Early start as some of us were going off to do a cooking course. Stopped on way for breakfast - a mango and pineapple lassi for me. The cooking course was wonderful. Firstly we went to the market, which is so busy and vibrant, to learn about the various foods used in Vietnamese cooking - the herbs, the spices, the fish, the fruit and the vegetables and then it was back to the cooking school.
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| Early morning in Hoi An |
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| Learning about the different garlic |
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| Oranges and Dragon Fruit |
The set up was fantastic. We each had our own cooking station and we able to watch the chef via an overhead mirror. The joy of the whole thing was that a lot of the preparation was already done so we did not waste time chopping and mixing. Life would be so much easier in the home if there was a minion running around clearing away the dirty pans and providing you with freshing chopped ingredients!
We learnt how to make cabbage soup with poached prawn rolls. It does not sound that exciting but the flavour was delicate and delicious and would be easy to recreate at home so be warned Aussies it is now on my dinner party repetoire.
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| Cabbage soup with poached prawn rolls |
Next it was fresh spring rolls which are a particular favourite of mine but these had a twist in that there was a small deep fried roll included. I would not bother with that at home as I don't think the fresh rolls need that enhancement but apparently the Vietnamese like having the contrast of smooth with crunchy.
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| Fresh spring rolls |
These were followed by marinating chicken in about 12 different spices to be barbequed. Again this was easy for us as all the ingredients were sitting in little bowls ready for us to add a teaspoon of each. Most were readily available in Australia and the resulting mix smelled wonderful.
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| Barbeque chicken |
After that we made crispy pancakes which nearly resulted in a kitchen fire due to Lucy. Dear Lucy, it could only happen to her!
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| Crispy pancake with dipping sauce |
And lastly a green mango salad which you see on all menus in Vietnam. This tested our cutting skills with the Vietnamese slicer which is a little like an overgrown potato peeler. My mango was particularly hard and I did not find it that easy to do but when the chef came round she asked Lucy to share her mango with me as mine would not have been very nice. Our chicken was delivered back to us perfectly barbequed and we enjoyed eating the results of our labours. Great morning.
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| Mango salad |
After a refreshing Lemon Grass icecream, Aiofe, Melissa and I went off to dress shop to look at dress I had seen earlier. Considering that yesterday I was not enthusiastic about getting things made, I had a complete change of heart and went a little crazy! A cocktail type dresss slightly a la Marilyn Munro (without the boobs!), a skirt and black linen top and a red and white sundress and I was then taken to the shoe shop where I ordered two pairs of shoes to go with the above! Reeling out of there I then headed to the swimsuit shop where a pair of bathers was ordered.
Back to the hotel to recover for Wendy's birthday drinks by the pool and back to the cooking school restaurant for an excellent birthday meal of squid stuffed with pork which is a speciality of the area. Not sure how easy that would be to recreate at home but may give it a go one day when I have a home! The birthday cake not only looked scrumptious but the chocolate mousse was light and did not have a calorie in it - I wish.
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| Wendy's birthday dinner |
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| Calamari stuffed with pork |
I was up again early as I was very impressed with the clothes Wendy had had made at a little shop down the road so off I went and quickly ordered another sundress and skirt and top before heading back to hotel to meet up with a group of us who were going out motorbiking. Denis had had second thoughts and said he would take me pillion as long as I wore proper shoes, long trousers and a long sleeves shirt. He turned up in shorts and flip flops!
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| The Riders |
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| With Denis |
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| Palm Forest |
We had a great morning going round the fishing villages and down dead ends. All the people were so friendly and waving and shouting hello to us and the school children were so sweet in their school uniforms cycling in the blazing heat to school.
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| Fishing Village |
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| Bridge in fishing village |
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| Fishing boats |
A couple of girls stopped and asked us where we were going and suggested we go to Marble Mountain which turned out to be a brilliant suggestion as it was a wonderful place which we reached by lift (thank heavans) as the heat was intense. There was a cool breeze up there and we wandered around the pagodas and into the atmospheric caves. Quite a magical place and one to which I would like to return. Then it was on to China Beach for a dreadful lunch but we did pass old army buidings which amazingly have remained for the nearly 40 years since the American left the area.
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| Roofs on Marble Mountain |
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| Inside Cave on Marble Mountain |
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| Magic light inside cave |
Hot, sweaty and tired we returned to the hotel but for me no time to rest as it was a long walk back to the first dress shop for a fitting. Needless to say everything needed to be altered but they told me to return at 7.00. The one pair of shoes was far too tight so they were going to be remade. On to the second shop where the clothes also needed alterations and one top completely remade as it was awful, the wrong colour and I hated it but the lady was perfectly charming and said it would be ready by 8.00. The swimsuit was perfect. After a very short rest Melissa and I went on the hunt for cocktail ingredients for our cocktail party at the beach in two days time. Inspiration was lacking and I wasn't prepared to pay 240,000 dong for Malibu so it was back to the drawing board. The second fitting of the clothes went well and just one skirt needed further attention so we went for dinner by the river (snapper fish baked with lemon grass in a banana leaf which was inspired and truly delicious and less than £3 - I love this country).
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| Dinner of snapper baked in banana leaf with lemon grass |
Third time lucky for clothes and all were good even though one pair of shoes still felt a little tight but I was so hot that may be when I am cooler they will be better. The second clothes shop also came up trumps and all was well there. A stop at the little grocers to buy cocktail ingredients and as there was no coconut milk, the lady went off on her motorbike to fetch some and also to get us a pineapple - what service. Back to hotel to try and fit all new purchases into backpack. Oh dear - there is not a spare inch now and shoes did not fit at all. Next time I come to Hoi An, I am going to come with a full wallet, an empty suitcase and a plan. I also intend to do another cooking course, a photography course, another motorbike ride and to actually see something of the town. Who would like to come with me?
Another early start (and this is a holiday) for our journey to Jungle Beach where there are no shops and nowhere except the bar to spend money - what a relief! The bus was spacious but the air-conditioning was not working so as the day wore on it became more and more like a sauna. The driver had been given a present for Christmas – a very loud horn - which he sounded continuously so even if you managed to drop off, the sleep was short-lived. We only stopped three times in the 11 hour day, twice for petrol and a pee stop and once so that we could buy coconuts. It was a hot, dusty, tired and hungry bunch that arrived at Jungle Beach in the dark. After a bit of room shuffling, we all met together for dinner which was a good selection of Vietnamese food and a cold beer and life was beginning to look up. After dinner, some of us went for a swim and were delighted with the blood temperature water and even better the bioluminescence which sparkled every time we moved. It was a perfect start to what was to be a fabulous stay, albeit too short!
Got up early the following morning to photograph the sunrise but it was cloudy on the horizon so we did not get a good view.
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| Fishing boat at dawn |
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| Beach scene |
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| Fishermen going out to boat |
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| Fishing boats at dawn |
So it was back to the resort for a wonderful swim. It was one of those lazy days with swimming, relaxing, more swimming, a bit of diary writing, lunch, a rest in a hammock, another swim and then at 4.00 putting on one of my new dresses and going down to the beach for cocktail hour. Tent mates had to make a cocktail in a bucket and give it a story. Melissa and I made a particularly well received cocktail of Vodka, Pineapple, Orange and Coconut milk and Melissa made up a poem which raised a good laugh and applause.
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| Lucy shaking water from her ears |
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| Denis and Steve sharing a drink |
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| Melissa and I sharing our cocktail |
Mel’s poem
Mel There was a posh girl called Sally
Who liked exploring back alleys.
She booked a trip round the world
With a bag that not everything held.
Sally This is where she met Mel
Who is a lovely Essex girl.
They both liked an occasional tipple.
Sometimes Mel liked a triple.
Mel Sally said “Let’s make a cocktail”
Sally Mel said “OK, if you know how”.
“How about we use eggplant”.
Mel “This is a wish I cannot grant”.
Sally Mel wanted coconut cream.
She said it had always been her dream.
OK, but what can we call it?
Mel “I dunno, but not something s**t!
S&M As home is so far out of reach
Let’s call it ‘Essex on the beach’
Obviously there are some “in” jokes in this little ditty for which we are not expecting Mel to be awarded the Nobel prize for Literature. Sometime ago she nick-named me ‘back alley Sally’ as I was always dragging her down the little alleys away from the main tourist route. My fondness of eggplant had to get a mention and I am pleased to say I have converted some of the former eggplant haters to my way of thinking. For cocktail lovers you will know there is a cocktail named Sex on the Beach and Aiofe came up with the slight variation! It was all a lot of fun.
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| Sandra in the sun |
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| Mrs Doyle aka Aiofe serving their cocktail |
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| Jungle from the beach |
The evening ended up with the majority of us skinny dipping in the warm sea admiring the bioluminescence and laughing at all and nothing. Amazing what a few cocktails do for you.
The following morning saw some sore heads and vows of swearing off alcohol for life but I was up and swimming in the early morning cool, enjoying my lovely breakfast of pancakes and fruit with an iced Vietnamese coffee and then spending the day alternating between the sea, the hammock and the restaurant. It is a hard life but someone has to do it. The day passed too quickly, the sun went down, the fishermen pulled in their nets, it became cooler and dinner was enjoyable. Another dip before bed but with sober heads the skinny dipping did not reoccur and the bioluminescence wasn’t as bright.
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| Garden at Jungle Beach |
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| Dog enjoying the sunrise |
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| Sylvia and Russ captured in the early morning sun |
All good things come to an end and our stay at Jungle Beach will be remembered for many things. Sandra’s birthday and the cocktail party, dancing on the beach to “Sandra in the Sun”, skinny dipping, the many friendly dogs that accompanied us on our walks around the resort, the geckos in the bathroom, Lucy squealing that she was being attacked by something which turned out to be the strap on her bathers, Steve and his sea snake and probably one image which will always be carried is Silvio (the owner of the place) pushing a plate of birthday cake in CJ’s face! Life doesn’t get much better than this.
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| Sandra's birthday cake |
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| CJ wearing Sandra's birthday cake with Silvio |
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Previously CJ was a swamp monster when he had a late night
encounter with a paddy field, this night he was a cake monster |
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| Melissa's drawing in the sand |
An early start for Ho Chi Minh but the bus was air-conditioned, was really spacious and the seats didn’t collapse so all was good in our world. As we left, Silvio pushed cards into our hands so if anyone is interested in staying in a little piece of paradise check out the website
http://www.junglebeachvietnam.com/.
The drive was long but at least it was cool and we arrived in Ho Chi Minh in good fettle. I took one look at the city and decided it was not for me. I had been there seven years previously and had seen the sights so promptly booked a two day tour to the Mekong Delta. I am sitting in the bathroom finishing this blog to send a day early!
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| On way to Ho Chi Minh City |
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