In fact we have been doing some singing...Lovely
to find a guitar on board the boat we took to cruise around Halong Bay for a
couple of days. A crazy, fun evening
spent singing 'Aussie' songs (and others) was a perfect way to begin to get to
know our guide and 9 fellow travelers all embarking together on a tour of
Vietnam, Cambodia and ending in Thailand (through Intrepid Travel).
The cruise
around Halong Bay has been one of the main 'highlights' so far.
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| Our junk amidst the karsts of the Bay |
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| The dining on board was amazing |
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| As the sun goes down... |
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| Guitar playing and singing with the group in the evening before karaoke |
A quick itinerary:
Hanoi - Halong Bay cruise - visit to caves -
night walk around Hanoi sampling the 'street food' stalls and seeing the 'real'
life of Hanoi!
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| Street food in Hanoi |
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| This railway track ran right by the front doors of the houses on the left |
Overnight train to Hue - dragon boat to Thien Mu
Pagoda - bonsai garden - evening with a local family in their home with home
cooked meal.
Backstreet tour of Hue on motorbikes visiting
festivals, markets, The Imperial Citadel, Emperor Tomb, lunch in a monastery
garden and visit to see incense sticks being made.
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| The group plus drivers on their motor bikes |
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| Incense sticks |
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| Ken making an incense stick (badly) |
Bus to Hoi An - China Beach, Hai Van Pass, walk
around Hoi An (small friendly 'village feel' city).
Evening cookery course (learned to make 9
savoury dishes and also MANGO STICKY RICE (my favourite) - enjoyed eating all
our dishes!
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| Heather attended a cookery class with other members of the group |
Visited 5 historic areas – Tan Ky House, The
Fujian Assembly Halls, Tran Family Chapel, Quan Can Temple and The Museum of Trading
Ceramics.
Bus to Da Nang airport, stopping for morning
exercise on the beach with the local women!! 5am, but good to join in and have
a laugh!!
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| I'll scratch your back... |
Flight to Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). We went to the Museum of the
Vietnam War - good to see, but quite disturbing and emotional!!!
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| Aircraft left by the Americans when they withdrew from Vietnam |
We went on a City walk and discovered our Biker friends by
the 1000!!
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| The rush hour in Saigon |
Bus to the Mekong Delta. We are just back and have
had another brilliant 'full on’ day!! A
boat took us to the islands where we sampled fresh coconut products - drank
honey tea as musicians entertained us, learned to make rice pancake rolls, ate
lunch in the jungle and then had a motorbike taxi to 'rowing junks' which we
paddled through the jungle!! An eventful day with even a puncture on the
motorway excellently sorted by the bus driver (and Nhung, our guide)!!
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| Rowing up the river | | |
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| Heather in her conical hat |
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| More rowing up the river! |
Tonight is our last supper together as a group -
now really good friends and rapidly sharing email addresses - hope we can keep
in touch!
It's sad to say goodbye to our lovely guide Nhung,
who has given us a wonderful tour, explained the history of Vietnam and
introduced us to the culture of living and eating here brilliantly! Thank you Nhung!!
Our group will change a little as we welcome a
new guide and other travellers for our journey through Cambodia beginning on
Monday and ending in Bangkok on Sunday.
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| We started as strangers and have ended friends |
Love
Ken and Heather xx
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