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Published: December 21st 2009
The last blog for our trip is finally here.. a month later! But I figured if I didnt do it now it would never get done, and the trip was really not complete without a final blog! Now where were we... thats right.. arriving back in Saigon from Paradise aka Phu Quoc.
Arriving back in Saigon we suddenly realised how close to the end we were, and considering that the following day was a full day tour we realised that we only had the afternoon to finish up any shopping we wanted to do.. with that in mind we quickly dumped our bags at the hotel and went across the road for one last feast at our favourite Saigon pork restaurant... after we scoffed our food we headed off to the Ben Thanh Markets. While they are only open during the day, at night a large night market is set up in the streets outside the market... Arriving there I was quick to note that the shopping was similar to Thailand with the fake watches and dvds... We quickly negotiated an ok price on some watches (not sure about McK's purchase but my watches have stopped working less than a
month later).. I found the general quality of the 'fake' goods much less than Thailand and much harder to negotiate a reasonable price.
The next few hours were a shopping frenzy as we both quickly snapped up souviniers and knick knacks.. we seriously spent way too much time and money here.. and were fully loaded up with presents and souviniers for the walk home!
We decided to not have a night out as we were both exhausted from the shopping and we had an early start the following morning on a day tour of the Mekong Delta region.
Jason Superstar? Jason SuperNOT!
We were up bright and early for our tour and super excited as we had heard fantastic things about a guide called Jason in Saigon. He was super expensive ($175USD for both of us) and considering we ended up following the same trail as all the tour groups it was super disappointing that others paid $20 - $50 for something similar!
This is where McK can finally play guest blogger as I have decided to be a little lazy and cut/paste her review she left the night of our tour on
TripAdvisor.. she decribed the tour perfectly and I couldnt really do it any better myself... Over to you McKay!
McKays Review on Our Mekong Tour with "Jason Superstar"
Hi all
Went on a full day's trip with Jason SSS today and thought we'd share our experience as we were pretty disappointed overall based upon the value of the trip for the amount we paid ($175 US for 2 people, including the "Trip Advisor Discount"). This seems fairly reasonable while planning a trip but once you get to Vietnam you will see that is A LOT of money and you can do a broad range of trips for significantly less (though you will have to tour with other travelers). We booked the full day trip (Option 5) with visits to the floating market (not much of a market at all), a walk through the street market, and the canal/boat trips. Sorry, I can't recall all the names now as am totally wiped out.
Firstly let me say that Jason is a very nice person. He was great coordinating via email and showed up on time to get us in a nice car with air con and driver. Our first request of the morning was to stop for coffee as our guesthouse wasn't serving yet by the time we departed. He was very accomodating and took us to a nice roadside stall for takeaway Vietnamese coffee (which we paid for).
For the most part the morning portion of the trip was pretty good. The Cao Dai temple was interesting and Jason provided lots of information but then we moved on to the the "fish toilet" and "coffee stop". We did the toilet which was fun but then we were back in the car with no mention of coffee. Granted we'd had coffee about 2 hours earlier but we would have loved more, especially since others here on TA have spoken of lounging in the hammocks as they drank theirs. We were even taking pictures of the hammocks and remarking how nice they would be to lounge in and were just told to get in the car. A few minutes later Jason hopped in the car with his own iced coffee and we were back on the road with no mention of the coffee/hammock stop that was 'included' in our trip.
The rest
of the morning was fine though again the floating market really isn't a market it all. It's a collection of big boats with people sleeping in hammocks and sticks coming out of the back displaying their wares (mostly root veggies and squash from what we saw). There is no interraction with the market folk at all.
For lunch we chose the Truck Stop with pork and it was fantastic. It was by far the best part of the tour.
After lunch we were back out on the road for our boat trips and to "taste" coconut candy. Our ENTIRE afternoon consisted of visiting FOUR coconut candy makers, all making the same candy, all rude, and all overpriced. While at the candy shops he would give us a quick rundown of how it's made and then dump us off at a private table to "drink tea" while he worked on his laptop or chatted with the locals, read a newspaper, or disappeared completely. No one spoke to us or interacted with us. Once the prescribed amount of time passed (as with many tours, guides are required to keep you at a location for a certain amount of time in
order to get a commission for bringing you there. This was no different. The guides in these situations turn in little slips of paper with their information to the main bookkeeper and are somehow remunerated that way and I watched Jason do this at each stop) we continued along to the next stop. Now don't get me wrong, I am all for guides earning their commissions but four of the same shop? Unacceptable. Had Jason been taking us to see various local handicrafts and attractions and earning extra money at the same time we would have no issues. But it was as if he was trying to hit every stop to make as much as possible, to the detriment of our experience.
At the first one of these stops we arrived just as another boat of travelers on a "cheap" tour arrived. Another arrived shortly thereafter. Yes, there were alot of them on the boat (20ish) but as we sat and waited for no less than 30 minutes while Jason put together our DVD of pictures both boats of "cheap" tourists departed and two new ones arrived. While the DVD/CD is a nice feature, it is NOT worth sitting
in a hot tourist shop with nothing to do but sweat and stare at each other. These shops were selling the same wares at triple the price you would get in Saigon at Ben Thanh or in Hanoi's Old Quarter. At this stop we also finally approached a shopkeeper (lounging in a hammock) and asked if we could please buy some water as it was hot as heck and we were dying.
Anyway, the afternoon was the same. We took 5, yes 5, boat trips to get to the "Python" experience. Well what this is is another coconut candy shop with a python in the back. So after you walk through the candy shop portion you play with the snake and then again are made to sit while Jason reads a newspaper and the clock ticks. The final frustration with us was on the 5th boat ride (back to the car) when we were bored senseless because Jason wasn't telling us anything and I turned around to see him swinging away in a hammock on the boat fast asleep!!! This is what we are paying $175 for?
Once arrived at the docks all the shops were closed down
so we were directed by the driver to sit in a corner room in some wooden chairs with no air con. We begged to please sit in the car with the air con instead. Jason took about another 30 minutes working on the computer as we watched the clock tick and saw our last night in Saigon being wasted. In total we'd spent about two hours waiting around for the DVD/CD situation throughout the day.
We drove home in complete silence and once arrived at our hotel we ran into an issue with the money. Jason had quoted us $175 US. Most hotels/attractions quote in US but of course accept Vietnamese Dong because...this is Vietnam, not the US. And there are no ATM's here that dispense US Dollars. So when I tried to pay him 3,150,000 (generous at an exchange rate of 18,000/1 when today's rate is 17,735/1) he fussed and moaned because he can get a rate of 19,100/1 at the gold shops. At this point we told him what the official exchange rate was and that we had no means of getting US cash and we were at our wit's end. He finally accepted it begrudginly, an
appropriate dissapointment to him after the dissapointment of our day.
The reason we share all of this is not to bash Jason. Certainly if you have money to burn and prefer not to tour with other travelers you should use him. But if you prefer to spend your money in other ways (you can get alot of tailor-made clothes in Hoi An for $175!!!) and perhaps meet other travelers, go with one of the cheaper tours. You will get pretty much the same experience and won't be made to go to four coconut candy shops selling the same junk. I searched on here when we got home and can find nothing but rave reviews so I thought it's only fair of us as travelers to share our experience.
Time to Say Goodbye
Once back at our hotel and completely frustrated by our last day in Vietnam we decided to sooth our souls with one last hit of Fanny's Icecream. We caught a taxi to a thai restaurant that had been recommended before walking to Fannys Icecream. After our icecream we did a quick spot of DVD shopping at a little shop we had seen
along the way then headed home to pack the bags!
The following morning I was up bright and early and not so ready to go... a teary goodbye later with McKay and I was on my way to the airport.. McKay wasnt leaving until that night so she was able to spend one last day sightseeing alone... I however, was on the first plane out of there!
I cried on the way to the airport, knowing that it will probably be quite some time before I see McKay again.. we just had such an awesome adventure together and I was sad that it couldnt last longer! Maybe I can convince her to take 'leave without pay' and join me in India in 2011!
Overnight in Malaysia
I arrived in Kuala Lumpar after a non eventful flight before catching the $3 bus into the city. Once there I threw on the backpack and walked to my hotel which was close to KL Sentral. I wasnt exactly sure where it was but I knew its general direction.. Happily I found it within 5 minutes.. the backpack and everything else I was carrying was super heavy by
this stage!
I checked in with no dramas and was pleasantly surprised to see I had a room on the 14th Floor overlooking the famous Petrona Twin Towers.. something which ended up being very picturesque once the sun went down! After dumping my bags I caught the sky train to the Pavillion Mall and had lunch at i-Dragon again.. this time not overordering! I had the soup dumplings and the peking duck which were both divine! McKay and I had been craving good duck the whole trip but were disappointed to not have any! This more than satisfied my craving! Sorry McKay xx
After lunch I went for a wander around the mall and then headed back to the hotel. My hotel was in a great little location called Bricklands. It is a predominately Indian community with lots of banana leaf restaurants around the hotel. It is also home to a stack of 'Blind Massage' shops.. where you can get a super cheap massage by sight impaired masseuse's. I decided to get a massage so while I was eating lunch I had used the free wi-fi to use tripadvisor and see if I could find any recommendations. I
found one so once off the skytrain I decided to explore Bricklands and in the process find the recommended place... All along the streets were tiny Indian shops filled with knick-knacks, indian spices and best of all food.. there were little Naan and curry stalls set up along the street... and I started to get a Naan craving.
I eventually found my massage place and went upstairs.. it was the dodgiest looking place but was prepared as the review I had read warned me! I requested a female masseuse and stripped down. The next hour was heavenly. She really knew how to give a good massage and was able to pick up on parts of my body that were sore without me saying a word.
Afterwards I was a little peckish but not really in the mood for a big meal so I stopped off at one of the many stalls for a garlic Naan bread. It came with a couple of dipping sauces and was completely divine! Heaven! I took it back to the hotel room and ended up spending the night in my room taking photos of the view and watching cable tv! The following morning
I headed back to get the Air Asia bus to the Airport... I had a whole 9 Ringits to my name... thinking the ride was 3 Ringits not $3 I thought I would have enough to get the bus then get some brekkie.. but upon getting on the bus realised the $3 equalled 9 ringits! Doh! My last money went on the damn bus ride! Oh well.... Desperate I found a $20AUD in my purse at the airport which I was able to exchange and use at the Airport and on the plane....
Plane From Hell
All was going well until I was seated on the runway ready to head off from KL to Melbourne... I was in my usual seat of 15K and there was a lady seated in the aisle seat.. we didnt have anyone in between us so were feeling like it was going to be a great flight... then it happened... the lady points out to me that the exit emergency door isnt sealed (suctioned) properly at the top! You have got to be kidding me right! It sent me into a complete panic and we quickly called for the hostess' assistance.
We pointed out the door and she quickly calmed us saying it was ok... not convinced we took off with fingernails firmly planted in the seats!
Once up in the air we both became concerned as the door was making this weird 'cracking' sound. I went for a walk to the other emergency exits for a look and noticed that the ones down the back of the plane were normal but both near my seat had the same problem. We again called the air hostess over who assured us that the doors had been checked by the Engineers and were safe.... The lady seated near me was not convinced so she moved seats... Not long after a Malaysian guy sat in her chair. We got chatting and I explained why we were in a panic.. he said that he had a friend who was an Aircraft Engineer and that as long as the sides of the door were suctioned properly we would be fine.... The doors continued to make the cracking sound and I continued to silently panic... After about half an hour I was almost hysterical so decided to move.. the lady that I originally was seated next
to and I both went down the back of the plane away from the cracking sounds... Not long after the guy decided the sounds were too much for even him and moved too!
I was still not settling down (esp since the doors that were sealed properly werent cracking) so went back to see the Air Hostesses. I demanded to speak with the Captain! LOL... Would you expect anything less from me when I am such a nightmare flier as it is?! I was ushered up the front where a couple of minutes later the Captain emerged from the Cockpit.. I explained to him why I (and others) were panicking and he went for a walk to inspect the doors.. he came back and told me that the doors would be fine.. that the Engineers had checked it in Perth and KL and all were happy.. he said it was just bad luck that I was on the oldest plane in their fleet!! Yeah bad luck alright!! LOL
Speaking with the Pilot definitely put my mind at ease so I headed back to the back of the plane, threw on the headphones and tried to forget about the
cracking door! We landed safely in Melbourne on time and I declared all my food and wooden products. I assumed it would take me quite some time to get through customs, but I was ushered through without them even looking at my stuff! Amazing!
Once outside customs I realised I had about 7 hours to kill before flying to Adelaide so settled in at a coffee shop chatting to another traveller who was doing the same thing. Not long after we started chatting the Malaysian male that had been seated near me (and also moved) turned up. He was on an extended wait for a flight too... it was then that the plot thickened.. here I was wondering why Mr "I have a friend who is an Engineer" had moved from the seat.. well it turns out that the Air Hostesses were talking in their little 'area' about the doors in Malaysian.. and were all freaking out.. apparently everytime it made the cracking sound they would look out from behind their curtain at the door then talk about it in Malaysian about how worried they were! LMAO... NOW I know why he moved!!!!!
Anyway the rest of the
trip is uneventful.. just a short flight home tired and exhausted! Thankyou so much for tuning in, reading my adventures and leaving messages along the way! They were all much appreciated!
A huge thankyou to McKay for being the best travel partner in the world... my trip would not have been the same without you and I love you and miss you heaps! xxx
Stay tuned for my next adventure... at this stage its Thailand and maybe Cambodia in July 2010 .. then the big India Adventure in 2011!
Love to all
Reet xxxxx
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McKay
non-member comment
What a great trip!
Honey! I love and miss you lots too and had a GREAT time on this trip with you! You did a fantastic job blogging (even if it took us a while to finish up!)! I will definitely join in on parts of India if possible. XOXO PS: My "Chanel" watch is still working! Lol!