Good Morning Vietnam

Vietnam has had a long history of occupation, warfare and colonialism, but more recently has been a nation on the up. Despite its troubled past, it is now a dynamic, colourful and vibrant country with buzzing cities, beautiful beaches, stunning scenery, friendly folk and fantastic food, as well as all the interesting history and culture.

For us, Vietnam was our 10^th country of the trip and, after quite a lot of rain in China and Laos, it had probably the best weather we’d seen since Uzbekistan!

Welcome to Vietnam

The town of Hue lies on the bank of the Perfume River, it was a fairly laid back introduction to Vietnam compared to some the more hectic cities ahead. As well as the possibility of boat trips on the river, there were tombs, temples, palaces and pagodas to explore, beaches nearby and, of course, it was our first chance to sample some of the country’s famous cuisine.

You can take a dragon boat on the Perfume River...

... or a swan boat!

The tomb of Emperor Khai Din

Statues guarding the tomb

The Tomb of Emperor Minh Mang

Thien Mu pagoda

Dave & Christine enjoy another local form of transport

Entering the Citadel of Hue

Hue Citadel

Inside the Imperial Enclosure

Angela in the citadel

Christine & Emma guard Emperor Juan at the Imperial Enclosure

Thuan An Beach

Vai, Emma, Chris, Dave & Angela take a selfie at the beach

The busier side of Hue

Sunset over the Perfume River

Hue by night

Being in the centre of Vietnam, Hue was also a good place from which to explore the ‘DMZ’ (the former ‘Demilitarized Zone’ either side of the Ben Hai River that divided North and South Vietnam between 1954 and 1975). Some did a group tour out to many of the important sites and monuments of the area accompanied by a ‘veteran’ guide, a local who had worked for the Americans during the war, to help us learn more about it.

"Rock Pile" was an American base during the war

Ho Chi Minh trail marker at Dakrong Bridge

C-130 at the former US base of Khe Sanh

Tanks at the Khe Sanh combat base

Chinook helicopter

Our DMZ guide, Mr Dien

Ruth & Lindsay prepare to enter the Vinh Moc tunnels

Jodie inside the tunnels

The group outside one of the tunnel entrances

Bridge over the Ben Hai river at the 17th Parallel

Leaving Hue, we took an overnight train north to Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam. We had a couple of days to wander around the narrow lanes of the Old Quarter, admire the French colonial architecture, visit museums and the mausoleum of Ho Chi Minh and generally soak up the atmosphere of this bustling city. Having now been without our truck for about 10 days, quite a few of us decided to pay another visit to the post office to further lighten our loads!

Some of the group also went to see a water puppet show, and we found possibly the World’s cheapest beer – 5000 dong a glass, which works out to be around 15p in English money! A few of the group also went on a food tour by motorbike.

Waiting for the train at Hue station

On the night train - Lindsay, Ruth, Steven and Kim can never get enough

Views from the train

Arriving at Hanoi station

The crew enjoy a drink above Lake Hoan Kiem

And above the traffic

The busy streets of Hanoi's Old Quarter

Typical local wiring

Dave - at 15p a beer it's rude not to!

Hoa Lo prison museum

Amanda & Juan on their motorbike food tour

Amanda, Juan & Mark at a local eatery

Sunset at Ho Tay lake

The elusive "6 on a bike" photo, captured by Mark & Emma

Jodie buying some local fruit

Ho Chi Minh's mausoleum

From Hanoi, we went out to Ha Long Bay for an overnight boat trip amongst the limestone karsts and islets for which the bay is known. Once our boat had dropped anchor, we were able to go kayaking for a while and then to visit a big cave before returning to our vessel for sundowner drinks on the upper deck. After a delicious dinner, a few of the group (particularly Angela and Juan) decided to entertain the rest of the boat (and anyone else within earshot) with an evening of karaoke!

Heading out to our boat on Ha Long Bay

Enjoying the cruise

Amanda, Ruth & Jonathan on the tender

Vai on the boat

Jonathan & Louise kayaking on Ha Long Bay

Juan, Mark, Chris & Dave

View over Ha Long Bay

Sung Sot "surprise" cave

Angela & Emma are excited by the tea cups of wine for our sun-downers!

Amanda with her sunset cocktail

Cheers!  Jodie & Paul have Ha Long beers on Ha Long Bay

"Ha Long" til they finish?  Angela & Juan get their karaoke on...

Up on the roof deck

After one more day in Hanoi, another journey on the night train took us back south, past Hue and along the coast to Da Nang. From there, a bus transferred us to Hoi An.

Back on the night train

Ruth, Lindsay, Steven, Kim and Louise in their cabin

The scenic railway along the coast

Arriving at Da Nang station

Hoi An is a great little town and many people’s favourite in Vietnam. It was formerly a major port but now the riverside, UNESCO World Heritage listed, old town is a relaxed place to wander through narrow cobbled streets flanked by historic merchant houses, Chinese temples, and beautiful colonial buildings.

Enjoying the hotel pool

Hoi An streets

One of the many temples

Hoi An has a beautiful riverside location

The Thu Bon River

Happy hour at the hotel

There are plenty of restaurants and food stalls in which to sample the area’s fantastic local cuisine, and there are markets and shops to peruse as well – especially if you are looking for clothes. Some group members bought clothes off the rack but others visited Hoi An’s famous tailors to get custom outfits made up.

At night, Hoi An becomes even more atmospheric, with the streets lit by coloured lanterns, the river full of floating candles and locals playing games in the squares.

Hoi An's waterfront

Views over the river while enjoying the local cuisine

The Japanese bridge at night

Local girls making floating candles

The lanterns of Hoi An

There is plenty to do outside of the town, too. A group of us went out to visit the ruins of the ancient Cham city of My Son, a couple of people explored the countryside around Hoi An by bicycle, and many of our group decided to spend some time at one of the beautiful nearby beaches or go snorkelling off of the Cham Islands. A few of us also went to a fantastic cookery class where we learnt how to make some of the great Vietnamese food we had been trying during our time here.

An Bang Beach

Christine & Vai enjoying drinks by the beach

The local market

Taking a boat down the Thu Bon River

Vai, Dave & Angela go native

Jodie does some Vietnamese cooking

Mark, Juan and Vai at Thuan Tinh cooking school

Paul shows off his fancy "Bun Bo Nam Bo" creation

Louise gets some coracle lessons

The ruins of My Son

A full day’s drive south brought us to the remote and rustic ‘Jungle Beach’. Our bamboo huts there were a bit more basic than recent accommodation but perfect for a couple of nights of chilling out away from civilization. During the day we could lie in a hammock or under a palm tree, walk on white sand beach, or swim in the warm, shallow, crystal clear waters of the South China Sea. Night time was also good for swimming, with the water still warm and also full of bioluminescent phyto-plankton that glowed in the dark, and we had bonfires on the beach.

Leaving Hoi An in our latest bus

Our beach cabins

Beautiful Jungle Beach

The view from the water

Mark swimming in the clear waters of the South China Sea

Looking good!  Underwater selfie time

Coracles at the nearby fishing village

The young local footballer wheels away in celebration!

Bonfire and BBQ on the beach

Sunrise

Leaving the beach, it was time for something completely different… Ho Chi Minh City. Also known as Saigon, this hectic metropolis of around 7.5 million people is not for the faint-hearted - just try crossing the street! But it’s a great city and has everything on offer. We had a couple of days to explore the city, and visit such sights as the Reunification Palace, the Notre Dame Cathedral, the Central Post Office (Designed by Gustave Eiffel), pagodas, markets, and the fascinating but sobering War Remnants Museum.

View over Ho Chi Minh City

Streets of Saigon

The Reunification Palace

Notre Dame Basilica

The Central Post Office, designed by Gustave Eiffel

City Hall

Ben Thanh market

Jodie at the War Remnants Museum

Many of us went out of the city to visit the famous Cu Chi Tunnels, which the Viet Cong and NVA used during the war, some of the group also visited the Mekong Delta.

Surprise!  Secret entrance at the Cu Chi tunnels

Jonathan down in the tunnels

Paul tries out a US issue M-16 at the Cu Chi tunnels

From Saigon we headed back west and on to Cambodia.