Ho Chi Minh City Final Days

We have had a total of 5 days in Ho Chi Minh City and every day we have struggled with the heat. The locals also say they are hot but they just don't show it. Long pants, long sleeves and a cardigan or windcheater are the norm for them. After walking for about 30 minutes we are dripping and need to wring our clothes out.

It is difficult to describe the size and the amount of people that live in the city. Most of their lives are spent outside their properties on the street. They appear to just sit, eat with friends and family and watch the world go by.

We had a day between our tours which was spent walking around and shopping. The local market is so cramped and busy that you can't help but bump into people everywhere inside. The local traders try to guess your nationality and get you to their stall first. They say things like "beautiful family" , "madam madam what you looking for", "you young mum" (this one really stretched the truth and proved they were buttering us up!!). They grab your sleeve and try and guide you into their stall, it really can be quite confronting. Chris lasted about 10 minutes then waited outside in the heat. The market is hot and oppressive with thousands of people crammed under a hot tin roof.

Yesterday we went on a tour of the Mekong River which is a significant area for this area's food production and fishing industries. The area is poor but everyone seems to survive. In fact we have only seen a handful of people begging through the entire tripWe cruised up the river in a tour boat then disembarked on Tortoise Island. There we sampled local honey tea and listened to a performance of some traditional music. We then walked a short distance through the island before taking a horse and cart to the next village. More honey tea and local fruits for lunch, then a traditional canoe ride back to our private tour boat. We re-boarded the boat and headed back to the My Tho Province for docking before returning to Ho Chi Min City - a trip of about 90 minutes.

We tried a few new restaurants whilst at Ho Chi Minh City, but weren't able to find the range and variety that we had at other locations. Still, we gave it a go and never went hungry.

A morning of shopping and sightseeing at the Saigon Skydeck then back to organise ourselves for the trip back to Australia.

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Ho Chi Min City - Final Stop Before Home

We arrived in Ho Chi Min City formally known as "Saigon" on an overcast Sunday afternoon. Again we were taken back by the crazy traffic on the roads on our way to the hotel from the airport. We should be used to it by now, but it never ceases to amaze us as to the way that they drive on the roads, and the risks that they are prepared to take. But still we have not seen an accident, so there system of watching and dodging one another must work.

I must say that my initial impression of Ho Chi Min is feeling a little underwhelmed. I am not sure why that is just yet! When I work it out I will let you know.

After the one hour flight and briefly settling into our room we wandered around the city centre and went out for dinner to a lovely restaurant called Temple Club. It was a little upmarket for the mood that we were in and a little expensive. So we headed back to the hotel after grabbing an ice cream and worked on our blogs.

We woke early Monday morning and headed to the Cu Chi tunnels with our tour guide. The Vietnamese guerillas used these during the war when fighting the Americans. They stretched 200km in a cob web formation underground. The first level was 3 meters down and then another level a further 6 meters down and the last that was 8-10 meters underground. We crawled through a small section of the tunnels that was 3 meters down and it was hard work and only on the first level. Lachie braved the tunnel for another level and went a further 50 metres with a guide. We were all very dirty and sweaty due to the stifling conditions underground. It is difficult to imagine anyone living here through their summer.

The Vietnamese people are much smaller than us and are able to use the tunnels much easier than foreigners. We have enclosed some pictures of the tunnel entries that they slipped through before hiding underground. Most of the tunnels have been enlarged to allow access for tourists. It was very interesting to find out how they established the tunnel network and what they did to camouflage and set traps to kill their enemy. It is also interesting to note that their lives continued during their war effort with kids being schooled, crops being tended to as well as fighting for survival.

We headed back to the city to do the city sights afternoon tour.

Our first stop was at a Chinese temple where we learnt about the many reasons the Chinese go there to pray. Ho Chi Minh City has a large Chinese population and designated area called Chinatown. We have added a selection of photo's as the building is quite unique.

Our next stop was at the War Remnants Museum. This was a very moving experience. At times I thought I could almost have cried when reading of the impact the war had on their country. We left feeling flat and overwhelmed. The damage caused to the Vietnamese people, their land, their ecological systems, and their ongoing genetic mutations by chemicals used by the American Armed Forces, is incalcuable. Even unexploded ordinance continues to be a problem. We were approached by a man without any hands who was selling booklets about the tunnel rats. His injuries were caused by a landmine some years after the war had ended. He had amazing dexterity and was able to pocket the 200,000 VND pretty quickly when offered.

Some of the images we have attached were taken during the war. We chose not to take photo's of the more graphic images although the War Remnant Museum has a heavy focus on the casualties of the war including the civilians and the ongoing families affected by exposure to chemicals such as Agent Orange.

Lastly we visited the Reunification Palace. The palace was built by the French in the late 1800 after they invaded and conquered Southern Vietnam. It was initially called Norodom Palace by the French and then re-named Independance Palace after the Vietnamese independance was gained from the French. It was used during the American Vietnam war and housed the President and the installed government. After the war ended it was renamed the Reunification Palace in 1975 when the Nth and the Sth Vietnam were reunified. The architecture and grounds were beautiful. We have enclosed a few photos of the building and surrounding grounds.

After all of this we were pretty tired and feeling overwhelmed by the day's war focus, so we headed back to the hotel early for some rest and relaxation.

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Hoi An Last Days & Nha Trang

We spent our last few days in Hoi An having clothes made, shopping, trying new restaurants and lounging around the pool. Our favourite restaurant was called Morning Glory and had beautiful authentic Vietnamese food. For dinner we had spring rolls, marinated pork roll ups, beef salad with lime leaf, bbq chicken skewers with rice and salad and baguettes with meatballs and pork. The kids had fruit smoothies, Fiona a cocktail and a couple of local beers for Chris. All up including drinks around 680,000 Vietnamese Dong (vnd) which was about $33 Australian. The owner of the restaurant also operated a patisserie across the road, so after our dinner we staggered downstairs and into the bakery for two cappuccinos and we shared two lemon meringue tarts and a large slice of brownie cheesecake - all for about $8 AUD.

The historic quarter of Hoi An is quite beautiful with some strong french influences in both architecture and food. It is a quieter town than Hanoi and has a strong identity, relying predominantly on tourism. Everywhere you walk you are offered services or products even to the point of being met at the bus drop off point by people on motorbikes encouraging you to follow them to their shop.

We have tried to capture some of the character in these photos.

Like most Vietnamese towns it is very busy and crowded although they try and keep the motorbikes off certain streets some of the times. It can be impossible to walk along the footpath due to parked motorbikes, stalls and extended families preparing and eating food.

We have certainly enjoyed Hoi An and would revisit in the future if the opportunity arose.

We next flew to Nha Trang which is further south and on the coast. It has some of the nicest beaches in Vietnam but is very touristy. We are staying directly across from the beach on the 9th floor with magnificent views out across the bay and over parts of the town.

Nha Trang is a smaller town with a population of approximately 500,000. For context, Hanoi's is 7.5m, Hoi An only 150,000 and Ho Chi Minh (next stop) 10m. Nha Trang is similar to the very early Gold Coast with significant development always occurring. It is still difficult to walk on the footpath, but not only do we have to deal with the issues mentioned before, but also with building materials (bricks, sand, crushed rock), work being completed (steel cutting, welding, mixing mortar) and machinery such as concrete pumps, excavators and trucks. It is usually easier and safer to walk on the road and brave the traffic.

We visited VinPearl Land which is a fun / water park located on an island in the bay and accessed by cable car. Entry is only about $21 per adult and that gives access to all rides. The kids enjoyed rides and all sorts of water slides. We also watched an animal show involving dogs and monkeys. Note that in one of the pictures it's not Lachie riding a bike over a ramp but actually a monkey.

We have eaten in some magnificent restaurants over the weeks at incredible prices. Generally it costs about $25 - $35 for dinner including drinks. We have concentrated mainly on Vietnamese cuisine but have also had Italian a few times as well. Many of the restaurants are operated by ex-pats from all over the world now making Nha Trang their home. Interestingly their is a large Russian contingent in Nha Trang with most signs in Vietnamese, English & Russian.

Near to the hotel is a replica ancient village which displays some amazing craft & artwork. The hand woven silk tapestries are incredible with minute detail that takes the artists several months to complete. They actually look like a photograph or painting until you get up close to see and feel the texture. The village also has traditional musicians playing from a treehouse every evening.

The kids have been fantastic and have tried everything put in front of them. We also found a great ice cream shop that was popular with the locals and cost only $0.75 per scoop. It was a bit of a lottery with the flavours due to the language barrier, but we managed to end up with the right flavours after much pointing and speaking slowly.

On our last morning the kids tried some watersports with the girls going para-sailing behind a speed boat, and Lachie and Chris going jet-skiing. Lachie had a small go by himself for about 5 minutes and he had a grin bigger than Luna Park. A quick swim and back across the road to the hotel to shower and check out. We were then picked up and transferred to the airport for our last internal flight to Ho Chi Minh City.

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