Do you like Pina Coladas?

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So when we last left off we were in the capital city of Vietnam, Ho Chi Minh. Unfortunately internet has been hard to come by but we are now in Hoi An and have managed to locate some... I may also be able to upload some photos too (fingers crossed)

So here's what we've been doing so far:

Nha Trang. This is where the beach was so Kelly was a happy camper. We arrived there via overnight train (more on this later) and on the first day we went on a boat trip to some islands off the coast. We went to a fishing island which had lovely fresh seafood (if I liked the stuff). We didn't spend very long there-too many common people. BUT we then weighed anchor (My attempt at Navy speak) and set sail to starboard to a nearby island where we went snorkelling (where I also got sunburnt). I had much fun jumping off the boat into the water (possible photos to follow).

Kelly: For anyone who has never heard of Nha Trang it's Vietnam's premier beach resort and is quite stunning, the beach is a long sweeping one with a view of mountains framing it and islands off in the distance, the sea is a beautiful translucent greenish blue and it was happy days really! For me it's comparable to a very small-scale Copacabana Rio-style beach, with the highrise hotels on the beach road and the mountains behind.

Alex: So we tacked into the wind at a speed of 30 knots where we returned to Port for showers and food. Now, Vietnamese people eating a lot of seafood I thought I'd give some a try. We went to a local restaurant and had all kinds of 'wonderful' things such as crab, small clams, large clams and squid. YUMYUMYUM. I did feel that I had to do a lot of work to get at a tiny bit of meat (unlike a STEAK!) But the crab was alright-when washed down with 3 vodka shots. A bit reminiscent of Vegila Sims Family.

We really didn't do much else there but eat and get sunburnt so we left yesterday on another overnight train to Hoi An.

Overnight Trains:
The first train was lovely. Complimentary water, glasses, nice lights, comfy beds. Good times had by all.
The second train. No water, or glasses, or nice lights, or comfy beds. To provide a bit more colour it was a bit like being on a moving Gulag. The beds had already been slept in by someone (probably hairy) else. The toilets smelt like death and we even had cockroaches keeping us company.
Both of these trains were '1st class' and the only way I can describe the differences between the two '1st classes' would be the difference between living at Buckingham Palace....and in a cave.

moving on...

Kelly:
We arrived at Da Nang to a beautiful sunrise (the whole spectrum of orange to yellow and purpley blue) and drove the 45 minutes through the countryside to Hoi An.
Hoi An may actually be our favourite town so far. We decided it has a cosmopolitan yet olde-world and traditional feel to it that is both interesting and beautiful. The pace of life here is much slower than in the other cities we've been to, especially in the quiet Old Quarter which is wonderfully romantic, the low-rise old, decaying french-style houses with shutters surrounded by cascading bourginvillea and other lovely flowers I don't know the name of! (something like honeysuckle)
We had lunch at a little restaurant on the peaceful river that was recommended by Lonely Planet, Alex had something that looked like poo wrapped in a banana leaf but tasted like heavenly manna, it was beef with garlic, chilli and lemongrass I think.
I had the local specialty, "white roses" which is a shrimp and pork dimsum dumplings topped with crispy onion - yummy.
We have also been enjoying traditional Vietnamese noodle soup or "pho", (pronounced like 'fur').

We are looking forward to having dinner in the Old Quarter tonight and wandering through the leafy narrow streets! (as we spotted a patisserie with 5* looking cakes and desserts for around 1USD!)
ALSO:

Hoi An is also known for it's shopping and tailoring! There are over 200 tailors (and it's not a very big town!) so it's absolutely crazy! So... we have ordered some exciting things that we may be able to show you when we pick them up 😊

Hope everyone's okay at home!

Lots of Love

K&A
Hopefully pictures will follow!

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Photos

The 1st Overnight Train
Our bunkmates John and Laura...Living in sweet sweet luxury

Alex on a boat
Captain Alex looking off starboard bow

Kelly in the fishing Village
Could be Greece?!

ABANDON SHIP!
Alex flipping off the side of the boat :D

Starjump!
Leaping into Nha Trang bay

Comments

[Chris Martin-Sims]

memories of Vietnam
Dear Kelly and Alex, Enjoyed reading and looking at your journey through Vietnam - reminded me of a trip I made in 1997 when we went up to the Chinese border, climbed Fansipoo then traveled south from Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh City - also went to NaTrang and Hue - if you go south to Ho Chi Minh then do look up the tunnels - you can crawl underground to get a fell for how the Viet-Cong fought the Americans. Went with mum to look at Clifton College last week - very impressive and Kelly, I gather you did really well in your second year exams - well done. Take care and I look forward to seeing more pictures when you get back... Regards Chris