Kayaking, motorbike riding and tunnelling

Halong Bay was our destination today. It had changed somewhat in the seven years since I was last there with many more boats and lots of new buildings but the road was much the same and we stopped in a tourist shop to use the loo and to be tempted into buying something but I kept my eyes straight ahead and didn't err from the straight and narrow.

On tender going to bay

Our cabins were very comfortable with excellent bathrooms although the cleanliness was a little suspect with cockroaches wandering about. The whole boat needed a woman's touch as some of the deck furniture was broken and there was nowhere shady to sit but in the event that wasn't too important as it was overcast most of the time.

Leaving the harbour at Halong Bay

After a wonderful lunch we swam until a couple of people were stung by jellyfish and so it was out of the water for most of us. Before that though I had thoroughly been enjoying wallowing in the warm sea and watching the brave jumping from the top deck. Long gone are the days when I used to enjoy leaping off the top board at Solihull swimming pool!

Relaxing on board at Halong Bay

Aiofe, Me and Lucy

The Water Babes!

Paddling with Denis in Halong Bay

Later we went kayaking which I haven't done for years but really enjoyed. My partner Denis did not have too much to complain about as I only stopped occasionally for a rest. Some of the group climbed up into a cave but I lent Aiofe my shoes as hers had broken which was a good excuse for me not to go. We paddled past the Fishing Village where people spend their lives on the water. The more I see of how other people live the more grateful I am for my own life.

Denis doing all the work

The Fishing Village

Another good meal and a bottle of red wine enjoyed with friends under the stars completed a wonderful day. And a great night's sleep was had with the rocking of the boat but morning came far too soon and we were expected at breakfast at 7.30 which was way too early. The weather was not good so we were grateful we had had such a good day yesterday. After some cruising round the stunning scenery of Halong Bay, it was back to the harbour and our drive back to Hanoi.

The evening was spent by first having a good meal in the Little Hanoi restaurant followed by a visit to the Water Puppet Theatre. This form of entertainment is unusual to Vietnam and developed from the paddy fields. It is quite different from any other puppet theatre in that the puppets are in the water. In some respects it is a glorified Punch and Judy show but with dragons, boats, animals and ornately dressed puppets. Wonderful music accompanied the antics of the puppets and it made for an interesting hour’s viewing. Ben especially liked it and showed his appreciation by clapping long after everyone else had finished – not sure if he was being ironical but at least he stayed awake!

As I had upgraded from the dorm in the Backpackers, it was lovely to wake up in my comfortable room with spacious shower with hot water. After a huge breakfast which was included in the upgrade I went off to the Women’s Museum which had excellent exhibitions about the role of Women in the American War (as it is called in Vietnam), about marriage and the traditions surrounding marriage for the various minority tribes and information about women who are tricked into prostitution and what is being done to help them. It also showed films about the some women who had come to Hanoi to work selling vegetables, flowers and crockery for very little money to help support their children back in their villages.

The next day was one of the highlights of my trip as it was one I had been planning for some time, a visit to my sponsored child. It was an early start as it was a long way to the district which is one of the poorest in Vietnam and her village is one of the poorest in the district.

Stopped to take a photo and my driver went across stream

After a quick stop at the Health Clinic which Plan has built we were told because of the heavy rain that we might not make it to the village. As you can imagine I was very disappointed but help was at hand in the form of three motorbikes which ferried me, my translator and the guy from the District Office. It was a lovely ride despite the rain and my fear of falling in a paddy field. I think I was on the back of the worst motorbike as it struggled to get up the hills and the brakes were screeching alarmingly on the descents! At one stage I had to wade through a stream and on the return journey the bike conked out in the middle of the same stream so I got wet both ways. When the bikes could go no further the remainder of the journey was on foot which involved walking along the edge of the paddy fields with me muttering to myself ‘don’t fall in, don’t slip!’

Ngoan

Xuyen, Ngoan's brother

Xuyen and Ngoan

Grandma watching children play.  Wish I could sit like that.

Cousin who stole my heart

Family group plus me

Ngoan and her family were waiting. She is 11 years old but looked about 8 but bright and healthy and dressed in what appeared to be new clothes. Her brother was also there and many uncles and cousins and later Grandmas. Ngoan was very shy but politely brought me a towel to dry myself. I looked like a drowned rat with water dripping off my hair. After many cups of tea and going to look at the pigs and dogs, lunch was served. Ngoan’s mother produced a magnificent feast for about 24 people. The men sat on mats on the floor while the women and children sat on little plastic chairs round a rather incongruous glass topped coffee table. The food was really good and had all come from the jungle or their own crops – bamboo shoots, pork, chicken, rice, beancurd etc and was served with rice wine. All the men came to toast me and I was getting worried not only about how much my driver was drinking but also how I was going to walk back along the paddy fields! They seemed to appreciate the gifts I bought for them – school books, fountain pen and ink (!), pencil and rubber plus a bat and ball for the children and cooking oil, fish sauce and biscuits for the family.

Water Buffalo

It was then back to the bikes and the long journey to Hanoi. I caught the overnight train and reached Hue the following morning and rejoined the group.

Although train journey was uneventful and I slept like a log for at least 12 hours, I was lacking in energy so took a cyclo ride round the Citadel. In the evening we went for a meal on the river which was really enjoyable and then back to my lovely single room to relax.

Lily fields outside the Citadel



Me on a cyclo.  Look like I am in a Bath chair



Dragon boats on the river

Floating votive candles on the Perfume River

No rest for the wicked as it was an early start to go on tour to DMZ. We had a very knowledgeable guide who gave us heaps of information about the American war. We stopped to see important locations which I have to confess did not mean a lot to me but the aficionados of war movies recognized the names. At Ta Com airport I was more interested in the coffee plants than the old planes and I purchased some beans to take home.

Coffee Beans

Rockpile or Razorback

Bridge on Ho Chi Minh Trail

Significant signpost

The DMZ runs roughly along the 17th parallel. As we drove along the road it was pointed out that the yellow line in the middle of the road indicated that we were on the Ho Chi Minh Trail. The DMZ consists of a strip of land 5 kms each side of the Ben Hai River. The Truong Son cemetery showed the reality of war with many unmarked graves and a memorial in the middle stating ‘Our Fatherland always remembers your work’. A long bridge showing the divide of the capitalist south from the communist north was followed by Vinh Moc tunnels. It was hard to believe that this beautiful place was the scene of so much bombing and fighting but the bomb craters dotted around told a different story. The tunnels were quite easy and so my worry about not having the right shoes wasn’t necessary. Compared to the Chu Chi tunnels down south they were quite roomy but they were designed for living rather than fighting.

Plane at Ta Con Airport

Map of DMZ

Mandy photographing crashed plane

Odyssey was on bridge dividing capitalist south from communist north

Beach at Vinh Moc tunnels

Family room in the tunnels

One of the exits

In the evening I met up with a lady from the UK to OZ tour who I had been corresponding with and had met in Goreme. Their trip had had many problems and made me more pleased than ever that I had come with Odyssey.

Next day we were on the road to Hoi An. It was hot but as lovely as I remember and the sales people were just as aggressive! Stopped and bought mini mangoes, mandarins and an avocado. Back at hotel had a warm swim in the pool and then it was off on a quest to have clothes made, unsuccessfully for me. The hotel provided free cocktails so we made the most of those!

View on the way to Hoi An