Travelling pays (an update)

Apologies to some (you know who you are) for the no blog entries lately. But after my trip to Sa Pa in northern Vietnam I felt compelled to write something for my old paper back home. My first paid gig as a travel writer (Hoorah). There's also another paper which will be running the piece (which I'm not being paid for). I didn't want to publish it here before it got printed because there's some kind of etiquette around that, I guess. Maybe its just politeness and courtesy.

I also didn't want to write a completely different piece about Sa Pa, because well, I'm a little lazy like that. And I haven't done anything worth blogging about.

Here's a link to the story and to the photos.

Since Sa Pa, the friend I was travelling with went back to NZ and I spent a week in Hanoi not doing much. I had a flight out on June 11, he left on June 2. Half of that time was pretty frustrating because felt like I was in limbo, just waiting to move onto the next place. A problem with haphazard booking of things.

I re-met some people from our first night in Hanoi and also another who I mentioned in a previous blog post who we'd met all the way up Vietnam.

I'm now in Chiang Mai after a domestic flight (Hanoi to Siagon), an international flight (Saigon to Bangkok), three train changes to get to station where I caught a 17-hour train trip to Chiang Mai.

Short and sweet and keeps people off my back for a while. Ha.

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No such thing as goodbye

Sunset in Ha Long Bay, Vietnam

Maybe its because there’s only one main route through Vietnam. Perhaps its because it’s the low season for tourists. Or it could be both, but during this discovery of Vietnam it seems inevitable that you cross paths with people multiple times in different cities and on different tours without knowing each other would be on it.

It began at the start of our Vietnam odyssey on a tour of the Cu Chi Tunnels near Ho Chi Minh City. Five strangers (among others) got on the bus and exchanged pleasantries as travellers do.

“Hi, how are you going? What’s your name and where are you from? How long have you been in Vietnam and what have you done so far? What are your plans?”

You start chatting through the day and you get along fine, knowing that, if their plans aren’t necessarily the same as yours you might not see them again.

The tour ends and everyone goes their separate ways.

Until the next night. 

A Dutch girl from the tour and a friend of hers get on a night bus a friend and I were on as we headed to our second stop Nha Trang. Small world.

They’re heading to Mu Nei which is only a few hours from Ho Chi Minh and well before our stop. Again we say goodbye and joke that we’ll probably see them again somewhere.

In Hoi An we see an Australian guy who was also on that Cu Chi tunnel tour. We didn’t really get talking to him and his English girlfriend on the bus, but we acknowledged each other when exchanged glances again. We find out later too that our Dutch friend saw me and my friend on a scooter in Hoi An.

In Hue, we met again when our Dutch friend and her travelling buddy were staying at a hotel across the allyway from us. The hotels themselves were down a long alley which, as a traveller you would be hesitant to go down if you didn’t know what was down there.

And now here we are, the six of us on a two day, one night trip in Ha Long Bay. No planning involved, just a bit of luck (there are a lot of different tour groups which go out into the bay every day) and a growing realisation of the inevitable re-connection with other backpackers.

In Vietnam there really is one well-trodden path which is quite linear (because the country itself is not very wide) and travellers are either heading south or going north. Each trip either starts in Ho Chi Minh City or Hanoi with major stops in Hue, Hoi An, Nha Trang, Mu Nei and Dalat – and each of these places only have a couple of different tours the surrounding areas.

It’s a good feeling meeting people you’re already familiar with because you’ve already dealt with all the formalities of the first meeting and you can just get down to enjoying yourselves.

The Ha Long Bay tour itself is a bit hit and miss. It looks like Milford Sound or the Marlborough Sounds, but dirtier. Firstly, the rain is not ideal, but it does bring the temperature down. Most of the morning is also taken up with the 3 -4 hour trip from Hanoi to Ha Long Bay itself and you don’t actually get on the boat until about 1pm. 


The first stop at the Heaven Cave is impressive at first – a wide expanse of stalagmites and stalactites which were discovered by a group of fisherman in 1993 – but the coloured lights which illuminate the rock features give the place a set-like, unnatural and man-made feel. The second stop – kayaking around Ha Long Bay has been the highlight so far though. Getting up close to the large rock formations jutting out of the water makes you feel so small and insignificant as they tower above you. If those rocks could talk they would have amazing stories to tell about Vietnam’s history. 


The night is deathly still. Only the distant chugging of a nearby boat, karaoke and the bark of a few dogs pierce the silence. 


No moon and the stars are concealed by cloud. A cool breeze - possibly cool enough for a light jacket.


The towering islands now towering silhouettes and only the lights from neighbouring boats cut through the darkness. 


A restful sleep in a small cabin shared with small cockroaches later and morning has broken. A meager breakfast of bread, butter and jam and we're spending the rest of the day slowly making our way back to Hanoi (by boat and bus).


And there we are. Standing on a busy Hanoi street corner. The goodbyes are fleeting. We know we'll probably see each other again.


Its just a matter of when and where.    

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The faces of Vietnam

Most countries have that quintessential image that when you see it you can't help but think "yeah, that's definitely x country - it can't be anywhere else".

It could be a landmark - the Eiffel Tower - a festival - Carnaval - something which you associate with a particular country without even thinking.

After 10 days in Vietnam I don't think I've found that image or had that moment where I've thought - "Yeah, this is Vietnam". A quick google image search brings up maps of Vietnam, photos from the Vietnam war and Ha Long Bay (somewhere I haven't been yet.)

I think mostly because all the places we've been so far (Ho Ch Minh City/ Saigon, Nha Trang, Hoi An, Hue) have been so diverse and different there hasn't really been a constant. And most things which you might consider could be Vietnamese - the conical hats, street vendors, insane traffic - can also be attributed to other Asian countries.

Ho Chi Minh City is built up rather unevenly with high-rises near strips of small shops, markets and food vendors. The roads are clogged with motorbikes which in turn clog your airways with exhaust fumes and your ears with the excessive honking of horns. Its a city that definitely has life to it in a frenetic and hectic kind of way. A 24/7 sensory overload.

Head northeast to Nha Trang and things slow down a bit. You find a tropical white sand beach with water so clear you can see the grooves in the sand beneath your feet. At 6am its warm enough to go for the first swim of the day. (As soon as we got off the sleeper bus the feeling of wanting to jump right in was only marginally outweighed by the thought we should probably check in somewhere so we can leave our things.) Its a fancy resort town sitting amongst a city of high-rises. The traffic is less and so is the feeling you need to be somewhere in a hurry. This has holiday destination written all over it - if you're into that kind of thing.

Further north in Hoi An is something which resembles a sleepy seaside town with old, yellow buildings with wooden shutters and a lot of character down by the riverside. There are remnants of its history still about - the old Japanese bridge and some houses which have been preserved as a reminder of years gone by. The streets are lined with tailors, restaurants and art galleries. Life indeed seems to go slower the further north you go.

Hue is the home of an imperial city surrounded by high walls, a moat and a relatively expensive entrance fee (80,000VND = $5NZD). No longer used in its official capacity as well, an imperial city, it has become one of the major tourist attractions in the city - aside from the tombs of some dudes which is kind of creepy. The buildings within the walls which survived the bombings during the Vietnam War have been preserved and repaired while others have been left as they stood after being reduced to rubble. The citadel sits on the other side of the Perfume River from the rest of the city and is linked by two bridges. The rest of the city is largely nondescript with no obvious landmarks and seemingly thin on street food vendors compared to other cities.

I suppose amongst all that the constant seems to be the people. Persistent (most will try their hardest to make you buy something and won't take your first "no" as an answer) and content enough with their lot despite the obvious devastation of the Vietnam War just 40 years ago. Though in the faces and voices of some street vendors selling bracelets, sunglasses, fruit and cigarettes (among other things), there is an air of desperation - that if they drop their prices too much or don't sell enough they may not be able to feed themselves or their family that night.

Like any country which has witnessed firsthand the worst of human depravity there are reminders everywhere in the form of museums, ruins and scars on the land and people.

Describing Vietnam and its culture is complicated - there seem to be regional differences in food and attitudes and influences taken from its past including french style bagguettes (which you can buy filled with various meats, vegetables and sauces from street stalls) and bakeries from during the French occupation. It also still uses the US Dollar as well as the Vietnamese Dong - a remnant from the Vietnam War. Its food is also very similar to that of the rest of Asia - rice, noodles, steamed buns and even some desserts which I myself are familiar with from growing up around part of the Chinese culture. I'm not sure which country influenced which in this respect, though.

So Vietnam really seems like a country which has taken the best of parts of its chequered history and mashed it together to create its own unique character within South East Asia.

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Up the Mekong without a paddle (w/ video)

The famed Mekong River Delta, Vietnam

My arrival in Ho Chi Minh City (aka Saigon and HCMC) Vietnam several days ago was marked with an air of excitement, a new currency system (the Dong as well as the US dollar), cooler weather than Thailand (it actually rained a bit) and an insanely large of motorbikes and scooters.

The motorbike riders are the top of the food-chain when it comes to road users here. They fill up all the spaces between the trucks, cars and other vehicles and outnumber them greatly. They just look like a massive motorcycle gang. At first it can be intimidating crossing the road with hundreds of them coming at you in both directions but once you summon the courage to start moving they part as if you're moving through water. Its the cars, trucks and buses you should watch for.

With that number of motorbikes and the soundtrack of a busy metropolis playing 24/7 it seemed about time to get out of the city and explore. A day-trip to the Mekong Delta, in the southwest of Vietnam seemed the perfect option ($8USD or 168,000 VND).

About 20 minutes south on the bus toward the city of My Tho and the crowds of motorbikes thins out and to a trickle and the greenery takes over. Its almost serene and peaceful - until a pothole jolts you back to reality.

Upon reaching My Tho we jump on a boat to cruise around the delta visiting three islands - Unicorn Island, Phoenix Island and Dragon Island - be warned, none of these islands contain unicorns, dragons or phoenixes as their names suggest.

Most of these island hopping stops are just elaborate sales pitches - the first was for honey, the second, coconut candy and other knick knacks - but we did do some interesting things which were not on the itinerary; both of which involved snakes.

During our honey tasting session, one of the waitresses brings out her "friend" - a two-metre long python for people to hold and (obviously) take photos with. The sensation of feeling a snake that size and that heavy tensing up and starting to constrict is not the most pleasant of experiences. "Don't worry, it's my friend" the girl says. It may be YOUR friend, but its not mine! I think to myself. A little freaked out and with photos to prove it we move on. And quick.

A waitress brings out a Python during a day trip to the Mekong River Delta

A large, unlabeled, dusty jar filled with a yellow liquid and dead, coiled snakes is our next encounter. "Snake wine", says our guide Pho, "is good for your insides". He rubs his belly as he speaks. Small, dusty bottles of the supposedly healthy liquid, with a small snake and scorpion inside, sit on a table for sale. It smells a bit like vodka and Chinese rice wine. Tastes a bit like vodka, too (and probably would taste alright with a mixer). My insides feel no different.

Cruising along the brown Mekong river and the palms growing along its shores, you kind of get a sense of, as my friend Ian put it, being an American GI going into the harshest environment known to man (at the time of the Vietnam war).

Only 40 years on and the river has more tourist boats and fishing boats than gun boats.

The bus ride back to HCMC seems to take less time than getting to My Tho and with a lot more potholes. Soon enough we're back into the heart of the city. We walk across the road to the hostel and we glide through the traffic like a boat on up the Mekong River.

                              Drinking Snake Wine on Phoenix Island, Mekong Delta, Vietnam

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