In like a lion, out like a lamb

We may have started off on the wrong foot in Vietnam, but that quickly changed once we headed south. People became more friendly and helpful and our attitudes began to changed towards to Vietnamese people. They were very curious to know where we came from, how we liked their country and where we had been, about our culture and the weather (lol), and they loved to practice their English with us. They also loved to share their stories and history with us as a way of remembering the tragedies of war for future generations. With a history so tragic and the lasting effects of the American war still so prevalent, it was amazing to see this city and it's people thriving and living life to the fullest. The people grabbed hold of our heart strings and left us longing for more.

Completely different bus ride back from Hoian than how we came in. 

Rather than getting kicked off the bus, we made friends the fares lady and Shawn got the opportunity to help out a fellow traveller with his bags of corn. 

The coconut man showed us the way to the war museum and was successful in selling us an overpriced coconut water ;)

Our guide on the Mekong Delta day tour.

This group of students stopped us in the park to ask if they could practice their English with us. They were so curious and eager to practice their English, that after an hour or so, we had a crowd of 20+ students sitting around us asking us a million questions lol. After, they gave us each a little gift as a gesture of gratitude.

Poster from the war museum in Siagon.

After a very enjoyable week in Hoian, we took another night train, this time to Ho Chi Minh city (AKA) Saigon. Upon arrival into Saigon train station, the heat hit us like a tonne of bricks. As temperatures soared into the 40's, we quickly longed for the pool back in Hoian. We walked 1km from the station to our hotel and by the time we arrived we had soaked right through clothes. After a cold shower and fresh clothes, we toured the city, dodging the worst traffic we've ever seen.
Welcome to Ho Chi Minh city!

Just a little bit of traffic in the city.

Cookin' up a storm in Hoian

What a treat! After wanting to leave Vietnam early (see Get me Hue outta here post), we found something to stick around for. The city of lanterns has stolen or hearts (and our Dong) and we've enjoyed every one of or 6 days here. Other than spending most of our time poolside and at the tailors having clothes made (yes, this is the clothes and shoe making capital of the world), we also managed to fit in the Full Moon Festival, a cooking class, and many, many great meals under the thousands of lanterns in Hoian. Definitely a place to come back to again and again:) Next time with an empty suitcase...

Hoi an - city of lanterns

Young girl selling candles to float down the river for "good luck."

Lantern shop. At least a couple dozen of these shops in town.

Town lit up by lanterns every night.

Lanterns hanging over every walking street. What a pretty sight!

Hundreds of floating candles released into the river every night. More during the Full Moon Festival as seen here.

Poolside daily. 

With temperatures reaching into the low 40s during the day, this was the best way to stay cool:)

Shawn's lady.

He would pay a visit to this local store a least once daily to stock up on water, snacks and the occasional beer or two. She liked my hat so she modelled it for the photo.

Our cooking class started out with a buffet breakfast of typical Vietnamese dishes.

Dumplings, rice paper cakes, Pho, and fried banana coconut cakes. Yummy!

After breakfast, we took a small boat ride to the local market to learn about the key ingredients in Vietnamese cooking. Rice noodles, meat and fresh herbs just about sums it up.

Back at the school, we learned the skills of making some of the key ingredients that go into these delicious foods. Tasting them was another part of the fun. 

Above: making fresh noodles (top left, bottom right), learning how to make the Hoian speciality White Rose dumplings (bottom left) and of course taste testing.

Making fresh ginger candy and roasted peanuts (top left)

Typical sauces to compliment Vietnamese dishes such as peanut sauce, chili paste and fish sauce with chilis (bottom left)

Lady making another Hoian speciality: fried pancake (bottom right)

Time to cook!

First dish: Mother-in-law soup :)

Shawn's going to attempt for mom when we return to Canada ;)

Learning to art of making those delicious fried Pancakes. Best part: eating them!

Next up: mango salad. 

Finally: enjoying the foods of our labour.

Mango salad with chili and herb BBQ chicken topped off with refreshing coconut ice cream, candied ginger, peanuts and coconut and a cup of green tea. 

Deeeeelicious!

Morning Glory restaurant birthday dinner.

Celebrating double 3's the best why I know how ;)

After a relaxing massage at the spa, I came back to the room and found this...

Best. Husband. Ever.

Get me Hue outta here- part 2

Photos from our 2 day adventures in Hue...

A visit to the Citadel in town - a UNESCO world heritage site. 

We felt like zombies walking around this place and even had a 20 minute power nap on one of the benches. Still blaming it on the malaria pills :(

Heavily bombed by the Americans during the war, the Vietnamese are now working hard to restore this important historical site.

On the second day, we rented a scooter and drove out of town to see the kings tombs. They definitely have that 'wow' effect. 

All this for one dude? Shawn's already designing his...

Tomb of King Khai Dinh on the hilltop. Very impressive!

Tomb of Minh Mang. 

Also housed his wife's and concubines after he died. 

Shawn's comment: "great idea, keep 'em close." Me: *eye's rolling*

Built surrounded by ponds to resemble a man in the relaxed, laying pose. 

Guess you have to be a King to get one of these huh. 

One pillar pagoda.

Perfume river in Hue. 

Train from Hue to Denang to catch the hour local "scam" bus to Hoian. (See part one)

Beautiful views as the train clipped the Vietnam coastline and passes through mountain tunnels.

Get me Hue outta here

Nothing a cold beer and Pho wouldn't fix:)

"I've had it just about up to here," as I motioned my hand over the top of my head as Shawn sat across from me, and agreed. "I'm really tired of all the harassment and scams everywhere you turn." Of course I'm venting now. Was it the "taxi driver" who ripped us off in Hanoi by charging us triple what we paid for the same ride two days prior? The constant harassment of motorcyclists, cyclotaxis, and taxis pestering you to take you somewhere...anywhere..and usually not the place you want to go at that. The same guys turning into drug dealers at night and following you down the street trying to sell you anything and everything, even after refusing 5 times! Or the local bus that charged us 5x what they should have because they figured they could get away with it...then we got kicked off the bus because we stood up to them, in the middle of nowhere! Or just the general bartering for everything you buy, and still getting ripped off, even if it's a bottle of water? *sigh* Ok, take a deep breath, there has to be some genuineness in this country, surely?! And trust us, there is! We're just learning to pick our battles and take it for what it is. So we decided to cut Vietnam short, enjoy the rest of our time here, and not sweat the small stuff. None-the-less, Huy ('h-way') was a pretty place and had some neat attractions to see. A few days here and we're off to the pretty UNESCO town of Hoian for some R&R;)

Renting a motorbike in Hue gave us a chance to escape the hassles and independently tour into the countryside to see the sites. A great get-a-way day!

Adventures on Cat Ba Island

You know how they always say it's the journeying that is to be remembered as much, if not more, than the destination itself? Well, this journey was definitely one of those. Not so much the "wow, that was amazing" type of journey but rather "glad that's over" sort of memory. Likely due to anyone of these factors: the yelling and hand flicking of the very "friendly" driver towards foreigners, the little plastic stools that were pulled from under the seats to accommodate for those who weren't fast enough to grab one of the last remaining seats on the bus(for the 3hr trip), or maybe it was the continuous honking at 10 second intervals that made the trip so memorable. Eitherway, the 5+ hours on the bus, bus, boat, bus journey were worth the hassle.
This is Cat Ba Island-a calm and quite oasis compared to Hanoi (see previous post).

View of the bay in the centre of town from our hotel room.

Not bad for $10 a night!

Vietnamese coffee AKA motor oil

Day one we spent on a full day Chinese Junk boat tour of Lan Ha Bay Islands (the less crowded and more scenic of the famous limestone islands) and a small portion of the famous Halong Bay.

A local family riding past the floating villages and fisheries in Lan Ha Bay

Yours truly and the infamous man.

Our boat on a verrrrry slow, calm cruise thought the inlets.

Our chef preparing lunch for the 9 tourists on board. One of the best meals we've had in Vietnam yet.

Another Junk Boat cruising past.

Stop at the limestone cave on a small island looking onto Halong Bay.

Creepy small tunnel climbing out of cave. Did I mention I'm a little claustrophobic?

Friends chilling outside the cave.

Next stop: floating village of kayaks. After our delicious lunch on the boat here, we grabbed the kayaks and slipped into the water to get a closer look at the bay. Too bad it was so polluted...

We put tippy in the back. 

It's a good thing we stayed in the kayak too 'cause you wouldn't want to fall into the garbage piles floating around the inlets. Such a shame for such a beautiful place:(

Taking it all in on the top deck. I think we managed to fit in 3 naps...

Wake up! It's time for a swim!

This water was a little more promising...

...except the snorkelling was very disappointing. One fish spotted and a few dull pieces of coral.

Guess that's what you get when you combine over fishery and pollution:(

But still, a very beautiful and peaceful place.

Swimming to "shore"

"Hello, hello. You buy something? Hello?"

If I had a dollar for everytime I heard this line...

Stopped at a floating 'fish farm?' to see the fish...

This guy stands guard.

Day 2-rent a scooter and tour Cat Ba Island. 

This is the only helmet that fit big head.

Pretty sure they are just for show...

The rain didn't stop us from having a good time.

A stop at the Hospital Cave. 

This cave was build in the 60's as a hide out during the war. The limestone cave is complete with patient rooms, kitchen, bathroom, movie theatre and swimming pool.

Our guide took us through with flashlights and we were shocked at the size of the 3 level hideaway. 

It started thundering and pouring buckets while we were in the cave so we tried to wait it out. In the meantime, the lights in the cave came back on and we received round 2 of the tour;)

Purchasing .50c rain jackets from the cafe we waited out in while drinking Vietnamese tea and coffee turned out to be a fun experience. Does one size really fit all?

After an enjoyable morning/afternoon on Cat Ba Island, it was back to Hanoi madness on the 5hr bus, boat, bus combo to catch our overnight train to Hue.