We continue to travel with Sara and Scott which translates as, our journey remains filled with laughter. We agree that we are all prone to being lazy tourists, by which we mean that we are more than happy with good company and a beer and that site seeing has become somewhat optional. We could try to blame this on the increasing presence of the Monsoon rains or, indeed, Gregg’s ear infection but either might be stretching the truth a little. 29 September 2010 Dreams Hotel is a place that, for once, lives up to its own hype. The staff (a family) are incredibly helpful and welcoming and they run their hotel in such a way that you really feel as if it is a home from home. Breakfast is taken in the basement around a massive ... read more

We are now a little behind with blogging since we have been spending quite a lot of time with Scott & Sara, a couple from Chicago, and have therefore happily had less time available to cogitate upon our travels. 25 September 2010 A couple of days ago Owen, our host, asked us if we would like to go on a snorkelling tour and we said that we might be interested if other people from the hotel were going. We then completely forgot about it until last night as we were coming in from dinner. Owen told us that another couple from the hotel were going on trip this morning and asked if we would like to join. So, the obligatory early rise later and we were once again in a battered old minibus. We did a ... read more

It has been an eventful two days which have brought us to a point nearly two thirds of the way down Vietnam. I am currently sitting on the balcony of our latest hostel looking out over the South China sea which is dotted with fishing boats, my view being interrupted only by giant Palm Trees laden with Coconuts. Lest you think that we are in heaven, there is one further detail which I must not omit. Between the third floor balcony and the beach is a dual carriageway along which vehicles thunder and ‘toot-toot’ at all times of the day and night. This is absolutely normal for Vietnam. Our hostel is run by a Canadian/Vietnamese couple and apparently they moved from Canada to Vietnam about 8 months ago. Owen says that he has not spent one ... read more

17 09 10 Today was our first full day in Hoi An and a day for exploring. We have very much enjoyed Vietnam so far but it has to be said that it is very difficult to travel at all independently because of the reliance that the economy seems to place on tourism. So, today we decided to do our own thing to the maximum extent possible which meant hiring a moped. I started the day feeling a little out of sorts and, whilst I got up for breakfast in good time , needed to retire thereafter for a little R&R before heading out for the day. For the record, I was not hungover but was just feeling a little delicate. As I lay on the bed willing my stomach to stop its relentless somersaulting, conversation ... read more

The pace of life has slowed considerably in the last 48 hours and I, for one, say hurrah. Nobody ever told me that travelling can be exhausting. Don’t get me wrong, we are still having a fab time but the reality is that the constant moving, arranging accommodation and finding places to eat is actually physically and mentally draining. So, following our visit to Hue old town, I decided that yesterday was going to be a quiet one and, that, it was. So quiet in fact that Gregg and I will, for the first time, be sharing this blog so that he can elaborate on the experiences that we didn’t share. Just in case you are thinking that I am a real lightweight we were, however, up at 5:30am this morning which, given my inability to ... read more