We're off again!!!

We're hitting the shores of Vietnam again in July 2011.... Come on over to the new blog at Da Nang Me 2! and check us out.

Day 9 - All but over....

Happy Birthday Murray!

Morning tea in a 640ml bottle - Danger Will Robinson, Danger!

Hoi An waterfront with local taxi service

One of the many faces of Hoi An

Birthday time! The cake supplied by the resort - nice touch

Michelle enjoying her coconut juice fresh from the tree

Murray, Michelle and the notorious 'Chicks from Vic' celebrate Murray's birthday

Happy Birthday to Murray! Our last full day in Hoi An before heading home via Ho Chi Minh City saw us hit he resort pool for an early morning dip prior to breakfast and then into Hoi An for our last chance to shop before departure.

We started our day in Hoi An finding and photographing the Japanese ancient bridge that crosses the Thu Bon River before stopping at one of the tiny riverside restaurants for a hard earned beer and soft drink. Their version of “small bottle or large bottle of beer?” resulted in a 640ml stubby of San Miguel for morning tea. Afterwards Murray staggered to the shopping markets with Michelle to finish our “list”.

There were no plans for any major birthday celebrations and with that in mind, we headed back to the resort to laze around the pool and catch up with the ‘chicks from Victoria’ who led a resounding version of Happy Birthday to all in the area.

The day wound down with another visit to town to again finish the shopping list and  have some dinner. We had chosen a restaurant earlier in the day that sold fresh seafood so our last evening meal in Hoi An was whole crab in salt and king prawns with lemongrass. An absolutely fantastic meal washed down with another San Miguel super stubby for Murray and a fresh coconut juice for Michelle all for under A$15. When we arrived back at the resort, a knock at the door saw 4 housekeeping staff deliver a huge birthday cake. They then completely re-serviced the room before leaving and bidding Murray a happy birthday. Michelle then invited the ‘Chicks from Vic’ up to the room to share the cake and some drinks. It was a great night, sadly our last in Hoi An and thus our last blog entry for this trip subject to internet connections at airports etc.

We have both enjoyed our time in Vietnam immensely and would love to come back again soon. The Vietnamese people are so welcoming and honest, their food is absolutely sensational and the shopping everywhere is great value. The travel arrangements through Travel Indochina, to this point, have been completely flawless. The people we have met on our way around Vietnam from the housekeeping staff at the hotels, our tour guides, Miss Van the laundry lady to the ‘Chicks from Vic’ have made this a most memorable trip and we hope we will be back soon. See ya!

Day 8 - Getting all cultural

On the trail to the temples

My Son Hindu temples

My Son Hindu temples

On the Thu Bon River near Hoi An

Wood carving

Cutting mother of pearl for using as inlays on the carvings

Back in Hoi An

Chicken Curry for dinner

The pool at night

Today saw us off to the ancient ruins that are My Son (pronounced mee sun) for a look around the famous Hindu temples that belonged to the Champa people of Vietnam.

Our tour started with traditional picking up of every other tourist in Vietnam from every other hotel in Vietnam until we winged our way along the rural roads to My Son some 1 hour’s drive away. What are our observations about bus touring in Vietnam? Well, road markings mean very little, the guy with the loudest horn wins, if you run out of room drying your rice – use the main road and bullocks have right of way. It certainly not for the faint hearted (but fun in a weird arse sort of way).

The temples of My Son are a fascinating visit when the history and culture is explained. However, the temple sites came under fire in what the Vietnamese call ‘The American War’ where bombing of the area wiped out thousands of years of history and therefore there is little of the main structures left standing.

We ended our My Son visit with a trip back to Hoi An by boat stopping along the way to visit some wood carvers and witness them ply their trade. They do an absolutely exquisite job painstakingly carving the wood with age old chisels and even roofing nails to carve the intricate areas. It was fascinating to watch.

Upon our arrival in Hoi An, we picked up the last of our pre-ordered shopping and headed back to the resort for a dip to cool off.

At about 5pm the resort got hit by a tropical storm that would make your hair curl. It is the most aggressive storm we have ever witnessed dumping inches of rain in minutes, turning the pathways around the resort into little rivers. And by 6pm it was all over, just a light drizzle for the rest of the night.

We spent the rest of the evening having a few drinks with some friends we met earlier in our stay. Lindy, Julie, Margaret and Anne all hail from Victoria, and who, like us, are enjoying Vietnam immensely. Tonight we celebrated Lindy’s birthday with just a couple of cocktails, a wacky rendition of Happy Birthday and a cake supplied by the resort before retiring for the night.

Day 7 - Learning the ropes

Ba Le Market, the REAL fresh food people...

Local market lady prepping the betel nut for a fix

The local orange soft drink.... The name? You decide, we're not going there!

Heading back from the markets

The banana flower salad being prepared at the cooking class

Sealing the beef during the cooking class

Cua Dai Beach, it doesn't get any better than this

Mmmmmm.... snack food by the beach

Murray providing a community service by ridding Vietnam of spring rolls

Local fisherman readies his nets

The notorious 'pink runners'

Traditional Vietnamese dancing at the resort

Day Seven started with a lazy and light breakfast in the outdoor verandah of the main restaurant. Today was Cooking Class day however one could mistake the title as it is more like a cooking demonstration than a class. Inevitably there was food at the end. And we ate.

The class started at 9.30am with a leisurely stroll to the local Ba Le markets about 1 km away where we were shown the local foods and the vast variety of foodstuff on display. All the meat and fish at the market is caught and/or slaughtered that morning so that it is perfectly fresh prior to selling. After buying several items required for the class, we were treated to a local 'fruit' shake prepared from nearly every piece of fruit known to man and also tasted some local fruit delicacies known as 'long bong' that have a sweet lemony taste with the feel of a grape. Weird but tasty.

Back at the hotel, we were shown by the resorts' executive chef, Mr Khiem, how to prepare and cook several traditional Vietnamese dishes including Banana Flower with pork and shrimp, chicken and vegetable sweet and sour soup, beef and vegetables in dark soy sauce, sautéed pak choy with oyster sauce and deep fried fish with tomato sauce. All topped off with some jasmine rice and fresh fruit for dessert. All went down as easily as they were prepared and the whole deal was a bargain for A$27.50 for two which included the five hot courses plus the dessert at a private table with your own waitress and cooking instructions from the executive chef of the resort.

After lunch we headed to Cua Dai beach located about 2 km from the resort to check out the surf. We were greeted with a wonderful sea breeze that made for a pleasant afternoon just vegging out with a local beer and watching the water.

On our return, a quick dip in the pool, a couple more refreshments and it was off to Hoi An Ancient Town to collect Michelle's dresses and our shoes ordered the day before. Michelle ordered a black cocktail length embroidered man-made silk dress for A$28 and a steel grey natural silk dress for the same price from another vendor. After collecting and trying on the grey silk dress, Michelle placed an order for the same style in a blue to be picked up tomorrow afternoon. Our footwear was also ready for collection, Murray had ordered a pair of leather slip on sandals (scuffs) for $A15 and Michelle treated herself to a less than subtle pair of hot pink satin runners for the same price.

The sky's then decided to open and about an inch if rain fell in less than 10 minutes. We both made a bee line for the nearest restaurant for dinner and shelter and enjoyed Cau Tau (a local noodle dish) and some fried mackerel with fresh turmeric. From there it was back to the resort where a display of local Vietnamese dancing was held for the guests by the resort staff.

We have organised a tour to My Son tomorrow, travelling by bus to the ancient Hindu temples before heading back to Hoi An by boat. See you then eh?

Day 6 - It's Hot...Damn Hot!

Miss Van's Laundry/Beer/Soft Drink/Ice Creamery

Atop the resort overlooking the pool area

Michelle's dragonfruit, mango and banana juice

The many Socialist signs around the towns. Great patriotic artwork

Banana flower salad with shrimp and pork. Excellent.

One of the saddest sights in Vietnam. A refill is 4000VND (A$0.25)

You can have any style of footwear your heart desires

The lanterns of Hoi An at one of the many shops in Ancient Town

We suffered from the heat of Hoi An today after venturing into the Ancient Town to have some lunch and try the shopping. The day began with a light breakfast and dropping off the washing at Miss Van's Laundry across the road from the Resort. She charges A$1.20 (20,000 VND) per kg for washing and folding and offers a same day service which we took advantage of. After that it was off to the ‘hairdresser’ for a quick trim for Murray and a shampoo and cut for Michelle. Michelle’s shampoo was a akin to some sort of ancient Vietnamese torture as the practice entails the operator digging her nails into the scalp (and holding the victim underwater) whilst shampooing. Ouch!

With the heat setting in, we opted for the sanctuary of the pool for an hour prior to heading to the cafe on the rooftop of the resort for a refreshing drink. With the time approaching midday, we took the shuttle bus to Hoi An for lunch. At this stage, the heat and humidity was like a wall and after about 15 minutes of browsing the tailor and shoe shops famous in Hoi An, we sought refuge in a local restaurant for lunch and drinks. We both chose the banana flower salad with shrimp and pork which was absolutely delicious.

After lunch, Michelle found some dress styles she liked at one of the numerous tailor shops in town and placed an order for 2 dresses and, after negotiating a price, got measured in places you wouldn’t think was needed for the average dress!

The unrelenting heat forced us to take the 2pm shuttle back to the resort for more pool action before having a few brewskies with some girls from Victoria at ‘Happy Hour’ in one of the bars at the resort. We then had a quick bite to eat at the restaurant before heading back into Hoi An in the relative cool of the early evening. Michelle and Murray both got measured for footwear and Michelle got fitted for a silk dress to be made in 24 hours at a price of A$27.50 (500,000VND).

The day ended with a few ales after being absolutely smashed by the heat. Tomorrow? Cooking lessons at the resort where for lunch, we eat what we cook – should be fun!

Day 5 - Part Hai of the Holiday

Cakes from the shop next to Elios Hotel (approx 20cm high) - 15000VND (A$9.00)

Roadside repairs. Keeping the traffic moving.

The local car park.

Local Tai Chi-Kung Fu-Tae Kwon Do-Sum Yung Gai Master practising... Nice bloke actually, he happily posed for us

Ms Tran, Mr Binh and Ms Ut Em, the front office staff at the Elios

The bedroom of the Hoi An Trails Resort

Poolside with the bar on the left and health spa at the right

Murray's view of the hectic Hoi An lifestyle..... Ahhhhhhh! another beer please...

We spent a few hours wandering the nearby streets and parks this morning before we bid farewell to Ho Chi Minh and jetted northward to Da Nang to pick up our transport for our trip 30 kms south to Hoi An and the Trails Resort. We flew on a Vietnam Airlines A330-200 which we thought was a rather large aircraft for a short distance domestic route but hey, that's maybe all they had left! On approach to Da Nang, (a little bumpy but nothing severe), Murray couldn't help noticing a guy in the centre row behind us putting on his motorcycle crash helmet and crouching on his seat. He finally sat down in his seat correctly but refused to remove his helmet. It was hilarious.... but then he may have known something we didn't!

On the road to Hoi An from Da Nang, we couldn't help notice the major hotel groups are busy buying up the land and building massive resorts and golf courses on the beach front, so I am guessing that in several years from now, Da Nang & Hoi An may lose a lot of their charm. 

We arrived at the Resort mid-afternoon and spent some time getting our bearings. The Resort has a health spa, pool with bar facilities, private beach and several restaurants so we should be well catered for over the next few days.

We ventured into Hoi An Ancient Town district for dinner at a restaurant called 'Morning Glory'.....Nope, we don't know where they come up with the names from either. But we finally got a Vietnamese Green Mango Salad with Shrimp (after searching Ho Chi Minh high and low for one) and it was certainly worth the wait. We then grabbed a shuttle back to the Resort before calling it a night. 

There are some internet issues in Hoi An. Hopefully we can continue to update daily and, hopefully we will see you all tomorrow!

Day 4 - Storm before the calm

Happy Birthday Michelle!!

One of the many workers at the 27-7 Handicraft Company

The 27-7 Handicraft Company show room

Mr Binh, our passionate CuChi Tunnel tourguide

Michelle 'Rambo' Staff enjoying her birthday dropping a few targets at the firing range with her AK-47

Life on the Saigon River

Life on the Saigon River

Life on the Saigon River - "The Haves"

Life on the Saigon River - "The Have Nots"

The birthday girl with her impromptu mini black forest birthday cake

Michelle's birthday and our last full day in Ho Chi Minh City saw us on our trip to the Cu Chi Tunnels. We departed by bus and worked our way through the different districts of Ho Chi Minh before arriving at the 27-7 Handicraft Company, a factory for the handicapped and war invalids that produce a variety of artworks and pottery using eggshell and mother of pearl. They were absolutely fantastic to watch them work, the detail on their work was so intricate.

Another 45 minutes up the road saw us arrive at the Cu Chi Tunnels where Mr Binh (our veteran tour guide) showed us around the much visited site and home of the Viet Cong in the area during the Vietnam War years. As part of the tour, Murray and Michelle both hit the firing range to try out the AK-47, weapon of choice for the "bad guys".

After Cu Chi, we hit the water for a fast boat ride back to Ho Chi Minh. The trip was very relaxing and showed all aspects of river life and culture along the way. It was apparent on the trip that even in Vietnam, there are the "haves" and the "have nots". It was a real eye opener.

Our half day tour took most of the day and upon our return to the hotel, we found that the Elios had left a small gift in the room for Michelle which surprised both of us. We visited the bakery a few doors down the street and grabbed some mini black forest cakes to celebrate her birthday.... Nice!

We will leave Ho Chi Minh city tomorrow after a hectic but enjoyable 4 days. The staff and service at the Elios Hotel were fantastic. They really look after you and nothing is too much trouble for them, however we are looking forward to relaxing at Hoi An. See you all there!