The Journey

Mystical wonderland

A light mist rose off the water enveloping the lower ridges of the limestone outcrops littering the ocean in front of me. The junk boat rocked gently in the water its large sails flapping in the light breeze whilst the sun rose in the distance. Similar boats were anchored in the bay all around me and the smell of breakfast cooking wafted into my cabin. I'd just woken up aboard a junk boat floating in the beautiful rocky expanse of Ha Long Bay off the East cost of Vietnam. All that was missing was Johnny Depp swinging from the rafters of the boat a la Pirates of the Caribbean!

We'd arrived on the three star junk boat the previous day and were pleased to see it was the only one in the harbour with its spectacular sails blowing in the wind. Our day had been spent sailing around the bay taking in the views and contemplating the stillness and peacefulness of our surroundings.

Upon hearing numerous horror stories of people being ripped off on trips to Ha Long bay we decided to pay a little extra opting for a three star cruise. We been picked up and driven to the harbour then transferred to our boat - one of the nicest in the bay. Here our guide had introduced himself and assigned simple but comfortable air-conditioned rooms.

Once we'd settled into our room we made our way back to the dining room for a delicious lunch of about 10 different Vietnamese dishes. We were treated to steamed prawns, noodles, rice, squid, fish, chicken and pork all cooked beautifully in different sauces.

After lunch we began the afternoon clad in bikinis soaking up the sun laid on the sunbeds on the top deck of the boat. As the boat gently cruised through the bay we read, relaxed and drank in the beautiful views.

Relaxing on the boat.

After about an hour we were dropped off at the Sung Sot (or amazing) cave. This was a large spiraling cave system. Inside huge stalagmites and stalactites hung and grew all around us. Some parts of the cave were prettily lit with pinks, blues and yellows, whilst others were darker looking like a moonscape or a setting from Doctor Who.

Inside the caves.

Coming out of the caves on a high level offered a fantastic view over the bay and of our boat sailing in to pick us up with its sails billowing in the wind. We reboarded the boat for five minutes then were taken to a place for a spot of afternoon kayaking.

Being three of us one had to share a boat with Tom, our guide. That one was me, a smart move as he was possibly stronger than Kat and Emily put together, meaning I could do less work and spend more time enjoying the surroundings - or so I thought. The Tom helped everyone into their canoes then we set off, but being the guide he had to make up lost ground and get to our destination before everyone else. I soon found myself paddling like crazy overtaking all those gently floating along enjoying the bay - at least I was getting a good work out.

We paddled past the limestone rising high above us out of the water, then rounded a corner where a tunnel through the cliffs could be seen. We headed straight through the tunnel and into a bay called Luon. The bay could only be reached by paddle boat and was incredibly quiet. All around us tall cliffs of limestone rose upwards covered in green shrubbery and undergrowth. The only sounds were the mummer of people talking, the odd splash as someone manoeuvred their canoe and the seccors (I have no idea how to spell this - answers on a postcard) letting off their now familiar wining buzz.

We floated peacefully inside the bay for 15 minutes before it was time for Tom and I to race back to the boat making sure we were the first there so he could help everyone out of their canoes. He tried to make this into a game pretending he was racing Kat and Emily but they would attempt to race us for about three minutes then give up as we paddled off into the distance!

Once everyone was back aboard the boat sailed for 15 minutes before stopping a little way off a crowded beach for swimming. Those brave enough piled onto the second deck of the boat where there was a jumping platform. It was about 10 foot into the water, daunting for most people but Kat, Emily and I just launched ourselves off the deck into the water invitingly cool water. The water was really nice but had an incredibly strong current. It was like swimming on a treadmill, you could swim gently for ages but not make any headway against the current and if you stopped swimming the water carried you quickly away from the boat.

After working up an appetite attempting to swim against the current we showered and went for dinner. Dinner was as good as lunch with lots of yummy food to choose from. Later we sat on deck looking at the stars contemplating the beauty of our surrounding and realising that we go through so much of life not noticing the beautiful things that are right in front of us.

That night I was rocked to sleep by the gentle swaying of the boat in the water.

I had written about day two and three in Ha Long Bay but the computer just crashed and lost it all. So I'm sure you get the impression - it was beautiful if you ever go to Vietnam it is a must on you to do list. From me for now its over and out until the next time.

Some beautiful pictures taken over the three days.

Hanoi etc....

I'm am now in a desperate rush to catch up on blogging before I get too far behind to ever get up to date. So the next few posts are going to be very condensed versions of my travels so far.

We arrived in Hanoi tired but for once having slept on the bus. We found ourselves somewhere to stay and passed out for the morning before getting up and going to the Museum of Ethnology.

Hanoi was different to other places in Vietnam. The whole city was full of very small narrow streets making the incessant traffic even worse as they had smaller spaces to squeeze through. Pavements were non-existent and you spent the whole time dodging bikes and pedestrians that seemed to come at you from all directions.

By the time we reached Hanoi we were at the end of our Asian adventure and ready to get to a country where we could be understood and didn't feel like we had to watch our bags constantly. Had we arrived in Hanoi at the beginning of our adventure we would probably have developed a different opinion but as it was I didn't desperately enjoy it.

Our fist afternoon was spent at the Museum of Ethnology. This was one of the best museums I'd been to during my travels. It was well laid out, followed a logical path and loads of information was provided on the exhibits. I spent a thoroughly enjoyable afternoon wondering around learning about the ethnology's of different groups of Vietnamese people. Although to be completely honest most of the knowledge I gained had now seeped from my brain and been replaced with stuff much less interesting!

Our fist full day in Hanoi was spent at the Temple of Literature. Three Israelis we'd met during breakfast joined us, we think because they didn't have a map and couldn't be bothered coming up with something to do themselves. They just seemed to be happy to follow us and do whatever we were doing!

The Temple of Literature is Vietnam's principle Confucius sanctuary and is its historical centre of learning. The temple is also one of the few remnants of the Ly kings original city.

The main gate lead us into a peaceful garden modeled on Confucius's' birth place in China. We passed through two peaceful courtyards full of trimmed lawns and large trees before coming to the Han Cac gateway. This gateway was built in 1885, it has a double roof and its wooden upper story is said to be decorated with four radiating suns - although I failed to see them! As I passed through the gate directly in front of me was a large green pond known as the Well of Heavenly Clarity! Around the sides of this courtyard were the temples most valuable relics - 82 stone steale mounted on tortoises. These steale contain the exam results and bibliographical details of some of the students state examinations held between 1442 and 1779. The eldest two tablets are in the middle, the Americans helpfully built stone coverings to protect them from the elements. Many of the tablets were weather beaten and decidedly worn away in places with much of the ancient writing missing. It was a very strange sight, a courtyard full of giant public school reports!

From here we passed through the Gate of Great Success and entered the main temple buildings. Two pavilions on either side of a courtyard once contained alters dedicated to the 72 disciples of Confucius. These buildings now house gift shops and refreshments along with admin offices.

The temples ceremonial hall stands at the end of the courtyard. In this building the king and his mandarins would make sacrifices before the alter of Confucius. With a gift shop in one end of the building it was very hard to imagine the building as it once looked.

Directly behind the ceremonial hall was the temple sanctuary. At one time this would have been forbidden to even the king. In there Confucius sits with his four principle disciples. I found this room dark and not really worthy of the reverence it attracts. Although I guess if you hold Confucius in high regard even a statue of him is worth seeing.

The fifth and final courtyard houses the national academy. I would really like to have seen this but we couldn't find a way in so assumed it had been closed to the public, but whilst walking around the outside of the grounds we saw people in there. I guess we just missed the way in.

After the Temple of Literature we grabbed a bite to eat then went to the Vietnamese Fine Art Museum. This should have been a lot more interesting than it was, bar a really good photograph exhibition as we went in the rest of it was a bit boring. I think this is partly because we were museum and art galleried out and just couldn't be bothered to read any more information and attempt unsuccessfully to take it in. I wondered around in a daze wishing I was paying more attention than I was. Then we left and went back to our hotel for dinner and bed.

Luckily we were going to get away from it tomorrow with three days cruising around Ha Long Bay.

Cruising the perfume river

A trip that came highly recommend proved to be one of the better days out despite seeing yet more pagodas – as if we hadn’t seen enough already!

The trip saw us boarding a dragon boat and spending the day cruising along the perfume river visiting pagodas and mausoleums.

The trip got off to a rocky start when the boat girl came around with the lunch menu and all dishes cost 40,000VND – more than we’d paid for the trip - plus lunch was supposed to be included. When challenged she said lunch was included but all we got was rice and peas. Along with most of the rest of the group we refused to pay extra and opted for rice and peas!

After 20 minutes cruising through scenery we could barley see because we’d been told off for sitting outside the covered part of the boat – apparently the police would see – we arrived at our first stop the Thien Mu Pagoda.

The pretty seven tier brick stupa was built by Emperor Thieu Tri in the 1840s on the site of an ancient Cham temple. Each tier of the stupa is said to represent one of Buddha’s incarnations on earth.

The Thien Mu Pagoda.

Legend has it that in 1601 Lord Naguyen Hoang left Hanoi to govern the Southern territories. After arriving at the perfume river he met an old lady who told him to walk east along the river carrying a burning incense stick and to build his city where the incense stopped burning. Later Lord Hoang erected a pagoda in gratitude to the lady who he believed to be a messenger from the gods.

The Pagoda was pretty but there were people everywhere making it hard to get a good look at anything. Either side of the pagoda there was a pavilion on one side the pavilion housed a bell and the other housed a large stile erected in 1715 to record the history of Buddhism in Hue.

Behind the Pagoda was some pretty gardens a worship hall, a building under restoration and a number of monks cutting the grass. It was very pleasant walking around with the smell of freshly cut grass all around.

Passing through a gateway beside the pagoda a large group of people were gathered around an old Austin car. Getting closer I discovered this car once belonged to Thich Quang Duc. Thich Quang Duc became instantly famous after driving to Saigon, in the car that stood in front of me, parking up, sitting in the lotus position, dousing himself in petrol and setting himself alight. The act of self mutilation was in protest at the excesses of President Diem’s regime.

The infamous car.

At the time of Thich Quang Duc self mutilation Thien Mu was already renowned as a centre of Buddhist opposition to colonialism. Today it continues to be know as a focus for Buddhist protest against repression and is a sore spot for the Vietnamese government.

After cursing further down the river our next stop of the day was Tu Duc’s mausoleum. We were dropped off a fair distance from the entrance and told to get bikes there. Luckily everyone on the boat was as stubborn as us and refused to pay the bike drivers choosing instead to walk the distance. The walk was very pleasant passing many street stalls where people were making incense and conical hats.

As we entered the 12 hectare walled garden housing the mausoleum to our left was a pretty lake covered with lotus leaves. This mausoleum only took three years to build allowing Tu Duc sixteen years livening in the beautiful surroundings before he died. Tu Duc was a romantic poet and the longest ruling of the Nguyen monarchs despite being known as a weak ruler who preferred to hide from the world among the gardens he created. He lived a life of luxury enjoying 80 course meals, had 104 wives and a whole village of concubines – though, possibly due to a bout of small pox, he didn’t have any children.

The first building we entered was the main temple, Hoa Khiem, which Tu Duc used as an office during his lifetime. Today this is the building where the funery tablets are housed. The building was nice but nowhere near as pretty as the gardens surrounding it.

From here we rushed to the Emperors tomb but only managed to catch the briefest glimpse before we’d gone 10 minutes over our allotted time and still had a 20 minute walk back to the boat!

We arrived back at the boat the find lunch laid out for us. We were surprised to find a lot more than rice and peas offered for free and we ate as we cruised leisurely down the river to our next stop.

The next stop was the mausoleum of Minh Mang. The mausoleum was pretty and we enjoyed walking around but by then I really was buildinged out and most of it passed me by in a haze of pretty rooms, furniture and gardens.

The guidebook offered this gem of information that I felt I should share:

Ming Mang fathered 142 children with his 33 wives and 107 concubines.

We got back to the boat and were taken to another mausoleum, this was too far from the river to walk so rather than taking a bike we decided to go for a beer with the two Aussie guys we’d been chatting to all day. This was the final stop of the tour and from here we cruised back to Hue watching people returning from a festival up river sailing past us still in party mode putting floating candles into the water and making offerings of paper money to the gods.

That evening we had another night bus journey this time to our final stop Hanoi. Thankfully this one was a lot more comfortable than the last!

The Vietnamese DMZ

Another day trip – another sight: this time the Vietnamese DMZ - A 10 kilometer wide area where 10,000 tones of bombs were dropped per square kilometer of land during a violent and horrific war.

Our first stop of the day was Dong Ha a town used as a former US marine command post. The town was obliterated in 1962 but has managed to bounce back. The itinerary for the day made it sound as though we’d actually see some of the town, but in reality we stopped for a quick breakfast before being ushered back onto the bus to begin our tour of the surrounding area.

We drove for a while before stooping on the side of the road at Doc Mieu where amongst the undergrowth the last American tank could be seen. We got off the bus for a better look but in reality it was exactly what it looked like from the window, a very old burnt out tank of very little interest to anyone who wasn’t a war or military buff.

The tank was close to the original demarcation line. The Doc Mieu American military base had been set up on a hill to give them a good view across the demarcation line into the North of Vietnam.

Driving on from Doc Mieu we passed couple of monuments for those who had lost their lives during the war. Shortly after passing the monuments we crossed Hien Luong Bridge and stopped to take some pictures. There is currently a traffic bridge directly beside the old disused Hien Luong Bridge. The disused bridge is different from the original that was destroyed in 1967. The original bridge was painted half red half yellow as a vivid reminder that it was the physical and ideological boundary between the two Vietnams. The present iron bridge was constructed in 1973 and opened in 1975 as a symbol of reunification.

 

Beside the bridge on the North side is a large flag pole flying the Vietnamese flag. When the country was divided there was another pole on the South side and the two countries would continually attempt to fly bigger and bigger flags from their respective fag poles - a feud not unlike the one that currently exists between North and South Korea.

Moving on from the DMZ we visited the Vinh Moc tunnels, a system of tunnels that supported the living needs of 350 people for five years during the war. The tunnels are 2030 meters long and took one a half years to dig by hand over three different levels.

Our visit took us along the second level of the tunnels 15 meters below ground and the third level 23 meters below ground. The tunnels, dug out of red mud, were lit although still pretty dark and I’d image they didn’t have electricity during the war. Inside they were much taller than the tunnels at Cu Chi had been and I was able to stand upright all the way along. We followed our guide closely so as not to make a wrong turn and loose the rest of the group. She pointed out some very small dug outs in the tunnels that served as living quarters for a family of four, the tunnels were equipped with bathroom, a school room cum meeting room cum social area it even had a maternity ward where 28 babies were born.

A mock up of the maternity room.

The living space for a family of four.

From the Vinh Moc tunnels we returned to Dong Ha for lunch before rounding off the day at a war museum.

On the way to the museum we passed the rock pile so named by the Americans. This area had been heavily bombed during the war using agent orange and much of the shrubbery growing was very young because the soil has only recently recovered enough to support life. It not just the soil that suffered the effects of the weapons, adults being exposed to the chemical has resulted in their children being born with some awful deformities. It awful to think such hideous weapons were used against defenseless people.

More information on Agent Orange can be found here.

The war museum documented the battle of Khe Sanh. According the Vietnam Rough Guide this battle: “Demonstrated the futility of the Americans efforts to contain their enemy.” The museum was fine for a wonder around looking at pictures and gleaning some information about a small part of an awful. As usual it was full of anti American propaganda.

From there we were taken back to Hue where I accidentally deleted all my pictures from my USB stick and spent the evening sat on the computer recovering them whilst Kat and Emily went out for a nice dinner!

Hue - Imperial City

The next stop on our journey up the coast of Vietnam was Hue. Hue is a small peaceful city that in the early nineteenth century was the capital of Vietnam. By some it is considered highbrow its scholarly influence coming from the five universities within the city.

It was defiantly the one of the nicer places we visited in Vietnam, less busy than other places meaning we were hassled less. We even managed to sit down for a meal without anyone approaching our table trying to sell us something.

Our first day in Hue we visited the Citadel and the Imperial city, walking across the city in the sweltering heat to find it.

We entered the Imperial city through the Ngo Mon Gate which was built by Emperor Ming Mang in 1833. The impressive gate is described in the guidebook as a: “Considered masterpiece of Nguyen architecture.” It has five separate entrances – the emperor used the large central entrance paved with stone. Two entrances on either side were for the civil and military mandarins, whilst another pair of giant openings on either side of the main gate allowed access for the royal elephants.

On top of the gate is an elegant pavilion called the Five Phoenix Watch house, its nine rooves are said to resemble five birds in flight when viewed from above. Discovering this I wondered how many people back in 1933 would have been able to view this from above?

From the gate we meandered slowly over the moat filled with water lilies to Thai Hoa palace. Before arriving at the entrance to the palace we passed a pair of Kylin – according to the guidebook these are mythical dew drinking animals that are harbingers of peace. These creatures resembles a cross between a dragon and a lion but were much smaller than the guidebook made out.

Thai Hoa palace is said to be the most spectacular of Hue’s palaces. Inside its red and gold lacquered columns were impressive despite being worn away from years of people running their hands over them. The amount of wear was surprising considering they were replaced in the early 90s after termites got the better of the old columns.

Thai Hoa place was one of the most important of Hue’s palaces as it was the thrown room and place where the major ceremonies took place. The emperor would sit atop his thrown on a raised dais wearing a gold tunic and crown decorated with nine dragons. From his thrown he faced South across the Esplanade of Great Salutation – his view looked down to the Ngo Mon gate.

Other than the thrown and the pretty lacquer work there wasn’t much more to see in the palace and we made our way to the Forbidden Purple City. This was the third and final enclosure of the imperial city and would have been reserved for palaces, the residence of the state doctor, the nine ranks of the royal concubines, kitchens and pleasure pavilions. Many of the buildings inside the Forbidden Purple City were destroyed in a fire in 1947. We passed by the restored right house and left house, which actually stand to your opposite side as you enter (they were named based on the emperors perspective), and now house gift shops. From there we passed into what once would have been the heart of the city, but very little remained. We were met with the sight of a grassy expanse dotted with the remains of ruined buildings.

It was a sweltering day so we decided not to investigate the ruins and instead left the Imperial City. Outside we got on a cyclo for a tour around the outside of the Citadel and were dropped off at the market. My driver could speak a little English and making conversation he asked where I was from. I told him England and was met with the usual response of: “Oh, London, Manchester, football, Manchester United!”  The drivers then usually ask if I like football, do I support Manchester United, to which we have become accustomed to just saying yes because it’s easier. But this driver asked a different more unexpected question: “How long does it take to drive from England to America?!” Clearly he needs to work on his geography!

We walked briefly around the market which was similar to many of the markets we’ve visited in Asia then wondered back to the hotel had dinner and retired for the day.

Hoi An - Tailor made clothes and ancient temples

After a hot, sweaty, uncomfortable bus journey we arrived in Hoi Ann tired and stressed. We found a hotel and passed out for the majority of the day before heading out to check out Hoi An’s most famous attribute – its tailor made clothes.

Hoi An is a pretty little town full of quaint old style buildings heavily influenced by the French colonial style with a bit of Chinese influence thrown in. These buildings either contain or are nestled between literally hundreds of clothes shops.

The first day we barley walked 100 yards from our hotel before we been sucked in by the first clothes shop. This was the pattern for the next three days. That first afternoon I was fairly restrained only purchasing pair of black trousers, but as afternoon turned into evening I made another purchase then the following day I went on a spending frenzy! I figured I’d have very few opportunities to get clothes tailor made especially for as little 7.50GBP per item.

By the end of our three days in Hoi An we hadn’t seen any tourist attractions but I had purchased three pairs of trousers, one pair of shorts, five long skirts, one long dress (to wear to my cousins’ wedding in America next year), two short dresses, two short skirts, two tops and a winter jacket!!! All tailor made for the princely sum of 150GBP in total – not bad really.

On our final day in Hoi An we decided we really should see something of the area and booked an early morning trip to My Son. According to the guide book My Son is: “Vietnam’s most evocative Cham site,” although it does say it’s no Vietnamese Angkor Wat. But once again we compared it to the temples of Angkor and it fell somewhat short of their amazing architecture.

It didn’t help that the trip had been falsely advertised as allowing us to watch the sun come up over the temples when in reality we watched the sun come up sat outside our hotel waiting for the bus that was 45 minutes late. It then took an hour to drive to My Son and the ticket office didn’t open until 7pm, so even if the bus had been on time it would have been impossible to watch the sun come up there.

The guide was incredibly annoying speaking English so fast we could barley understand him. He was also one of those guides who believed the whole group should follow him around hanging off his every word and shepherded us around alike a group of sheep.

According to the Vietnam rough guide:

Excavations at My Son have revealed that Cham kings were buried there as early as the fourth century, indicating that the site was established by the early Champa capital of Simhapiura, situated some 30km back towards the highway. The stone towers and sanctuaries you see today were erected between the seventh and thirteenth centuries, with successive dynasties adding more and more temples to this holy place, until in its prime it comprised some 70 buildings. The area was considered the domain of the gods and god kings, and living on site would have been an attendant population of priests, dancers and servants.

More information on My Son can be found here.

We wondered around taking photos with half an ear on what the guide was saying. Eventually he set us free to wonder around by ourselves and we ended up spending ages playing with a plant that appears to die when you touch it then comes back to life when you’ve gone.

After that we went back to the bus and were driven back to Hoi An where we boarded the bus for Hue.

Thap Ba Hot Springs

Wallowing in mineral mud and soaking in mineral water the perfect way to spend the day before a 12 hour nighttime bus journey.

Our last day in Nah Trang and we’d got up late due to late night so we spent some time wondering around Nah Trang looking at the shops but still managing not to make it to a beach that was supposed to be one of the best in Vietnam. Instead we went to Thap Ba hot springs.

We arrived at the tranquil out of town oasis paid 500,000VND (about 15GBP) between the three of us and spent two hours luxuriating in mud baths and mineral water.

Our first treatment was a 20 minute soak in a private mud bath. As we were lead to the bath a man pulled a plug and it began filling with runny green mineral mud. We got in smothering ourselves in the green liquid and using a coconut scoop to poor it over our heads. No sooner had we submerged ourselves than a photographer appeared taking some photos of us.

When our 20 minutes was up we were instructed to lie on the sun beds baking the mud into our skin before going to the mineral showers and washing it off. Our next treatment was a wall of jets of water sprayed at different angles; a kind of walk in water massage. Then onto the mineral pool where we were to lounge in 40 degree mineral water for 45 minutes. I barley lasted 10 minutes before the hot water combined with the heat of the sun became too much for me and I had to get out dangling just my feet into the water.

We decided to go to the mineral swimming pool for a cooling dip only to find the swimming pool was heated to 38 degrees and was like swimming in a bath. Far too hot for me so I retired to the sun bed for 10 minutes before it was time to shower and head back to Nah Trang to catch the night bus.

Us enjoying our mud bath.

 

 

 

Nah Trang in one day

A tourist spot by location rather then design Nah Trang has a fair few interesting sights, although short on time we managed to cram it all into one action packed day.

Our tour guide for the day was a slightly crazy permanently drunk Danish guy – luckily he wasn’t also our driver!

Our first stop of the day was a beautiful beach side house belonging to an Austrian guy who just happened to be a friend of our Danish tour guide! Here we were able to sail a cop; a traditional round Vietnamese boat. Sailing the cop wasn’t as easy as the Vietnamese made it look but not as hard as we expected – perhaps this was due to the help of the young Vietnamese guys sailing with us.

We all managed to clamber in without tipping it over and perch precariously one the side, we were pushed out into the bay and were off. I took my turn at rowing accompanied by one of the Vietnamese guys, but I soon tired handing my ore to Kat. Emily was handed the other ore and they proceeded to bicker about who was rowing what way as we moved around the bay in circles. Eventually they found some semblance of rhythm and rowed us back into shore.

Sailing the cop.

Our next stop of the day was the Ba Ha waterfall supposed to have waters containing therapeutic properties. We were dropped off at the bottom of a track leading to the falls and agreed a time to meet back at the car. I’d changed into my trainers as the guidebook recommended sturdy shoes but listening to the guide, who said it was an easy walk, Kat and Emily decided to wear flip flops.

The well kempt easy path through the forest ran out after about 10 minutes and was replaced with boulders that required some effort to clamber over. Emily and I were in our element but Kat wasn’t so impressed with the guide’s “easy walk”. It wasn’t long before both Kat and Emily had realised flip flops were not ideal footwear for the terrain, the guide had clearly never walked this far, and were clambering over the rocks in bare feet.

It took us about 10 minutes, jumping from boulder to boulder over high drops and slithering through thin nooks and crannies whilst trying to ascend shear boulders with metal foot holders driven into the rock, to reach the third fall. Once there we had the place to ourselves and swam for a while taking take pictures of ourselves in the water.

In the waterfall.

Back at the car we drove back into Nah Trang to the Cham towers. These towers were built by the Hindu Cham people between the seventh and twelfth centuries. Now many of  the baked red bricks of the towers are crumbling due to age but are being carefully restored.

Only four towers remain. Visitors enter the site via a swirling staircase but back in the day worshippers would have entered the Mandapa or meditation and offering hall whose stone pillars are still visible. From there they would have climbed a very steep set of steps up the hillside to the main tower – which still stands.

The main tower is framed by smaller towers on each side, each tower looking impressive despite the effects of weathering. Inside the main tower worshipers swarmed in great number placing brightly coloured offerings on the alter and lighting so much incense the smoke clouded the view and it was almost difficult to breath.

The towers were impressive but after visiting the Angkor temples in Cambodia any ancient architecture is a bit of an anti-climax – nothing is ever quite as impressive as what I’ve seen before.

The Cham towers

Inside the main tower.

The guide took us next to a fishing villages whose flotilla of blue and red fishing boats could be seen from the steps leading up to the towers. We drove across the Ha Ra Bridge and stopped on the road side walking from there past rows and rows of drying fish into the village. The guide assured us the villagers liked him bringing tourists round to see the way they lived. The village turned out to be little more than a community who lived under the bridge and the whole thing felt a bit intrusive.

The guide approached some women collecting in the dried fish and chatted to them; they chatted back but didn’t seem all that pleased to see him. Then we crossed to the other side of the bridge where the men, who fished at night, were sat playing cards. Once again they didn’t seem enamored with our presence and as quickly as we could we made our excuses and left.

The fishing village.

In one way it had been good to see the sofa and mat used as a front room set up against the side of the bridge, the make shift kitchen and work surfaces built by balancing wood on old crates and the sleeping quarters consisting of little more than some hammocks and blankets on the sand, but it wasn’t nice for the villagers to be paraded like that.

Our final stop of the day was Long Son Pagoda where a massive White Buddha stood on top a hill. The Pagoda was founded in the late 19th century and has been rebuilt many times over the years but was much like any other Pagoda I’ve seen. I was more interested in climbing the 154 steps leading to the White Buddha.

Half way up the step the guide lead us off to see a massive 18 meter long statue of the sleeping Buddha, then onto the temple bell where we found him sat inside the bell as a monk struck it. He got out saying it was good inside so Katrina climbed in for a go. After about four strikes she got out saying it wasn’t as loud as anticipated. To save time Emily and I climbed in together. Inside pieces of paper were stuck all over the bell, I’m sure they were prayers or something equally meaningful but in the scrawled Vietnamese handwriting on old scraps of paper they could have been an old shopping list! As the monk stuck the bell the sound reverberated around the inside, the monk chanted whilst the sound contained to hum around the bell. I sat there looking around wondering what the meaning of it all was and laughing at Emily who had her fingers in her ears. I’m sure I should have been thinking about something more meaningful but it was hard to concentrate with the constant humming interrupted every 30 seconds of so with a loud bang as the bell was struck again.

Emily and I sat inside the bell.

With the sound of the bell still ringing in my ears we made our way up the remainder of the 154 steps to the White Buddha. The White Buddha sits atop a lotus leaf and stretchers an impressive 13 meters into the sky. It was an imposing structure to be standing underneath, built in 1965 it is dedicated to the monks who died protesting against the US supported Diem regime.

The White Buddha.

After a long day of sightseeing it was time to head back to our hotel for a well earned rest before dinner and finally bed. Tomorrow we had a relaxing day at the spar then a long bus journey to Hoi An.

Some simply spectacular sand Dunes

Tired and exhausted after our three days in the Mekong Delta we had two hours to get fed and watered before getting the bus to Mui Ne.

Mui Ne is one of Vietnam’s hottest beach destinations. The beach was pretty nice with loads of water sports to choose from, but being on a budget and only having one and a half days in Mui Ne we didn’t partake in any activities. Instead we spent the first day chilling on the beach and in my case wondering around the small town and the second day at Mui Ne’s prime tourist attraction its spectacular sand dunes.

The day we left Mui New arose at 6am ready for our early morning trip to the dunes at 7am. For once there was just us on the trip and we were picked up outside our hotel in a four wheel drive.

We were driven first to the yellow sand as we approached we stopped on the roadside overlooking a lake with the sand due rising above it. The water was blue, the dune yellow and the sky blue - the scene in front of me didn’t look real.

In front the yellow sand dune.

Driving on we parked in a (sandy) car park stopped at a café for a plate of chips for breakfast (it was better than rice and noodles) and made our way onto the yellow sand due. Walking about five minutes from the bottom of the dune we were soon surrounded by a yellow expanse of sand marked occasionally by footprints of people who’d explored the due before us. It was a stunning sight to behold and something I would only expect to see in the middle of the desert; not 20 minutes from a beach resort in Vietnam.

Walking across the dune I was surprised at how firm the sand was. I’d expected the surface sand to be a lot looser and to be sinking into it the way you do with much smaller English dunes. But the sand was mostly firm and rippled by the wind as it blew gently over the surface.

We claimbed to the top of the nearest dune marveling at the scene around us and posing for photos along the way. The expanse of sand was that large you were able to walk over sand untouched by another human footprint – it was simply amazing.

Me on top of one of the dunes.

Kat and Emily on top one of the sand dunes.

At the top of the dune we negotiated a price with two kids who’d been following us since we left the car park for a go at sand sledging. They’d followed us for the last half hour with plastic mats we could slide down the dunes on. We negotiated a decent price, posed for a few pictures and were off – or so I thought! Being a fully grown adult it wasn’t easy to get any speed up despite the best efforts of the kids to push us over the edge. On my first go I positioned my body far too far forward on the mat so instead of sliding down the dune my upper body just burrowed itself into the dune! I dug myself out and made my way to the top for another go, this time successfully making it to the bottom. The sliding was fun but not the adrenaline rush I’d anticipated and walking back to the top wasn’t so appealing. After the third run down we had sand in every conceivable orifice and had had enough of sand sledging. It was time to brush off some of the sand and head back to the four by four and our next stop of the day.

Ready to go sand sledging.

Emily sledging down the dune.

We drove along a beautiful coastal road for about 20minutes before the driver pulled over on the side of the road where a load of kids were hanging around selling postcards and shouting: “I’ll be your guide.” The driver motioned for us to make our way up a red sandy track beside the kids saying we’d arrived at the Red Canyon.

We shrugged off the offers of a guide and walked up a hill with compressed deep red sand beneath our feet. At the top of the hill we came to a bit of a clearing where red sandy cliffs jutted into our path. I began walking between the red cliffs climbing them where I could and being incredibly surprised at how soft the sand was. The whole area was spectacular – unlike anything I’ve ever seen before. Emily and I made our way to the top of the Canyon where we were able to stand on top of the cliffs looking down into the red sandy crevices below. From the top we could see the red sandy canyon surrounded by lush green undergrowth framed with the different blues of the sea and sky, the scene was breathtaking – well worth the five minute climb to the top.

At the red canyon.

Climbing part way up the canyon.

Next we stopped at the pink sand dune. This was equally spectacular but much the same as the yellow sand dune – the only difference being the colour of the sand. We wondered around for a bit taking pictures still in awe of the landscape that surrounded us.

Covered in sand we were taken to a nearby fishing village where we were given a little time to wonder around and watch the locals bringing in the catch. Small round fishing boats called cops brought basket after basket of fish to shore. At one end of the beach fish were being laid out in the sun to dry giving off a fairly pungent smell. Nearby two women couched over a basket of fish pulling off their heads with their fingers, discarding it on the floor and adding the fish body to a basket.

Bringing in the catch.

The catch.

Beheading fish.

The final stop of the day was the Fairy Stream. I’m not sure how the fairy stream got it’s name we think possibly because of the small white flowers dotted along the stream. The Fairy stream was a red coloured stream running over sand and the only way along it was walking through the water. As soon as we began walking three young boys followed us telling us where to walk and which bits were deep. By the time we’d arrived at the Fairy Stream we were already running out of time with our driver and didn’t make it to the end before we had to turn around and head back to the car. This is when the boys who’d been following us decided to ask for money for their services – something they weren’t going to get because we’d left all our money in the four by four.ggg

Having had an early star we were back at our hotel by 11am enough time to shower – (I’ve never seen that much sand dislodge from my hair!) - and grab something to eat before getting the bus to Nah Trang.

On the third day of rain

Another early start but having turned the lights out at 9:35pm last night and not being kept awake by the thunderstorms I was feeling a little fresher.

Once again we were herded cattle like onto a bus and shepherded to the boat dock where were boarded a boat – although this time it was spitting rather than pouring with rain – and taken to a Cham village.

The Cham people are a minority group living in Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand. They speak their own language and are considered decedents of the kingdom of Champa (more info here). The Vietnamese Cham’s live mainly in the Mekong Delta region and form the majority of the Muslim population of Vietnam. More information on the Cham people can be found here.

On the way to the Cham village we passed a floating village. It really did look much like a normal village just on the water. The houses were arranged in streets with verandas and washing line hanging outside. A dog stood on the porch of one house and I even spotted a floating petrol station!

The Cham village was like many other ethnic minority villages I have seen, although getting to it was interesting. Our boat docked on a jetty and we had to walk the rest of the way in – the only problem being parts of the jetty were completely submerged in water. Then once the wooden jetty ended we had to carefully pick our way along some very slippery mud before finally making it onto the more grassy stable land of the village.

A floating petrol station

A house in the Cham village.

Emily crossing the walkway into the Cham village.

The river side of the village was comprised entirely of stilt houses and was set up with souvenir shops for the passing tourists. We walked through the village onto a road and up to a mosque that sat, along with everything else on that side of the road, at ground level.

Coming back from the Cham village we stopped at the floating village for a look at a floating fish farm. This wasn’t as interesting as it sounded. We got off the boats and walked into a large floating house. The guide lifted the floor of the house to reveal the fish farm beneath. Initially there didn’t appear to be many fish around but the minute some food was chucked in a feeding frenzy ensued. The fish went crazy splashing and until someone bravely put their hand into the water and scaring them away!

Feeding time at the floating fish farm.

From the floating fish farm we were taken back to the boat dock once again and boarded the bus back to Saigon. Again we stopped at the Crocodile farm, the rain having stopped by now we got a better look around and I got some decent pictures of the Crocs.

Crocodiles.

The we sat back and relaxed all the way back to Saigon only being aroused when our guide broke into a very bad rendition of a Vietnamese song as we drove into the city.

That’s it from the Mekong Delta and Saigon. Hopefully there will be more to come on Vietnam very soon.