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Published: August 1st 2010
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Hey all!
The journey from Laos to Hanoi took about 24 hours. We could only get a local bus, which was an experience to say the least! We were shoved in the back along with the other westerners, although I had an old local woman sit on my lap most of the trip 😊 At about 2am we stopped just before the boarder. The bus driver shouted something we couldn't understand and disappeared...we then realised we were sitting in the middle of no where on an incredibly hot bus, all we could do was get off, sit and wait! About 4 hours later, there was movement and we got on our way to cross the border!
Our first stop was Hanoi. Its a very busy city...apparently it has a population of 7million people and 6million mopeds! Crazy place, I feared for my life every time we crossed the road! We booked a trip to Halong Bay, but unfortunately a typhoon was lingering so our trip was canceled two days in a row. We went on a day trip to the Perfume Pagoda. We were taken by a local woman in a tin boat down the river,
and explored the caves and village. It was a really nice day!
From Hanoi, we got the bus to Hoi An. We had to stop for a few hours in Hue, so we just walked around and explored a little before catching the bus to Hoi An. We really liked Hoi An. Its a peaceful town. Its the 'place' to get clothes made, but we decided against it- as it would be just another thing to carry on our backs! On the second day, we rented push bikes and rode to the beach. Its was nice to just relax and chill by the sea.
From Hoi An we went to Nah Trang. It was a little more lively than Hoi An, lots of restaurants, bars etc. We went on a boat trip around the islands...we spent the day snorkeling in the sea, and having fun on the boat. We had an amazing lunch- noodles, tofu, rice, squid, prawns, vegetables etc. Obviously I didn't eat the fishy food but Geoff tucked right in 😊 Later that day, a few friends we met in Laos caught up with us, which was lovely! We went for dinner
etc and spent the next day at the mud baths. Felt fresh and pampered after chilling in our private mud bath, and swimming in the mineral pools! We had dinner with the girls that night and said our goodbyes, as we had a bus to catch to Dalat the next morning.
Dalat's known for its cooler weather, its nick name is 'the city of eternal spring.' We visited the 'Crazy house' An amazing fantasy house, with Alice and Wonderland like architecture. I could quite happily live there and get lost in the crazyness! We only spent one day in Dalat, and soon made our way to Mui Ne.
Mui Ne is a great place. After a little walking we found a hotel with bungalow's, approx 20metres from the white sandy beach! The wooden bungalow was quaint and simple, with hammocks just outside, ready to be lazed in! The surfing is usually really great there, but we were out of season, so Geoff and I made do with body surfing (kind of!) The first night, we went to a local bar and go into a snooker tournament with a few fellow travelers! One of the
guys had moved there from England and ran a kite surfing shop..we also met a group of people from Croydon! The next day we relaxed on the beach, did a bit of swimming etc...(very strenuous!) That night we chilled on beanbags in a bar, with Ben, and watched a movie! The next day we caught a bus to Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon).
In Saigon, we visited the Cu Chi tunnels, where during the Vietnam war, the Viet Cong lived and fought against the Americans. It was a fascinating place...we got to explore some of the 200km of tunnels, of which i whimped out quite quickly, and Geoff went as far as he was allowed! One of the entrances we got to see, was sooo tiny, its unbelievable. Parts of the tunnels were ever so narrow and dark (with a few friendly bats!) Couldn't even imagine living in them. We also saw some of the traps made...very brutal but obviously necessary. After the tunnels we decided to visit the shooting range...I say we, I mean Geoff...The soldiers were ever so impressed with Geoffs ability to knock every target down with the ten shots given by the AK47-he
even won himself a snazzy hat, which he was very proud of! After having LOTS of fun with the guns, we visited the war remnants museum. Can't even put into words how emotional that place is...the photos really portrayed the devastation that occurred, very graphic and moving. The next day we got the bus over to Cambodia...
speak soon, lots of love xx
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