Vietnam - Part 1

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At 5ft9” finding replacement flip flops in Asia has proved a somewhat difficult (impossible) task for the last week. Shop owners have been equally bemused and aghast at my request for size 6 ½ shoes. That is until we reached Hoi An (central coast, Vietnam) yesterday where the solution was simple - they made me a bespoke pair from scratch. So, like every good girl, I ordered two.

Apart from its excellent shoes, Hoi An is a charming small town. After centuries as a trading port it feels like a small sea-side Mediterranean town with amazing restaurants and chilled out locals. Influences from the Chinese, Japanese and European cultures are well preserved in the local architecture which has given the town its Unesco World Heritage Site status. Almost the complete opposite to the mentalness that was Hoi Chin Min City (HCMC) where we were for three days prior.

Unlike Hoi An, HCMC is a buzzing metropolis with a population similar to London, and literally thousands of scooters making the traffic, and crossing the road in particular, a unique experience. For the latter, the best technique proved to be to dodge cars, but otherwise best to close your eyes and walk slowly hoping for the best!! Our coach journey to the Cu Chi tunnels proved to be another white knuckle ride, but one worth it to see the 27cm wide tunnels the Cu Chi guerrillas used as their underground network in the Vietnam War. Our tour guide had been imprisoned for three years during the war in a “correction camp” for refusing to conform to Communism and thus provided an interesting narrative on the period. Andy made it 50m through a (widened) tunnel stretch whereas I lasted 25m in the sweltering tunnel and then got the “wife” job of washing his t-shirt!

The rest of our time in HCMC was spent walking around (avoiding traffic) visiting temples, cathedrals, museums (with what can only be described as anti-American content), and eating delicious bargainous 90p steaks with the locals. After being driven round in circles and charged exorbitant fares for the pleasure, Andy resorted to directing the drivers from our freebie tourist map of the city - remarkably successfully too!

One more night here in Hoi An and then a 7.30am bus tomorrow to Hué, Vietnam’s fourth largest city and former imperial Capital full of ancient tombs and citadels - hopefully more pleasing to my inner historian than the dubious History Museum in HMCH who claimed great things about “artefacts” which can at best, can only be described as pebbles!

Thanks for all the emails,
Bex & Andy

P.S. No hustling as yet, but pool abilities still rapidly improving.

Birthday wishes to Kathryn, Roxy and Katie
Kayley - 90p pedicure. Sweet.

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Photos

Cu Chi Tunnels (HCMC)
Secret entranceway to one of more than 200km of tunnels (only 27cm wide).

Reunification Palace (HCMC)
The former presidential house is a timewarp, having been left just as it looked on the day the first communist tanks crashed through the gates (April 1975)

War Remnants Museum (HCMC)
An American plane from the Vietnam War

Notre Dam Cathedral (HCMC)
Built between 1877 and 1883

Cao Dai Great Temple (HCMC)
Midday Mass

Quan Cong Temple (Hoi An)
The red spirals you can see are insense and each one takes 30 days to burn!

Japanese Covered Bridge (Hoi An)
Constructed in 1593

Beccy's New Sandals!
The lady who made Beccy's trip so far!

Comments

[alan]

entertaining
Your blog makes for most entertaining reading.It is almost as though I am there with you. Keep it going! Alan xx

[Sarah]

Hello...
Hey you two, Loving the blog and the pictures so far! Just finished my lecture... would so much rather be somewhere hot and exciting like Vietnam right now, think I must of forgot how cold Scotland can be! Where are you of to next, Loas? And have you been having amazing food out there as well? lots of love to you both Sarahxxxxxx