance, seemed to contain nothing ancient at all. It was pretty and relaxing though.
Now we are in Hanoi. It is large and noisy. We don't like it. We were planning on travelling north to the mountains but as it is raining and very cold there, and as we have yet to really enjoy Vietnam, we are going to cut and run; we head for the Lao border, with an overnight stop, tomorrow. We have enjoyed aspects of this country, Saigon for one we both loved, it has some marvellous scenery and we have met a few good people - but not enough, and this is where the problem lies. The attitude here is so much more aggressive than I am used to in South East Asia. I understand the implications my apparent wealth has to these often extremely poor people but here, unlike India, Thailand or Cambodia, the means by which they seek to relieve me of it is that much more brazen. Today for example we had the fairly simple task of finding a bus station. We caught a metered cab, showed the driver
our destination, gained his assurance that he knew where it was and set off. After half an hour it was clear he hadn't a clue. O.K, no problem, sometimes this happens. We had to pay the fare. Next we got a motorbike taxi, this guy again (in good English) said he knew where to go. We, as you do, agreed a price of 20,000 Dong and set off, only to be dropped 20 meters down the road at a bus stop! He would not give us our money back, even though this was clearly outrageous. We then caught a bus to what we thought was the correct bus station, it wasn't. This was Lonely Planet's bad though. The people there directed (and wrote down) us to the correst bus station. Armed with this info we got another motorbike taxi, agreed another price of 20,000 dong and got to our destination no trouble. Only trouble was, upon arriving, our driver, very aggressively, demanded 40,000 Dong! I was so mad at this stage that I threw the money on the ground and walked off.
This is just one example from one day but I could recount many more. Personal space is
not something that there is any concept of in these countries, but here in Vietnam they invade it incessantly. We disembark a bus and most times, amongst the hoards of expectant taxi drivers, Anny always gets groped. When she turns round to confront them the whole malicious gang laugh in her face. There are few smiles, too much aggressive selling and the weather is rubbish! Perhaps I am in debt with the Karma bank, perhaps (and most likely) I have just got unlucky but for whatever reason Lao cannot come soon enough.
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Jos-An
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Beautiful country, kind people
Vietnam is a wonderful land of wonders and welcoming locals. I am glad that you discover my country and appreciate your journey. An, Anny's friend.