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Published: August 6th 2011
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Saturday 21st May
Bus into Saigon. It is one manic city! I did manage to convince Michelle to let me drive to the Cu Chi Tunnels tomorrow! Exciting! Dinner and sleep.
Sunday 22nd May
Armed with our moped, crappy 2$ helmets and a map which said it was basically one straight road for 30km we set off just after 8am. Well initially I set off and it was a little too quick and bumped into some bikes...much to Michelle's horror. The lady asked "Your friend ridden motorbike before? Er Yeah...sure!!" Not.
After a little practise I was ok and Michelle climbed aboard. We navigated our way to a petrol station and Michelle seemed to relax realising that I wasn't going to forget that we were driving on the right.
After that, in true Michelle and Amy we style we got lost. There are horrendous one way systems in Saigon city and as much as we tried to get directions we just kept going round in circles until we made an illegal left turn and finally managed to get on the one straight road to the tunnels. There are 6 million moped/motorbikes on the streets of Saigon at anyone time and
boy do they come close. My hazard perception was on fire, most of the time I think the men on the scooters just wanted to check out the pasty girls on a bike but sometimes it definitely felt like they were coming in to snatch a handbag....
After almost an hour on the road we were adamant we were lost as the Lonely Planet said it was only 30km away and I wasn't driving that slowly!! Finally arriving into Cu Chi town we asked for directions and found we had to continue down country lanes to reach the tunnels. The sign said 12km Cu Chi Tunnels...excellent! Then the next sign said 4km. Then the next sign said 9km. It made absolutely no sense and did not tie up with the kms on the bike either. After a while I clocked that the signs were the distance to the next sign...very odd and when we finally arrived at the tunnels it says 70km from Saigon City. Stupid Bloody Lonely Planet! I was also filthy...so disgustingly dirty. No wonder the face masks are a must in Vietnam.
The Cu Chi Tunnels were sensational. Unbelievably small. The fact that people lived underground for
months is staggering, just the heat alone was unbearable. They were definitely made of strong stuff to do that. I literally had to slide on my bum to get through the 15metre tunnel. They had also dug down deep enough to bring up fresh water and dug trap doors with spears to kill the American soldiers. The movie was propagandas but still very cute explaining how they formed mounds of dirt filled with chilli and pepper which the American soldiers would shoot and then they would be able to smell the soldiers from a further distance....
Totally ignoring the option to go shooting we climbed back on the bike and enjoyed speeding along the countryside. We were beeping in retaliation to all the beeps we'd had so far...Michelle screamed "Beep them Amy Beep them!" We drove all the way back to Saigon and were severly dehydrated and then took a wrong turn and I may have accidentally accelerated and crashed the bike into 2 parked bikes. Oops! No scrapes or injuries just embarrassed!
I was about ready to collapse when it was time to give the bike back. We enjoyed some really cheap street food and enjoyed a lovely early
night.
Monday 23rd May
Up early again for the bus to the Mekong Delta. I think we were to late to see the real trading going down and it didn't really blow me away...it was interesting to see how they do everything on the river. Wash, swim, trade, toilet...everything!
We went to the standard coconut factory and now I know how sugar puff cereal is made! We spent another hour on the river and then stopped for lunch. Then we were subjected to a crocodile farm. It was horrendous...so many crocs crammed into small cages with loads of little chics to feast on. HORRIBLE!!! We cheered for them to escape!
We then arrived into Chau Doc and went to our floating hotel. Just a hotel by the riverside without AC. We nearly died.
Tuesday 24th May
Bus back to Saigon and kipped in a room without windows. It was awful and I am sure the owners lived inbetween floors...they had a little trap door which was barely 3 feet high. It was made even worse as the lady stole my ipod! How would I cope without music!!! I doubt a tourist would ever buy it as it was
so old and I am positive she isn't suddenly going to get her groove on to Donaeo's Party Hard. COW!
Wednesday 25th May
Went to the Remnants museum. I paid 15000 Dong to see some of the worst photographs I have seen. Agent Orange (Dioxin) has caused so much damage, some of the deformaties took my breath away. It is an anti Americans propagandas museum but the photos are undeniable.
On the bus over the border I got chatting to a creepy Swiss Expat who was married to a beautiful Cambodian Lady. They lived in Sihnaukville. He was gross, she was adorable and clearly very happy to be married. She gave me some of her crickets...they were...OK! Suprisingly I had about 3!! They were extremley greasy but tasted like beef.
I then had to have my temperature taken at the border to make sure I was fit to travel into Cambodia. Once in, it was another hour or so into Phnom Penh and a quick Tuk Tuk ride to our hostel.
SLEEP!!!
Much Love xx
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