Hoang gave us an orientation tour around HCMC and then we went it alone. We ended up walking aroung the city for about 6 hours and got back to the hotel completely knackered and filthy. It was such hard work trying to find anything. We had to sort out flight tickets to Phnom Penh, visas, and other organisey stuff. But we seemed to spend at least half the time trying to find something to eat. We ended up scuttling in to the completely overpriced Rex hotel, soaking wet and very hungry, after getting caught in the predictable afternoon downpour.
Part of the problem was trying to find some vegetarian food, which wasn't from a fast food place or from an expensive restaurant. One of the many places which we looked at was an ostrich restaurant, which sold NOTHING but ostrich meat, in its various (and numerous) forms.
We went for a farewell meal with the whole group in the evening. Then we went for a piss-up and played pool - again! It was really sad that everything was nearly over in Vietnam.
Sunday, October 14, 2007
Monday, October 8, 2007
Ho Chi Minh City: Cu Chi Tunnels and the Mekong Delta
Thursday 4th October 2007
Arrived in HCMC at 4am. We waited around for a while in a hotel lobby, before shifting out on to the street at the first signs of life, to find breakfast. We sat on the tiny stools of a street vendor's restaurant - the kind we sat at before in the other cities, with their improvised, haphazard feel. This is how most people eat in Vietnam. Even a lot of the enclosed cafes and restaurants receive their food from street vendors. Often, cafes and other eateries will have dirty crockery piled up outside on the street, presumably waiting for the vendor to collect it again. This also explains why I've seen women skillfully rushing around the streets with bowls of piping hot food.
We ate everything from beef noodles to eggs, tea, bread and Laughing Cow cheese (OK - the last item was just me - it's big here!)
One of the advantages of having a tour leader is being able to eat at places where local people go and do things local people do. Without the authority that speaking the language and local knowledge have - i.e. being Vietnamese - it would have been quite awkward or difficult to do some of the things we have done as a group. But I think we were very lucky too as our tour leader was very talented and skilled at introducing us to new environments. Early in the morning, I asked Hoang whether he wanted Vietnam to be more like Singapore and whether he thought the reintroduction of capitalism in Vietnam, including foreign capitalists being able to buy up land, would be a good thing for the country. It was very interesting to hear his response: he wanted Vietnam to be more like China and capitalism would mean the massive widening of the gap between the rich and the poor. At the moment, there are no very rich people and the state still provides for ordinary workers, to a certain extent. Although there is still poverty, this would be greatly worsened by capitalism.
After once again stuffing our faces with grub, we headed to the famous Cu Chi Tunnels, about a 2 hour bus ride outside of the city. They were presented well, with a good mixture of original and artificial features. I didn't realize how clever the tunnels and the guerilla warfare were. The tunnels were tiny - MINISCULE! Too big for me - or American soldiers - to fit into. I found it difficult even crouching through a short distance of artificial tunnel, three times bigger than the original system. It was extremely claustrophobic with very little lighting, and quite scary as it kept branching off in different directions. I was blindly following the person in front of me who was just as clueless as me about how to get out again. I was so relieved when I spotted a stern member of staff crouching by a ray of sunlight. My thigh muscles were killing and I had accumulated several mud patches. That was enough guerilla warfare for one day.
We saw the mechanisms of various ingenious traps that the guerillas set for the Americans and the South Vietnamese army. Really nasty! A lot of life happened in the tunnels. People ate, slept, had meetings, nursed the sick and even delivered babies. These activites took place in the chambers, spotted in between the tiny tunnels.
Then we drove to the the Mekong Delta and got a boat down the river. We had a fresh coconut and then stopped for lunch. It pelted down with rain, which limited our activity, but we just played cards! We listened to some more live traditional music. Again, the last song was Auld Lang Syne, which the musicians moved straight on to without a flinch or hint of a change of expression.
Then we boarded some much smaller boats and floated down a narrow river with amazing, jungle-like surroundings. It was wild and perfect at the same time, like something out of a movie set.
We had dinner in a market and I discovered the first beer I've ever enjoyed drinking - Red Saigon beer!
Arrived in HCMC at 4am. We waited around for a while in a hotel lobby, before shifting out on to the street at the first signs of life, to find breakfast. We sat on the tiny stools of a street vendor's restaurant - the kind we sat at before in the other cities, with their improvised, haphazard feel. This is how most people eat in Vietnam. Even a lot of the enclosed cafes and restaurants receive their food from street vendors. Often, cafes and other eateries will have dirty crockery piled up outside on the street, presumably waiting for the vendor to collect it again. This also explains why I've seen women skillfully rushing around the streets with bowls of piping hot food.
We ate everything from beef noodles to eggs, tea, bread and Laughing Cow cheese (OK - the last item was just me - it's big here!)
One of the advantages of having a tour leader is being able to eat at places where local people go and do things local people do. Without the authority that speaking the language and local knowledge have - i.e. being Vietnamese - it would have been quite awkward or difficult to do some of the things we have done as a group. But I think we were very lucky too as our tour leader was very talented and skilled at introducing us to new environments. Early in the morning, I asked Hoang whether he wanted Vietnam to be more like Singapore and whether he thought the reintroduction of capitalism in Vietnam, including foreign capitalists being able to buy up land, would be a good thing for the country. It was very interesting to hear his response: he wanted Vietnam to be more like China and capitalism would mean the massive widening of the gap between the rich and the poor. At the moment, there are no very rich people and the state still provides for ordinary workers, to a certain extent. Although there is still poverty, this would be greatly worsened by capitalism.
After once again stuffing our faces with grub, we headed to the famous Cu Chi Tunnels, about a 2 hour bus ride outside of the city. They were presented well, with a good mixture of original and artificial features. I didn't realize how clever the tunnels and the guerilla warfare were. The tunnels were tiny - MINISCULE! Too big for me - or American soldiers - to fit into. I found it difficult even crouching through a short distance of artificial tunnel, three times bigger than the original system. It was extremely claustrophobic with very little lighting, and quite scary as it kept branching off in different directions. I was blindly following the person in front of me who was just as clueless as me about how to get out again. I was so relieved when I spotted a stern member of staff crouching by a ray of sunlight. My thigh muscles were killing and I had accumulated several mud patches. That was enough guerilla warfare for one day.
We saw the mechanisms of various ingenious traps that the guerillas set for the Americans and the South Vietnamese army. Really nasty! A lot of life happened in the tunnels. People ate, slept, had meetings, nursed the sick and even delivered babies. These activites took place in the chambers, spotted in between the tiny tunnels.
Then we drove to the the Mekong Delta and got a boat down the river. We had a fresh coconut and then stopped for lunch. It pelted down with rain, which limited our activity, but we just played cards! We listened to some more live traditional music. Again, the last song was Auld Lang Syne, which the musicians moved straight on to without a flinch or hint of a change of expression.
Then we boarded some much smaller boats and floated down a narrow river with amazing, jungle-like surroundings. It was wild and perfect at the same time, like something out of a movie set.
We had dinner in a market and I discovered the first beer I've ever enjoyed drinking - Red Saigon beer!
Nha Trang
Monday 1st October 2007
A long day: 10 hours on a train from Hoi An to Nha Trang, with cockroaches and 2 free meals that literally smelt like poo, thrown in for free. It wasn''t just me - the tour leader, Hoang brought his own food too. But it could have been worse - I got some reading done and had fun arsing around with Briony.
Tuesday 2nd October 2007
Lazy day. I had a lie-in and then had lunch, which consisted of some Gorgonzola pasta and a salad entitled "Green salad, Garlic'' - and it was just that: green lettuce leaves with lumps of garlic! But it had some oil on the side and was really nice. Although Briony was not so keen on it - at least, not on the odour I exuded for the rest of the day, and probably the next. But I''m a big fan of garlic and it's a massive part of the diet in Vietnam.
Then on to a mud bath! I was expecting the mud to be lumpy but it was like watered down clay. Then we walked through various showers and sat in a hot tub. At the end of the process we swam in two VERY hot swimming pools of mineral water. I couldn't stay in the second one (38 degrees!) for too long as it was so overwhelming.
All very pleasant, except for a rich Japanese woman who was very rude to me and ruined my reverie for a while. But then I remeberbred where I was and got over it!
I always wondered what a mud bath would feel like. It''s quite weird. I can''t say I noticed much difference to my skin, but it was worth the experience.
In the evening we went for a BBQ in a place which was very popular with the local people as well. Mini BBQs were placed on the table and we were given plates of food to cook. As usual, being special (a veggie) I got my own personal BBQ!
Afterwards we went for a piss up in a touristy joint with two for one on cocktails, which reduced my already fairly poor pool game to an almost non-existent game.
Wednesday 3rd October 2007
Another lazy day. We went on a boat trip and did some snorkelling - or not, in my case. I sort of dipped my head in the water for a few seconds with some very uncomfortable goggles plastered to my face, swam about for a bit, and got back on the boat again. The water was cold and muddy and the current was strong. No-one seemed really in the mood either, which I think was partly due to sea sickness. We had another feast served up for us, but again, because of the choppy conditions, we couldn't really eat.
Nevertheless, the journey was very enjoyable and I prefer slightly cooler, stormy conditions to the scorching sun of the dry season. We stopped off on a very cute beach and I had my first ever manicure and pedicure! Although the woman trying to do something with my chewed up fingernails had a bit of a job on her hands. And I had a Vietnamese massage! Luxury. Elin, one of the Swedes, and I had our manicure, pedicure and massage at the same time. We kept exchanging looks as one of the women pampering us would not stop talking. She literally talked non-stop for about 45 minutes and her friend barely got a word in. It was quite curious. Of course, we had no idea what she was talking about but by the end we wondered if she wasn't one fruit short of a basket.
Speaking of baskets, we stopped off on a small fishing island where most of the fishing is done from small basket boats. It takes 2 weeks to make one boat but they looked pretty sturdy and last for about 5 years. Apparently they are used in Wales as well!
On the island, there were a few cockerals in cages. The inhabitants of the island were having a day of rest and were gearing up to an immenent, illegal cock fight!
In the evening we caught a our last night train - to Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). It was the most uncomfortable yet, with the beds so hard that most people hardly got a wink of sleep. But we played cards again before going to bed ,which was really fun. The group has really bonded over the last few weeks - partly during our raucous card games.
A long day: 10 hours on a train from Hoi An to Nha Trang, with cockroaches and 2 free meals that literally smelt like poo, thrown in for free. It wasn''t just me - the tour leader, Hoang brought his own food too. But it could have been worse - I got some reading done and had fun arsing around with Briony.
Tuesday 2nd October 2007
Lazy day. I had a lie-in and then had lunch, which consisted of some Gorgonzola pasta and a salad entitled "Green salad, Garlic'' - and it was just that: green lettuce leaves with lumps of garlic! But it had some oil on the side and was really nice. Although Briony was not so keen on it - at least, not on the odour I exuded for the rest of the day, and probably the next. But I''m a big fan of garlic and it's a massive part of the diet in Vietnam.
Then on to a mud bath! I was expecting the mud to be lumpy but it was like watered down clay. Then we walked through various showers and sat in a hot tub. At the end of the process we swam in two VERY hot swimming pools of mineral water. I couldn't stay in the second one (38 degrees!) for too long as it was so overwhelming.
All very pleasant, except for a rich Japanese woman who was very rude to me and ruined my reverie for a while. But then I remeberbred where I was and got over it!
I always wondered what a mud bath would feel like. It''s quite weird. I can''t say I noticed much difference to my skin, but it was worth the experience.
In the evening we went for a BBQ in a place which was very popular with the local people as well. Mini BBQs were placed on the table and we were given plates of food to cook. As usual, being special (a veggie) I got my own personal BBQ!
Afterwards we went for a piss up in a touristy joint with two for one on cocktails, which reduced my already fairly poor pool game to an almost non-existent game.
Wednesday 3rd October 2007
Another lazy day. We went on a boat trip and did some snorkelling - or not, in my case. I sort of dipped my head in the water for a few seconds with some very uncomfortable goggles plastered to my face, swam about for a bit, and got back on the boat again. The water was cold and muddy and the current was strong. No-one seemed really in the mood either, which I think was partly due to sea sickness. We had another feast served up for us, but again, because of the choppy conditions, we couldn't really eat.
Nevertheless, the journey was very enjoyable and I prefer slightly cooler, stormy conditions to the scorching sun of the dry season. We stopped off on a very cute beach and I had my first ever manicure and pedicure! Although the woman trying to do something with my chewed up fingernails had a bit of a job on her hands. And I had a Vietnamese massage! Luxury. Elin, one of the Swedes, and I had our manicure, pedicure and massage at the same time. We kept exchanging looks as one of the women pampering us would not stop talking. She literally talked non-stop for about 45 minutes and her friend barely got a word in. It was quite curious. Of course, we had no idea what she was talking about but by the end we wondered if she wasn't one fruit short of a basket.
Speaking of baskets, we stopped off on a small fishing island where most of the fishing is done from small basket boats. It takes 2 weeks to make one boat but they looked pretty sturdy and last for about 5 years. Apparently they are used in Wales as well!
On the island, there were a few cockerals in cages. The inhabitants of the island were having a day of rest and were gearing up to an immenent, illegal cock fight!
In the evening we caught a our last night train - to Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). It was the most uncomfortable yet, with the beds so hard that most people hardly got a wink of sleep. But we played cards again before going to bed ,which was really fun. The group has really bonded over the last few weeks - partly during our raucous card games.
Sunday, October 7, 2007
Hoi An
Friday 28th September 2007
We travelled from Hue to Hoi An by bus. We stayed in a hotel with a swimming pool and pool tables! So in the evening we had fun with the girls in the pool and played a few games of pool. This was the chilled out part of our trip, after the trekking and night trains.
And we went.......shopping! I bought quite a lot of stuff: presents and other things (for me!) - didn't exactly keep within budget that day, but I'm looking at my buys as investments....! Hoi An is famous for its tailoring. You can walk into almost any shop and get measured up for a pair of shoes or a suit for such a scandalously cheap price.
While we were playing pool in the evening, a very playful, but slightly psychotic puppy would not stop biting our feet, or anything else it could get its nashers into. He followed me to my room afterwards and I had to fend him off with an umbrella.
Saturday 29th September 2007
We went for a bike and boat ride. I had not been on a bicycle since I was 16 when I fell off and broke my arm, so I was not sure if I could do it. But it turned out to be totally amazing. I feel like I can do anything now, if I can ride a bike on a Vietnamese road - not only had I not been on a bike for years, but I was thrown in at the deep end, riding alongside the motos on busy roads!
After we got off the roads, we had the equally challenging task of riding through rural villages, with very rough roads and trying to avoid small children and chickens popping out from the bushes. We stopped off at a house to meet a family. There were three teenage girls studying. They were all very giggly and very sweet. The family was quite poor because it had to rely on a small, sandy patch of land where maize was growing. The girls also go to town to work in restaurants etc., to earn extra cash. Hoang uses spare money from the fees for the trip to buy bags of rice for the families he visits.
We met two other families. At the third house, we didn't enter, as the father of the family had just died. A quiet, sad teenage boy was there, who I assumed was his son. It was just him and an older man, who I would guess was the grandfather. This family was particularly poor because it suffered with mental illness. Also, the grandfather was missing half a leg, which he lost after the war, when he had no job and came across an unexploded bomb when searching for scrap metal to sell. So, the family can only sustain itself by the work that the children can do and from donations from other villagers.
After the bike ride we boarded a boat and had a gorgeous BBQ lunch. I had some divine tofu - covered with a lemon flavoured sauce...soooo good! I never normally like tofu because the texture is too meaty, but this tofu was in curled up strips and must have had some magic ingredient.
In the evening we played pool and psycho puppy came out to play again.
Sunday 30th September 2007
Stupid, fucking psycho puppy woke me up really, really early in the morning and wouldn't shut the fuck up.
In the morning, we did a bit of sightseeing: saw a Cantonese Assembly Hall, crossed over a coverved Japanese bridge and visited an ancient house.
In the afternoon we road quite fast on bikes to the beach. It was a bit stormy so we didn't stay long. I couldn't really swim in the sea as the stormy waves and current forced me to spend most of my energy trying to keep my bikini on.
In the evening, Briony and I had dinner with another member of the group, from New Zealand. The three of us have had quite a few discussions over the past few weeks about many subjects, and although we did not agree on immigration, the United Nations, American presidents, the death penalty and other things, it seemed we were in complete agreement on strikes, picket lines and trade unions, which was refreshing. A couple from Stoke, England, were sat on the table next to us, ploughing into their twelth bottle of beer (although this was their figure and I'm not sure how clear they were on the matter at this point). The guy joined us for a game of pool afterwards and although completely pissed, managed to play some amazing shots and beat us all anyway!
We travelled from Hue to Hoi An by bus. We stayed in a hotel with a swimming pool and pool tables! So in the evening we had fun with the girls in the pool and played a few games of pool. This was the chilled out part of our trip, after the trekking and night trains.
And we went.......shopping! I bought quite a lot of stuff: presents and other things (for me!) - didn't exactly keep within budget that day, but I'm looking at my buys as investments....! Hoi An is famous for its tailoring. You can walk into almost any shop and get measured up for a pair of shoes or a suit for such a scandalously cheap price.
While we were playing pool in the evening, a very playful, but slightly psychotic puppy would not stop biting our feet, or anything else it could get its nashers into. He followed me to my room afterwards and I had to fend him off with an umbrella.
Saturday 29th September 2007
We went for a bike and boat ride. I had not been on a bicycle since I was 16 when I fell off and broke my arm, so I was not sure if I could do it. But it turned out to be totally amazing. I feel like I can do anything now, if I can ride a bike on a Vietnamese road - not only had I not been on a bike for years, but I was thrown in at the deep end, riding alongside the motos on busy roads!
After we got off the roads, we had the equally challenging task of riding through rural villages, with very rough roads and trying to avoid small children and chickens popping out from the bushes. We stopped off at a house to meet a family. There were three teenage girls studying. They were all very giggly and very sweet. The family was quite poor because it had to rely on a small, sandy patch of land where maize was growing. The girls also go to town to work in restaurants etc., to earn extra cash. Hoang uses spare money from the fees for the trip to buy bags of rice for the families he visits.
We met two other families. At the third house, we didn't enter, as the father of the family had just died. A quiet, sad teenage boy was there, who I assumed was his son. It was just him and an older man, who I would guess was the grandfather. This family was particularly poor because it suffered with mental illness. Also, the grandfather was missing half a leg, which he lost after the war, when he had no job and came across an unexploded bomb when searching for scrap metal to sell. So, the family can only sustain itself by the work that the children can do and from donations from other villagers.
After the bike ride we boarded a boat and had a gorgeous BBQ lunch. I had some divine tofu - covered with a lemon flavoured sauce...soooo good! I never normally like tofu because the texture is too meaty, but this tofu was in curled up strips and must have had some magic ingredient.
In the evening we played pool and psycho puppy came out to play again.
Sunday 30th September 2007
Stupid, fucking psycho puppy woke me up really, really early in the morning and wouldn't shut the fuck up.
In the morning, we did a bit of sightseeing: saw a Cantonese Assembly Hall, crossed over a coverved Japanese bridge and visited an ancient house.
In the afternoon we road quite fast on bikes to the beach. It was a bit stormy so we didn't stay long. I couldn't really swim in the sea as the stormy waves and current forced me to spend most of my energy trying to keep my bikini on.
In the evening, Briony and I had dinner with another member of the group, from New Zealand. The three of us have had quite a few discussions over the past few weeks about many subjects, and although we did not agree on immigration, the United Nations, American presidents, the death penalty and other things, it seemed we were in complete agreement on strikes, picket lines and trade unions, which was refreshing. A couple from Stoke, England, were sat on the table next to us, ploughing into their twelth bottle of beer (although this was their figure and I'm not sure how clear they were on the matter at this point). The guy joined us for a game of pool afterwards and although completely pissed, managed to play some amazing shots and beat us all anyway!
Saturday, October 6, 2007
Motorbike tour around Hue
I was really scared to get on to a motorbike at first - after my observations as a pedestrian! But it was also because I couldn't imagine how I would stay on the vehicule as I had never ridden a motorbike before. So when we approached the drivers, I chose the most placid looking one. It seemed my instincts were correct as he was very sweet - when it started raining, he stopped the bike and got me out a mac. It made me very sweaty and was not really needed as by the time we got it on and caught up with the group again, it had more or less stopped raining, but it was sweet all the same.
I gripped tightly to the back of the bike but as soon as we got off the curb, it felt ok, and then I got cocky and didn't hold on at all. As a pedestrian it feels daunting weaving in and out of the bikes, but when on the motorbike, it was actually quite exciting and relaxing.
The leader of the tour was quite an entertaining character. He had a wicked laugh and would make big gestures to accompany every single thing he said. Consequently, his explanations tended to take some time. Our first stop was an animal fighting arena. Tigers and elephants used to fight in the arena. Apparently, the emperor who built the arena would order the tiger's claws and most of its teeth to be taken out so that the elephant would win the fight. The tiger would be starved before the fight so that it would find it too tempting not to attack the elephant.
Next stop: incense making. I had a go at rolling some incense sticks but resisted buying any as I have no room to carry such luxuries! My driver had picked up some meat along the way which looked almost unfit for human consumption.
Then on to a Buddhist pagoda. It was very tranquil. We watched 4 monks praying. They pray at 4am, 10am and 4pm, and meditate twice a day, as well as surf the internet, play football and occasionally go out to pray for people.
The praying we observed lasted about 15 minutes. One of the monks looked thoroughly unimpressed and another kept yawning. They didn't seem to want to be there, but then I don't know the first thing about Buddhist prayer rituals. There was quite a lot of melodic chanting/singing, banging of bells and getting up and down from the floor. Quite fascinating to watch.
The tour guide told us that unlike in Thailand and Laos, monks in Vietnam do not go out asking for money, but live purely on donations they receive, that people bring to the pagoda.
It turned out that my sweet driver had bought the meat to feed to a dog who was starving, staggering around just inside the gates of the pagoda. Either that or he had bought it for himself and had decided the dog needed it more.
Then we went to an orphanage, run by nuns. The conditions seemed very good and the children seemed very happy. There were about 200 children there, with a percentage of disabled children, including a blind toddler waving his little hand in front of his eyes. I'd never been to an orphanage before. Although the children seemed to be well looked after, the place still had a desolate, lonely feeling to it.
We visited a royal tomb next, which was more like a village - it went on forever! Building after building. It was a place to amuse the emperor who was buried there during his life, as well as his resting place. It included a theatre and beautiful grounds.
Then we drove out to the countryside to see a lovely covered bridge. Sitting underneath it were mainly very elderly men, dressed in white and taking it easy. On the other side of the bridge we saw 3 beautiful water buffalo frolicking in the water, in what I'm guessing is their favourite time of the day. They seemed very relaxed and playful.
I gripped tightly to the back of the bike but as soon as we got off the curb, it felt ok, and then I got cocky and didn't hold on at all. As a pedestrian it feels daunting weaving in and out of the bikes, but when on the motorbike, it was actually quite exciting and relaxing.
The leader of the tour was quite an entertaining character. He had a wicked laugh and would make big gestures to accompany every single thing he said. Consequently, his explanations tended to take some time. Our first stop was an animal fighting arena. Tigers and elephants used to fight in the arena. Apparently, the emperor who built the arena would order the tiger's claws and most of its teeth to be taken out so that the elephant would win the fight. The tiger would be starved before the fight so that it would find it too tempting not to attack the elephant.
Next stop: incense making. I had a go at rolling some incense sticks but resisted buying any as I have no room to carry such luxuries! My driver had picked up some meat along the way which looked almost unfit for human consumption.
Then on to a Buddhist pagoda. It was very tranquil. We watched 4 monks praying. They pray at 4am, 10am and 4pm, and meditate twice a day, as well as surf the internet, play football and occasionally go out to pray for people.
The praying we observed lasted about 15 minutes. One of the monks looked thoroughly unimpressed and another kept yawning. They didn't seem to want to be there, but then I don't know the first thing about Buddhist prayer rituals. There was quite a lot of melodic chanting/singing, banging of bells and getting up and down from the floor. Quite fascinating to watch.
The tour guide told us that unlike in Thailand and Laos, monks in Vietnam do not go out asking for money, but live purely on donations they receive, that people bring to the pagoda.
It turned out that my sweet driver had bought the meat to feed to a dog who was starving, staggering around just inside the gates of the pagoda. Either that or he had bought it for himself and had decided the dog needed it more.
Then we went to an orphanage, run by nuns. The conditions seemed very good and the children seemed very happy. There were about 200 children there, with a percentage of disabled children, including a blind toddler waving his little hand in front of his eyes. I'd never been to an orphanage before. Although the children seemed to be well looked after, the place still had a desolate, lonely feeling to it.
We visited a royal tomb next, which was more like a village - it went on forever! Building after building. It was a place to amuse the emperor who was buried there during his life, as well as his resting place. It included a theatre and beautiful grounds.
Then we drove out to the countryside to see a lovely covered bridge. Sitting underneath it were mainly very elderly men, dressed in white and taking it easy. On the other side of the bridge we saw 3 beautiful water buffalo frolicking in the water, in what I'm guessing is their favourite time of the day. They seemed very relaxed and playful.
Hue
Wednesday 26th September 2007
I woke up in a sweaty heap on the night train, at 8am and we struggled with our bags to the hotel (it's going to be interesting to see how Briony and I cope with luggage - and everything else - when we don't have the comfort of travelling with a tour leader and group!)
We realized only when we arrived at the hotel in Hue, that we didn't get all of our laundry given back to us when we picked it up yesterday, which was a real nuisance. Oh well, one way of lightening our load.
Then on to the large citadel in Hue. It's 200o years old and vast. Now, relatives of the old royal family who used to inhabit it, live normally in 2 villages nearby.
In the evening we went as a group to a special restaurant where you have a banquet - quite literally. We received costumes to wear - Briony was the queen! I asked if the costumes were unisex before picking one out and was told categorically that they were. But that wasn't strictly true, as I managed to pick out the only one designed for a eunuch (which for those of you who don't know, as I didn't, is a man who has had his balls chopped off) and was advised to pick out another...
Another in the group was the king, and he and Briony sat at the head of the table, which was in our own private room, which we walked to in procession! We also had live, traditional music played throughout our ten course meal. I really liked the music. It was not as good as that at the water puppetry, but was still entertaining. The singers jump up and down the scale unexpectedly and the sounds can be quite tonal, at times. The sound does not always seem to correspond with the movement of the mouth - appearing a bit like a bad ventriloquist. At the end there was a surreal moment when the musicians started playing The Godfather tune and auld lang syne!
It was a very fun evening.
I woke up in a sweaty heap on the night train, at 8am and we struggled with our bags to the hotel (it's going to be interesting to see how Briony and I cope with luggage - and everything else - when we don't have the comfort of travelling with a tour leader and group!)
We realized only when we arrived at the hotel in Hue, that we didn't get all of our laundry given back to us when we picked it up yesterday, which was a real nuisance. Oh well, one way of lightening our load.
Then on to the large citadel in Hue. It's 200o years old and vast. Now, relatives of the old royal family who used to inhabit it, live normally in 2 villages nearby.
In the evening we went as a group to a special restaurant where you have a banquet - quite literally. We received costumes to wear - Briony was the queen! I asked if the costumes were unisex before picking one out and was told categorically that they were. But that wasn't strictly true, as I managed to pick out the only one designed for a eunuch (which for those of you who don't know, as I didn't, is a man who has had his balls chopped off) and was advised to pick out another...
Another in the group was the king, and he and Briony sat at the head of the table, which was in our own private room, which we walked to in procession! We also had live, traditional music played throughout our ten course meal. I really liked the music. It was not as good as that at the water puppetry, but was still entertaining. The singers jump up and down the scale unexpectedly and the sounds can be quite tonal, at times. The sound does not always seem to correspond with the movement of the mouth - appearing a bit like a bad ventriloquist. At the end there was a surreal moment when the musicians started playing The Godfather tune and auld lang syne!
It was a very fun evening.
Another day in Hanoi
Tuesday 25th September 2007
Ahhhh, I had a lie-in - glorious! And much needed.
In the morning, a few of us went to the museum of fine arts in Hanoi. I liked a lot of the art but there was hardly any factual information for the average ignorant Westerner to absorb. Apparently, this is because it is thought of as patronising to accompany displays of artwork with lots of writing about its significance and context.
In the afternoon we went to see the famous water puppetry show. It was fantastic, I thought. Most of the group were not that inspired and didn't like the music very much. But I absolutely loved it. The extroardinary, wavering tones of the two female singers, who were acting as some kind of chorus to the action, as far as I could tell (everything was Vietnamese).
I had never heard anything like it before - it was very traditional music and sounds a little screechy at first. But after a while, I really began to enjoy the melodies and the tone became more beautiful. It was very rhythmic too, at times. It reminded me of some Irish and English folk music.
I nearly got run over 3 times today by motorbikes. Everyone beeps their horns continuously but no-one pays any attention - neither the pedestrians or the other drivers. So, I tried to do the same, but that's quite difficult when a motorcyclist is ruthlessly heading towards you.
As I already mentioned, the pavements are so busy with parked motorbikes and improvised stalls that you are constantly forced on to the road, to dance with the motorbikes, hoping that you will arrive at your destination in one piece - no doubt more by luck than judgement. Although it sounds awful to admit it, as a tourist, there is a certain amount of relief to step into the decadence of an air-conditioned hotel lobby. It would be easier to spend longer on the streets if it were possible to blend into the background, to observe the life going on there. But with my pasty white face and clunky traveller's clothes, that's never going to happen.
We caught a night train to Hue, which was pretty skanky but it did the job.
Ahhhh, I had a lie-in - glorious! And much needed.
In the morning, a few of us went to the museum of fine arts in Hanoi. I liked a lot of the art but there was hardly any factual information for the average ignorant Westerner to absorb. Apparently, this is because it is thought of as patronising to accompany displays of artwork with lots of writing about its significance and context.
In the afternoon we went to see the famous water puppetry show. It was fantastic, I thought. Most of the group were not that inspired and didn't like the music very much. But I absolutely loved it. The extroardinary, wavering tones of the two female singers, who were acting as some kind of chorus to the action, as far as I could tell (everything was Vietnamese).
I had never heard anything like it before - it was very traditional music and sounds a little screechy at first. But after a while, I really began to enjoy the melodies and the tone became more beautiful. It was very rhythmic too, at times. It reminded me of some Irish and English folk music.
I nearly got run over 3 times today by motorbikes. Everyone beeps their horns continuously but no-one pays any attention - neither the pedestrians or the other drivers. So, I tried to do the same, but that's quite difficult when a motorcyclist is ruthlessly heading towards you.
As I already mentioned, the pavements are so busy with parked motorbikes and improvised stalls that you are constantly forced on to the road, to dance with the motorbikes, hoping that you will arrive at your destination in one piece - no doubt more by luck than judgement. Although it sounds awful to admit it, as a tourist, there is a certain amount of relief to step into the decadence of an air-conditioned hotel lobby. It would be easier to spend longer on the streets if it were possible to blend into the background, to observe the life going on there. But with my pasty white face and clunky traveller's clothes, that's never going to happen.
We caught a night train to Hue, which was pretty skanky but it did the job.
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