Blogs from South Central Coast, Vietnam, Asia

Due to an unfortunate turn of events two of our volunteers scheduled to start with us in May are unable to do so now. One has had to return to her home country and the other has started a new job. We are in desperate need of someone to come over to Hoi An for a minimum of three months asap. Our current volunteer Sheila from the UK has been volunteering with us for six months and is due to return to the UK early June. We need someone to take over her volunteering schedule and if they arrive in time have a few weeks shadowing Sheila before the hand over. This would be the ideal scenario so as you could see what is involved and have some training with Sheila before she leaves. Sheilas volunteering ... read more

I am sure you'll all remember that lovely blog post of Stephanie Hamilton, wonderful photographer from Dubai, who visited Lifestart Foundation a couple of months ago and made a kind donation to support our outreach work at Hoi An Homeless and Disabled Shelter. If you missed her blog here is the link, it is a lovely read with gorgeous photos: url=https://service.mail.com/dereferrer/?target=http%3A%2F%2Fsweetnektar.wordpress.com%2F2013%2F01%2F19%2Flife-is-like-a-box-of-chocolates%2F&lang=enhttp://sweetnektar.wordpress.com/2013/01/19/life-is-like-a-box-of-chocolates/ Stephanie recently designed a range of beautiful cushions and announced that again ALL PROCEEDS shall be... read more

Our first night train experience in Vietnam was not a good one. After a full day of seeing dead communist leaders, going round slightly confusing and strange museums, getting bananas confiscated by the dead communist leader (or his security guards at least), we boarded the train for Sapa. We had booked the hard sleeper for the journey north as it was the only choice available, but we consoled ourselves with the fact that we would be getting the soft sleeper on our return journey. The hard sleeper was very hard. And cramped. And full of snoring, farting Asians. It was a great relief to finally get into Sapa, and to find a representative from Pinocchio Hotel holding a sign with Suzanne's name on at the station. The morning was rather foggy and cold, but the tiny ... read more

Day 7 - Today we had a long drive to Hoi An going over the beautiful and scenic Hai Van Pass. On the way we stopped to see the China Beach, the Cham museum and Marble Mountain. Here some of the caves were used by the Viet Cong during as a hospital during the Vietnam War. I was also surprised to see a giant marble Budda inside and one on the hillside which looked so white apparently it had been painted to restore it. We walked up the steps to the Mountain but there is a life on the outside which really looks out of place and was for the very lazy tourist! We will spend three nights here in Hoi An which will be a welcome rest. Day 8 - We had the morning to ... read more

I felt a little reluctant to be leaving Hoi An, but it was time to move on to our next destination. Our second (and final) night train journey of the trip was a fair bit shorter than the first at ten hours, but the train itself was a little grim. Worn, dark wood paneling lined our soft sleeper cabin, while the bed sheets, one of which had blood stains on it, looked like they hadn't been washed in a good while. Still, it was much more comfortable than the hard sleeper we'd taken to Danang, and yes, it had a proper toilet!! Our two days were spent lazing on the beach and eating anything from hamburgers to cashew chicken, served in half a scooped out pineapple. We did pretty much nothing else, and it was bloody ... read more

It was on this day that it felt as though our trip turned a corner. We were both feeling as normal as we had done since the beginning of the Ha Long bay cruise, the weather was fantastic, and we had a beautiful town to explore. Hundreds of buildings in Hoi An's charming old town are protected by UNESCO decree, with many of the old houses open to the public along with a number of museums, temples and chapels. An old town ticket gets you access to five of these places, and we saw our first three in our first morning in Hoi An. By far the most interesting of these was the Assembly Hall of the Fujian Chinese Congregation (and, breathe!). The hotel pool was the perfect place to escape the searing midday heat, and ... read more