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Published: July 21st 2007
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18th July
I have no idea what day it is anymore. I know it’s Thursday and that’s it, actual dates no longer exist. Actually it might not be Thursday. At the weekend we were feeling lazy and not much like spending a fortune, so we headed over to China Beach north of Da Nang for some sun and marble mountains. I’m not much of a lie on the beach all weekend kind of person but thought what the hell. The beach had white sand, much whiter I think than down the coast at Hoi An and I think that in part how I managed to get so sunburnt (first real time since coming here). We stayed somewhere called Hoas Place which was pretty much the only place to stay along this stretch of beach. The room was alright, cheap and cheerful. The bathroom ran the length of the room and echoed it was so large and pretty much empty. The guy running it seemed nice enough until he started adding a dollar here, a few thousand dong there onto our bill. Then came the most painful hour of my life, waiting for a bus that cost us an extra 15,000d
for booking it at Hoas place, in +40C heat with nothing but a lamppost for shade and dwindling water supplies. Add to this period cramps, PMS, tiredness and the fact that the bus didn’t turn up for 2 hours (the second hour was spent jetting around town after they decided we were at the wrong bus stop) it’s little surprise I fell asleep on the ride home.
Back in Hue, I finally got round to buying postcards and sending them. It was almost painful writing pretty much the same thing of 8 different postcards and I’m glad I finally got round to doing it! So if you gave me your address before I arrived in Vietnam, I’ve probably sent you one. I also bought a conical hat also known in Hue as a poem hat because when held up to the light it reveals scenes and stories. The one I bought has a flower and a pagoda with some writing which I can’t really make out but the first word is Truong which means ‘nostalgic love’ and that’s enough for me. The conical hat has a plethora of uses I have discovered. Firstly, it’s incredible in hot weather because it
covers so much of your head, neck and shoulders yet still allows cool air to circulate around your head (unlike a baseball cap). It is also rather handy in fanning several small children at once as I found out when I took it to Thuy Xuan, the orphanage I visit the most.
21st July
Took a motorbike ride this morning via Stop and Go Cafe around Hue and the countryside. It was great fun, just what I needed after a low and lethargic yesterday. My driver was a guy called Bill who was, for lack of better words, completely and utterly mad, but in a good way. He had been an interpreter for the South Vietnamese and the Americans during the war. The GIs had clearly taught him a few too many swear words during this time but I think he sensed my lack of appreciation for them and it ceased. He was a very good guide and I think I understood about 75-80% of what he was saying, though this went down to about 50-60% when we were on the bike. I nodded along happily nonetheless. He knew lots of stories about the history and myths of the
area. He especially knew about Buddhism because he had become a monk after his wife died years back. He taught me to pray at a Buddhist monastery on a hill. One thing, I would never worry about going somewhere you’re not supposed to because there isn’t really a place like that that exists. Just the Vietnamese tend to ask very personal and probing questions, they also seem to wonder in and out where they like. There was a room full of fledgling monks, all practicing their Chinese calligraphy, so we just stroll in and he starts prodding half the boys and asking them questions, completely unphased. I wish I had taken a picture but I was so overwhelmed by it all I completely forgot. At the Japanese bridge, after making a baby cry, Bill taught me how to walk in Ao Dai, the traditional dress worn by girls. This was quite entertaining for both me and for the few watching. “You move slow like this and your hips, like this...yes?”
Later that afternoon we had the biggest thunderstorm. One minute, sunshine and 39C heat, the next wind and rain like nothing. Admittedly we had seen the storm coming but were
unaware of the severity and the fact that it was heading directly our way. Within seconds I was drenched and we pulled into a cafe. It was quite entertaining nonetheless and refreshed after so much heat (each day it gets at least up to 38C). We had lunch and two beers for Vietnamese prices! This cost 29,000d, about 1 pound, which I offered to pay. We watched the rain, buckets and buckets, pouring down outside turning the road into a river like nothing I’d ever seen. It stopped once we finished lunch and within 5 minutes of that the sky was a perfect clear blue again. On the way home, we saw the mess the storm had created. Not only were the roads covered in twigs and leaves but whole huge tree branches had broken off and partly covered the road in places. Whole streets were also flooded. It was like a mini typhoon had hit. The people were obviously used to it and had already started sweeping the roads, regardless of traffic.
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eva
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wow nic! lovely photos!! looks like you are having a great time :) so jealous! xx