Much Catch Up, all that has been missed

20.01.09 - Luang Pro Bang.

So the bus trip was to Luang Pro Bang a world heritage site, we arrived at 0600am from Vientiane and got on a Jumbo to take us into town. All these bus stations seem to be built 3 or 4 kms out of town, which makes a great little earner for all the Jumbo Drivers and Motorbike Drivers.

Arrived early, found a nice room for $40 USD at the Mekong Moon Inn a night where we all bunked in showered and went out to explore a little before having a rest. Mum and I signed up for a Laotian Cooking Course, tomorrow and the boys, well they are just boys.

Went to a Vegetarian Buffet on the side of the road for dinner, it was a plate for 5000k very cheap and very good food. Then we wandered around the night market just to look but it's all the same, no different things and very touristy.

21.01.09 - Food and Temples

Well the team separated without anxiety at all for the first time in 5 weeks.The girls went and did a silly cooking course, from the market to the table. From about 0800-1600 hrs.

The blokes did an important bit of touristing.

Temples and Buddha's are to this part of the world as Gondolas must be to Venice. Once you have seen the first 10 thousand or so, they tend to merge and assimilate and blur.

Bit of a lazy morning, sending post cards to some of those unfortunates that do not have access to this masterpiece of literary exquisiteness (as edited by Saasha).

(Oh Ben, the post office made me put the stamp on the writing side, so you can steam the stamp off)

Wander though the morning market, to see the array (again) of various wild life that are for sale. This morning there were some really colourful Kingfishers for sale.

Then we had to do the internet thing for James, as he has to enroll in his Uni course, which took a bit of time.

After brunch we circumvented the local touts, who wanted to charge us K15,000 to get to the other side of the Mekong, and went straight to the ferryman (who contrary to the song, we did pay before we got to the other side) and only paid K5,000 each way.

We met up after going our different ways for an afternoon nap and then dinner at another street side stall, with a hot pot where you cooked yourself. And strolled through the night market again. Bus early tomorrow morning we are going to Phonsavan heading towards to boarder to get to SaPa in time for Tet on the 25.01.09.

22.01.09 - Luang Pro Bang - Phonsavan

Today we had a long bus ride from Luang Pro Bang to Phonsavan. We started at 0830 and arrived in Phonsavan at 1730, after going all day. We hurriedly lined up some accommodation and a sunset tour to the Plain of Jars. We were minivanned to Dokhon Guest House where it cost us 100,000k for 2 rooms. We then rushed along to the Plain Of Jars, 20kms out of Phonsavan and arrived just in time for sunset. We were the only people there as the ticket office actually closed at 1630, it seemed that our driver knew some inside people so he got us in to the Plain just in time. The Plain of Jars (site 1)

Lao stories and legends claim that there was a race of giants who once inhabited the area. Local legend tells of an ancient king called Khun Cheung, who fought a long, victorious battle against his enemy. He supposedly created the jars to brew and store huge amounts of "lao lao" rice wine to celebrate his victory
The jars are made of rock. They are angular or round and some have disks that could be lids. They can weigh up to 13 tonnes and range from 1-3 meters in height. The jars lie in clusters. The largest one near the town of Phonsavan, known as Site 1, contains over 250 jars of varying sizes. The jars now lie amidst thousands of unexploded bombs left behind by the Secret War in Laos in the 1960s. The large quantity of UXOs (unexploded ordnances), in the area means that only Sites 1, 2 and 3 are open to visitors—the others are considered too dangerous.
After our sojourn to the Plain of Jars we headed back at a more leisurely pace and were dropped off at our hotel. We then went off in search of dinner and internet. We found dinner but no internet. Dinner was Indian, traditional Laotian Indian of course! Off to bed for another early start to the bus station this time the bus to Xam Neau.

23.01.09 - Phonsavan - Xam Neau

Early start, and breakfast at the bus station, our minivan was waiting for us at 0700, like we requested and took us most efficiently to the station. Our bus trip was mostly unremarkable, and we arrived in Xam Neau mostly unscathed. We got a Jumbo from the station to a hotel from the lonely planet. Khamxam Guesthouse. We arrived, and asked about the route to the boarder, we didn't get much of an answer, although an American bike rider told us that it was a very nice journey, very scenic and very pleasant. Well we went off to find some dinner and internet, again. And again, we found dinner, but no internet. We went for a short walk in the cold mistyness of Xam Neau and found, well not much really, a few convenience store, where we purchased a few snacks for the next days trip, then headed back to the hotel to turn in for the night, for again another early start.

24.01.09 - Xam Neau - Hanoi

MAJORLY RIPPED OFF

"Dear Sir.

We have had a bad experience with dishonest people in Nameo (Nam Xoi) in Vietnam, who would not provide any help for us to get across to SaPa. The only transport they would provide was one bus for $USD30.00 pp to Hanoi, and the bus driver I think told everybody else in the town not to help us. The bus journey was also very dangerous too. It now makes it very hard for us to make it to SaPa, because we run out of time. My son and Daughter will still be coming, possibly arriving on Tuesday morning and will need a 2 bed room. They will confirm with you this

I am very sorry that this has happened, as we were looking forward to being at SaPa for Tet.

This has made a very bad impression of that part of Vietnam.

My wife and I will be coming back to Vietnam, maybe next year, and we look forward to getting to SaPa first.

Thank you for your help and patience with us.

Andrew and Nathalie Caulfield"

Well today was not a good day, we started at 0645 where we again minivanned ourselves to the station, when we got there, we asked the driver, which was our bus to Nam Xoi. He pointed, jokingly, at a Sawngthaew (or Jumbo, Large pick-up with seats in the tray). We went to the ticket counter and were told indeed this was our transport to the boarder. So we unpacked our warm and woolies and repacked everything else then climbed aboard this Sawngthaew for the 2-3 hr journey to the boarder. We had our fingers crossed that we would arrive at the boarder before 1130 as it was open from 0730-1130 and 1330-1630, no matter what, fortunately we arrived at 1030 and began the tedious bureaucratic process of international travel. We were across the boarder by 1130 and walked into the Vietnamese town of Nam Xoi. Once there we set about finding transport out of Nam Xoi and directly to SaPa, to no avail. This town had something of a mafia controlled feel. We were informed thet the only bus out of Nam Xoi was a small crowded minibus to Hanoi for $30USD pp. a total rip off. We enquired at the large truck depot, and they were positive that there was only one bus out of Nam Xoi. We enquired at a house with a minivan and they were sure there was only one bus, even when we offered $100 to drive 85kms to the next town, no joy. So we were resigned to forgoing our accommodation in SaPa to traveling to Hanoi at a ridiculous price.

I would advise any one who plans to travel this way to avoid Nam Xoi and travel instead through Vinh a more southerly boarder crossing.

We arrived in Hanoi at 2230 to obtain 2 taxis to the Tin Tin Hotel. The taxis the proceeded to again rip us of, charging us $40 for less than a 3km and 5 minute journey. Hungry, tired angry and disheartened we arrived at the Tin Tin hotel. Feeling very disillusioned to the North Vietnamese.

25.01.09 - Hanoi - Tin Tin Hotel - TET

HAPPY NEW YEAR

Today is the eve of Vietnam's biggest annual celebration. The celebration of the Lunar New Year or Tet. We went to the train station to purchase two tickets to Lao Cai and then contacted the Hotel in SaPa to inform them of our imminent arrival. We then walked to Singapore Airlines to attempted to change James and my Flights, to spend more days in Vietnam than Singapore, as it's cheaper and I feel that there is more to do here. However, because it is Tet and a Sunday, many many places are closed. So of course the airline office is closed and we will have to try later to change our flights.

We rested for the remainder of the day in anticipation of the New Year Celebrations that were in store. We went walking during the evening, after a very overpriced and disappointing meal, we were a huge attraction to the locals and tourists alike girls and boys were clamoring to have photos taken with us and a large giggly group of perhaps Korean(?) girls all crowded into the photos, it was very amusing to all involved. We found a good spot on the banks of Hoan Kiem Lake, where the major fireworks were being let off. We were so close that we could hear the initial take off of the fireworks. After 20 minutes or so of spectacular fireworks we went for another walk around, watched old and young locals letting off the paper lanterns into the sky. We then walked back to hotel where we were promptly invited to share in traditional New Year's offerings with Mr. Cuong, the owner of the hotel. With local red wine for all and sweet and savory New Year specialties for us to try. We went to bed full and looking forward to the next day.

26.01.09 - Hanoi - Separation - Lao Cai - SaPa

Today, our last day together, James and I checked out of our room. We walked around a very closed and quite Hanoi. Sorted out our bags what James and I still needed and what we could send home with Mum Dad and Patrick. Sorted everything out, walked to the station, said our goodbyes and got underway to SaPa. Can't Wait!!!!

27.01.09 - SaPa - Mountain View Hotel

So, due to our sprit dampening and experience tarnishing encounter at the boarder we had to re-think our travel plans and make our way to Hanoi. Due to the time factor, the parentals and Patrick have stayed in Hanoi and James and I have become independent travelers, a little earlier than planned.
Last night the family all walked from our lovely Hotel, the Tin-Tin Hotel (really nice, I stayed there 3 years ago) Mr. Cuong, the owner is very nice and very helpful, we shared a traditional Vietnamese New Year with him on New Years at midnight when we arrived back at the hotel from the Fireworks. Anyway, the point, we walked to the station, James was so excited that he was literally jumping up and down all the way there. We bid our fond farewells to the others, and settled down to a game of scrabble, I won! Our train didn't depart until 2150, but we boarded at 2030 and set ourselves up. Sleeping bags out and bags away. We were in a 6 berth hard sleeper, which we shared with a lovely family of 4, who spoke a little English, and 1 young fellow, who didn't say much at all. So we all settled in and turned in for the night, very cozy and very warm. The hard sleeper weren't all that hard, after some of the hotel beds that we have slept on, it really wasn't that bad, and last time I was on a hard sleeper 3 years ago, they only provided bamboo mats, no mattresses, so this was infinitely better.
After a lovely nights sleep, we awoke at about 0530 and found out that we would be arriving in half an hour or so. We packed up got sorted and landed safe and sound in Lao Cai. Lao Cai is the station nearest to SaPa, on the Vietnam-China boarder. Lao Cai was completely rebuilt in 1979 after being destroyed by China, "punishment" by the Chinese for Vietnam's involvement in the defeat of the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia. We were greeted at the train station by a sign "Mountain View Hotel Warmly Greets Ms Caulfield", I though that it was a nice touch, we purchased Milo and Oreos for breakfast before the hours twisty, turny, windy drive to SaPa. We arrived at SaPa, very cold, it's colder than 10°C, I can see my breath fogging in front of the computer, and visibility is probably at less than 100 meters. We arrived at 0830, checked in, had a HOT, HOT shower and came down to have a proper breakfast of pancakes.
We have organised to go on a three day trek tomorrow with two home stays, walking from SaPa to Lao Chai, Ta Van, Giang it Chai and Ban Hoa. We also purchased our train tickets for the return trip, soft sleepers this time, all that was available, I'm sure that'll be nice.
Went out for a walk before and I found my friends that I have kept in contact with from the last time that I was here, Zi (Lucy) and Chi. Still as cheeky as ever these two, and all the children crowd around you as you walk outside trying to get you to buy. I also met two Red Dzao Women, and I have organised to go walking on Saturday, to their village 12kms away about 3hr walk. And we'll go to their houses and all it'll be very interesting. I'm looking forward to this home stay trek, it'll be very interesting. But I think I'll have to buy some gloves, my fingers feel like they are about to snap off.
All the ethnic people, women, children and men are walking around in their new clothes, clean and shiny. By the end of the year their clothes are dull and worn and they make a whole new set for TET, their new year, nothing is open here today, because of TET, but things should be open tomorrow, we hope.
Signing off for now, to snuggle in sleeping bag for half and hour or so to thaw.
Much love
xoxox

Our Three Day Trek in SaPa

The three day long trek.

28.01.09 - SaPa to Ta Van

Well today we started our big trek. This was different from our trek in Laos, as the temperatures here are a lot cooler than in Laos, and the Laos countryside is quite flat and monotonous additionally it was big. So we started in our hotel lobby at 0900 where we met Mai, our guide, a young Black H'mong girl. We trekked out of SaPa in the fog and mist and cold. Our first stop was Cat Cat a small village 3 kms south of SaPa.

From here we took a "short cut" via Mai's home, a rather nice little place, on top of a rather large hill. That aside, we had a chance to meet her family, and experience a more "rustic" H'mong home. A common sight being the meats, including stuffed Pigs stomach, intestine sausages and strips of skin, hair still on, smoking above the fireplace. Another sight being the 5 family dogs, which we were unashamedly informed were for eating, from then on all the dogs seem rather sad looking.

After being introduced to her family, Mai lead us on up the muddy and slippery slope to our first home stay in Ta Van. This place was kind of like a Hotel except that it was a house as well. It really did not feel all that authentic. We arrived early so we were taken for a walk around Ta Van to see the locals before they went home for the evening. We then returned to our home stay.

Despite being in the wilderness of Vietnam our "Home Stay Mates" were 4 foreigners, 3 of which were Australians. So this seemingly unlikely group of 5 Australians (and an American) ate their way through a large spread of Vietnamese cuisine. It was very nice meal. After the meal and a few games of "31" we were off to bed for a good nights sleep.

29.01.09 - Ta Van to Ban Ho

The following morning, after a laid back 0900 wakeup and breakfast of as many pancakes as you could eat we were off again. On our merry way, up a muddy, slippery slope, past countless meals (duck, chicken, goat, pig, buffalo, goose, dog, cat and perhaps a turkey) frolicking in the rice paddies, across the muddy rice paddies, down several muddy, slippery hills, past countless tourists (American, Japanese, Vietnamese, Korean, English, Israeli, Australian) slipping up and down the same muddy hills, and through some dense bamboo forests, it was about lunch time. And we were just a little unhunrgy after the mornings adventuring. Today's offering was noodle soup, which consists of instant noodles, and as many different vegetables as you can think of, finished off with ginger, lemon grass and chili.

Almost mercifully after lunch we were walking along road, where we passed many children all in traditional black H'mong garb, and blue hands, all it appeared walking up and back along this road, engrossed in various activities. With their new clothes and time off school or work, Tet is the traditional time for the youth of the minorities to find girlfriends/boyfriends (it's normal to have 3 or 4 girlfriends or boyfriends), and to just walk around to show off the new clothing. It's the only Holiday in the year that they get, so they should make the most of it.

We continued onto Ban Ho, down a very steep and bumpy and lumpy slope, without too many mishaps. We arrived in Ban Ho village around 1500, where we made our way to our home stay (this evening shared with two severe looking French) where we deposited our bags and made our way to the natural thermal springs in Ban Ho. Admission 20000VND pp, about 2 dollars. The springs weren't very warm but it was nice after a long day of trekking. We then dried off and walked back, I can tell you I got quite a few looks walking back in my thermals; we neglected to bring bathers with us so we went swimming in clothes that we needed to wash and hoped fervently that they would dry by the morning.

We were invited into the Kitchen while dinner was being prepared, and it was hard not to cringe as you watched Mai put spoonfuls or a mystery salt like substance into the dishes, a nameless substance that makes everything taste so good, perhaps better known as MSG. Suffice to say, the food did taste quite good, and happily we don't suffer from side effects of MSG like others do. So after another few games of "31" we were off to bed again for another nights good sleep.

30.01.09 - Ban Ho to SaPa

Pancakes for breakfast, again, but no complaints here, very nice pancakes. We then set off sans bags for a small Red Dzao minority village about an hour uphill trek form Ban Ho, we got there puffed and sweaty and hot looked around then went back down the slippery slope to Ban Ho, where we had lunch at our guest house.

Then we took off again, this time with our bag for the hour hard slog up the huge hill that we had descended yesterday to Ban Den where we were meeting the Jeep to drive us to 15kms to SaPa.

We arrived back in SaPa at 1500 and checked back into the hotel and had the same room, as the first night. We showered and thawed and rested our weary heads then dined in the hotel restaurant. James had a Pork Curry and I had a Vegetable Burger. Very nice food. We have HBO and Star Movies on the television. So there are some good shows to watch. However we went to bed for an early night and a deep sleep.

31.01.09 - Mountain View Hotel - SaPa

Woke up relatively early still trying to decide if we would walk to the red Dzao village that we were going to. Decided against it, as it's very cold, I have a cold and James has a sniffle, not much point making ourselves sicker. So we rested for a bit then went out for a walk around the village. Found the women that we were going to walk with a bought a hat from them for Dad, very colourful, just as he likes it. Now it's still very cold here, and the hotel lobby is no warmer. We were going to go to the Bac Ha markets tomorrow, however it's an organised group tour, which to James and I sounds like no fun at all. Motorbikes won't takes us as it's too far, 150kms away, which is a little disappointing, though I'm sure that we can find something else to do. Tomorrow we check out and are catching the train back tomorrow evening. more excitement...

18.01.09 - 19.01.09

18.01.09

FANCY BUS

We woke up as usual; but at about 0600 so that we could have breakfast before 0800 and get to the bus depot at 0800 for the 0930 bus. Once again with Mr. AirNoy and his adequate Tuk-Tuk we traveled to the bus depot in Tha Kheak. Once at the bus depot with the usual language problems we managed to acquire 5 tickets on the “VIP” bus. That was at 0810, we then had another hour or so to look at the many types of jerky and jellies at the market. We had a Nescafe coffee and Lao tea, biscuits and ricey sugary cake things like rice bubbles, almost the same… same…but different. An hour later we entered the bus and were on our way out of Tha Kheak.
Broom broom. The bus was fairly new, and moderately fancy. We had a compartment of eight seats to ourselves and get this. The seats slid from left to right as well as reclining for the fatty westerners. Oh and… shock horror we had leg room without sugar. The bus was in fact double storied we were in the bottom level with the eight seats and all the locals, rich locals were on the top. One cake, more ricey things and jelly later, we arrived at Vientiane. The bus depot was very different from Tha Kheak for one it had less if not any stalls and it seemed to be a lot busier. We unloaded our bags and started loading them onto a same same but different Tuk-Tuk. The journey was relatively safe, probably because we had an old local gentleman with us but more likely because we were sharing it with a monk as well.

After an uneventful journey to town we found a hotel called Samsenthai Hotel. It was so clean that the floors squeaked under our feet. And the beds were soft. It was relatively accommodating and in the centre of town. Seeing as we hadn’t had lunch we headed off the banks of the Mekong River to get a bite to eat Sitting on little cushions on a reed mat on the banks of the Mekong. We ambled around town ordered a sarong and found an ATM. We then headed back to the hotel for the night, when us children then headed out again and interneted for a while. Went back to the hotel for the night.

(by Patrick)

19.01.09

Vientiane

Today we woke up at 0800 and had breakfast at 0900, as we were not sure whet we were what we doing, we packed. Patrick, James and I went off to internet again, whilst the parentals went off to find out what we going to do. So while Patrick and I slogged away, bring the bloggy thing up to date the others went off and gallivanted around town. Finding us a 1830 bus to… iu don’t know where we are going actually. But know that this blog is up to date, Patrick and I can go and find us some lunch.

Bai Bai
xoxoxo

More Temples in Tha Kheak 17.01.09

Due to the unexpectedly late arrival in from last night we had a HUGE sleep-in. All the way to 0800hrs. Being the 22nd wedding anniversary of 2 of the “Griswold’s” Mum got a lovely silver bracelet all the way from Savanakhet from Dad, and Dad got a lovely 100% silk tie all the way from Nha Trang. From the children (that’s us) they got a Loation DVD (ahh memories) and a silver bracelet (for Mum). After a very confused (due to our incompetence and language difficulties) and drawn out (due to Lao Time). We then got a bill for 336000kip (about $USD40). We worried that perhaps we had eaten a little too much. But we were relieved to find that it included our very\y pleasant accommodation. Even if the fuse on the hot water was fixed after Dad’s shower. The nights here, are relatively chilly, down to 12 to 13 degrees. Having arranged a Tuk-Tuk and a guide for the day – well an almost English speaking driver – Mr. AirNoy for the day. 300,000 kip. When we had finished our drawn out breakfast he was waiting. His Tuk-Tuk was in better condition than the poor one we had last night. 5 in a Tuk-Tuk about 400 kilos, poor little Tuk-Tuk.
First stop, was an ATM, well THE ATM, and a pretty old sign, said that THE ATM was not working. At that stage I do not think that the driver was at all certain that he was going to be paid. Worst case scenario, Dad reckoned that he would get enough money for selling one or all of us children; personally I think that he would be rather disappointed. Not many places so far have accepted credit cards, since Singapore the only other place has been the tailor, in Hoi An.
Tha Kheak is an area with many spectacular sheer mountains with limestone cliffs 100’s of meters long, being a limestone area there were also many caves. The first cave that we visited entailed walking through village at the end of a long and dusty road. The road colour is similar to that of central Australia, just with a lot less donkeys, camels, horses and kangaroos.
This village that we walked through was called Ban Tham, there was a Buddha cave Tham Xang with some lovely and varied shapes and sizes of Buddha. There were also statues of normal non Buddha figures. This cave is reached by climbing many many stairs. The cave went deeper but as we didn’t have a torch with us we could not go any further.
The next cave was about 9kms from the main road through rice paddies and along an old rail line which was built by the French in the 1920’s, to connect Thailand and Vietnam but had to be abandoned when funds ran out. But this meant that most of the road was straight and high, with a few original concrete bridges. This cave was only recently discovered and found to have hundreds of bronze Buddha statues. Being a sacred place, women had to shawl up and wear a “sin” tradition Lao sarong (available for hire for 2000kip). This was in a truly spectacular high small cave entrance originally reached by climbing a very steep, very rickety flight of stairs, made of wood and about 35-40 meters high. Thank goodness the later day pilgrims saw the need for lots of but far safer concrete steps. It was a very special place, where making a donation to the plate (for the local poor and the monks), means that you are sat down and you have a yellow band of woven cotton tied on your wrist, which is meant to bring you luck and ward off evil. It was similar to the bands received from the Baci ceremony. There was a very clear lake at the base of the cliff where swimming is prohibited. There was a market a short walk from the base of the cliff, where the cows eat water melon, and the local women are polishing long phallic batons with shards of glass, but the ultimate piece-de-resistance was the half dozen or so rats for sale on a table, one of which was still alive, breathing and blinking.

The people here are very friendly although not as outgoing as the Vietnamese or Cambodians, once you say “Saibai Di” they are changed people. As I am always talking to children, and the mothers with babies, at this market whilst trying to find out how old a little boy was gesturing and such the mother dropped his pants to show me quite clearly that he was a boy. Not what I wanted to know, but as this was met with such laughter, that she did it again. Heaps of home remedies, rocks, plants and wood, bark and animal parts were available, lotions and potions were available.
Our next stop which was surprisingly, another cave, even more surprisingly there was not a Buddha to be spied. We were followed down the track to Xieng Lieng Cave
We were followed down the track by four young urchin boys who knew that we were dumb westerners who didn’t know how to get through none the less to this cave. This one had a stream which ran right through it in the wet seasons. It was a very large cave and clearly ran high in the wet. By a mystical system the urchin boys became our guides. There was no contract that we signed. These little vagabonds would lead us up the path then disappear only to jump out at regular intervals to scare us tourists. But we got through to the other side where Dad stripped down to take a swim in the relatively clean waters.
Being quite warm (25-30 Celsius) the wet clothes dried quickly, especially on the Tuk-Tuk
We were starting to get caved out so we visited one more hole in a cliff, saw a Buddha or seven and made our way through town to a very diverse location. It’s called “the wall” and on the east side of it there is an altar, a Mary in a grotto and 500 or so concrete benches (not a Buddha to be seen). Used once or twice a year it would be a lovely place to go to church. Climbing up to the top of this wall, which is a narrow limestone outcrop approximately 50-60 m high and 1 m or so wide on the top but you can see all the way to the Mekong, Thailand and beyond.
Grabbed some cash from the ATM (it was fixed and now we could eat) had some Eggy pancakes with condensed milk and sugar for 5000k each, approximately $1AUD. Delicious and cooked on a cart in front of us. Still not 100% sure what the drink in a bag with ice was but we are still alive.
Arranged to get to the bus depot tomorrow for our journey to Laos capital: Vientiane (Vien-cheng).

THE bus trip – Savanakhet to Tha Kheak

THE bus trip – Savanakhet to Tha Kheak

This particular journey is deserving of its own entry in the blog. It seems that we may have allowed ourselves to be lulled into a false sense of security as far as the “local bus network” is concerned. As we had been out “bush” for the previous two days, we were keen to get to Tha Kheak, seeing as it was only 180kms and 2hrs away it seemed it would be okay to catch the 6pm bus to Tha Kheak. The fare was 25，000 kip each and apparently the bus sitting at the depot at 1700 when we arrived was in fact the 1800 bus bound for Vientiane， via Tha Kheak。

As it is customary to get on board and claim your seats， apparently in the local bus they don't allocate seating。 Realizing this at half past we handed our packs to the conductor， who after much discussion with his peers， dragged them up the aisle of the bus and put them in the back seats。Claiming the last available， “together” seats。 It was a trial because of the two tonne of sugar which was not only in the aisle of the bus but in between every seat。 In the aisle the bags were stacked two high， so even the locals had to duck to get to their seats。 So we were climbing on sugar bags to our seats， with our relatively large knees literally at eye level。
There was of course the roof of the bus stacked high with freight， bags and a motorcycle （who knows HOW they got that up there）。 The waiting passengers were quite happily munching on fried chicken， fish， frog and possibly rat on bamboo skewers， boiled eggs seem to be a local favorite （also on skewers）。 When I sat down opposite everyone else （I was the lucky one who got to share）， I placed my bag on the floor， when I went to get something out， I startled everyone with a scream。 There was a gecko on my bag。 Okay， I’m not scared of them， it just startled me。 It quite quickly made its getaway， before I could get a decent photo。

Leaving the usual 15 minutes late， immediately beset us with the usual discussion of why the people in front of used should not recline their seats， and the locals here seem have a thing about HORRIBLE karaoke， Music Videos （boy meets girl， they fall in love， girl casts boy asunder， they fall in love again， happily ever after）not only this but they have to have it up FULL BORE it‘s terrible screechy whiny stuff。 It seemed that we were the only one that were not enjoying with fervor this modern form of torture。

We are saved after 3 - 4 ks， 6-7 stops， 45 minutes later the karaoke STOPS。Only to be replaced by a more horrible， apparently very humorous pantomime show even louder， with a drum roll for each of the several hundred “laughter points”。 Once again we seemed to the only ones not enjoying it， even though we tried to laugh along with the drum rolls。 Some it was so bad that it was funny， but I think we may have missed the main gist of the humor。 The show was played out in a high pitched screeching stage voice， worse than Dame Edna （apologies to the Dame Edna fans）。 Must confess， it is the first time we have seen and Laotian transvestite dwarf “comedian”。 Several stops later， about 2040， we stopped， but not yet at Tha Kheak， we were about 30kms short。

Where？ Don‘t know it， was dark and dusty， and rather quiet。 We stopped for 10 minutes and there was a lot of movement on the roof of the bus。 A new， and especially awful comedy began， after 20 minutes it became apparent that we were loading some furniture， some furniture， some furniture， and some furniture。 After 1hr and 20 minutes of furniture loading， the already top-heavy bus grew from 1 m to 2。4 meters above the top of the bus。 Several stops later and one Karaoke DVD fresh passengers on and passengers off。And at 2220 we arrived at THA KHEAK, four and a half hours into our “2 hour” trip.

Quite surprisingly it was a very busy place having previously had visions of a palm hut in a rice paddy, where we negotiated a Tuk-Tuk to take us to a guest house. When we looked askence and questioned the veracity of his Tuk-Tuk, i.e. size and capacity. He assured “all good, all good”. Well, this poor Tuk-Tuk was clearly not designed for the most moderate grade with the 500 or so kilograms that we provided. Crawling up one hill we would have been faster on foot, but then we squealed our way back down with bodgy brakes. Anyway, finally we arrived at the accommodation tired, dirty and deaf, from that horrible horrible bus trip, quite willing to take anything that was offered. However we were lucky that this place was quite clean, comfortable, pleasing place. We tumbled through the showers and onto the rock hard beds. Oh well what we learnt we can add to our experience bank.

2 day trek and home stay – Ban Phonsim village - our “Bush” experience - 5-01-09 – 16-01-09

The morning of our “eco-trek”. We were up at a bright and early 0700am and rearing to go. The Tuk-Tuk was outside and waiting at our Guest house at 0800, plus Guide and two French tourists. Problem was because there were only two of them there would be no refund to the cost of the trip. So we tuk-tuked our way out of Savanakhet City and into Savanahkhet Province, on the way picking up another guide. This guide, Nean, spoke no English, but was a local of the Ban Phonsim village where we were staying the night. After what was about 40 minutes we arrived at the entrance to Dong Natad Provincial Protected Area. During these 40 minutes our English speaking guide introduced herself, Sinakhorne, and taught us a few rudimentary phrases in Lao.

Saibai di – Hello, good morning, good afternoon, good evening

Khwap Jai (Lai Lai) – Thank you (very much)

Khoi Surr Saasha – My Name is Saasha

Khoi Ma cherr Australia – I am from Australia

Saibai di bor – How are you? – to which we replied

Sabai di – Good – or –

Bor Saibai di – Not good

Bai bai - Let's Go

We were also told that our home stay host spoke fluent French and a little English, so this was going to be a great opportunity for Patrick to practice his French for VCE. (I ended up speaking more French then he did! I was pretty impressed with the amount that I could remember from so long ago.)

So we started our adventure with a trek, this was through lovely evergreen forest, a nice wide sandy path that was quite easy to follow. On the way we stopped to look at thing that the guides would show us, mostly flora exhibits. One of the most memorable was watching how they produce oil from the “Ngiang” tree. The local people cut a hole in the trunk of a tree and then set the inside of the tree on fire for a short time, they would then leave it for a few days and come back to the tree to collect the oil, first burning the oil in the hole (to refine it) and to encourage the tree to produce more oil. These holes could be used for weeks – months at a time. And when finished with they left the w\hole and the trees then re-grew and covered the hole. The oil produced was used for lamps, not for cooking.

We then ate our lunch in the dry Rice paddy, with several very large water buffalo and a few more inquisitive cows. Lunch was traditional Lao fare, knives, forks and any form of eating utensil are seriously NOT provided. It was fingers all the way and fun at that. Sticky rice is big here as are chilies, pork and fish. But Lunch was very nice, if not different and there was alot of it. This was an indicator of how much we were expected to eat over the next two days.

After lunch we had a nap in the dry Rice paddy, with several very large water buffalo and a few more inquisitive cows close by. The nap was necessitated by the amount of food that we ate.

After lunch we completed the 5 or so Ks left of our 18 k trek. We arrived at a village very very rural and basic, but not lacking. We met our lovely home stay hosts. A Family of 3 generations living under the one roof, in a hose consisting of 3 or 4 rooms, with the toilet and “bathroom” across the dirt road. The family had one room for eating sleeping and relaxing in, the kitchen which was a quasi-outdoors shack and the upstairs long house where the guests (us) slept. The family was very warm and inviting, with only the owner, a village elder, who spoke any English (and French). His wife however was just gorgeous and whatever she couldn’t say she made for with gestures. When we first arrived we had a chance to wash the trail grime off and settle in. then she sat in the middle of the large room with a pot of rice. I went to sit down with her then she stared handing me things to do. When the guide returned she told us that we were preparing for the “Baci Ceremony” which we were taking part in later on that evening.

Briefly the Baci is a ceremony to celebrate a special event, whether a marriage, a homecoming, a welcome, a birth, or one of the annual festivals. A mother is given a baci after she has recovered form a birth, the sick are given bacis to facilitate a cure, officials are honored by bacis, and novice monks are wished luck with a baci before entering the temple. The Baci ceremony can take place any day of the week and all year long, preferably before noon or before sunset. The term more commonly used is su kwan, which means “calling of the soul”

After the ceremony, everyone shares a meal as a member of the community.

In Laos, white is the color of peace, good fortune, honesty and warmth. The white cotton thread is a lasting symbol of continuity and brotherhood in the community and permanence. The baci threads should be worn for at least three days subsequently and should be untied rather than cut off. Usually it is preferred that they are kept until they fall off by themselves.

After the meal the men had to go off to a town meeting and the women sat on the floor in to room and chewed beetle nuts, tobacco, lime paste or smoked tobacco. This was a very interesting experience as the women were just as interested in me as I was in them, but there was not a common word between us. I ended up taking photos of them all and showing them, much to their delight and amused cackling. Some of these ladies were just gorgeous.

We then promptly fell into bed up stairs. These beds consisted of a mattress, a square block pillow (hard) and two blankets, one vey soft and one very coarse. Despite many misgivings on others behalves, everyone had a very comfortable night. Oh and the owner’s wife, came up and tucked us all in, just like a mother.

THE NEXT DAY

The chickens, the cows, the cats, the dogs, the baby, the cats (yes twice), the water buffalo, the cow bells, the goats, the snoring, the community school announcement (at 8 minutes to 6 to tell the students to get to school before 0730) had most of us all sufficiently roused before 600 ready for the day, I slept through it all.

So we were up at 0600 to give alms to the monks, so that they could eat for the day. The women wore sarongs and both men and women wore scarves.

After this early morning religious experience we were off to coffee (and hot chocolate) where we met the, democratically elected village chief, following his departure (by pickup truck) it was back to the house for breakfast. More sticky rice. And pork. And fish.

We then trekked around town, to the kindergarten, the primary school, and the high school where we met many eager children. Off we went for our 5k walk to the lake for lunch. It was a lovely location, next to “turtle lake” (minus the turtles), with several very large water buffalo and a few more inquisitive cows close by. We sat in the shade and gorged ourselves on yep, more sticky rice. More fish. More chillies. More pork.

After our meal we stretched out for the obligatory nap with several very large water buffalo and a few more inquisitive cows close by. The nap was necessitated by the amount of food that we ate.

Clambering into the tuk-tuk, was somewhat of a relief after all the walking, we were tuk-tuk to a stupa (a Buddhist temple), that contained 417 statues of Buddha. Women again had to wear a sarong and were not allowed near the actual “Ing Hung Stupa”. Climbed back into tuk-tuk, sans sarongs for our final journey to the bus station, for our “bus trip from hell”, to Tha Kheak.

cheerio

Bai Bai

HOORAY

HOORAY

we are now up to date.

I'm sure there are no computers with the ethnic minority

we will be back!!!

the last few days

Sabai di!

Well we have been to Dong Ha, Lao Bao and Savanakhet since the last entry. I have written posts but Blogger has been rather unreliable. So here goes:

Hoi An - Dong Ha - 11.01.09

Well, the follies of the Vietnamese transport system!

Sunday we thought about going to church... well not really, in fact we barely realised that it was Sunday, the days of the week seem to mean very little here, only schools take the day off, unless you are lucky enough to be sent to 'special extra' school.For the shops, roadworks, construction sites, restaurants, so on and so forth, it's just another day.

The afternoon bus trip from Hoi An to Dong Ha, via Hue, was a 4 hour-ish trip, on paper. This changed rapidly as we learnt to do things on Vietnam time. Part of the journey was over mountainous terrain, where we got held up in a queue, after about half an hour we slowly started to move to find that the hold up was caused by, not one, but several broken down trucks on the other side of the rise. Dad said that each truck had burnt out (or something) as they came up the hill and therefore broken causing the delay. but this was all taken in our stride as we rumbled off towards Hue.

So according to the hotel, where we had booked the transport, we would leave Hoi An at 2pm, short stop over in Hue, about half an hour, then continue onto Dang Ha, about 3hrs from Hue, where we would arrive at 8pm. None of this happened. when we arrived at Hue we were booted off our bus, told "change bus, change bus. sitting bus round" he meant that we had to change bus, and find our sitting bus to Dong Ha. We want around the corner, dragging our packs, where we were told to wait for our bus to Dong Ha. As we were waiting a lady came up to us and informed us that if we wished to get to Dong Ha this evening, we had to get on her sleeping bus, otherwise we had to stay the night in Hue.

With much reluctance we boarded this sleeping bus. Now we have had previous experience with these buses, the sleeping bus is probably supposed to carry 30pax, our bus probably had 50-60 pax, no worries. So we had to crowd onto the sleeping bus and sit on the floor in the aisles for the trip to Dang Ha. we were reassured that it was only an hour not the 3-4 that we were told. i guess the complaints department was closed for the night, cause when we pointed out that we paid for a seat on a bus all we got was a shrug.

Lucky me, i got the jump seat next to the driver, although it may have been a little more comfortable, it was certainly alot scarier. I could see every near miss and every road rule broken from this vantage point. As we neared the police check point, the driver started to get very nervous, glancing around. Miraculously, as never before the windows began to fog, by the time we got to passing the police we could barely see out, there was no way that those police could see in, they could not see the extra passengers that he was carrying. Ahh it was an experience, no doubt about it.

Arriving at Dong Ha we were immediately beset by a Mr Hoa. A Mr Hoa who could not only take us on a guided tour of the DMZ and surrounds (more about that later), he could also advise us that the hotel that we had booked (recommended by the lonely planet) into was crap (his words were dirty, old and not nice) AND he could recommend a better place to stay AND he could tell us a good place to eat. Well us, being ever sceptical, cautious and naive, we signed up for his DMZ tour, we ate at the recommend restaurant (his)(so far so good) but we felt that we should honour our booking at the hotel, they even drove us there (MISTAKE). We must let Lonely Planet know that this hotel is a bit scungy, walls peeling, hot water that wasn't, skinny geckos (they don't have enough visitors to feed well), dirty (brown) water, NO cable television (much to James horror (he wanted to watch Big Things at 9pm)), Air conditioners not working, suspicious blankets etc. etc. etc. I suppose to date, we have been a little spoilt, at lea ts it's only a one night gig.

Dong Ha - DMZ - Dong Ha - 12.01.09

So woke early this morning, packed everything and went in search of a new hotel. Mr Hoa to the rescue, he arrived saw all the bags packed and said (with a sly smile) "No good here?" so we admitted that we should have listened and he found us a new hotel, a stones throw away, checked in, and went off on our tour.

So we trundled off in our minibus, the five of us and two Europeans (apparently they were Slovenian, Marianne and Sasho), off to the DMZ and surrounds. Our first point of call was an old American bunker about a km walk from the road, this bunker had 19 km view to the sea. We walked through a rubber tree plantation, one of the many that we were to encounter, more about that later.

Our next stop was the Ben Hai River where the Ho Chi Minh Trail, at one stage crossed. After that the War Cemetery where there are 10263 soldiers buried, there are many large monument with the inscription “TO QUOC GHI CONG” “lest we forget”. The soldiers that are buried at the cemetery are only of North Vietnamese descent as the South Vietnamese Government repatriates all soldiers to their home town and family, where as the North Vietnamese did not. Nor are there any American Graves as all of these were also repatriated, or in the process of. There was also a section of 60 or so graves with the inscription “CHUA BIET TEN” or “unknown soldier”. Mr. Hoa told us that sometimes families of MIA soldiers will get fortune tellers to find the bodies and will bring them to the cemetery where the fortune teller will tell them which grave and the family then gets a new plaque made up to go over the original inscription. I can foresee problems when they introduce DNA testing.

The next place of interest was the large Bomb craters created by the Americans; these also were located in a rubber tree plantation. This plantation caused Mum’s eye to swell up dramatically. Natural Rubber tree sap contains Latex!!! Well who’d have known, Mum was wearing sunglasses for most of the remainder of the day. We were also shown an old American tank left behind by the army and a mortar, much to dad’s horror.

Our next stop was the reunification bridge and a smaller footbridge. These bridges are the link between North and South Vietnam. Before the war they were painted on the south half it was yellow and on the nth half it was red. However during the war this bridge along with many other things was bombed by the Americans. There was also a museum and a monument and an old police station at this site.

Our next and nearly final stop was the Vinh Moc tunnels. Vinh Moc is a tunnel complex in Quang Tri. During the Vietnam War it was located on the border of North Vietnam and South Vietnam. The tunnels were built to shelter the people of Vinh Linh province from the intense bombing of Son Trung and Son Ha communes in Vinh Linh. It was constructed in several stages beginning in 1966 and used until early 1972. The complex grew to include wells, kitchens, rooms for each family and spaces for health care, emergency room and maternity rooms. Around 60 families lived in the tunnels; as many as 500 people lived in these tunnel systems and 17 children were born inside the tunnels.
The tunnels were a success and no villagers lost their lives. Three levels of tunnels were eventually built these were at 12m, 19m and 25m. In the Vinh Linh Province there are around 114 tunnels, all built for the community use.
After the tunnels we stopped at a Fishing village and watched them bring in their boats from their daily fishing. We were then dropped back at the hotel, where we went for a walk to get some supplies for the next days bus ride, it was sounding interesting…

Dong Ha - Lao Bao - DSV - Scary Bus Ride - Savannakhet - 13.01.09

Well, everybody has a friend who can arrange something. Our tour guide, Mr. Hoa, said that he could arrange for us a bus to Savannakhet, Laos. Alas, on the said bus there were only three available seats, dad said that this would be fine, however James and I protested, as we were the ones that were going to be left behind, how is that fair? BUT, Mr. Hoa said that he had a friend who could for $USD12 ea could get us to the boarder and then to Savannakhet. We had to keep this trip secret because Mr. Hoa was “free lancing” from his employer. $12 was a pretty good deal, although the secretive nature had a few of us worried, dad had visions of us crossing the boarder in Rubber Rafts with camo paint, I had images of us being prodded from our hiding places at gunpoint, James thought we’d be spending the next two years in a Laos/Vietnamese goal.

Well we were up at “sparrows fart” (a Dad saying), which seems a lot earlier over here, 0500. We where ready to go by 0615, the mini-van arrived; it was the same mini-van as yesterday, with same Non-English Speaking Driver as yesterday. Mr. Hoa (Mr. Dodgy) ushered us into the Van and we were off, off and away, well not quite. Another transport question? Why do they insist on having lines on the road as they appear to mean absolutely nothing to anyone? About one hour into the trip we stopped at a rather spectacular bridge with an adjacent police station. We were ushered out of the van and thinking that it was a boarder post we trotted over to the police station and produced out passports. These very official-looking officials (1 police man (peach uniform), 2 Army (bright Green), one unknown (boring blue), and one in plain clothes, were rather nonplussed, as were we, when they indicated they didn’t want to see our papers. They retuned to their TV and tea and we returned to the van. Officials here are all very pretty and immaculately dressed, but seem to do jack, whereas it’s the opposite back home. It seems that our driver just wanted us to look at the bridge!! And he wanted a smoke.

30 ks on we met Mrs. Dodgy who was to see us over the boarder (as arranged by Mr. dodgy in Dong Ha (she was the “French” (Friend) that was to see us over safely )). Just by chance Mrs. D had everything we could have possibly wanted or needed at the boarder, she had currency to exchange from any country we wanted, phone cards and numerous other items. As we were most unceremoniously ushered out of the van and ditched by the driver. We started our journey through bureaucracy.

Passport check first, to ensure that we had valid passport and visa’s, then they removed our departure cards, crossed the boarder on foot lugging our packs, to another passport check then we moved to the Laotian immigration where we had to do it all over again, in reverse. Passport check, arrival and departure forms paid $USD35 for each of our visa’s (much to Mrs. D’s disgust we paid in VND “so –spensive in Dong, cheaper in dollar!” I’m sure but how much do we loose in the exchange!). Then with Visa’s granted we had another passport check (so much easier to fly!!!) and we were home free in Laos!!!!

The first impression of Laos was quite a different one. At the immigration office there were Goats and kids (y’know the baby goats), pigs and piglets, dogs and cats roaming around free, the goats found something very tasty in the rubbish bin. There aren’t as many free roaming chickens here, although there are many many dogs, pigs and goats. There is not anywhere near as much traffic either.

We then started our 1k trek to the Dean Savan “bus station”. This was in the centre of town opposite a market.

The Local Bus.

Arrived at the local bus stop at Dean Savan to see the type of bus depicted on a Uruguayan mountain road packed to the gunwales, but this time it was without the people sitting on the roof. This must have been the pride of the fleet as it was fully equipped with four roof fans, and curtains. Not too crowded though. The hand brake was a piece of wood with a crafted handle which the conductor puts under the rear right wheel every time the bus stops. This very same piece of wood was crafted to enable it to keep the rear door closed when the bus was in motion (if they wanted it closed, which wasn’t often). This being a local bust, it was also the freight line, with a motorbike, at the rear of the passenger cabin, with several sacks of rice…or whatever, 40 or so boxes of stuff, and 12 or so passengers. 10 ks into the journey (3 or 4 stops), we had to stop at Customs, where we showed our passports it was indicated that we should not leave the bus. It was therefore disconcerting to hear the Customs officers scratching around on the roof, where our bags were, without seeing what they were ratting though. Don’t know what they were looking for, but they did confiscate, a large sack, that we are told had sweets in it and a box of beer. The receipt, no doubt would be forthcoming.

The bus stops every 5 or so K’s, people and freight get on, and people and freight get off. It’s a bit like Grenda’s bus lines without the timetable and colour.

The road to Savannakhet was very good, for three or four k’s, then from thereon, every ten or so K’s there was a washout, which meant the bus, not so much slowing down, but swerving a lot. If the road was better on the incorrect side…that is where we went, and on coming motorcycles, just got out of the way.

The bus stops in the middle of nowhere. “Toilet” yells the driver, and the bus with the exception of the white folk scamper from the bus, into the bushes, in all directions. Three minutes later, the air horn on the bus sounds, the passengers scurry back onto the bus and we’re off.

The countryside so far, in Laos, is particularly dry looking, but there are far more cattle, goats and pigs in evidence. There seems to be a major industry in Charcoal burning. This involves cutting the wood, stacking it, hollowing out a fire pit below, and then covering it with clay. Then over two or more days the stack of wood is controlled combusted, and then when it’s right the fire is put out and the charcoal is removed. There were thousands of bags filled with charcoal along the side of the road.

The next stop was the Lunch Toilet Stop. There were big snails (Tennis ball size) small crabs, corn, bananas, and lots of green stuff. Laos is now, 1 sow less. During the lunch stop, we were the witnesses to a fatality. The silly sow sauntered swiftly sideways subsequently slaughtered by a big truck. I think it was the pig’s fault.

Another two hours, several stops in the meanwhile, then stopped at a police checkpoint. Now I don’t know if the driver had done anything wrong, but I think the conductor gave the senior police officer cash, and we were on our way. Once again I’m sure the receipt will be following.

Arrived in Savannakhet at about 3 p.m. The bus station is also the international arrivals port for busses from Thailand too. The squat toilets here cost K1000 to go, whether it’s one or twos, so my suggestion to the family that they save up their business so it costs less was not received as the suggestion of the day. Oh, and the attendants get all uppity if you accidentally walk into the shower stall.

Checked out two guest houses, via the Tuk-Tuk(which are, compared to Cambodian Tuk-Tuk’s , engineering, safety and roomy masterpieces) Decided to stay at the Xayamounglehoun Guest House, because we liked the name.

Although Savannakhet has a population of 124 000, it is relatively quiet place, on the banks of the Mekong, opposite Thailand. (Mukdahan) Went for a wander and saw the place that we will have to have tea at if not tonight, tomorrow, on the banks of the Mekong. Very beautiful Buddhist temple, with lots of Monks about. The Lao Buddhists are not as demonstrative (due to past political oppression) as the Vietnamese are. So a lot less incense and altars.

Savannakhet - 14.01.09
Had a bit of a sleep in today. James got the booby prize so had to share with the parents.
He hates being told to tidy up his things.

Mum and Dad went out for Breakfast, and finally found a place that served more than noodle soup…and guess what we had, Baguettes and jam, and coffee. Not as good a Vietnamese, but bearable. No a huge number of tourists obvious here either. We tend not to feel loved because the Lao people are nowhere near as “aggressive” when touting for business, and rather than being dragged into a stall or shop, we have to go in and wait.

Lovely sunny day, about 25 C. After breakfast we hired some bicycles.(better than the bum breakers in Hoi An) for about $3 for the day. Armed with a map, we first went to the Savannakhet tourist advisory office, where we signed up to two day “eco trek” in the nearby jungle and Villages’. Should be interesting. If there is anyone brave enough to go with us, we will get a bit of a refund. Apparently we are not allowed to have sexual relations with the villagers. (Duh).

From there we cycled to the market, where we put our bikes, in to a “car park” for bikes, and went a wandering. Much cleaner than other markets we have seen, and apparently more organized….until we got to the meat section. There were pigs, chooks, ducks, frogs, but mostly pigs, in various stages of undress. Mostly sans their innards. Several on the ground, and the local dogs, just sniffing around. So pork is not on the menu tonight.

Then we rode out of town for a bit, and it was lovely to see the locals react when we greeted them “Sabai di” (Hello). They often want to try their English on us. And their English is often better than our Lao. I think they are still fascinated by the silly big white folk who would ride bikes for fun.

For Tea we had a hot pot. Locally known as Sin Jum. It goes like this. You sit on a mat, on cushions (sans Footwear) on the foot path on the “banks” of the Mekong. You sit at a table, and a charcoal brazier is plopped in the middle of the table. A plate of raw meat and seafood, and a big plate of greens, with rice noodles is also placed there on. Then a pot with “soup” is put on the brazier, and it’s then up to us to work out what and how we want to cook. Fortunately we had a “neighboring” Lao family who took pity on us and showed us how to do it. We are still alive, and no there was no pork.

Then we returned the bikes and had coffee and far too many local sweet dumplings.

Sabai di

(this post a collaboration with ABC)

HOI AN

Does anyone remember those shoe holders that hook over doors holding one shoe in each pocket? Well picture one of those with wheels and 30 pockets and you have an idea of a sleeping bus. Departing from Nha Trang at 8pm and arriving at Hoi An at 0630. It was an experience that's for sure. The seat belts were a must as one had a tendency to become airborne when going over the bumps. It was just as well that it was dark because there were a few close calls I'm sure.

When we arrived at Hoi An we were met at the bus station by the hotel bus. We checked into the Grasslands Hotel, which is the first hotel since Singapore that has boasted a lift/elevator. I guess it was just as well, as the parents were relegated to the fourth floor, while us children were on the second. Another point, at home where the higher up a room is, the more you tend to pay. Here the higher the room the less you pay, as you have to climb more stairs to get there.

However on a side note, the elevator is not such a plus in a place like Hoi An, where the power has a tendency to get cut off at any point during the day. During one day I think the power went out several times and if somewhere did not have a generator, they were stuck in the dark till the power came back on.

Anyway, back to the events. We had a little time to freshen up and rest before we borrowed hotel bicycles and cycled to 2ks or so to the town centre.

Hoi An is an old and mostly heritage listed town, no where near as frantic as other places. Hoi An, aside from other things, is famous for it's tailors. Of course the hotel concierge had a "good friend" who had tailors in town. Mrs. Tam Tam. Well we left Mrs. Tam Tam with 2 suits, 6 shirts, 4 pants, 3 nighties, 2 kimonos, 2 evening dresses and 3 ties in the making and $USD700 in the owing. Dad was rather distressed at the amount. we rode back to the hotel where we had another chance at a rest.

Mum and Dad decided that they wanted to have a look-see at the older parts of town so they snuck off while us children were resting. Now the hotel offers you free transport into the centre of town and back, so Mum and Dad requested a lift into the centre of town, little expecting the two motorcycles that turned up. Much against Dad's "No Motorcycle Policy" (Spoil Sport!!). so these two motorcycles, complete with driver and helmets. So Mum and Dad arrived in the centre of town, VERY FAST.

When they deigned to collect us from our room, we caught a taxi into town for $1. Via the lonely planet we found a dark, dingy laneway with an equally dark and dingy looking restaurant, called BaLe Well. Small plastic chairs and tables, as are the norm set up into the laneway. We were cornered and ushered to a table. In a matter of minutes they were piling food onto the table, til it was almost groaning with the effort. We had BBQ pork on sticks, Satay Pork on sticks rice paper, egg pancakes, spring rolls and greenery. As we all looked decidedly confused, the hostesses showered us with food and kept pushing more and more in front of us. I finally got to use my single line of Vietnamese. "Toi an Chay" and she understood!!! So I had all of this minus the pork and "rimpless" (shrimp-less) spring rolls and pancakes. It was very authentic and very delicious.
We then rolled back to the tailors for our fist fitting. And then after a few adjustments were made and alterations ordered, we were told that these would be ready for collection tomorrow.

HOI AN - MY SON - HOI AN 10.01.09

Well the highlight of the day today, was not the 1000 year old Hindu temple, or the boat ride to Cham Island, but the truly scary bus ride. This bus had no Speedo, no odometer, but the driver was able to smoke, talk on the phone, incessantly honk the horn and DRIVE! (lucky that dogs have excellent road sense). I lost count of the number of time that I braced myself to stop going through the windshield (stupidly I thought that the front would be a good place to sit, it was a lot scarier).

Our guide Mr. Dung (pronounced Zunt), who reminded Dad of Colonel Klink from Hogan's Heroes, in his delivery, had a very sharp mind, a wicked sense of humour, and decent English.

So we traipsed through the mud and sludge admiring the Hindu temples that have been much bombed by the American aggressors. Just the greenery, was breathtaking the sites were just beautiful.

We then embarked on a boat trip, with lunch of rice and tofu, and visited the Cham island of Wood Craftsmen, and headed back to Hoi An. We traipsed to the tailors for a last fitting, and got a taxi back to the hotel.

We rested up for a little, then headed back out to try on the clothes one last time, and as the final products came to 10 kg of fabric and such, we got Mrs. Tam Tam to ship them home for us. After that we found our way back to BaLe Well for a second round, which was just as good as the first, and as it was full moon, Buddhists do not eat meat, so I had a special dish, which was very nice.

We then set out to find a massage parlour, which we found a bit of a hike away, and the boys resignedly accepted to have a foot massage, "one small step for man, one giant leap for male kind". This is one thing that they have been refusing to even consider since we went away. So after 2 body massages, 2 foot massages, a facial and a mani and pedi, we all walked out rather relaxed. And knowing us night owls it was 2300 before we got back to the hotel...the latest we've been up since we've been away. Disgraceful.

HOI AN 11.01.09

Today, after a sleep-in Mum and Dad headed off to the market, to find some nibblies to take on our bus trip from Hoi An to Dang Ha, a little town up near the DMZ. Our bus leaves at 1330 and arrives at Dang Ha at around 2030. it's not a sleeping bus this time, just a normal old sitting bus. So that has bought you all up to date with the adventures of us!!!

last few days, ok maybe a week...

Saigon - Dalat - Lak Lake - Buon Ma Thout - Nha Trang

Well, from where I left off, we had a relatively uneventful and unexciting New Year. I could not even hear any celebrations or fireworks from where we were staying in District 1, the central tourist district.

Anyhow, on New Years day we organised the next leg of our route, from Saigon to Dalat. We booked this with a travel and tourist angency, who has spoilt our faith in tourism agencies. we booked to leave on the 2nd at 8pm, tpo meet at the travel agency where the bus would pick us up. the trip was supposed to take 9hrs overnight, and to drop us off in the centre of town, in Dalat.

We checked out of our hotel on the morning of the 2nd, to have a slow day before boarding the bus, we went to the post office, which is even bigger than Melbourne's GPO, it was huge. After that we wandered around (had coffee in GLORIA JEANS, we could have been back home, the prices were even like back home. Here we can get a white coffee, that is a shot of expresso in sweeten condensed milk, for close to 50 cents) untill it was opening time at 2pm, everything quite sensibly closes at 11ish for lunch and a siesta.

Then we went to the War Remenants musem, which was crowded with school children and tourists and hot and sticky. It was interesting, full of pictures and reminders or horrible time in history and what remains now.

After that we trekked back to the hotel to pick up our bags and deliver them to the travel agency while we went for dinner. After dinner we still had some time to kill. So Mum and Dad went off and left us children to opur own devices. I then deserted the boys and went to a salon for a manicure and pedicure, which only cost $4. once there i found Mum and Dad who had just had a Massage. So they joined me and opted for a Pedicure (yes Dad too, don't sound suprised, it's just like him!).

All up, the pedicures and manicures and massages came to less than $20, whereas at home it'd be 10 times that, at least...

So relying on advice from our ever-reliable travel agent we turned up at the agency at 1930 ready to board the bus, to be told that we had to walk to bus station which was a 10 minute walk away, with our packs. NOT HAPPY JAN. We were then expecting the overnight bus trip, promised to us, to be a overnight bus trip.

Dalat is in the LangBiang Highlands about 300kms from Saigon. We arrived in Dalat at 0330am, to be dropped at the bus station, with no accommodation booked and nowhere to go. As we were supposed to arrive at 0600am, this hadn't been an issue, but at 0330 it was. The kindly bus station people, mainly to get us out of their hair, drove us to several hotels, trying to find us one that was open and with room, which we did eventually and at 0430, we settled in for a few hours sleep.

Later that morning when we woke up and refreshed ourselves, we took to exploring the quite and quaint town of Dalat. The market, as always, was lots of fun. Seeing the bowls of live fish, eels, crabs and frogs. Various coloured eggs of dubious heritage, and of course the dead ducks and chooks plucked and ready for someone's cook pot. Dalat is the honeymoon centre of Saigon, with the relative cool after Saigon and the picturesque location. There are many market gardens and flowers in the area. another obstacle was the numerous tour guides and moto riders touting their services, trying to find out where the next destination is and how they could get you there. we had negations with a few guides and in the end went with one Mr. Phuc. Mr Phuc, or Tommy Phi as he was also called was a member of the organisation Dalat Easy Riders (http://dalat-easyrider.com/Websites/English/) a tour group famous in the area. Dad decreed that to ride on motorcycles would be to void our insurance (even on holidays, parents still have to spoil all the fun!!!! what a stick in the mud) so reluctantly we agreed on a van, guide and driver for a 3 day, 2 night tour from Dalat to Nha Trang for $450 USD, to start early the next morning. We were off again.

Dalat to Lak Lake- 4.1.09

Well this certainly a wonderful way to travel and to see the countryside. Mr Phuc has wonderful english, a sister in law in Endeavour Hills (near dandenong), and wonderful knowledge and connections in the local areas that we travelled. We saw many things that no doubt we would not have seen else where, or with anyone else, and would most certainly not have found ourselves, a few things that we did see, but by no means an exhaustive list:

- Pagoda and waterfalls

- silk embroidery

- flower farms

- Happy water making (Rice Wine Distilling)

- Pampas Grass brooms, for the lunar new year

- coffee plantations, and as we drove past the houses we could see the coffee beans spread out to dry in the sun in the front yards.

- Tapioca Plantations -two types of tapioca grown here, Vietnamese and Indian. The Indian Tapioca is harvested and peeled and spread out to dry in the sun. then exported to Japan to make MSG!!!

We had lunch at a very local restaurant, it was quite a banquet, although Tommy assured us although there were 7 of us he only ordered for 6, it was still too much. We stayed that evening at Lak Lake resort, a very upmarket sort of place, one that if we weren't on the tour we probably couldn't have afforded to stay. However it was very nice and only $30USD for two rooms (with Tommy, with out Tommy it was $45USD for 1 room!!!). the rooms each had a little balcony over looking the lake and mosquito nets inside over the beds. it was very pleasant.

Lak Lake to Yok Don National Park- 5.1.09

Today, still under the guidance of Mr Phuc, and after breakfast of the usual bread roll with butter and jam and white coffee, we were off, to the Kings summer palace. we visited a m'nong minority village where the locals lived in bamboo long houses, which were none too sturdy, as uh Patrick found out (I told him that I wouldn't mention how he broke one their houses). Saw remnants of as church destroyed by the Vietnam war, and clear evidence of the effects of Agent Orange, as it still continues to wreak havoc on the people of the highlands. Other things that we did/saw today:

- rice paddies being worked by hand

- a mushroom farm (yes legal)

- a 30kg python (who was very fond of mum, i don't think that the feeling was mutual however)

- sugar crystal making

- rice noodle making

- Dray Sap and Dray Nue, very large waterfalls accessed by very wobbly bridges

- we visited a cottage industry making rice pancakes (which we had for dinner). During this visit the family here was amazed at 1. the size to age ratio of our family, 2. my painful and unsightly sunburn (the locals don't seem to have this problem!!!), 3. the prospect of Patrick as a future husband/son-in-law. They were certainly a very industrious family and very genuine people. Their 11 year old son had so much fun taking many photos of our family with his prized film-camera.

We stayed at a resort in Yok Don National Park in jungle terrain. This resort was just as nice as the first one. We had the rice pancakes for tea, which were very nice, however mum could not get used to the fact that many dishes were served cold, which I found very amusing. There were huge deposits of Elephant droppings lying around, to which my ever cynical father suggested that they had been strategically placed around the park. Possibly to suggest the presence of Elephants???

Yok Don National Park to Nha Trang- 6.1.09

Our last day with Mr. Phuc, who has proved to be a very efficient and knowledgeable guide, we were up and gone by 0700 for breakfast in Buon Ma Thout, about an hours drive from the National Park, we had the usual breakfast of bread rolls and spreads. Then we stopped at a rubber plantation where Mr Phuc showed us the taps and collection bowls, and the workers who were collecting the sap. By this time there was a mob of local children gathered around us, ready to practice their impressive english skills. it's worth mentioning that the absolute speed limit on Roads around here is 80km with most vehicles and roads often limited to less than 50km. it's just as well really, because road construction around here still has a long way to go. One thing that has provided countless moments of amusement for us is the diversity, awkwardness, size and type of loads that the locals contrive to attach to their motorbikes. One motorbike had no less than 40 chooks, all live attached to his bike. But today as we neared the coast lunch was decidedly fishy, much to my disgust and my mothers delight. Other highlights:

- Bricks, the creation, drying, firing and stacking. All of it done by hand. It was quite amazing

- Cocoa Trees

- Pepper Vines

- Curry Trees - the curry seeds were bright red

- Stop at Phoenix Pass (a reference to the mythical bird that rises from the ashes), to witness first hand the vegetative devastation caused by Agent Orange, and the subsequent rehabilitation carried out by Australian scientists.

- large scale shrimp farming, and many many thousands of m2 of drying shrimp, fish and other things, just one th road. Any large flat surface will do for their purposes.

We arrived in Nha Trang, and booked into a hotel recommended to us by Mr. Phuc. We wrote a reference of his services in his touting book, which was easy to do as we would recommend his services and that of Dalat Easy Riders to anyone.

Nha Trang- 7.1.09

Had a bit of a sleep in this morning, or tried to, it gets very bright very early and the curtains don't really block it out. The hotel is just off the main drag, and out off the balcony you can see the south china sea. It seems to be a little like the gold coast, but with more asians and less victorians. Anyway after a lazy start to the day we separted. Mum and Dad went off and explored the outer and inner reaches of Nha Trang. I can say that are just some people who shoul not wear speedos or bikinis. There are many many topiaries around here and they are all done by hand. wandered through town to a market, to a bakery, bought some fruit then came back on cyclo. Planning on taking the train to Hoi An tomorrow. however it's very expensive, night take the bus instead.

Nha Trang- 8.1.09

Another lazy start this morning, check out at midday. catching the sleeper bus to Hoi An tonight, departing at 1900. hopefully our information is more accurate this time around. anyway hopes are high. Blogger is down, so i have typed this in hotmail, hopefully to add it to blogger when i can get it to work.