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Waiting for breakfast..
Just enjoying the view whilst we ate breakfast. So I left you in Nha Trang half way down the coast...
It took us quite a while to decide where to head to next, we didn't want to go straight to Ho Chi Minh, we had 2 options Dalat or Mui Ne, Dalat was inland with beautiful countryside, a more rural part of Vietnam. Mui Ne was further south on the coast with sweeping white and red sand dunes...we wanted more sand! We stayed 3 nights in Mui Ne at a lovely beach resort again with a pool and an opening onto the beach, seriously are we on holiday?? We were sleeping in a 12 bed dorm which was very cosy, to say the least! This town is known for water sports such as kite surfing, windsurfing, jet skiing, paddle boarding etc, we have not given any of it a go as it is not really in our budget however it is great fun watching others. However what we did do was take a jeep tour out to the sand dunes and the fairy river. The fairy river is a red stream that you can walk through, it is pretty cool, you are literally walking through the river, it
I can see the sea
Taking a quick dip, we could walk out of the hotel onto the beach in Mui Ne was so soft on my feet. Part of the way up the river there were ostriches, they smelt horrendous, they were there for you to ride! I couldn't believe it, there were a group of English lads who all chipped in and nominated one if them to give it a go, neither him or the ostrich looked particularly comfortable, it reminded me of a bucking bronco!
After the river we got back in the jeep and go to the white sand dunes, wow it looked like something out of a movie, the sand went on forever and in different formations. We were in a desert! We decided to push the boat out for a once in a lifetime opportunity and hired quad bikes to bike round the dunes, best £5 we had spent in a while! Kate drove as I barely fit on the flippin thing! It was hilarious we were dirt biking around, getting it struck in the sand, there was a peak that what wanted to drive to the top of so we did...but instead of managing to turn around and go back down we flew down the side of the dune loosing just one of Kate's
BOOM
Taking a wander through the river flip flops and screaming as we flew down!! It was scarily good, so we decided to do it again! Next on the tour was the red sand dunes to watch the sunset, this time we walked/hiked our way to find a nice spot to sit and watch the sun go down. Lush.
After Mui Ne we travelled to Ho Chi Minch City, the south capital of Vietnam, it was quite a shock being in a city again, the traffic, the people, the noise. There are 10 million people in HCMC and 5 million bikes...crazy! We were keen to experience some culture and history as HCMC has a lot of war history to discover so we set out to go to the museums, may have gotten a little distracted by the markets (handbags) there for a while! We wandered round and took in the city and what it had to offer. We had met 2 English girls further up the coast in Hoi An Emily & Laura and they were also in HCMC at the same time so we spent most of our days with them and then eating and drinking too, at night we sat out on the streg
Jumping in the dunes
The amazing desert of Mui Ne bar stools taking it all in with the crowds of backpackers. The next day Kate and I took a visit to the Reunification Palace and the War Museum, pretty harrowing stuff It was good to find out more about the history of the country I had been in for the past month. As you are not taught about it at school you don't realise how much the country went through and just how many people are still suffering today from it. We left feeling extremely drained but it was so worth it. The next day we had booked a tour to go visit the Cu Chi tunnels, these tunnels were built by the Vietnamese and they lives down there dor a very long time during the war, very clever people. They are quite far out from the city and it wasn't just western tourists on the bus a lot of other nationalities too. The tour guide was really good, explaining everything to us, the first tunnel you see if one that will literally just fit yourself, you have to go in it with your arms in the air so they are the last part of your body that goes in,
White Sand Dunes
Last photos before the camera ran out..the quad bikes we rented to take on the dunes this was too claustrophobic for me so I watched other people of our group go in instead! As you walk round you csn seethe destruction from the war, bomb craters, bomb shells scattered around, you can really start to piece it all together. You find out how the lived, what they did for food, weapons etc it was very interesting. Part of the tour includes going into the tunnels, pretty scary as they are tiny, built by Vietnamese, made for Vietnamese, I only managed to climb through 10 metres as it was so dark, hot and cramped but I am glad I experienced it. I wouldn't have been able to live down there I could barely squeeze myself in there! I had heard that you can shoot rifles at the Cu Chi tunnels, we were both quite keen to take this opportunity, such a tourist thing to do but another once in a lifetime opportunity, so we went for it. We chose an AK47 and 3 shots each and I tell you what it was bloody scary! So exhilarating too but so scary to think thst people do this daily, it really brings it home to what people (Army, Navy,
Shooting an AK47 rifle
Once in a lifetime opportunity to shoot a gun, 3 words...exhilarating, scary and loud. Police etc) do. So we donned on a pair of headphones and went to shoot, there was a target that we both missed, I was so petrified but I did it. I have uploaded a video into facebook if you want to check it out, be warned there is some swearing in it.
We gave ourselves one last day in HCMC to have a nice lie in and to get everything ready for the journey into Cambodia. We had some shopping and other bits to sort out , it was weird to think this would be our last day in Vietnam 😞 with our new purchases of beer shirts, hareem pants and maybe some handbags...we were ready to take on our next country!
Throughout our time here we have been eating so many different foods, lots of noodles, rice and tofu, my chopstick skills are improving daily, i am loosing the ability to eat with a knife and fork!. The bread here is amazing as 'Nam was colonised by the French there are a lot of patisseries and bakerys, breakfast is served with a warm, buttered french baguette, its so amazingly dangerous! We have been chasing an Indian
Kate, me and a tank
At the Cu Chi tunnels they still had some of the army vehicles for you to see. restaurant down the coast and managing to eat at each one , Ganesh is the best Indian in Vietnam, in total we went twice in Hoi An, once in Nha Trang, once in Mui Ne and twice in HCMC so a total of 6 sittings and I gave the vegetarian menu a good go!!
Vietnam has been an experience, again I had no expectations of what it would be like, I had only heard good things about it all. I was not expecting the crazy hecticness of HCMC, ths incredible beauty of the coast line, the Vietnamese people, discovering a different way of life in Sapa. I have loved every minute and every experience, after spending over a month here I am sad to be leaving but looking forward to what Cambodia can offer us.
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Nigel O Mahony
Nigel O Mahony
Epic!
I bloody loved Vietnam! Glad you had an epic time Lucy! It's right up my alley with all the museums and war stuff, plus the relaxed bike laws hehe :-)