Hanoi and Ha Long Bay 19 April – 23 April 2014

what we woke up to every morning on Ha Long Bay

At first glance Hanoi wasn't very impressive. It was raining and misty and didn’t seem to have the glitz and glamour of HCMC. However, in the end it was quite an interesting city. If you paid attention to the big poster boards it had the inklings of a very “communist comrade” feel to the city. There were billboards that looked like old communist propaganda artwork, but the date on it would be 2014. I found it quite interesting as we were all having so much fun we definitely forgot about Vietnam's history and that it was a communist country.  I guess that was a good thing as we learned a lot in the South, and now we were just enjoying the current Vietnam. The Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum reminded us of the past, but it was an extremely impressive piece of architecture.

all of us enjoying Hanoi  =)

at the Mausoleum

We stayed in the Old Quarter which was fun as it was easy to get lost in the hustle and bustle of the city. Yet, you open a door to a restaurant and are completely transported from the dirty streets to an elegant dinner setting. Hanoi also had lots of traffic with motorbikes like its competitor of the South. Only having 2 days here (in my opinion) was enough as the best parts of Vietnam are out of the cities.

along the Lake in Hanoi

The best part about our time in Northern Vietnam was the trip to Ha Long Bay. The drive to Ha Long Bay was so beautiful. Mist and clouds floated above rice fields and farmers were working in them. It was very picturesque. Then, once you get to the bay to board the boat it became even more beautiful. We literally were sailing through an UNESCO World Heritage site composed of 1600 different islands.

We did a 3 day and 2 night boat trip through the bay. Our time here consisted of kayaking through caverns, jumping off the boat and swimming, hiking through a large cave overlooking the bay, and also climbing to the top of one of the islands to a view point. We also went to a floating water village and a floating pearl farm.

kayaking in the caves !

enjoying the sunset on Ha Long Bay

It was amazing. In the morning you wake up and look out the window to mist hovering over the water and through the islands. In the evening we would sit on the top deck enjoying cocktails and watching the sunset with great friends. I don’t think it could get much better than that.

the last night on the boat.. all of the fun ones enjoying our last happy hour !

Sadly, my time in Vietnam ended with Hanoi and Ha Long Bay. It was sad to say goodbye to our friends. Especially as Joe and his girlfriend live in a different country from Jayda and I, we don’t know when we will see them again. Fortunately, we can’t be too sad as we spent the past 2 weeks travelling through Vietnam with them adding to our already amazing memories.

only THE GIRLS, were brave enough to jump off the top (just saying)... in Ha Long Bay

Vietnam truly is a beautiful place and nothing I write will be able to express how awesome Vietnam is. We felt quite lucky being able to enjoy some of the best sites and food in South East Asia with great friends. Not very many people can say that. Jayda and I are incredibly grateful to have such close friends to travel with. Vietnam was spectacular and I can't wait to see what country I will see my friends in again next !

Hoi An, Vietnam

 Hoi An was a picture perfect postcard. It was everything you would expect an UNESCO World Heritage, small Asian town would be. It is set a few kilometers east of the ocean and is surrounded by rice fields. All the homes and shops are old protected buildings and the river separates the town with old bridges and gas lamps. It was quite peaceful and beautiful. It also was a complete change of pace to the busy HCMC.

Hoi An became one of my favorite cities I've visited whilst travelling. Hoi An was just what everyone needed after a few days of waking up early and site seeing. Just being in Hoi An was sightseeing as the entire Old Quarter is an UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The first day we went to Reaching Out, which is a coffee and tea house in the Old Quarter that is run by deaf Vietnamese. It is a place that employs the hearing impaired and is a way for them to work and have a good quality of life. Needless to say the place was peaceful, but we also were served traditional coffee and cookies. It was super relaxing.

our coffee tasting

The food in Hoi An was also excellent. We went to so many different restaurants to try many different types of food. Everything was excellent and my friends, who are not vegetarian, loved everything they ordered as well. In Hoi An we found beer for 4000 VND which was only $0.18/glass!!! At night we would spend most of our time bar hopping asking for “fresh beer” which is the equivalent to a home brew. It was great!

roof top dining

One day we rented bikes and rode to the beach through the paddy and rice fields. It really was so beautiful we had to get off our bikes a few times to take photographs, which of course won’t even be able to depict correctly how amazing it was. The ocean was not the prettiest, but it was still fun jumping in the waves and sleeping on the beach. Again, the theme of Hoi An, was that it was so peaceful! The beach had hardly anyone around except the four of us; it was great.

on the way to the beach

Ironically, the one night out we had in Vietnam was little Hoi An. We found some random bar to play pool in and they let my husband dj for the night; his dream came true! It was hilarious as an old couple clearly lived upstairs and let their son have a bar down stairs as we saw his parents come up and down a few times! Later in the night someone on a motorbike told us that there was a club in Hoi An, so the four of us hopped onto motorbike taxis and away we went! Well, it probably was the deadest club we had ever seen. As it was near 3 am we didn't feel guilty leaving after a few drinks, as what did we expect in a sleepy town?

DJ Vision !

So basically, Hoi An has everything you would want while travelling to Asia. Beautiful scenery, a beach, cheap beer, world renown food, and if you want to go out you can! It really was a beautiful place and one of my favorite places I've been to on my travels. 

having fun in town !

Ho Chi Minh City, Mekong Delta & the Cu Chi Tunnels, 12 April – 16 April 2014

amazing dinner with friends !

Ho Chi Minh City was nuts! It definitely was a lot more urban and modern than Cambodia; a wake up call! The sheer amount of motorbikes was amazing and crossing the street was like playing Frogger. I thought that Kuala Lumpur had busy streets, HCMC was worse and I loved it! HCMC was great due to the fact that one of my best friends, Joe, and his girlfriend were flying out from England to do the next 2 weeks of Vietnam with us. I also had a reunion with my friend Crystal who has been living there for almost 5 years. My opinion of HCMC may be biased due to the fact that I enjoyed my company so much as well.

in front of the Notre Dame-Esque Cathedral

try to cross the road

First off, the food in Vietnam was excellent. I definitely have put on some weight in these past two weeks. Luckily, Crystal gave us some recommendations and even took us out to dinner one night. We tried a little bit of everything and it was delicious. I would say the main reason to go to HCMC would be to get involved with the culture and immerse yourself in the food. The sites here are okay and you can walk around the city in a day, but the best thing (for me) was the food and watching people try to cross the road or the street with the motorbike traffic.

Vietnamese coffee on the side of the road

The War Remnants Museum also has a lot of information on the horrors of the Vietnam War and has an amazing galley of Lifetime Photographs as well as Vietnamese Journalist’s photos from the war. It is pretty graphic, but extremely informative. It is interesting to see what really happened in Vietnam. The truth is in the photographs and what is taught in the schools in the U.S. isn't entirely accurate. What happened during the Vietnam War was absolutely dreadful and absolutely a waste of time as the U.S. left anyways, the North won, and what was left were innocent people whose lives were destroyed or taken from them and a country that was left in ruin. It is amazing how modern Vietnam is and how far it has come since the unnecessary destruction from the war.  Anyone visiting HCMC needs to go to the War Remnants Museum to see some insight to what the country has been through.

at the war museum

After a day of site seeing, we did a day trip to the Cu Chi Tunnels, these were the tunnels that were constructed for the war. I’ll be honest, for something that could have been so informative, it really was just a tour to get us to buy stuff. The tunnels were impressive and so tiny I couldn't do the small part the tourists were allowed in due to claustrophobia (didn't realize I had it). Also, seeing the ways the fighters attacked intruders was pretty gruesome, but like I said it was done badly and they lead you to a gift shop. They also take you to where you can shoot guns; handguns to AK 47s. On the way to and from the tunnels you stop at another gift shop and “bathroom break”. Organized tourism in the South of Vietnam was very much lacking. Things could have been so great, but were disrupted by the fact they wanted you to buy stuff.

Cu Chi Tunnels

life on the Mekong

We also did a tour to the Mekong Delta (you cannot really get to these places without buying tickets from a tour agency) and the same thing happened. We went to the Mekong river and a boat took us from island to island which was essentially tourist gift shop to tourist gift shop. It was quite humorous and worth it as we got to have traditional Vietnamese coffee (sooo tasty and strong!) and watch some coconut candy being made. We also got on a traditional boat of the Mekong, but of course we did it and had to tip. It was a weird experience, but what can you do? At least we saw the Mekong!

The highlight of our time in the South was definitely the food and the hustle and bustle of Ho Chi Minh City. It was awesome. You wake up and play real life Frogger or sit in a cafe sipping Vietnamese coffee and watching the crazy traffic. Next, you go see some sites, then head to a roof top restaurant for some amazing food and great beer with friends. What more could you ask for?

the markets

just your typical electric wires on the street

EVERYONE has a scooter