You Buy Whistle - Hoi An Vietnam

I intended to blog our travels nearly every day, but with the lack of free WiFi that has been impossible.  Well not impossible, I am just lazy to make my way to the business centre in the hotel. I did make the effort tonight.


As I mentioned before we took the overnight train from Mui Ne to Da Nang.  Actually the train station was about a 45 minute drive from Mui Ne in a place called Muong Man.  Which I suspected was Dragon Fruit country as the street we drove down was surrounded by Dragon Fruit farms. Which is where the driver dropped us off.  At a train station in the middle of a dragon fruit farm.  At this point I was feeling a little anxious.  Apparently I am a rookie traveller. We waited roughly one hour for the train and Steve had found some local person that could speak English to ensure that we were getting on the right train.  I am sure that was more for my sanity than anything.  


Boarding the train - I had no idea what I was in for.  We found our cabin and disturbed a sleeping man.  Steve helped calm me down and after a few hours (and one beer) later I was feeling better and managed to sleep the rest of the journey.  


We arrived in Da Nang about one hour late - at 5:00 am. According to Vietnamese time this is on time.  I like to consider is fashionably late.  We finally arrived at our hotel the Palm Garden Resort Hoi An and immediately into the shower. The bathroom in this hotel was pretty amazing however I am not sure if my judgment was a bit clouded when comparing it to the bathroom on the train.  Lets not get into that. After our showers we were again ready to hit the town at exactly 7am.  Hopefully we can keep this up when we get back home. 


Well I am pleased to report that Hoi An did not disappoint.  Hoi An can be simply summarized as your one stop shop for a personal tailor.  There are tailor shops on every street and sometimes in the oddest place.  Actually its much more than that.  It is an old ancient town that has both a charming and lazy vibe.  Its definitely on my top places to visit in Vietnam and not only for the shopping.  It is actually a place that  made me grow tired of shopping, if you can believe it. 


Within 5 minutes from entering the Hoi An market I was quickly seated by two eager shoe sales woman with binders full of shoes that they can copy.  Well I was sold.  About 15 minutes later I was having my feet measured in the most bizzare fashion and two pairs of shoes cobbled.  One pair of heals (for fun) and one pair of ballet flats (for actual use).  This process set me back about $45.  The next day Steve decided that he also wanted his pair of birkenstocks copied.  Needless to say this was also a comedic experience.  


After that we spent the remainder of the day walking around the old town stopping here and there for beers and coffees.  I am not going to lie - that has been one of the best parts of the trip. While wandering the streets there are countless shop owners and street vendors trying to sell you the most ridiculous things.  One girl asked do you want to buy bracelet.  No.  Do you want to buy postcard. No.  Do you want to buy tiger balm.  No.  Other vendors are selling whistles.  Whistles made from what I dont know. You are often greated with a Man, girl, you buy whistle. During all that walking around I did manage to have one dress tailored.  And Steve purchased a lot of ties.  I think we made out OK.  


The next day we awoke to a bit of rain but luckily we had a cooking class scheduled.  I have not participated in many organized tours in Vietnam before and the ones I had done were amusing to say the least.  My expectations of this tour were no higher.  Let me tell you now that I was pleasantly surprised.  We got a tour of the market (however Steve and I had toured it the day before).  We took a scenic boat ride to the Redbridge cooking school. Where we enjoy the morning learning how to cook traditional Vietnamese food.  With the added bonus of eating our creations.  It was actually a lot of fun and I even managed to buy a few tools to jazz up my kitchen.  


After the cooking school the rain still hadnt let up so we quickly bought a rain coat (which is more like a cheap plastic bag) and did a bit more shopping and looking around.  We decided to bail on the fireworks in Da Nang since we didnt want to drive in the rain - but heard that they we spectacular.  Which I am not surprised about at all.  

We are now in Ninh Binh, which is a  two hour drive south of Hanoi.  We are staying at the Ninh Binh Legend Hotel, which has been interesting to say the least. Tomorrow we are headed to Ha Long Bay and I am pretty excited.  This is a place I have wanted to visit for quite some time.  The weather is supposed to be sunny and hot - just how I like it.  However I will be happy as long as it is clear.  As soon as we are at a hotel that provides free WiFi we should be able to post more frequently.  But until then - enjoy this update.

Saigon to Mui Ne (aka The Sun)

I am not sure what day we are on - so from here on out I will just share with you some highlights from where we are and where we have been.  Lucky for you I dedicate this post to one of my most favourite places not only in Vietnam but in the world - Mui Ne.   

Steve and I got on an early morning tour bus @7:30 in Pham Ngu Lao.  Normally this is a god-awful hour for the two of us but apparently we are early birds and have been waking up before the sunrises.  Apparently we don't want to waste anytime of the day.  Anyhow this bus was headed to Mui Ne however four hours later it seemed to take us directly to the sun.  We were both quickly reminded of why we both love Mui Ne.  The sky is always blue and the weather is always hot, almost too hot but I am not complaining.  


We spent two nights at the Sailing Club Resort.  Now this might be the best place I have ever stayed.  It's difficult to put the awesomeness of it into words so I will just show you here.

(The Pool)

 (The Room)

(The Beach)

 

(The Love)

(The Breakfast)

There are also countless reasons why we (I think I can speak for Steve here) love the town of Mui Ne - below are just a few.

 (The Scenery)

(The Motorbike Rides)

 

  (kind of)

Each time we go to Mui Ne it just gets better and better so you can believe it that I am anxiously awaiting my next visit.  Steve mentioned a hotel that hosts weddings - hmm?  This time I believe I spent most of it either in the pool, laying near the pool, laying in front of the beach, eating, or sleeping.  Sounds like a pretty rough time I am sure.  I feel like I have caught up on four years of very needed sleep.  We sadly left Mui Ne yesterday (Friday) afternoon for a long train ride to Hoi An (an interesting story I will share with you later) our current location.

Steve is currently napping and I am thinking about doing the same since the town of Hoi An is celebrating Earth Hour tonight - click here to see pictures from last year.  Apparently they light the streets with lanterns and then afterward there is some sort of parade?  We saw some floats in town today getting ready - I am pretty excited. Tomorrow night there are fireworks scheduled in Da Nang (a nearby city) so we intend to see those as well.  I believe it's to celebrate the 35th year of Da Nang's Liberation Day. 

Busy - but on vacation.  Best ever.

Day 3 | Saigon

Day 3
Five AM wake-up's apparently are a staple here.  Comes fairly easy when you fall asleep before nine PM.  This morning was much like the others.  Wake up.  Eat breakfast. Drive around. Sit in a cafe. Go to the swimming pool. However our drive around this morning took us to Phu My Hung district, an area that was just being developed before we left the city.  Needless to say I want to live there - don't you?

There has been so much development that has happened.  It looks like a typical residential community except with villas and palm trees. I want to live there so badly.  SIGH - one day.  After our morning drive we headed to the same Lan Anh pool and did pretty much the same as the day before.  We headed back to the hotel around 1 and decided to order Chez Guido take-out.  Now when we lived in Saigon before this was a near everyday occurrence.  It was comforting to see that their menu hasn't really changed.  So we ordered the usual.  Shredded Chicken Rice for me and Curry Chicken for Steve.  We were full and very satisfied.  

The rest of the day was spent with a nap and a very long trip to visit Greig, his daughter and new apartment on the other side of the city (or the moon). We didn't get up to much since we had a 7:30 AM bus to catch to Mui Ne and like party animals we were in bed by 11:30. 

Day 2 | Saigon

The morning began quite early with Em waking at midnight, and myself at 4am. From midnight to 4am I'm not quite sure what went on, but from 4am - 6am I was impatiently waiting for breakfast on the fifth floor to start/open. We had an early breakfast and started our day knowing that by 2 or 3 in the afternoon we would need to crash. Nothing quite beats feeling wide awake, full of breakfast and sorting out what to do for the day when its only 7am. Needless to say, as we are still in Saigon, we got on the bike and starting driving, destination unknown. In fact, as far as I'm concerned, the destination is the bike & the city, so by 7am we were off to a good start.

With Emily in tow its quite likely that we will need to stop for a coffee regardless where we are; lucky for her I actually drink the iced coffee in Saigon (not unlike iced gold), so we stopped at another Trung Nguyen cafe near the Notre Dame Cathedral and Diamond Plaza in a real cool area of the city. This early in the morning A/C was still required, so we relaxed inside where I sat facing the cafe patio and the Medical Center across the street that so kindly sewed in a number of stitches when my head broke a fall on our old balcony a few years back. For the record, the lobby looks like it may have had a renovation. On that note, renovations, or 'changes' for that matter seem to be the name of the game. Saigon is rapidly moving forward. Vietnam's accession into the WTO was in 2006 when everyone, including our 'adult' students, were eagerly awaiting that date in January when Vietnam would become the 150th member. It appears that an endless list of ideas and projects are either completed, nearing completion, or on the long list of plans for the coming years. Visible changes to the city's infrastructure, the evident foreign investment, the posh communities popping up with driveways, yards, and quiet communities, and the changing rate of exchange make this all very clear. As someone who used to drive around the city a lot, more than a lot, it's quite staggering, and confusing to the inner compass to see the wide new roads along the river on the way to Cholon (Chinatown), the many bridges and overpasses where there were once no bridges nor overpasses, large buildings (plural!) that seem to dwarf what was once the largest building in the city the 33 storey Prudential Building, an increase in the amount of cars, even Ford appears to have arrived, not to mention many a Lexus or Mercedes, and the lack of cell phone use on motorbikes; the changes from large to small go on and on. It's beyond interesting to see a city/country change right in front of our eyes; at least partially in front of our eyes.

Anyways, Caphe Sua Da is great. After our cafe visit, we drove to the Lan Anh Club, our previously often visited swimming pool. I played tennis there on occasion, and swam there almost daily. Nothing appears to have changed, with the exception of some billboards, and it's still cheap. It costs about USD$1 per person for all day use of the pool, and about 50 cents for a bucket of iced tea. The sun is free, albeit briefly interrupted by clouds. We hung out and swam, then hung out some more before heading back to Dong Khoi St for lunch. We had some Pho for lunch, then had a look in some shops before returning to the hotel. By this time, Emily had had a full day of living, being that she was up at midnight, so she returned to the room for a sleep while I got on the bike and drove around some more. Upon my return, we got ready and headed out for dinner with two colleagues from our local tour operator. Dinner was at the 'Indochine Restaurant' at an old French Colonial home (property) where we had some wine and a set menu of soup, spring rolls, beef and vegetables in coconut milk, rice cooked in lotus leaf, and spare ribs. Needless to say, the food and atmosphere were great, we had a very nice time. After dinner, we returned, probably the long way (my idea), to the hotel where I don't believe we planned to end the night quite yet, but we were apparently both quite tired and sleep took over, no TV required.

Day 2 | Saigon Vietnam

Jet lag caught up with me yesterday as I woke up at midnight and was wide awake.  This made for a very long day - but I insisted on fighting it.  It's nothing a cup of Vietnamese coffee can't fix.  Speaking of Vietnamese coffee - if you haven't tried it before you really should.  It's good black or with milk, hot or cold.  I preferably like it cold, on ice, with condensed milk.  In Vietnam it's referred to as Caphe Sua Da - but to me it's simply heaven.  I can drink multiple glasses a day - not that I don't do that at home.  We stopped at a local Trung Nguyen near the Diamond Plaza (where I used to work out in a fairly posh gym with Korean housewives) for a quick morning pick me up.  I briefly mentioned before that Vietnam is riddled with cafes - Saigon especially.  The cafe culture here is infectious.  It makes me contemplate why we don't enjoy hanging out as much in Canada- time seems to stand still here while enjoying an amazing beverage while mulling over a magazine.  I never get that feeling back home when walking in a Starbucks or a local coffee shop - it's usually in and out and I will most probably enjoy my beverage at my desk.  Toronto if you are reading this please work on that.  Or maybe I need to work on that?  

After a relaxing morning coffee we were off to one of our most favourite places in the city.  The Lan Anh Club which boasts a pretty great swimming pool and lounging atmosphere.  On many occasions we would wake up and spend a great amount of our mornings here - how else do you think we got those rockin' tans.  However the Vietnamese sun has not been too kind to us.  Our white pasty Canadian skin has taken a beating - but I don't care.  It will turn into a tan eventually.  No pain no gain - right?  We spent a good chunk of the morning here swimming, lounging, drinking buckets of Tra Da (iced green tea), and more swimming.  It was a pretty great way to spend the later part of the morning.

From swimming we found ourselves in a local Pho 24 on Dong Khoi Street - just a few blocks from our hotel.  I was quickly reminded that the Pho in Toronto has got nothing on the real thing.  Needless to say my bowl was emptied quickly and washed down with delicious guava juice. 

Later in the day we had dinner with two people at the Indochine Restaurant who set up our itinerary for us - I am sure Steve will touch more on that so I wont.  


Can't wait to see what today brings us - time for breakfast.

Departure | Flying Time | Night One | Day One

Let me try my hand at this. We have a planned trip to Vietnam, and the possibility of the car breaking down on the way to airport enabled us to have a pick up from the apartment at 3am for a quick drive to Pearson, where we waited to wait some more to board the 7am UA flight to San Francisco. Five + hours later, we landed and waited another 2 or so hours in the SFO airport for our next leg to Hong Kong. Just short of another 14 hours later, we arrived in Hong Kong where we waited 2 or so more hours over Popeye's chicken, the obligatory Hong Kong layover meal, for our last leg to Saigon. Another couple hours or so; who's counting. Believe it or not, no movies were watched, only one chapter of a book was read, and a couple of so-called meals were eaten, the rest of the time was spent sleeping. No sleep the night prior to the flight, and a few sleep-eze from Shoppers did the trick.

On arrival into the 'new' Tan Son Nhat airport in Saigon, now with two levels (!!!), we got our bags and wheeled to a taxi who now needs to pay a toll (?) who would then take us to the Hotel Majestic on Dong Khoi St. Built in 1925, the hotel, needless to say, is pretty awesome. High ceilings, arched hallways, hardwood floors, courtyard pool, open air breakfast buffet, old pictures of what the hotel looked like in years past, small elevators, cool paintings...

Shortly after checking in I was walking to Pham Ngu Lao St. to rent a motorbike. Walking in Saigon is for suckers, and getting a bike is like Christmas, but as it was after 11pm I was unable to get a bike the first night. I guess I didnt really need one as it was almost midnight. The 'Hau' guesthouse, that was once home, is still kicking, and Pham Ngu Lao still really feels the same just with more 'backpackers' and their Thai pants; and much more commerce. There is even a 'Saigon Ink' tattoo shop. The Crazy Buffalo bar/nonsense quite possibly takes the proverbial cake with its 'subtle' corner storefront. Guesthouses, restaurants, cafes and travel agents used to be a portion of Pham Ngu Lao St., De Tham, and Bui Vien but soon Tran Hung Dao St. will surely need to volunteer more of its real estate to cater to the incoming masses. Most importantly, Sasa Cafe, Santa Cafe, and Pepperonis are still in the same spot and look, for the most part, no different. Talk about holding on to the past.

No bike, and a burning desire to buy sandals at close to the midnight hour, I take a different route back to Dong Khoi St. After dodging a few rats while passing the bus station in front of Ben Thanh Market, and after being offered many 'massages' by girls on bikes, I was back at the hotel. An awesome hotel. Night one over; the morning couldn't come soon enough.

Sleep was short, and breakfast overlooked the Saigon River. As mentioned walking is for suckers, and we were in a cab heading to Pham Ngu Lao to get a bike at Chi's Cafe. Chi was outside where her cafe once stood, and after a doubletake recognized us and said her cafe was moving next door. Next door was a construction site where hammocks containing the workers were hung the night prior, so bikes were to be rented from another guesthouse up the alley. Soon enough we had our Honda Wave and Saigon truly felt like home as we drove quite possibly everywhere. First stop was our old apartment on Ngo Tat To street. Clearly the best neighbourhood ever as we had an iced coffee at a new Trung Nguyen cafe outside the entrance.

A few stares later, we headed out past our old photocopy shop and Emily's clothing stores before the bike ran out of gas. Bikes in Saigon rarely have working odometers, and the guy we rented it from said there was gas in it, so we headed out without thinking twice. Good thing, the Petrolimex wasn't too far and we had a full tank for less than USD$2. Next, our other place on Le Van Sy St., which looks pretty much the same, sans our 'variety stall' at the end of the alley, before more driving and looking around. Burnt faces and arms are a quick reminder that we don't actually live here anymore, so another cafe and a smoothie was in order at the Annam Cafe on Truong Dinh St. A late lunch was at our often frequented Sasa Cafe with yet another smoothie before heading back to the hotel. Two banana shakes and one strawberry smoothie, good day.

There was surely more in the day, but we are going to have breakfast now so I'll summarize.

• Walking to the Tax Department store
• Buying long sleeve shorts to cover my arms
• A look at souvenirs that for the most part haven't changed since 2002; likely even earlier
• Looked in some shops that have nice stuff that costs more money than the souvenirs we had just looked at
• Then looked in the obligatory propaganda poster shop
• Return to the hotel
• Lady sleeps, while I wander along the river
• I sleep

Day 1 | Saigon Vietnam

After nearly 24 hours in transit and three plane changes - we have arrived safely in glorious Saigon, Vietnam or officially known as Ho Chi Minh City.  After living here nearly 3 and half years ago it still feels like home.  The smells, the noise, the organized chaos, the shopping (yes the shopping) are all so comforting.

We are staying at the Hotel Majestic.  I am not one who has stayed in many high end hotels - but I can tell you this - this hotel so far is amazing.  It's old colonial character gives off a charming vibe. The location is perfect - right next to the river, walking distance to a plethora of restaurants and clothing shops.  I even walked passed an Aldo Shoes - something that was unheard of 3 years ago - of course I went in.  However you can't beat daily complimentary fruit baskets and view of the river while consuming a delicious breakfast buffet.  

Ok and how can I forget to mention the greatest thing about Vietnam. Well maybe not the greatest but something that definitely warrants an honourable mention - Vietnam is riddled with amazing cafes.  Cafes where you can get drinks like this - Mango Madness, Yes Please!