Blogs from Ho Chi Minh City, Southeast, Vietnam, Asia - page 213

After a beer and a quick bite to eat with Steve after the Mekong Tour, I had to get ready to meet the rest of the crew for drinks at 7PM. I invited Steve and a German couple from the Delta tour to join us. I quickly showered and laid down for a brief rest. I met up with Melanie first, at a bar called Allez Bous in the heart of hotel row. We chatted for a bit before seeing Alex and the girl from Zimbabwe running towards us, an awkward sight to see. Drenched in sweat, they told us that they went for a run and would be running late because they had to shower. Of course that wasn't a problem. While we sat there, Melanie ran into 2 Englishmen she had met at ... read more

We flew to Saigon, now called Ho Chi Minh City, from Danang (30mins from Hoi An) It seemed funny sitting in an airport in Vietnam with Lord of the Rings playing on a big screen in the waiting room, belgian and swiss chocolate being sold in the snack shops and signs saying “we use New Zealand butter and Ice Cream” in the restaurants. Then there are the menus at cafes, which advertise lots of Western food along with pages dedicated to Bird, Snake & Frog. The place we’re at now sells 'rooted pigeon' and 'grilled pork cartilage.' Sour fish soup, boiled spinach, rabbit fillets & snake wine are also on the menu. Needless to say, we’ve only been ordering fresh fruit juices. Saigon is huge (over 12 million) & the traffic here is even crazier than ... read more

The Mekong Delta I am in love with the Mekong, and as a part of my travels I want to see it in as many places as I can. So far I’ve traced its course from Phnom Penh north to Chiang Khong in Thailand, and while in Saigon it was imperative that I see it at its mouth. Thus began my second day tour out of HCMC. Of course, in my usual style it was quite an effort to raise myself from bed in time to catch the bus and I spent the entire journey south asleep (much to the annoyance of our tour guide who was a small Vietnamese girl who talked as though she was Lily Allen’s sister. Actually, while on that point, I should mention that the tour guide I had on the ... read more

Standing at the intersection of a four lane highway in Ho Chi Minh City suddenly makes you feel sorry for that poor little chicken that had to get to the other side of the road. Like him, you just have to wonder "Why?" Seriously this is "Frogger 3D - Super Advanced". Traffic doesn't stop, it doesn't slow, it doesn't follow lanes. It's like staring at an angry river flowing through a steep ravine. Bicycles and scooters weave in and out of the cars and buses like flotsom in swirling eddies crashing up against the larger trucks and buses, as they themselves overtake other large vehicles, all of which are travelling in all different directions. Cars and bikes turn left from the right most lane, bicycles weave in and out where they can, and everywhere horns are ... read more

Walking into Hobart airport an hour before the flight, and therefore 30 minutes before the close of check in at 5.30am is usually a pretty safe bet. Heck it's a dead safe bet ... unless maybe when you're flying Jetstar. We walked through the airport doors and immediately found ourselves at the end of a very long line. Not a good start. 10 minutes later and the only thing that had moved was the minute hand on the clock. Something wasn't going quite as it should, and the first nerves of missed-flightitis started to emerge. Fortunately we were surrounded by many others on our flight who were just as nervous as us about the lack of movement. Slowly the clock ticked closer and closer, and then past, the dreaded 30 minute close off for check in ... read more