Blogs from Central Highlands, Vietnam, Asia - page 8

We have finally slowed the pace a little here in the French built mountain resort of Dalat. At 5000 feet above sea level the weather is cooler, around 24 C and sunny, so we are promenading around the lake and visiting the local sites in a more leisurely way. Earlier we spent each of14 nights in a different bed, not quite as risque as it sounds. After a visit to Halong Bay, an area of outstanding natural beauty with atolls and caves, an overnight train from Hanoi took us up to the Chinese border in the mountains of northern Vietnam where we spent two days trekking, visiting ethnic minority villages and seeing a lifestyle that combines agricultural traditions with the communication technology of the 21st Century, mobile phones and flat screen TV's,in a wooden hut! Following ... read more

Our two day bike ride from Da Lat to Mui Ne was certainly a highlight of the trip. Although it sounds very adventurous, really we just hired a guide service that rented us two bikes, provided a support vehicle, and helped us get to the coast by bike, while transporting our luggage as well. Not only were we riding through beautiful country (though admittedly, we would not have minded our fancy road bikes over the clunky, rusty, mountain bikes they provided us with), but we also stopped at some of the places that make the Vietnam Highlands stand out. We visited flower gardens (they export flowers all over Vietnam and beyond), coffee farms, and a rice wine distillery. We had our first introduction to weasel coffee. The beans of weasel coffee have first been ... read more

We arrived in Vietnam after a midnight sleeper bus from Siem Reap to Pnom Penh, Cambodia. From Pnom Penh we crossed the border (relatively seamless) and arrived in Ho Chin Minh City, Vietnam. We stayed in Ho Chi Minh City for only a night. The motorbike traffic rivaled that of Bangkok, and the Pho (noodle soup) and coffee was fantastic. We got up early to run our first morning, and joined the multitudes in the park playing badminton, doing tai chi, and even ballroom dancing (this was all at about 7am!). I always associate exercise with a degree of wealth—individuals have the time (and extra calories) to consider their health, rather than conserving every ounce, because one is hungry. We boarded a bus for the Vietnam Highlands at 10 am, and after ... read more

Uiiiii long time no seen/write. Das muss aufgeholt werden und endlich habe ich eine einigermassen gute Tastatur gefunden bei welcher ich nicht dauernd daneben tippe :) Wo sind wir stehen geblieben? bei den schrecklicken Beaches in Koh Chang? Jaja da musste ich Schelte einstecken: ein paar von euch geben an tatsaechlich schoene Beaches vorgefunden zu haben?! Wir bezweifeln es zwar noch immer, aber meinetwegen! Wir haben jedenfalls beschlossen, weiter nach Cambodia zu fahren. Also los auf's Schiff und mit dem Bus Richtung Cambodia. Die ganze Visum-Geschichte kurz und buendig abgewickelt *haha aber wir sind trotzdem gut ueber die Grenze nach Cambodia eingereist und gleich nach Siem Reap aka Ankor Wat gefahren. Wir wollten was Gutes tun und unser Gewissen beruhigen darum ging's ins Seven Candels Guesthouse. Dort bezahlt man zwar ein bisschen mehr (statt $20 waren's ... read more

Day 11 On day 11 we caught another bus to Ho Chi Minh city. This involved crossing the border from Cambodia to Vietnam mid way of the six our trip. Ho Chi Minh city is more built up then Phnom Penh and there are lots more motorbikes. Our accomodation there was very nice and we will most likely stay there again when we return to Ho Chi Minh on our way back to Melbourne. Day 12 We spent Day 12 booking and planning the next few days in Da Lat. We went to the markets during the day and at night. After dinner as a group, we split up into two groups. Half of us chose to go bowling and the others went to the night markets for more shopping. Bowling was great fun and there ... read more