(Hastened) Summary time - Vietnam
Tomorrow I'll be heading towards the Mekong river delta. After that I'll be taken by boat to Cambodia and leave Vietnam. This will end 29 days (I didn't check when I got the actual visa expiry date, it was supposed to be 30!) of my stay in Vietnam. I'll try to summarize some of my impressions.
My initial encounters with Vietnamese were unpleasant. They weren't as nice as Lao people. They are very aggressive in trying to sell (giving a very strong, "walking ATM" feeling) and they have less personal space than us. They don't hesitate to touch or grab you, which doesn't always evoke nice reactions (Luckily as a deadly machine I was also taught restraint, saving many Vietnamese from my lethal blows. Yes, I saw the wrong movies as a kid). But slowly, like a hard nut, I discovered also nice people, eager to talk and learn about others. My initial purchase of a Vietnamese phrasebook proved itself again and again, as speaking their language is an excellent ice-breaker. I also have to thank Shiran, a guy I was travelling with for a while, who spent a lot of time trying to speak Vietnamese with the locals and did it quite well. That helped in learning the language, and it is the first country I can actually say whole sentences (not that it means that the Vietnamese manage to understand me).
Vietnam landscape is a lot about water, significantly more compared to Laos. Its rice paddies are flooded with water and the farmers wade their way knee deep tending the crops. Other than that there are huge plains, totally flat and sometimes accompanied by karsts. Or mountains and hills as you get farther from the sea.
Vietnam is much more in the process of becoming Western than other countries I've seen. The kids spend their spare time at Internet cafes, playing online games. The grown ups dress like we do, tight and exposed. I've seen gyms, fancy cars, fancy people, fancy mobiles and a lot of inner tourism.
As inevitable as beer lao in Laos were bia hoi (fresh beer) mostly in the North and coffee everywhere. I'm not much of a beer or coffee drinker back home, but coffee here was inevitable, as I was looking for relaxing moments in the chaos. When I've reached Ho Chi Minh city, the hot coffee was replaced with ice coffee, prepared the same way but poured to a glass full of ice.
Traveling in Vietnam is a 1700km journey from North to South with many stops along the way. It means that I had to discover new places quite a lot. I realized that sometimes I have a 'click' with a place and sometimes I don't, or that it just takes more time. Each time it is a collection of experiences. Arriving to Hanoi was very hard, but I managed to like it and discover its sweet spots. Ho Chi Minh city and me had an instant 'click'. The place has a nice beat to it, despite the double volume of traffic (and people) compared to Hanoi. In Dalat I had a hard time finding my nice cheap places to eat, and in Nha Trang I had in the corners of one junction all the cheap food I wanted: Pho Bo (Noodle soup with beef), Com tam (Rice with meat, I still not sure which), Kem (Ice cream) and Binh Mi (Baguettes usually filled with meat, omelette or cheese).
I used the alarm clock on this trip quite a lot. First, because of a lot of early morning rides. Second, because there are organized tours everywhere, which are a very tempting option, and because doing it yourself can be, sometimes, very hard. In some places I just took a map and walked around or a motorbike taxi for one place to another. In others I just took a private tour, a guy on motorbike who showed me around, but I was (trying to) dictate the time and places. For the rest, it was either tempting joining the crowds or just easier, as 'school trips' usually are. There is also a big benefit than the do it yourself way, you get to meet people.
Every men in Vietnam smokes and everywhere. It is uncommon among women, but I managed to see one or two. For me it was quite disturbing and somewhat of a problem when I was looking for relaxed places other than my room.
I met many tourists who said they are definitely not coming again to Vietnam but they would come back to Laos. Me? If I'll go back to Laos, I'll definitely go back to Vietnam too.
Showing posts with label Vietnam. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Vietnam. Show all posts
Wednesday, February 07, 2007
Sunday, February 04, 2007
The Vietnam trail
13 Jan - Arrived to Hanoi
14 Jan - Getting my bearings. I went to the water puppet theatre at evening.
15 - 17 Jan - Halong Bay tour
18 Jan - HCM mausoleom and the temple of literature.
19 Jan - Perfume Pagoda tour
20 Jan - The Ethnology museum and bus ride to Ninh Binh
21 Jan - Visiting Tam Coc. Night train to Hue
22 Jan - Hue. Checking the view from the roof bar of a five star hotel.
23 Jan - (Former) Demilitarized Zone tour, including Vinh Moc tunnels, Khe Sanh USA combat base, Ho Chi Minh trail and more. Nothing much to see other than being where history took place and a lovely ride from Dong Ha. Nevertheless, it was my first serious encounter with Vietnam's history.
24 Jan - Perfume River cruise. I visited Thien Mu, two tombs, Tu Duc and Minh Mang, out of the possible four and split from the tour with a motorbike taxi for Hue's citadel.
25 Jan - Bus to Hoi An.
26 - 30 - Resting in Hoi An. I went at nights to a brand new Salsa club and taught the waitresses some salsa and row dancing. The rest of the time they showed me around, taking me to their favorite spots, where tourists are scarce.
31 Jan - Night bus to Nha Trang
1 Feb - Nha Trang sights, Po Nagar Cham towers, the Long Son pagoda with its sitting Buddha and a nice rocky beach, Hon Chong Promontory.
2 Feb - The islands cruise, a.k.a booze cruise.
3 Feb - Bus to Dalat
4 Feb - Private motorbike tour to Bao Dai's summer palace (boring), the crazy house (nice), Datalana falls, Prenn falls , Lang Dinh (the chicken village) and an amazing new pagdoa and a lovely lake nearby.
5 Feb - Visit to Lat village and trekking to Lang Bian mountain (2400m high).
6 Feb - On to Ho Chi Minh city (Saigon)
7 Feb - Dam Sen amusement park
8 Feb - War remnants museum and the reunification palace
9 Feb - Mekong delta tour
10 Feb - Crossing to Cambodia by boat
13 Jan - Arrived to Hanoi
14 Jan - Getting my bearings. I went to the water puppet theatre at evening.
15 - 17 Jan - Halong Bay tour
18 Jan - HCM mausoleom and the temple of literature.
19 Jan - Perfume Pagoda tour
20 Jan - The Ethnology museum and bus ride to Ninh Binh
21 Jan - Visiting Tam Coc. Night train to Hue
22 Jan - Hue. Checking the view from the roof bar of a five star hotel.
23 Jan - (Former) Demilitarized Zone tour, including Vinh Moc tunnels, Khe Sanh USA combat base, Ho Chi Minh trail and more. Nothing much to see other than being where history took place and a lovely ride from Dong Ha. Nevertheless, it was my first serious encounter with Vietnam's history.
24 Jan - Perfume River cruise. I visited Thien Mu, two tombs, Tu Duc and Minh Mang, out of the possible four and split from the tour with a motorbike taxi for Hue's citadel.
25 Jan - Bus to Hoi An.
26 - 30 - Resting in Hoi An. I went at nights to a brand new Salsa club and taught the waitresses some salsa and row dancing. The rest of the time they showed me around, taking me to their favorite spots, where tourists are scarce.
31 Jan - Night bus to Nha Trang
1 Feb - Nha Trang sights, Po Nagar Cham towers, the Long Son pagoda with its sitting Buddha and a nice rocky beach, Hon Chong Promontory.
2 Feb - The islands cruise, a.k.a booze cruise.
3 Feb - Bus to Dalat
4 Feb - Private motorbike tour to Bao Dai's summer palace (boring), the crazy house (nice), Datalana falls, Prenn falls , Lang Dinh (the chicken village) and an amazing new pagdoa and a lovely lake nearby.
5 Feb - Visit to Lat village and trekking to Lang Bian mountain (2400m high).
6 Feb - On to Ho Chi Minh city (Saigon)
7 Feb - Dam Sen amusement park
8 Feb - War remnants museum and the reunification palace
9 Feb - Mekong delta tour
10 Feb - Crossing to Cambodia by boat
Monday, January 22, 2007
All aboard the night train
Last night I went from Ninh Binh to Hue (Hwe). Instead of taking the tourists' bus (nowadays taken by locals too) I went by train. Vietnam's Hanoi-Ho Chi Minh City railway crosses most of the country. It covers about 1700Km in a slowish day and a half. I decided to take the Ninh Binh-Hue part of the trip by train because, according to Lonely Planet, this is the part that gets the most complaints and it is a nice way to meet local people. The price is more expensive than the bus, as the only thing cheaper than the tourists' bus is walking. Seriously. They get commissions from the hotels and restaurants where they drop the passengers and the fierce competition make the price unbeatable.
I bought a ticket for the lower bed in a hard sleeper cabin. Each cabin has four to six beds in two rows, two to three beds one above the other. The lower the bed is the cheaper the price. Although I had a sleeper cabin, I found out that "hard" means almost no sleep at all. The bed is a metal plate with a thin mattress on it. I had to use some of my clothes to pad pressure points. The ride is quite noisy and not so smooth. In addition there was an annoying whisper low song repeatedly playing that didn't help much. Under the lower bed there is a box for storage, so you can be quite sure that as long as you sleep on it, no one will be able to open it. As a result I was at least calm about my luggage.
The morning started around six AM, when the train stopped, so everyone could buy additional food to the packed bun and tiny water bottle handed in the train, and brush their teeth. Of course, food can't be eaten without some music , right? After an hour of further sleeping attempts his majesty finally rose and met the people sharing his cabin. One elder guy spoke and wrote English quite well, so we managed to have an interesting conversation. He knew quite a bit about Israel and admired our country. I wondered whether to tell him that we are not that great these days and ruin his image of us. He is a writer that write poems (forgot the word...). I found out that the annoying song was a small device he had, with a small figurine of Buddha attached to it and a speaker sounding Buddha's name, chanted by some monks. If I would have known I might have taken the batteries out... or not. Next there were a mother and a son, traveling to Danang. They didn't know much English but you don't really need much to play rock-scissors-paper-needle(?!) and listen to how they pronounce Vietnamese from my brand new photocopied phrasebook. They were very nice and bought me sugar canes as a parting gift. When I went looking at the rest of the train, I met a fourteen years old girl (I didn't know she was fourteen, I swear!), who was brushing her teeth at the moment. She came to my cabin (I didn't make her, officer!) and we had a nice chat. She reminded me how it is to be a child, where your opinions are very black and white, the future seems bright, you are full of enthusiasm about many things (Am I getting old or what?) and blue is your favorite color and not pink (This might mean wrong things about me. I'm talking about her here, ok?). She also knew English quite well but was very apologetic when she didn't find the word, which is expected, but my efforts to convince her not to apologize were in vain. Heck, I'm the same.
So in all, in was a lovely experience. I don't know about you guys, but I'm heading to my soft sleeper bed at the hotel right now.
Last night I went from Ninh Binh to Hue (Hwe). Instead of taking the tourists' bus (nowadays taken by locals too) I went by train. Vietnam's Hanoi-Ho Chi Minh City railway crosses most of the country. It covers about 1700Km in a slowish day and a half. I decided to take the Ninh Binh-Hue part of the trip by train because, according to Lonely Planet, this is the part that gets the most complaints and it is a nice way to meet local people. The price is more expensive than the bus, as the only thing cheaper than the tourists' bus is walking. Seriously. They get commissions from the hotels and restaurants where they drop the passengers and the fierce competition make the price unbeatable.
I bought a ticket for the lower bed in a hard sleeper cabin. Each cabin has four to six beds in two rows, two to three beds one above the other. The lower the bed is the cheaper the price. Although I had a sleeper cabin, I found out that "hard" means almost no sleep at all. The bed is a metal plate with a thin mattress on it. I had to use some of my clothes to pad pressure points. The ride is quite noisy and not so smooth. In addition there was an annoying whisper low song repeatedly playing that didn't help much. Under the lower bed there is a box for storage, so you can be quite sure that as long as you sleep on it, no one will be able to open it. As a result I was at least calm about my luggage.
The morning started around six AM, when the train stopped, so everyone could buy additional food to the packed bun and tiny water bottle handed in the train, and brush their teeth. Of course, food can't be eaten without some music , right? After an hour of further sleeping attempts his majesty finally rose and met the people sharing his cabin. One elder guy spoke and wrote English quite well, so we managed to have an interesting conversation. He knew quite a bit about Israel and admired our country. I wondered whether to tell him that we are not that great these days and ruin his image of us. He is a writer that write poems (forgot the word...). I found out that the annoying song was a small device he had, with a small figurine of Buddha attached to it and a speaker sounding Buddha's name, chanted by some monks. If I would have known I might have taken the batteries out... or not. Next there were a mother and a son, traveling to Danang. They didn't know much English but you don't really need much to play rock-scissors-paper-needle(?!) and listen to how they pronounce Vietnamese from my brand new photocopied phrasebook. They were very nice and bought me sugar canes as a parting gift. When I went looking at the rest of the train, I met a fourteen years old girl (I didn't know she was fourteen, I swear!), who was brushing her teeth at the moment. She came to my cabin (I didn't make her, officer!) and we had a nice chat. She reminded me how it is to be a child, where your opinions are very black and white, the future seems bright, you are full of enthusiasm about many things (Am I getting old or what?) and blue is your favorite color and not pink (This might mean wrong things about me. I'm talking about her here, ok?). She also knew English quite well but was very apologetic when she didn't find the word, which is expected, but my efforts to convince her not to apologize were in vain. Heck, I'm the same.
So in all, in was a lovely experience. I don't know about you guys, but I'm heading to my soft sleeper bed at the hotel right now.
Saturday, January 20, 2007
Hanoi, not so bad after all
Hanoi was my first encounter with Vietnam. It was quite harsh and unkind. But a few days, on and off Hanoi, helped me to reveal its sweet spots. The nice cheap spots to eat, the tree covered boulevards, the peaceful corners and even nice people, wishing to practice their English.
Hanoi center's street are according to professions. The street shops usually sells whatever the name means. Fortunately, on my last hour there I discovered the candies street! The next day I had a candy party. Needless to say, my belly didn't like the idea of so much sugar at once (Nothing happened, other than a bad feeling)
Hanoi was my first encounter with Vietnam. It was quite harsh and unkind. But a few days, on and off Hanoi, helped me to reveal its sweet spots. The nice cheap spots to eat, the tree covered boulevards, the peaceful corners and even nice people, wishing to practice their English.
Hanoi center's street are according to professions. The street shops usually sells whatever the name means. Fortunately, on my last hour there I discovered the candies street! The next day I had a candy party. Needless to say, my belly didn't like the idea of so much sugar at once (Nothing happened, other than a bad feeling)
Thursday, January 18, 2007
I see dead people
Today was my Ho Chi Minh day (When I say day I mean the part of the day when I still have the will and power to visit monuments, stand in queues, etc.). I started by visiting his mausoleum. The poor guy's last request was to be burned, but instead someone thought it would be better to display his body for the pleasure of the nation and tourists. So yes, my day started with looking at a dead body. Splendid. The place itself is heavily guarded and you can't blink without someone giving you a nasty look.
Then it was already too late. The whole complex closes up at eleven AM and, although I woke up early, I managed to arrive quite late. So until everything opened up again (except the mausoleum), I went to the Temple of Literature. The place was the first academy built in Vietnam, almost a Milena ago. For me it was a nice place with nice buildings and gardens. Even though it has traffic around it, the place manages to be a nice relaxing green spot.
After that I went for lunch at KOTO. Staring at the desserts of the neighbour table, started a lovely conversation between me and two Australians women, mother and daughter, Jennie and Sophie. They have been traveling in Vietnam for three weeks (if I'm not mistaken) and are about to finish their visit and go back. They are from Melbourne, as four other Australians I met on my Halong Bay tour (a story not told yet). So when I get to Melbourne, I have many nice people to visit. I had a great time and great food, and time just flew by.
I picked myself up and walked back to the guy I started talking about. I went to a nice area around the presidential palace where you can see the places where Ho Chi Minh worked and lived. He was a modest guy, my kind of guy. I was looking for his personal toilets, as nature didn't let me the option to be too interested about anything else. It took me a few minutes to realize that the noises of traffic were absent, so I stayed for a while next to the lovely pond.
My next stop was Ho Chi Minh museum. "Unfortunately" time flew by next to the pond and I arrived to closing time. Bummer...
On one of my walks I noticed a familiar flag on a building. The area is full of embassies so I stumbled upon mine. I took my camera without thinking and two seconds after that I was trapped under five men, elite unit trained and armed to the teeth (The real story is sooo boring, but ok. Each place is guarded by some Vietnamese. One of them saw me and just blow his whistle. All of them are armed with it).
Today was my Ho Chi Minh day (When I say day I mean the part of the day when I still have the will and power to visit monuments, stand in queues, etc.). I started by visiting his mausoleum. The poor guy's last request was to be burned, but instead someone thought it would be better to display his body for the pleasure of the nation and tourists. So yes, my day started with looking at a dead body. Splendid. The place itself is heavily guarded and you can't blink without someone giving you a nasty look.
Then it was already too late. The whole complex closes up at eleven AM and, although I woke up early, I managed to arrive quite late. So until everything opened up again (except the mausoleum), I went to the Temple of Literature. The place was the first academy built in Vietnam, almost a Milena ago. For me it was a nice place with nice buildings and gardens. Even though it has traffic around it, the place manages to be a nice relaxing green spot.
After that I went for lunch at KOTO. Staring at the desserts of the neighbour table, started a lovely conversation between me and two Australians women, mother and daughter, Jennie and Sophie. They have been traveling in Vietnam for three weeks (if I'm not mistaken) and are about to finish their visit and go back. They are from Melbourne, as four other Australians I met on my Halong Bay tour (a story not told yet). So when I get to Melbourne, I have many nice people to visit. I had a great time and great food, and time just flew by.
I picked myself up and walked back to the guy I started talking about. I went to a nice area around the presidential palace where you can see the places where Ho Chi Minh worked and lived. He was a modest guy, my kind of guy. I was looking for his personal toilets, as nature didn't let me the option to be too interested about anything else. It took me a few minutes to realize that the noises of traffic were absent, so I stayed for a while next to the lovely pond.
My next stop was Ho Chi Minh museum. "Unfortunately" time flew by next to the pond and I arrived to closing time. Bummer...
On one of my walks I noticed a familiar flag on a building. The area is full of embassies so I stumbled upon mine. I took my camera without thinking and two seconds after that I was trapped under five men, elite unit trained and armed to the teeth (The real story is sooo boring, but ok. Each place is guarded by some Vietnamese. One of them saw me and just blow his whistle. All of them are armed with it).
Know One, Teach One
Today I had a great lunch (with a price tag), and at the process made a nice contribution to other than my belly. KOTO
Today I had a great lunch (with a price tag), and at the process made a nice contribution to other than my belly. KOTO
The movie of my life
Kathmandu was a kinder garden compared to Hanoi. Yes, Hanoi has sidewalks, but they are used to park motorcycles. I don't think I've really seen people in Hanoi walking. They just go on their motorcycle between places. They even park inside their home!
I'm trying to follow Lonely Planet's instructions for crossing the road. Basically "don't panic" when traffic is coming directly at you. I just walk and look at the upcoming traffic, increasing my speed when they veer behind me and stopping when they horn.
This far I'm still alive. But the movie of my life did pass in front of my eyes more than once. Since it has become quite long, and the next screening here might be five minutes away, I started watching the trailer instead.
Kathmandu was a kinder garden compared to Hanoi. Yes, Hanoi has sidewalks, but they are used to park motorcycles. I don't think I've really seen people in Hanoi walking. They just go on their motorcycle between places. They even park inside their home!
I'm trying to follow Lonely Planet's instructions for crossing the road. Basically "don't panic" when traffic is coming directly at you. I just walk and look at the upcoming traffic, increasing my speed when they veer behind me and stopping when they horn.
This far I'm still alive. But the movie of my life did pass in front of my eyes more than once. Since it has become quite long, and the next screening here might be five minutes away, I started watching the trailer instead.
Sunday, January 14, 2007
Gooooooooooooooooooood morning Vietnam! (It was inevitable)
Or maybe not? A new country always takes time to get used to, but I think this time it will take a bit longer.
I arrived yesterday morning to Hanoi. Getting from the airport to the old quarter and finding a hotel went smoothly. We picked a guy on the way who pushed us hotels. I ignored him. But other people on the street don't let go so easily. Everyone wants a piece of a cake that it's you, and they won't let go so easily. Yesterday I did a mistake to look at the books one guy was selling. I saw he had a Vietnam Lonely Planet for a ridiculous price. Luckily, I've already seen a very cheap offer in Laos, so when he showed me the book, neatly wrapped of course, I quickly recognized that it was a photocopy. So I thanked him and went on my way, but he didn't let go for the next two minutes, following me. It ended up with a nice juicy "F$%# you" in my direction.
Traveling in Thailand and Laos made me accustomed to eating on the streets, where the food is cheap and the company is local. I had a couple of nice places the last two days, in one even I got a how to hold your chop-sticks properly lesson. Nevertheless, today for lunch the "waiter" gave me an outrageous price for a dish. I didn't understand what the dish actually was, but it seemed too much for street food to me. I went the nearby restaurant, which has a menu with the prices on it, and they were much cheaper! And I'm talking about a restaurant here, with all that applies. Of course that they tried to rip me off at the end too, but it was just a matter of checking the bill. I had the means to check that.
The whole thing is part of the package of traveling to Vietnam (Thank Racheli for this phrase), but I believe it will take me a few more days to get used to it. Maybe it is also because of the gloomy weather right now. The sun just didn't show up in the last two days.
Tomorrow I'm going on a three day tour to Halong Bay, UNESCO world heritage site. At least now nature will have it's say too, which is unbiased, no matter what color of skin you have.
Or maybe not? A new country always takes time to get used to, but I think this time it will take a bit longer.
I arrived yesterday morning to Hanoi. Getting from the airport to the old quarter and finding a hotel went smoothly. We picked a guy on the way who pushed us hotels. I ignored him. But other people on the street don't let go so easily. Everyone wants a piece of a cake that it's you, and they won't let go so easily. Yesterday I did a mistake to look at the books one guy was selling. I saw he had a Vietnam Lonely Planet for a ridiculous price. Luckily, I've already seen a very cheap offer in Laos, so when he showed me the book, neatly wrapped of course, I quickly recognized that it was a photocopy. So I thanked him and went on my way, but he didn't let go for the next two minutes, following me. It ended up with a nice juicy "F$%# you" in my direction.
Traveling in Thailand and Laos made me accustomed to eating on the streets, where the food is cheap and the company is local. I had a couple of nice places the last two days, in one even I got a how to hold your chop-sticks properly lesson. Nevertheless, today for lunch the "waiter" gave me an outrageous price for a dish. I didn't understand what the dish actually was, but it seemed too much for street food to me. I went the nearby restaurant, which has a menu with the prices on it, and they were much cheaper! And I'm talking about a restaurant here, with all that applies. Of course that they tried to rip me off at the end too, but it was just a matter of checking the bill. I had the means to check that.
The whole thing is part of the package of traveling to Vietnam (Thank Racheli for this phrase), but I believe it will take me a few more days to get used to it. Maybe it is also because of the gloomy weather right now. The sun just didn't show up in the last two days.
Tomorrow I'm going on a three day tour to Halong Bay, UNESCO world heritage site. At least now nature will have it's say too, which is unbiased, no matter what color of skin you have.
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