Blogs from Southeast, Vietnam, Asia - page 3

Pete and I, it would appear, still have itchy feet so this time we chose to explore some Asian countries that we have never visited before, opting to do it our own way rather than an organised tour. (There were some days when we both thought it would have been better to be herded around by a tour guide and especially when we seemed to be spending too much time organising internal buses, flights, trains and accommodation but on the whole we think our way was better as we could stay as long as we wished and move on when we were ready.) Hong Kong was amazing with its neon lights everywhere and hundreds of people on the streets which made me feel very much like a sheep being moved along! We visited the major tourist ... read more

I have arrived! It only took a mini airport breakdown and a couple days to get here, but I have made it. The flight over was probably the best I have ever had, though my stop in China was held up as Customs agents inspected my visa from Bolivia - telling me it looked fake! Why would someone create a fake visa to get into Bolivia and then use it in China? It makes no sense, but they were very worried about me for awhile there. I met another traveler while there though who had his passport stolen in the Beijing airport and was in China for 3 days trying to get his paperwork sorted. Life is hard overseas without a passport - always (always) copy your passport and email it to yourself so you can ... read more

It seems to have been all about the eating for me since the last post. Not so much for Lyn who has been working like a trojan. It's all about convincing the students to come to Paraparaumu you know and there is a heap of competition - I think she's doing OK. As many of you know the food here is awesome and you can find great food at small prices if you're prepared to look around the alleys and back streets. The Secret Garden was one of those. We'd never have found it if it wasn't for a couple of other teachers on the trip who had been there. Nine of us ended up there and it was superb. Beer and Vietnamese food goes SO well together! Prior to that we had all been (including ... read more

Lyn was up and off to work by 8.00am. She had school visits to get to along with the rest of her group. There are about 36 Kiwis here on this education trip all doing the same thing; visiting schools, attending seminars and generally promoting New Zealand's education system. Lyn stands out by carrying a blow-up Kiwi with her and waving it around whenever she can when the occasion presents itself. I'm pretty sure the Vietnamese remember her. While she's out working I get to be a tourist and explore the city so it's not a bad life. This morning I walked to the Ben Thanh market, the big market that sells cut price stuff as long as you're prepared to haggle for it. I wasn't there to buy, just to wander through and experience the ... read more

Donnerstag, den 21. Februar habe ich Cambodia verlassen und bin in das letzte Land auf der Liste meiner Weltreise geflogen : Vietnam. Es war sehr stressig gewesen dorthin zu kommen, denn mein Reisepass war voll und ich musste für dieses letzte Land einen vorläufigen Reisepass bekommen... Es war wirklich sehr blöd : wenn Belgien, wie alle Nachbarländer (Frankreich, Deutschland, Luxemburg, Niederlande) ein E-Visum beantragen könnte, dann hätte die halbe Seite die ich über hatte gereicht für die Stempel, aber da wir nur das « Visa bei Ankunft » bekommen können musste ich 1 1/2 Seiten frei haben und somit fehlte mir 1 Seite.... :-( Das stressige daran war, dass einige Webseiten behaupteten Vietnam akzeptiere den vorläufigen Reisepass nicht und ich war auch nicht sicher ob die Fluggesellschaft ihn akzeptieren würde... Zum Glück haben wir einen unglaublich ... read more