Trains, Planes and Automobiles in Vietnam



Overnight train to Nha Trang

Well, from day one of our trip we promised the kids an overnight train ride. Having skillfully avoided the rickety old train system in Myanmar, we had to deliver in Vietnam. So our departure from Saigon took the form of an overnight train trip to Nha Trang. Fun! Not the most comfortable night of our lives but definitely journal worthy, and a cheap and easy way to travel the length of Vietnam (if you have the time). Delays are inevitable - we arrived 4 hours later than scheduled. Sleep is almost impossible, but it was one of the 'must do' activities on our list and it's all part of the adventure!

Nha Trang Beach

On the South Central Coast, Nha Trang is the beach capital of Vietnam. Also home to Vietnam's version of Disneyland (Vinpearl Land). This was our beach break from our city travels. We were all very happy to jump in the water, which was nice and warm. The kids have decided that they love swimming in the ocean and are pretty good at getting dumped by the big waves... Lily thinks that it would be better if the waves weren't salt water because it tastes disgusting...

Isaac surfing at Bai Dai

We also had a great day surfing at Bai Dai (Long Beach) surf beach which is about 25 km south of Nha Trang. The military still controls access to much of this area, so we hired a guide to take us there. Apparently there are still abandoned tanks (from the American War) half buried along the beach - this was the site of a vast American base. After the war, the Russians took over the area and established their largest naval base outside of the USSR. The Russians only vacated the base in 2002 which explains why most of the signage in Nha Trang is in Vietnamese and Russian, and the majority of tourists seem to be Russian!

Hoi An Town Centre

After a couple of days it was time to move on to Hoi An - a highlight of our trip so far! We were happy to leave Nha Trang - the beach was great but there are nicer places to visit in Vietnam! So back on the train again to Danang, then a short cab ride down the coast to Hoi An. This small but bustling town has had a very colourful history dating back 2,200 years. At one point it was one of Southeast Asia's major international ports. It was also the first place in Vietnam to be exposed to Christianity. The town was almost completely detroyed in a war during the 1700's, but was rebuilt and much of the exisiting housing dates from the 16th/17th century. Luckily it was left untouched during the American War. Narrow cobbled streets and ancient architecture aside, you still have to watch out for the ever present motorbikes and very persistent hawkers...



Aaron's personal fashion consultant Mr. Lai!

 We decided to throw ourselves into the spirit of the town and get some clothes made! This is the town's claim to fame and it certainly exceeded our expectations. There is nothing quite like designing your own shoes and clothes, and having them fit perfectly!! It would be worth a trip every couple of years just to get a new wardrobe. So very reasonable and beautifully made... We left town with a new bag bursting at the seams with our purchases. And Aaron left town with a new friend - Mr. Lai who assured Aaron that "I help you make nice clothes, I have good eye, I'm gay"!!

Hoi An is also well known for its food and it did not disappoint. The specialties of Cao Dai and White Rose were both delightful and worthy of the reams of articles directing people to try them. While you can find out how to make the Cao Dai online, the recipe for the White Rose dumplings is a closely guarded secret so if you are lucky enough to try them that means you have been lucky enough to get to Hoi An.

Other than clothes and eating there are some great things to do around Hoi An. Cua Dai Beach was a highlight. The beach runs all the way up to Danang and the famous 'China Beach'. Nice sand, nice waves and nice palm trees for shade! The majority of Vietnamese people do not know how to swim, and the kids were fascinated by the people wading into the water fully clothed, many of them with life jackets.

Finally, Aaron and I decided that if you can't beat them you may as well join them, so we rented motor scooters for a day to drive up to the Marble Mountains - awesome. It is a really great way to fit in with the locals...We even got right into the horn honking. It's not aggressive at all, just a quick honk of the horn to let someone know that you're there.

Overnight train travel!

Ella: Since the start of the trip we've been hounding our parents to go on a train ride and we got our wish in Vietnam. Catching a train in Vietnam is amazing. I think everyone should try a train ride in Vietnam. You can see amazing sites out of the window. We saw water buffalo and rice fields that look as though they go on for ever. We had our own sleeper car with 2 bunk beds. There is no ladder to get up, just a small foot step attached to the wall. Lily and I got to go on the top bunks. The beds are not very comfortable, but we all managed to get some sleep anyway. There was a tv in our room but all it showed was stuff about the train, in Vietnamese - it was very boring... In Hoi An I got to design my own dress and pick the material. I chose pink and gold silk. It's beautiful. We also rented motorbikes which was very fun. Lily and I were on the same motorbike as my dad. My mom was a bit slower than us. We rode to Marble Mountain and climbed an enormous staircase to the top.

Cave used as field hospital

If you're wondering why it's called Marble Mountain - well its because it's made almost entirely out of Marble...It was really hard work climbing, but worth it because we saw the most amazing caves at the top of the mountain.



One of the caves was used as a field hospital by the Viet Cong during the American War. I have no idea how they got people up there as it was at the top of the mountain. There was one cave that we entered that had bullet holes all over the walls. If I closed my eyes I imagined that I could hear the shots. It would be so scary if you were in there while they were shooting. Marble Mountain was a highlight of our trip. I'll talk to you from Hanoi! Bye...

Lily: In Nha Trang there were some very big waves. We got to go boogie boarding and the waves would flip me over on to my back. It was very fun. The salt water taste is a bit gross though. On the beach we got to eat fresh prawns for lunch. The only problem was that they were still alive when they came to our table and we had to cook them. The train ride to Nha Trang was awesome. We had our own sleeper car and Ella and I got to go on the top bunks. I 've never been on a train like this before. It had beds and a dining car. I really liked travelling like that. The other thing that I liked in Nha Trang was the bakery. The pancakes there were very good.



Hoi An Dresses



When we left Nha Trang we went by train again to Hoi An. It was a little older but still good. Hoi An was great. We got clothes and shoes made, we had a pedicure, we got to ride scooters, went to the beach and we went to Marble Mountain. Marble Mountain had a lot of caves and they all had secret passegeways and huge Buddas. The clothes were beautiful and they made a dress just for me.

Small taxi. Boards loaded. People next!

Isaac: In Nha Trang all we did was hang out at the beach - it was amazing because there were big waves and we got to do a lot of bodysurfing. We also went surfing for a day. 6 of us had to cram into a small taxi with all of the surfboards and boogie boards. We all had to sit on top of each other. It wouldn't be allowed in Canada! I only got up twice on the surfboard, and crashed the rest of the time, but it was really fun trying.

Isaac catching a wave!

Hoi An was a very cool city with lots of things to explore. But the downside was that every shop that we passed wanted us to go inside and check out their stuff. Everyone in the town seemed to be either Tailors or Shoemakers. I got to design my own shoes and jacket and it was all ready the next day. We found a great restaurant in town called Miss Ly. It was delicious....While we were in Hoi An we got to go on motorcycles to the Marble Mountains. The mountains all have temples and best of all caves. The caves were used as temples and as secret hiding places during the war. Our hotel was very nice and it had a huge swimming pool. We spent a lot of time in there. I would recommend Hoi An because it has nice food, nice activites and you can get a lot of things made to fit you for a really good price!

Off to Hanoi. This time by plane!



The pulse of Vietnam - Saigon!



Sorry for the delay in posting our Vietnam blog! We're a little behind, so we'll start with Saigon!



Enjoying the cafe culture...

In short we love it here and will definitely come back again in the future. Saigon (Ho Chi Minh City to the officials) is a city to behold. From the moment we arrvied, we felt comfortable and knew that we would love it. It is like the NYC of SE Asia. There is an undeniable pulse to the city and I'm pretty sure that like New York, Saigon never sleeps!



Typical Saigon traffic...

 The traffic and number of motorbikes on the street is like nothing we've ever experienced before. A sea of humanity swirling around you... Crossing the street requires nerves of steel. You literally step out into the traffic and walk at a consistent pace as the traffic swerves around you. You only have trouble if you stop (because you're terrified), or run (because you can't wait to get off the road), or if a bus is approaching as they do not deviate for pedestrians. Even the sidewalk is dangerous as motorbikes frequently use these as additonal traffic lanes.

We would recommend staying in the old (backpacker) part of town. You could spend days at a sidewalk restaurant just people watching. There are a lot of persistant hawkers (often young children), trying to sell you everything under the sun - mostly sunglasses, and books (that have been photocopied and glued together). Persistant but not rude, just trying to make a living! We were well looked after at our small hotel (Beautiful Saigon II). Once again super friendly, warm staff that can't do enough to help you.

Highlights of Saigon would be:



Shaved head, face and more...

1. Aaron's $5 haircut at a dodgy salon. This included hair cut, face shaving, head, back and neck massage, face mask, and ear cleaning (that was a surprise to Aaron, especially because the guy couldn't speak English and Aaron didn't know what he was doing).
2. Pho! Need I say more. A staple of the Vietnamese diet. It's cheap and delicious and sold on nearly every street corner. Yum...

3. Crossing the street - an experience like no other...
 

Phone lines - Saigon style!



4. The people - once again the best part of the trip. Vietnamese people are extremely resilient. With a history of conflict you would think that the people would be war weary and resentful. We have seen only optimism and harmony. They seem to be overwhelming happy with their lot in life, maybe due to the importance that they place on family above all else. Each home, no matter how small of flimsy, has a little shrine with incense burning in honour of their ancestors.



5. Trying to understand how the telecommunications could possibly work. The lines are everywhere and seem to have no organization whatsoever.

  

The President's war room in the bunker of the palace

Isaac: I loved the hotel where we stayed because the people were great and the food was delicious. I couldn't understand why people talked about Saigon as being bad and having thieves everywhere. I didn't experience anything like that. The staff at the hotel played hacki-sack with me in the laneway. There were some weird experiences, including crossing the road. It was jammed full of cars whizzing around at highspeed, and you couldn't stop in the middle of the road or else you would be hit. It's funny how my mom was worried about crossing 20th st in Calgary on the way to school. That seems like a quiet country road in comparison! We had our best ice cream of the trip and we also had some great Vietnamese food including Pho. We went to a number of museums and learned about the history of Vietnam. I learned that Vietnam has been invaded by many countries including China (multiple times) and France. The Vietnam war (American war) was just one of many wars. Even today China is taking control of some of Vietnam's islands (there are hundreds of them).  



One of the 2 tanks that ended the war!



The reunification palace was the coolest place that we went to. We got to go down into the secret bunker that they used to hide in during air raids. The bunker could withstand a 2 tonne bomb. We also got to see the tank that broke through the front gate of the palace to end the war in 1975 (outside the war museum).







Ready for a visit from the tooth fairy!



Ella: When we flew over Saigon I noticed that it was a huge city. The buildings seemed as though they were stacked on top of each other. The night that we arrived we went to a Pho restaurant. We got the last table in the restaurant (which was on the street) and other people had to line up and wait. I can see why because it was probably the best Pho in the world! Compared to Thai food, Vietnamese food is milder. I like it more! In the few days that we spent in Saigon we visited a couple of museums. We learned that Vietnam is used to wars and destruction. They have had to rebuild the country many times. Despite this the people are the exact opposite of sad and gloomy. If that had happened to me even just once, I'd feel terrible. We also went to an Art Museum that showed amazing paintings, carvings, sculptures and even some ancient artifacts that they seem to have stolen from Cambodia. Probably during a war!! The most important thing that happened to me in Saigon was that I lost a tooth and I got 50,000 dong from the tooth fairy!!!



Treats for everyone...



 Lily: The things I liked most about Saigon were: the delicious ice cream, the museums, the pho and the people! The lady at the hotel took me to visit her sister - she was very nice and gave me lots of candy. The traffic was crazy. There must have been 7,000 motorbikes at the front of every traffic light because they squish their way to the front of the line. Crossing the road was sort of hard. It's not at all like crossing the road in Canada. They could use some crossing patrollers like my brother!! I don't think he would handle it that well because noone listens to the rules. But maybe there are no rules to begin with...

Next stop Nha Trang (via overnight train), then Hoi An....


Reunification Palace - Saigon



Myanmar - the land of contrasts!

Late at night at the internet cafe

OK, so we were wrong about the internet in Myanmar. There are internet cafes popping up everywhere! Seemingly cheap at less than $1 US/hr. However given the fact that the internet was so slow and took almost 1 hour just to log in to gmail, an attempt at a blog update was futile. Maybe it was just us? The monks at every other computer seemed to be having no problems skyping and surfing the net...

Monks waiting in line for their 2nd of only 2 meals of the day.

Most memorable question of the trip (so far):
Picture yourself on a nice walk with your family crossing a lovely old teak bridge. Now put that bridge over the filthiest, rankest, toxic waste-dump of a lake (with a fluorescent green film over the top). You too can experience this in Mandalay... Luckily after telling the kids: don't look down, don't breathe and for god's sake (or Buddha's) don't fall in, we all made it over safely. Having survived the ordeal, we were faced with the question of the trip so far (from Lily): "Would you rather drink some of that water or die". Answer: "If I drink some of that water, I will die".

On the one hand there is the filth and squalor of the big cities. Something that can take down even the most intrepid of travellers. Then you get out of town and into the countryside and you understand what people are talking about. Myanmar is a beautiful place full of the most amazing people. On this trip, I have come to realize that it's the people that you meet along the way (from all over the world)  that make the journey memorable. The kids (and Aaron and I) are definitely learning from the school of life here: we have more than we need, a smile is worth a thousand words and don't judge a book by it's cover. Everyone in Burma (without exception) had a smile for us. Often a red, betel nut stained, toothless one, but a smile none the less.

Here is Aaron to fill you in a little bit on our trip to Myanmar...

On the street in front of the Beauty Land II

I had no idea what to expect as we arrived in Myanmar. The sum total of my knowledge came from discussions with Rob and Leisha Laird and Lawson and Daniel Eberhard. After 10 days in Myanmar the best description might be that its like the medieval times crashed into the late 1940's. Aside from the very recent introduction of cheap scooters and cars from China, there is little evidence that the country has progressed from when British rule ended in 1948. Even in Yangon, the country's capital and largest city, in areas you can still have a street occupied by scooters, cars, single speed bicycles, trishaws and horse and cart. In more rural areas an ox and cart is still a widely used form of transportation as well. Socially the country is a largely a religious, agrarian society with Buddhism dominating all aspects of daily life. Apparently of the 60 million people here, 2 million are monks.
To say that our arrival in Yangon was a shock is more than an understatement. Having been softened by the beach lifestyle in Thailand, our arrival in Yangon at the "Beautyland II" hotel bought us quickly back to earth. Imagine Robert DeNiro's living quarters in the movie Taxi and that will give you a basic idea of this place. At no point was is wise to look at the sheets and you had to forget the damp feeling of the mattress. Once again we told the kids (and ourselves) that this was "all part of the adventure"! The kids were great and overlooked the decrepit stairwells, filthy hallways and damp mattresses, and simply noted that the beds were soft... I think they actually accepted things more easily that Danno or I!

Isaac in Mandalay

Aaron giving the rickshaw driver a ride in Mandalay

After a day long tour of the city we decided to head north to Mandalay. The overnight bus ride was very good and when we got to our hotel we wished we had statey on the bus. It was worse than Beauty Land. Luckily we spent very little time there and spent the next two days touring the city and the surrounding towns. These were wonderful places that time has forgotton. We saw gold leaf being made by hand, bronze casting that used mud for the molds and grantite carving shops in which all of the work was done by hand. These were at once very interesting and hard to accept. The difficulty of the work and the horrible working conditions were very sobering. Once again however, in all of these places the smiles were never ending regardless of the heat and working conditions. In a tapestry making shop the girls were invited to help and the same happened in a granite carving factory where they were able to help polish the statues.

Tiny sailboat on the majestic Ayerwaddy

After these two days we caught a day long boat trip down the huge Ayerwaddy river to get to Bagan. This place has been described as the new Angor Wat and it is hard to fathom. Buddist temples (Pagodas) and their smaller versions (Stupas) stretch for miles. Many are nearly 2,000 years old and are in remarkably good shape. While I have not been to Angor Wat I think the two places are actually quite different in feel largely becasue Bagan is semi arid and Angor Wat is in the jungle. In any event we had a wonderful day biking through the ruins.

Biking through the Bagan ruins

What was also very evident after we left the cities is that the rural people currently have a much better life than the city people. While there is little hope of any wealth whatsoever, the air is clean and so are the surrounding areas. Life is very slow here and is measured in growing seasons.

Stunning view from bus en route to Inle Lake

For our last stop we to and 8 hour bus ride from Bagan to Inle Lake and certainly we had saved the best for last. The bus ride took us from the dryness of Bagan, up through a rain forest to the top of the mountains that even had pine trees. Finally we decended to a great plain that was the most fertile place I have seen. The rice paddys stretched out like the wheat fields of Alberta.

Paddling 'Inle Lake' style

Our first day in Inle Lake was spent visiting the market, which was the best we had seen during our trip, cycling through the cane and rice fields and hiking to view points. This was the best day we had had in Myanmar and I would highly recommend Inle to anyone who visits. We did not spend enough time here at all. The following day we took a boat onto the lake and saw the leg paddling fishermen, the massive floating gardens (kilometers of tomatoes being grown on seaweed beds floating on the lake) and a village that existed entirely on the lake. This included shops, factories and schools all of which were accessable by boat only. It was a wonderful place that was unbelievably quiet.

So... Myanmar was amazing, good and bad. Everyone should travel there just to experience the people. The countryis just starting its move from a military dictatorship to a demoracy and I hope that the people there have a smooth transition.
We are just on a 1 day stop in Bangkok and off to Vietnam later in the day. Last night Isaac and I went to a Thai boxing match and it was crazy. The place was loud, packed, poorly lit and there were bookies shouting everywhere. The crowd was facinating to watch and the fights were exceptional. Those are some very, very tough little (105-135 lbs) men.
That's all for now. We understand that the internet is solid everywhere in Vietnam so expect more regular postings.

Baby in Bagan wearing traditional 'Thanaka'

Ella: Lets just say the first 2 hotels and cities were very dodgy. Open sewer holes everywhere. We had to walk with a flashlight at night so that we didn't fall into one. If you fell in you'd be in for a horrible surprise!!! Once we left the big cities we went to a very calm place called Bagan. It was really hot and like a desert - thanks goodness we had a pool at the hotel! Bagan has old style temples everywhere. You can't walk for even 1 minute without a stupa (a small temple) in sight. We travelled from Bagan to Inle Lake by bus. We went so high in the mountains that there were pine trees and it felt a little bit like Canada. Inle Lake was beautiful. We ate delicious pancakes smothered with chocolate (better than Uncle Paul's - sorry Uncle Paul!!) We went on a huge bike ride to a floating garden and climbed up to a monastery on top of a mountain. The view was amazing of farmland and Inle Lake. It was fun but on our way down we got caught in a monsoon. We were soaked! The people in Burma are very friendly. Everyone wants to say hello and ask "Where are you from"? When you answer "I'm from Canada", they would all say "Oh beautiful, but very cold"!

Girls grinding their own Thanaka paste

Lily: Mingalabar means hello in Burmese. We said that to everyone which made people happy. The people in Myanmar were always smiling at us and wanted us to be in their photos. One of the things that I found the most interesting is that everywhere you go there is a big jug of water but only 1 cup. So everyone drinks from the same cup. We would never do that in Canada! Also, a lot of people smoke inside hotels and restaurants, I didn't really like that. I loved the stupas in Bagan because they were so old, and not shiny. I loved riding in a horse and cart around the ruins. 2 really great things about Inle Lake were the pancakes and the people dressed up as an elephant dancing in the street. I also loved wearing Thanaka. We were given a big jar to put on our faces. The Burmese people think it makes you look very beautiful and were very surprised and happy that we wore it. We even got to try grinding our own, on a stone. It is made from wood (kind of like Sandalwood).

At the pub (Inle Lake)

So here we are back in Bangkok after an eye opener of a trip to Myanmar. The kids were very excited to return to the lovely guesthouse for a night before we head to Vietnam (Saigon) this afternoon. We've heard varying reports from fellow travellers about their experiences in Vietnam, but we are very excited to go there and see for ourselves!
We'll write again soon xxx