From Saigon up north to China

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13/2/07

Finally came to Saigon yesterday, with an express bus, it only took 4 hours for the journey. And this company also got a small taxi transit you into the city from the bus station for free. Thought I must be out living alone for too long, skills to made conversation with strangers was missing, 2 westerners set next to me for the whole trip, but no conversation exchanged, what'd happened to me? PhamNguLo was the backpacker area kind of like KhaoSan Road in Bangkok, but of course...still a long way to catch up. Got myself a room for 8 dollars, no...not worth to walked around too much to looking for cheaper room, as room less than 8 dollars mostly seem like a cell room. Still could recognized a little of the area, but many buildings had been renovating taller, and still more is undertaking the construction work, more trendy travellers with suitcases and nice clothes in evident, that wasn't what I had seen few years ago. And way of life had changed too, now...internet was everywhere and people travelled with mobile phone, they even had couple of beer hoi joint around offered a liter for 4000d. Saigon had change a lot, now there was big supermarkets, bouquets, KFC and many other modern merchandise which wasn't existed about 7 years ag. Saigon was busy especially now right before new year, everyone came out to do shopping, street vendors crowded every road by night fall, while motorbike ruled the street, I was scared even carefully crossing any road, still got hit one time in the busy street. The atmosphere was festive, everyone just wanted to buying and consume, soon I was infected by that and started to looking for thing to buy, god...was I missed the city beat? No I don't think so, as it bored me after few hours and some purchased, there wasn't really anything I need! But I brought a pair of trousers, it was a bit too big, so I need to brought a belt to go with it, brought a pair of short for the beach, but I'd already got one, brought some socks, also I still got 3 pairs with me, and brought 4 hats with no reason, why then? Just because they were so cheap, see...that was the problem when I back to the city. Saigon doesn't got many offer for me, no planning for anything, of course went to the China town area for food, at first those sign for different dishes really attractive, like XaJiao, barbecue pork, Hainan chicken rice and all those herbal drinks, but my expectation was shattered once I tried them. Anyway...just by seeing those names at least helped filled up a bit of what I had been missing from home.

15/2/07

The first stop after leaving HCMC yesterday was MuiNe, tried the tourist bus just hoping to met other people to travel together, but all of them had companion, so I was left alone again. And how come I would choose another beach resort area to visit while I couldn't even swim? And all those bited marks on my body by those little buggers in PhuQuoc's beaches still itching like hell, was I really need more suffered from the beach? No, I didn't laid on the beach this time, came here only for the sand dunes, although MuiNe did offered some white sand beaches, it run along the coast for about 10km, resorts and bungalows occupied the beach front, there were a lot of choices as I didn't saw many tourists, got myself a room by the beach for 100000d, a very good deal as every local would tell you "now is happy new year, price very go up!", the bungalow was actually on the end of the beach and near the MuiNe village, so I can walked the 3km to the market easily, sometimes just for the 4000d/lit beer Hoi! And there was a good view on the ocean with all the finishing boats right before the village, and you could see the boat unloading their catch by the late afternoon. The area produced a lot of fish sauce, no wondered the smell are everywhere! A lot of people came to do wind-surfing, some fly parachute pulling by speed boat, swimming? Not many...a lot of waves in the sea. The sand dune was about 7km away from the hotel, got there by bicycle and find out actually you can get there by the frequency local shuttle bus which run between MuiNe and PhamThiet. It wasn't very big dune, but still feel like in desert once you climbed up there, the curving radiate lines on the golden sand, you could try sand-sledding as many kids offered the pvc sheet for sliding down the dune.

16/2/07

Tourist Bus to NhaTrang only at 14:00pm, so I took the risk to tried public bus, as there was no bus station for northward bus, I need to waited by the highway for pass by bus, and it was new year time, no idea with the price, or do they still had bus? A lot of uncertainties. It was easy to took the local bus from MuiNe to the highway as it was right by the terminal. Patched myself by the roadside, no shaded under the hot sun, traffic was slim, mostly were trucks and motorbike, bus? Only went southwards, and...almost all of them were empty, seem very strange to me. Why they still travelled when no passengers? An hour gone and still not a bus came cross this way, I was prepared to back to MuiNe and made for the tourist bus before noon. Finally a bus coming had sign written "Vinh", and they stop, grasped me in, this guy seem like having alcohol already with a festive mood, everything I asked was answered by a nod and smile, even when I asked the price is 50000d ok? Right...it was far more less than whatever they told me in MuiNe, as some said the fare would be 150000 or even up to 200000 because of new year. Bus was stuffed full and I need to sit on the aisle, and even the aisle was full when we picked up more passenger along the way, the destination of the bus was 1000km away. Finally saw some mountain when we cross over to NinhThuan province, a little change from the scene since my Mekong Delta trip. But the area was still dry and sandy until KhanhHoa, which became more green with more palm trees and paddy fields. Bus dropped me off at the junction to NhaTrang after 5 hours, then a short city bus ride got me into town, I would be 4 dollars poorer if I came by the tourist bus and now I was here 3 hours earlier. Many hotels in town and most seem empty to me, but every place would asked for $10 for a room, "it is happy new year, you may sleep on the street if you come 2 days later. "that was the answer from a hotel owner. He said he got dorm bed for $4, I checked the room which was with 5 beds and a fan, no I thank him. But around the corner I got a small clean room for $6, here they all like to asked how many day I will stay before quoted the price, I said 2 maybe 3 days, "no, only 2 days, we will be all booked up 2 days later", ok, I will leave here on the 18 alright I told them. I always thought tomorrow is new year eve, but when I toured around town I saw a big stage and rehearsal by the beach, people said "tonight firework, midnight celebrate new year", back to the hotel I asked the English speaking guy, he showed me the calendar, he was right, it is new year eve, but...??? No way I will be wrong too, quick check in internet and find out the Tet wasn't on the same date as the Chinese new year, but 1 day early. Beside the plantations on sell on the street, there wasn't too much atmosphere, the music show started after dark, it was like a drive in as people came with motorbike, soon the beach front was congested with bikes, people and all kind of food stands. and when the firework started, every vehicles just stop, it was strange to see the road was stagnant and still but so crowded. It back to life once the firework show was finished and the chaos started again. A country without nightlife ended by 10pm, and tonight should be a bit late for most people, see...they all hurried home and the street was quiet again.

17/2/07

it was a new year day, except many shops not open, the town was the same, nothing could tell you it was new year. In China or HK the red color would be everywhere, people putting on new dresses, that was one of the day I waiting for when I was a boy, to put in my new suit and shoe on new year day! Here people dressed the same, mostly just sitting at home, playing the lotto game. but NhaTrang is a tourist town? perhaps the tourist dressed more nicely here at night for outing. It was a day to do nothing, spend most of the time on the beach as there was no sand flies.

19/2/07

Only way out of NhaTrang was by bus, as train was all booked up, and public bus? No one know they operated or not, so...again sponsored the cafe agent. The bus left at 7:30pm last night and most of the passenger was Vietnamese, we arrived at Hue by noon today with an hour stop over on the way in HoiAn.

20/2/07

Hue is a peaceful easy town, and one of the different between other places in Vietnam was there hadn't many shops, sometimes you need to walked for a while before you could buy something. Hue tourist interest held the remain site of the citadel of the Nguyen dynasty and some of the emperor's tombs, but I had no interest in those thing as I'd seen enough of these in China. Instead I took my time walking around the city wall within the small street, ate whatever street food that sell on the way, fish noodle, congee with goat meat..., and of course the pho-bo-Hue, but really strange, it was rice noodle with pig feet and a meat ball, all pork meat, but they call it beef noodle, I remember the first time I ordered this and thought they gave me the wrong noodle. 4 or 5 Chinese travellers stay in this hotel today, typically most of them always toyed with their mobile phone, exactly they way when they were in China, wondered what holiday or travelling meant to them? Really couldn't live without a telephone for a day? Only one guy Chen from NanJing, he travelling alone and with no telephone. We exchanged some info and I got myself a companion to dine with in the evening, then some beers by the river, it really help when you didn't got much conversation in 3 months. And I talk talk and talk!

24/2/07

Due to new year in Vietnam, many buses still not operated, so I decided to stay in NinhBinh until the holiday finished, beside... accommodation was cheap here, and NinhBinh seem to be a peaceful place with not much hassling from motorbike drivers. But weather turned sour once northward from Hue, although not heavy rain by the cloudy sky with dusty rain really stop my plan for bicycling around the area. in NinhBinh I could sensed the northern Vietnam way of life, people smoke with bamboo pipe, tea with strong favour, school girl not wearing AoDa, less ice coffee and fresh coconut. Highway 1 actually ran through the town, and NB just spreaded from both side of the road, not mich to see in town, the main sight are TamCoc cave and HoaLu nearby, both places was surrounded by karst formation hills, HoaLu was the ancient capital of Vietnam before Hanoi, most of the citadel of the emperor had been destroyed, now there was 2 restored temples could be visited. There was a back road linked HoaLu and TamCoc which offered nice scenic trip, TamCoc mean 3 caves, and they offered boat trip rowed through all these cave, but...2 hours on a boat wasn't anything I fancy, one interesting thing was here many people row their boat with their feet instead of by hand! And now they had set up a ticket counter for hiring a boat, so there was no more hassling from boat owner on the street now. anyway...the trip arounded the area reminded me of GuangXi area. A small market located right by the river in NB but it doesn't offered many different food stands like any other market in Vietnam, here...only soup noodle, really boring! But I still find something good to eat, a deep fried meat with mushroom pie, it was so tasty, for which I did walked the km trip there in lunch time. And nearby they got couple of ice-cream places, here they like frozen yogurt and eat together with big sheet of cracker, another interesting way I saw the local eat at night in cafe was mixed fruits, which served with a big aluminium plate held all different slices of fruit and vegetables.

28/2/07

I voted for train as I thought I could sleep my way from Hanoi to Laocai, but there wasn't any sleeper ticket available, all I could get was soft seater, and it could be more worst if it was the hard seater, the train was packed full last night as it was still around Tet holiday, this stupid soft seat had design problem I guess, there was frameworks on the side of the seat which actually exploded from the sofa cushion, and the worst was on the back panel, they inlaid a framework with rattan mesh, really couldn't imagine how people would designed a seat panel like this, the framework just cut into you back, no way you could avoided that as it was placed at the center of the back. Didn't know how I got through that 10 hours, got to LaoCai shortly after 8 am, decided to hanged around in Sapa for few days before heading back to China. It was about enough for Vietnam after 3 months here, especially after Saigon, my trip seem boring and uninteresting, I didn't even feel like write about it. So...about time to finish up and do some other thing for a change.

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