Advertisement
Published: November 20th 2006
Edit Blog Post
Jeepers, it seems a while since we last wrote! We were last relaxing in Mui Ne on the beach.
The relaxation was short-lived as we embarked on a white-knuckle minibus ride through the windy, mountainous roads on our way to Dalat, in the Central Highlands. Not sure out of which lucky packet the driver got his license... I seem to vaguely remember the views being spectacular through the anguish...
In Dalat we picked up our guides for a 3-day motorbike tour through the Central Highlands. They are known as the "Easyriders" and were started shortly after the American war, by a number of guys that could no longer get work due to their affiliation with the US forces. Theses days there are a number of younger guys on the scene but older guys seem to be genuine thing.
It was a great way to get off the tourist path and see some more remote areas. At first we were a little apprehensive at being on the back of a bike, having experienced the drivers and the roads, but guys did a good job and did not take any chances.
The countryside life reminded us a lot of
Viet Nam : Easyriders
Ruth's bike in the lead what you expect to see in Africa. What did however strike us was the Vietnamese's ingenuity. They are into everything you can imagine, flowers, coffee, silk, mushrooms, corn, cattle, etc, etc. The Dutch started growing flowers in Dalat and before they knew it the locals had got in on the act and were doing it for half the price. Now if only Africa could show the same initiative.
The natural beauty was breathtaking and we stopped off at a few of the many lakes and the waterfalls in the area. One thing that was a little concerning, was the extent of deforestation, from the US's use of Agent Orange and from the clearing for farming purposes. It was good to get the Vietnamese perspective on life and their culture from our guides. We also got to see a number of the minority hill tribes, many of whom were just as interested to see us, as we were them. We often ate with a crowd, watching our every move.
Our trip ended at Jungle Beach, near Nha Trang. It is a little "resort” set on a beach in the middle of nowhere, with forested mountains forming an awesome backdrop.
We stayed in grass huts just off the beach. Everyone staying here, eats their meals together, to it is very sociable and we met some really great people and soon we were embarking on day hikes to the nearby waterfall and deserted beaches with a few of our mates. It was great to be away from the constant noise of the traffic and the commercial overtures as you walk out you guesthouses in the towns. The little sand flies did however have us scratching worse than the village dogs that we have seen all over Vietnam.
After staying 3 days longer at Jungle beach than we had intended, we finally dragged ourselves on to a sleeper-train, and headed off to Hoi An. It is a much better way to travel than a bus. It brought back many memories of when I had traveled from Rhodesia/Zimbabwe to South Africa many years ago with my family on holiday.
Hoi An is a very romantic little port town that has maintained much of its charm. Its influences were numerous and included the Japanese, Chinese, Dutch, Portuguese and of course the Vietnamese. It was particularly prevalent in trading routes between the 17
Viet Nam: Easyriders 2
Ruth and Lam, one of the Easyriders - 19th centuries. The buildings oozed charm and we took numerous photos. Hoi An, these days is also known for its tailors and artists. Ruth had two suites made and I one for a lot less than we would have paid for one “off-the-shelf” suite in London. Ruth also managed to find a painting that will find a nice home in our new place in Sydney as well as a few other pieces of clothing. The Restaurants were also some of the best we have come across. I took a trip out to the My Son ruins 40kms out of town. On the way, I witnessed the police scrambling after two fugitives, through rice paddies, in their beige uniforms. There was much cheering from the crowds as one of the crooks was brought down by a tackle reminiscent of how the Springboks used to be… At the ruins I was quite amazed how much the Hindus had influenced the SE Asia’s early civilizations (as at Angkor Wat in Cambodia). The ruins were certainly not on the scale or condition of Angkor but it was a good day out, nonetheless.
I finally managed to persuade Ruth that we could not
settle in Hoi An, and managed to drag her kicking and screaming to the station where we caught another sleeper train to Hanoi, the capital of Viet Nam. We have since been to Halong Bay on a great 3-day trip (more about that later) and we leave for the mountains (Sapa) tomorrow but we shall include that in our next blog.
PS Another little thing that I found interesting, was that many of the guesthouse have Satellite TV, but was really interesting was that it was DSTV, the South Africa’s digital provider. It is quite unnerving to sometimes see SA adverts in Rands… in Viet Nam…. Nog al….
Well that is all for now. We hope you are all well.
Advertisement
Tot: 0.149s; Tpl: 0.029s; cc: 7; qc: 45; dbt: 0.0737s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.1mb
Suzana Najdovski
non-member comment
Keep those Blogs coming...
Thanks for the entertaining blogs... your vivid writing style Craig certainly helps me visualise this place even though I've never been. Not to mention the complimentary pics - oh so your style!! Hope you and Ruth are well and I look forward to meeting Ruth and you then. ; - ) Cheerio