Vietnam

---

Vietnam
We started our Vietnam adventure by traveling from Phnom Penh to Hoi Chi Minh City where we stayed in the 70 hotel in district 1 - the hustling backpacker district! It could be said that this is where our troubles began....

We were unable to get our Chinese visa in England because of timings so had to wait until Vietnam and boy is it tricky, they literally want your blood! Firstly the address on the website was wrong, so after searching for a couple of hours on our first day, we finally arrive to the consulate, just to be told it was closed and to come back the next day...

There is no 'official' list of what you need to get your visa in HcMC so we read travel blogs and gathered a long list of bits just in case:

Photocopy of passport

Passport

Confirmation of travel into and out of China

Confirmation of accomodation

Copies of medical insurance

2 passport photos

Copies of Vietnam visa

So we arrived the next day, early, and delivered our application only to be told that we now needed an invitation from a Chinese citizen to visit the country! An invitation? Who the hell do we know in china?!!! So, Tash emailed the hostel in Beijing to see if they would provide an invite of sorts and we sat and waited for four hours in a coffee shop down the road whilst the hostel sorted it (along with copies of their personal ID card too). Eventually we got it and printed it off at a nearby hotel. Upon arrival at the embassy, the doors were closed despite a sign saying it was open from 8.30am - 11 then 2-4pm! We asked the security guard and were livid in finding out it was closed and that was that! And guess what, it was a Friday so we now had to wait until Monday to hand the sodding thing in!

We busied ourselves for the weekend just chilling and visiting the city and we booked a trip to Nha Trang for Monday knowing that the visa would take 5 days or 2 if we were lucky. We handed it in only then to be told that it may not go through as we don't have an official invite or details of tours and an itinerary of our time in china. WHAT???? This is news since when? Needless to say we were livid again but couldn't express our anger as they had limited English but she did say that she would call if there was an issue. We also asked if we could have express service, she said no because our flight wasnt until 6 days time so we had time - it was pointless explaining that we actually wanted to see some of vietnam! So No phone call whilst on the sleeper bus to Nha trang and we lived in hope that we were gonna be ok and needless to say when we got back to HcMC, our visas were there... Phew!

We originally wanted to keep heading north from Nha Trang but had to come back and then head back again to Nha Trang to get to Hanoi within 5 days whilst hopefully seeing some of Vietnam - bear in mind that these are not short journeys either! We got over it, eventually, and managed to enjoy the rest of Vietnam despite it being a rushed trip up.

Chi Chi Tunnels

During our time in HCMC we visited the Chi Chi tunnelswhere the Vietnamese cong dug a network of tunnels to avoid capture by the Americans in the war. The tunnels housed their sleeping quarters, kitchens, stores -the lot and never got spotted by the yanks! These people lived in the tunnels for years and despite constant bombing by B52's they mostly survived.

We also saw the traps that the viets set to maim the yanks. Spikes and traps set under camoflauge where they would fall in and get impaired by fish hook spikes deliberately placed to spike certain body parts like the feet, legs, balls (yes ouch) and stomach. If they didn't die from that then they certainly did from infection. Brutal!

We did a tour of the whole area and learnt how they hid in these tiny tunnels with tiny, camouflaged entry points. We saw a huge crater courtesy of a B52 bomb and tasted some of the food they ate (bulb and root foods). We also had the chance to get into a 100m stretch of the tunnels which was small and cramped -despite the tunnel being made bigger for tourists!! It was crazy and hard work on the back having to duck over all the time and that was only for 10 mins!!! Hot and sweaty too!!

They also had a shooting range there were you could buy ammo to shoot guns they used in the war -AK 47, M16's, machine guns, shot guns etc... We decided to shoot an M16 and it really brought home how devastating these guns were with their sheer power. Amazing to shoot one but never would I want to in a war!! A really good day trip and highly recommended!!!

Nha Trang

It is a coastal beach town and very busy but has a lovely coastline! We stayed out of town but spent most of our three days on the beach anyway in club louisiana and the beach club. We had been warned about the many thefts on the beach so we were ultra careful! The sea was lovely and it was hot, so we were happy! They sold fresh seafood on the beach which was lovely and it was fab to just chill out. We also visited a mud spa which involved sitting in a bath tub of warm mud for 30 mins... It was hilarious! We looked a sight but enjoyed it as we then had a hot tub, showers and a swim afterwards. Very touristy but worth it!

We also did a boat trip to the islands for snorkelling etc... It was lovely seeing the coast from the sea and the snorkelling was pretty good. We saw a lion fish which is pretty damn cool plus a 4 metre long kind of sea slug - it looked like a piece of thick rope but on closer inspection it had five fingers at the front with fans pulling in food... Weird but cool! All in all it was a great trip and nice to get on the sea!

After our overnight trip back to HCMC we booked the bus to go to Mui Nie for a day, then we would bypass Nha Trang and do an epic 18 hour trip to Hoi An, stay for a day then another 18 hours to get to Hanoi!

Mui Ne

This is a cute little town on the coast famous for its winds and therefore pulls in kite and windsurfers. We stayed at central backpackers, which was an amazing hostel and really can't be called a hostel! It was fab! We spent the afternoon wandering around and the next morning getting some last rays before the epic bus journey. We nearly didn't make the bus as no one recognized our bus tickets so were unwilling to take us but we eventually managed to get it sorted.. 18 hours later - Hoi An

Hoi An

This is a gorgeous, old, cultural town with pretty streets and ancient buildings. It was really lovely and famous for bespoke clothing - trace had a lovely dress made but Tash declined as the catalogues that they had were very old and there wasn't anything that she liked and we didnt have time to get images from the internet. Damn it!! Anyway, we had a lovely time and picked up the dress the next day which is lovely by the way! We the had a quick drink with our buddy Darren who we met in South America and had kept in touch with - it was fab to see him and great to catch up. Then started epic journey two to Hanoi.

Hanoi

We finally arrived and headed straight to Central Backpackers - a cool hostel which serves free beer! Result!! We had 4 days here hoping to do the 3 day trip to Halong Bay but there was a storm due so no trips were set to go at least for the next two days! So we spent our time waiting in the city and visited the old prison which was interesting as they kept the Yankee POW's there including John MCCain the presidential candidate a few years back. Fascinating how they treated the Yankee downed pilots with care, respect and with no ill treatment, yet their own kind were kept in shackles in large halls or in solitary cells with no light waiting for execution. Yet it was the pilots who were bombing their city to pieces! I never understood that... Besides that, it was good to see.

We also did a cooking class in a restaurant opened by no other than Gordon Ramsay! Yes yes, back in the kitchen after four months out of it! It was just us two on it and our lovely chef Mr. rice - yes, Mr. rice, guided and taught us how to prepare and cook spring rolls, a fish dish, dipping sauce, royal Vietnam rice and a rather vile sweet potato and ginger dessert! We loved it (apart from dessert) and were absolutely stuffed after eating it, so much so we had to take doggy bags back to the hostel. Any of our mates who want dinner - you now know what you are gonna get!!! On our final day, we managed to get a one day trip to Halong Bay which are huge limestone peaks in the bay off Halong City in the south china sea. After a four hour bus journey we arrived on our big boat and headed off to a cave within one of the peaks which was beautiful and massive!! We then Headed around some more peaks and jumped in a kayak to explore the peaks up close. Loved the kayaking and a really beautiful natural sight. Sadly the promise of swimming never materialized which is probably a good thing given the rubbish in the water but a good time nonetheless. Next day we were china bound!!! Whoop whoop!

---

Photos

A viet cong nasty step trap for the yanks
They set loads of these for the yanks to come across which caused brutal impaling injuries!