Our escapades in Vietnam have come to an end and we are now in Europe!
In about 2 weeks of traveling in Vietnam, we went from top to bottom, from Hanoi in the North, to Ho Chi Minh City in the south with a couple of stops in between. Although we didn't see everything there is in Vietnam, we got a good taste of it. Asian culture, from what we experienced, is very different from what we are used to as Canadians. Read the logs below and savour the Asian flavours! Next stop is Europe (starting in Germany)!
February 17, 2014.
In Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), Vietnam. By arriving in Ho Chi Minh, we have now completed our South East Asia travels as this will be the final place we visit before heading to Europe (starting with Frankfurt, Germany). We have been in South East Asia for about 1 and a half months with visits to Malaysia, Cambodia, Loas and Vietnam. We have enjoyed many new experiences and have many memories that will last a lifetime. This really has been the trip of a lifetime and we still have so much more to see in Europe. We count ourselves as being extremely fortunate to have been given this opportunity, although I really believe that anyone can do what we have done. It just takes a little courage to unplug yourself from the world you are living in. As far as anyone knows, we all only get one kick of the can at life so why not see as much as you possibly can before the opportunity is missed. Ok, enough with the life speeches....Our final night in Hoi An was fantastic. We had chosen to extend our stay at the fabulous Hoi An Chic Hotel right up until the day we were flying to Ho Chi Minh City on February 16. They only had a upgraded room available for us for our last night, so it cost us a little more, but it was worth it. On our last night in Hoi An, we happened to choose a restaurant where we had probably the best meal we've had in Asia. Night time in Hoi An is special. The City really comes alive and it's a wonderful place to be. The Da Nang Airport was about a 45 minute drive from our Hotel in Hoi An. Our flight to Ho Chi Minh City, on Vietnam Airlines, was nice and short at just over an hour. We had very low expectations for Ho Chi Minh City given that it's the largest city in Vietnam at about 9 million people as we normally enjoy smaller, quieter cities/towns instead. We have been very pleasantly surprised with the short time we've spent in Ho Chi Minh City. Our hotel, the Grand Hotel Saigon is nice, not spectacular (we actually prefer the boutique type hotels), but the room and bathroom are clean and the location is perfect, right in the downtown (in District 1 as they call it). We arrived at our Hotel yesterday afternoon at around 3PM, so we didn't have a lot of day left. There are tonnes of restaurants here so, last night I decided that we needed to try some sushi as we hadn't eaten that in quite a while. Awesome meal (although I had a little bit of the $hits (pardon the French) this morning, possibly due to last nights meal, ah well!) Today we went on a City Tour. The Tour included bus pickup and drives to a Pagoda (which had an area that had a pond with about a thousand turtles in it!), a drive and tour of the Independence Palace (a former home of one of the Presidents and now the building is essentially a museum), and finally a tuk tuk ride around the downtown area. The tuk tuk ride was the most fun as you get to see and experience the sheer craziness and volume of motorbikes and scooters that are in Ho Chi Minh. There are apparently about 3 million motorbikes/scooters in the City (about 1 for every 3 people). Tonight is our last night in Asia and we again found another amazing place for dinner. To give you an idea on pricing, we splurged tonight and went all out with a couple of drinks each, appetizers, main courses, desert and we spent around $70. This same meal, with similar quality back in Toronto would easily be $150. Asia has been awesome! We definitely want to come back at some point in the future. Tomorrow we are on a very long haul flight over to Frankfurt, Germany, to start our next adventure!
In Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), Vietnam. By arriving in Ho Chi Minh, we have now completed our South East Asia travels as this will be the final place we visit before heading to Europe (starting with Frankfurt, Germany). We have been in South East Asia for about 1 and a half months with visits to Malaysia, Cambodia, Loas and Vietnam. We have enjoyed many new experiences and have many memories that will last a lifetime. This really has been the trip of a lifetime and we still have so much more to see in Europe. We count ourselves as being extremely fortunate to have been given this opportunity, although I really believe that anyone can do what we have done. It just takes a little courage to unplug yourself from the world you are living in. As far as anyone knows, we all only get one kick of the can at life so why not see as much as you possibly can before the opportunity is missed. Ok, enough with the life speeches....Our final night in Hoi An was fantastic. We had chosen to extend our stay at the fabulous Hoi An Chic Hotel right up until the day we were flying to Ho Chi Minh City on February 16. They only had a upgraded room available for us for our last night, so it cost us a little more, but it was worth it. On our last night in Hoi An, we happened to choose a restaurant where we had probably the best meal we've had in Asia. Night time in Hoi An is special. The City really comes alive and it's a wonderful place to be. The Da Nang Airport was about a 45 minute drive from our Hotel in Hoi An. Our flight to Ho Chi Minh City, on Vietnam Airlines, was nice and short at just over an hour. We had very low expectations for Ho Chi Minh City given that it's the largest city in Vietnam at about 9 million people as we normally enjoy smaller, quieter cities/towns instead. We have been very pleasantly surprised with the short time we've spent in Ho Chi Minh City. Our hotel, the Grand Hotel Saigon is nice, not spectacular (we actually prefer the boutique type hotels), but the room and bathroom are clean and the location is perfect, right in the downtown (in District 1 as they call it). We arrived at our Hotel yesterday afternoon at around 3PM, so we didn't have a lot of day left. There are tonnes of restaurants here so, last night I decided that we needed to try some sushi as we hadn't eaten that in quite a while. Awesome meal (although I had a little bit of the $hits (pardon the French) this morning, possibly due to last nights meal, ah well!) Today we went on a City Tour. The Tour included bus pickup and drives to a Pagoda (which had an area that had a pond with about a thousand turtles in it!), a drive and tour of the Independence Palace (a former home of one of the Presidents and now the building is essentially a museum), and finally a tuk tuk ride around the downtown area. The tuk tuk ride was the most fun as you get to see and experience the sheer craziness and volume of motorbikes and scooters that are in Ho Chi Minh. There are apparently about 3 million motorbikes/scooters in the City (about 1 for every 3 people). Tonight is our last night in Asia and we again found another amazing place for dinner. To give you an idea on pricing, we splurged tonight and went all out with a couple of drinks each, appetizers, main courses, desert and we spent around $70. This same meal, with similar quality back in Toronto would easily be $150. Asia has been awesome! We definitely want to come back at some point in the future. Tomorrow we are on a very long haul flight over to Frankfurt, Germany, to start our next adventure!
February 14, 2014.
Still in Hoi An, Vietnam. The relatively small city of Hoi An continues to impress us. As such, we extended our stay, yet again, at our awesome hotel (the Hoi An Chic), until the 16th of February. Not only is the city of Hoi An itself a great place to be with all the shops, restaurants and great atmosphere (especially during the evening), but the surrounding area also has many great things to see as well. Two days ago, we went on a day trip, through our Hotel, in a Jeep which took us on a drive through the rural areas, a stop at the My Son Temples (pronounced Me San by the Vietnamese), a visit to a pottery village and finally on a boat river cruise. The My Son Temples are old brick building relics that were built over a thousand years. The Site itself is a UNESCO World Heritage Site (as of 1999). Although the buildings are all in ruins, it's still amazing to think how old they are and what the area would have looked like when they were first built, which must have been very beautiful. Yesterday, I celebrated my 42nd Birthday by enjoying a round of golf at the Da Nang Golf Club. I was placed in a foursome with 3 non English speaking Japanese people. Each of us had are own caddy. The golf course was great and I really enjoyed the company of the people in my group even though we couldn't really communicate very well through language. Thanks Tricia for allowing me to get out for a day of golf on my own! While I was golfing, Tricia and Bennett were busy preparing decorations back at our Hotel room. It was such a nice surprise to return back to our room and see all the work they had done. Happy Birthday to my Dad (Pops as I like to call him) who also shares the same birthday as myself! We have really been taking advantage of the motor scooter we hired to get us around town. We all got on the scooter today and drove to a place between Hoi An and Da Nang called the Marble Mountains. We were not really expecting much as, from the roadside, they don't look overly impressive, however they proved to be very amazing. The mountains themselves are not that high, maybe a couple hundred feet, however, each of the hills have caves. The caves all have temples inside of them. The views from the top are also very impressive offering excellent vistas of nearby Da Nang and the ocean (the South China Sea actually). To prepare for the coming cooler climate when we head off to Frankfurt, Germany, in a few days, we decided to get some custom footwear made for us. There is no place like Hoi An for custom made clothing and shoes. The 3 of us are getting custom made shoes (which can be ready in 1 day) for $130. You can easily spend that much money for 1 pair of "off the rack" shoes back home. I guess we will see how they hold up in the snow! Our stay in Hoi An will end on the 16th of February when we fly from here to Ho Chi Minh City where we we stay for a couple of days before heading off to Europe on our next big adventure. Of all the places we've visited so far in South East Asia, I would definitely rank Hoi An, Vietnam in my top 2 or 3.
Tricia: Oh Bart...$130 dollars for off the rack shoes, you're funny (he obviously has not bought me shoes before). We have enjoyed our time here and really relaxed in Hoi An. I am getting a little anxious to move on now...(I have issues. I know). This hotel has been amazing and Bennett is part of the staff. They all know him by name and he drags them around by the hand (seriously, he is almost the size of the majority of people that work at this hotel, it's weird). As Bart mentioned, on his Birthday, Bennett and I spent the day together preparing for the "big day". Bennett was SO excited, he could hardly sleep. He woke up super early and asked if it was time for Daddy's party. We walked around town and bought birthday supplies (well, christmas hats, but to Bennett, they are birthday hats.) and we made a bunch of decorations. He LOVED it. Bennett also insisted that Daddy "NEEDED a chocolate birthday cake...they are not that common in Vietnam. It took a LONG time to find a store that sold cakes. (This is why there are absolutely NO fat people in Vietnam...no real sweets (fruit for dessert), no cheese, no real dairy, no oil - but somehow the food is amazing. We also bought a bunch of movies for Bart's birthday present from Bennett - Bart is a BIG fan of Strawberry Shortcake and Cars. Our trip to Marble Mountain was spectacular too. The caves were amazing and I even went in them despite my serious fear of bats (there were none, thankfully). I have started to really enjoy the scooter that we have too. Bart is a really good driver and it is so good to be able to just tour around. Although we have had one scooter die on us and another time it locked and the key broke so we had to be rescued. Anyway, tomorrow we head to Ho Chi Minh and then Germany. We are SO excited that we are going to be seeing CONNOR on March 20th!!! He is going to fly and meet us in Rome and we can't wait! My parents are coming in May to meet us and we are also meeting Sharron and Ivan in June. We are so lucky to see other people!!! Also, big birthday kisses to Ivan, Nikki, Shelly, Stu, Jo and Michelle and most of the Stone family!
Still in Hoi An, Vietnam. The relatively small city of Hoi An continues to impress us. As such, we extended our stay, yet again, at our awesome hotel (the Hoi An Chic), until the 16th of February. Not only is the city of Hoi An itself a great place to be with all the shops, restaurants and great atmosphere (especially during the evening), but the surrounding area also has many great things to see as well. Two days ago, we went on a day trip, through our Hotel, in a Jeep which took us on a drive through the rural areas, a stop at the My Son Temples (pronounced Me San by the Vietnamese), a visit to a pottery village and finally on a boat river cruise. The My Son Temples are old brick building relics that were built over a thousand years. The Site itself is a UNESCO World Heritage Site (as of 1999). Although the buildings are all in ruins, it's still amazing to think how old they are and what the area would have looked like when they were first built, which must have been very beautiful. Yesterday, I celebrated my 42nd Birthday by enjoying a round of golf at the Da Nang Golf Club. I was placed in a foursome with 3 non English speaking Japanese people. Each of us had are own caddy. The golf course was great and I really enjoyed the company of the people in my group even though we couldn't really communicate very well through language. Thanks Tricia for allowing me to get out for a day of golf on my own! While I was golfing, Tricia and Bennett were busy preparing decorations back at our Hotel room. It was such a nice surprise to return back to our room and see all the work they had done. Happy Birthday to my Dad (Pops as I like to call him) who also shares the same birthday as myself! We have really been taking advantage of the motor scooter we hired to get us around town. We all got on the scooter today and drove to a place between Hoi An and Da Nang called the Marble Mountains. We were not really expecting much as, from the roadside, they don't look overly impressive, however they proved to be very amazing. The mountains themselves are not that high, maybe a couple hundred feet, however, each of the hills have caves. The caves all have temples inside of them. The views from the top are also very impressive offering excellent vistas of nearby Da Nang and the ocean (the South China Sea actually). To prepare for the coming cooler climate when we head off to Frankfurt, Germany, in a few days, we decided to get some custom footwear made for us. There is no place like Hoi An for custom made clothing and shoes. The 3 of us are getting custom made shoes (which can be ready in 1 day) for $130. You can easily spend that much money for 1 pair of "off the rack" shoes back home. I guess we will see how they hold up in the snow! Our stay in Hoi An will end on the 16th of February when we fly from here to Ho Chi Minh City where we we stay for a couple of days before heading off to Europe on our next big adventure. Of all the places we've visited so far in South East Asia, I would definitely rank Hoi An, Vietnam in my top 2 or 3.
Tricia: Oh Bart...$130 dollars for off the rack shoes, you're funny (he obviously has not bought me shoes before). We have enjoyed our time here and really relaxed in Hoi An. I am getting a little anxious to move on now...(I have issues. I know). This hotel has been amazing and Bennett is part of the staff. They all know him by name and he drags them around by the hand (seriously, he is almost the size of the majority of people that work at this hotel, it's weird). As Bart mentioned, on his Birthday, Bennett and I spent the day together preparing for the "big day". Bennett was SO excited, he could hardly sleep. He woke up super early and asked if it was time for Daddy's party. We walked around town and bought birthday supplies (well, christmas hats, but to Bennett, they are birthday hats.) and we made a bunch of decorations. He LOVED it. Bennett also insisted that Daddy "NEEDED a chocolate birthday cake...they are not that common in Vietnam. It took a LONG time to find a store that sold cakes. (This is why there are absolutely NO fat people in Vietnam...no real sweets (fruit for dessert), no cheese, no real dairy, no oil - but somehow the food is amazing. We also bought a bunch of movies for Bart's birthday present from Bennett - Bart is a BIG fan of Strawberry Shortcake and Cars. Our trip to Marble Mountain was spectacular too. The caves were amazing and I even went in them despite my serious fear of bats (there were none, thankfully). I have started to really enjoy the scooter that we have too. Bart is a really good driver and it is so good to be able to just tour around. Although we have had one scooter die on us and another time it locked and the key broke so we had to be rescued. Anyway, tomorrow we head to Ho Chi Minh and then Germany. We are SO excited that we are going to be seeing CONNOR on March 20th!!! He is going to fly and meet us in Rome and we can't wait! My parents are coming in May to meet us and we are also meeting Sharron and Ivan in June. We are so lucky to see other people!!! Also, big birthday kisses to Ivan, Nikki, Shelly, Stu, Jo and Michelle and most of the Stone family!
February 11, 2014.
In Hoi An, Vietnam. I think I've found another place in South East Asia that I'd love to move to and it's Hoi An! The drive from Hue down to Hoi An took us about 4 hours, and the scenery along was excellent. It's quite mountainous in Central Vietnam. The hotel we are staying at in Hoi An, called the Hoi An Chic Hotel, is fantastic! It's a small boutique hotel about a 5 minute drive from the downtown area. The hotel is in the middle of a beautiful green and lush rice field, which is quite unique and offers some beautiful scenery. Hoi An is great for clothes shopping and both Tricia and I have been to a tailor to be fitted for custom clothing. As it happens, Vietnam is celebrating Tet (their New Years celebration) and, just like in Hue, they have lots of fun street celebrations, particularly during the evening. Hoi An really comes to life during the evening with the celebrations and they have very colourful light displays and activities for everyone. We have come to Vietnam during a really fun time and we've been able to experience and take advantage of the night time entertainment. Not only has Bennett been on lots of rides and bouncy castles, but we also got to see how they enjoy bingo and "spin the airplane" gambling (check out the videos I've uploaded, it's hilarious!). While in Hoi An, so far, we haven't really ventured out on any tours as yet (like we did in Hue). Instead, we've kind of been relaxing a little more at our hotel and venturing out around town on a scooter that we've rented. It is SO MUCH FUN to ride a scooter during rush hour traffic here! It's crazy yes, but exhilarating as well. They absolutely love to use their horns here in both cars and scooters. I've totally gotten into the habit of blasting away on the scooter horn as I weave in and out of traffic. I tell you, you haven't yet lived until you have driven in rush hour Vietnamese traffic. An added nice touch to our Hotel here is, for their shuttle into downtown, they use very well maintained, late model US Army Jeeps. Cruising into the downtown in one of these vehicles is a lot of fun and all the pedestrians look on. All of our meals here in Hoi An have been fantastic and you can get pretty much any style of food you desire. There are restaurants galore all over town. Tomorrow, we are going out on a tour where they will be driving us in a Jeep to some site seeing places and then we will be going on a river boat tour as well. Should be a fun day! We have actually extended our stay here at our Hotel, because we love our accommodations and Hoi An itself that much. Our next voyage will be down to Ho Chi Minh City via plane (which leave from Da Nang - about 30 minutes away from Hoi An). I will get Tricia to update her log tomorrow. Take care y'all!
In Hoi An, Vietnam. I think I've found another place in South East Asia that I'd love to move to and it's Hoi An! The drive from Hue down to Hoi An took us about 4 hours, and the scenery along was excellent. It's quite mountainous in Central Vietnam. The hotel we are staying at in Hoi An, called the Hoi An Chic Hotel, is fantastic! It's a small boutique hotel about a 5 minute drive from the downtown area. The hotel is in the middle of a beautiful green and lush rice field, which is quite unique and offers some beautiful scenery. Hoi An is great for clothes shopping and both Tricia and I have been to a tailor to be fitted for custom clothing. As it happens, Vietnam is celebrating Tet (their New Years celebration) and, just like in Hue, they have lots of fun street celebrations, particularly during the evening. Hoi An really comes to life during the evening with the celebrations and they have very colourful light displays and activities for everyone. We have come to Vietnam during a really fun time and we've been able to experience and take advantage of the night time entertainment. Not only has Bennett been on lots of rides and bouncy castles, but we also got to see how they enjoy bingo and "spin the airplane" gambling (check out the videos I've uploaded, it's hilarious!). While in Hoi An, so far, we haven't really ventured out on any tours as yet (like we did in Hue). Instead, we've kind of been relaxing a little more at our hotel and venturing out around town on a scooter that we've rented. It is SO MUCH FUN to ride a scooter during rush hour traffic here! It's crazy yes, but exhilarating as well. They absolutely love to use their horns here in both cars and scooters. I've totally gotten into the habit of blasting away on the scooter horn as I weave in and out of traffic. I tell you, you haven't yet lived until you have driven in rush hour Vietnamese traffic. An added nice touch to our Hotel here is, for their shuttle into downtown, they use very well maintained, late model US Army Jeeps. Cruising into the downtown in one of these vehicles is a lot of fun and all the pedestrians look on. All of our meals here in Hoi An have been fantastic and you can get pretty much any style of food you desire. There are restaurants galore all over town. Tomorrow, we are going out on a tour where they will be driving us in a Jeep to some site seeing places and then we will be going on a river boat tour as well. Should be a fun day! We have actually extended our stay here at our Hotel, because we love our accommodations and Hoi An itself that much. Our next voyage will be down to Ho Chi Minh City via plane (which leave from Da Nang - about 30 minutes away from Hoi An). I will get Tricia to update her log tomorrow. Take care y'all!
February 8, 2014.
In Hue (pronounced "Who A"), Vietnam. To get to Hue from Hanoi would have been a long drive, so we decided to take a short, 1 hour, Domestic flight on Vietnam Airlines (they have a very good safety rating!). We didn't really warm up to Hanoi as it is quite big and very busy. We have really been loving Hue which is quite a bit smaller than Hanoi, more our style. The Hotel we chose (off of Tripadvisor) is excellent, called the Pilgrimage Village Hotel, and is a short 5 minute cab ride from the downtown area. Vietnam, in general, has a very different feel from the other South East Asian countries we've visited so far. English is not very widely spoken here by the locals. The street vendors are very aggressive and the motorbike/scooter traffic is insane. The weather, in Hue, is very hot, 30's (centigrade) with high humidity levels. Over the past couple of days here in Hue, we've seen many things. We have rented a car and driver in the morning and have gone out exploring the Hue area with specific destinations recommended by our hotel. There are lots of tombs and pagodas around the area. We've seen the following, the Minh Mang Tomb, the Khai Dinh Tomb, the Citadel and Imperial City, the Tu Duc Tomb as well as the downtown Market (quite a crazy place with many, many goods and crazy, aggressive Vietnamese vendors). Obtaining cash in Vietnam is a bit of an issue. Firstly, is finding an ATM that will accept your card (many I've tried seem to error out, with my cards anyways), secondly, when I've found a machine that works, it will only give me a maximum of 2 millions Dong (which is equivalent to about 100 bucks US). Each time you withdraw cash, a 3% fee is applied. Unfortunately, my Visa credit card became compromised a few days ago with about $2000 worth of unauthorized transactions originating in Malaysia. I noticed the unauthorized transactions on my on-line statement and quickly notified my bank. Disappointing is that my credit card company will only mail a new credit card to my home address in Toronto and it takes 7 to 10 business days. This is very inconvenient (time to change credit card companies maybe?). I also have an Amex card, but it is not widely accepted anywhere here. Ah well, all part of the adventure. Fortunately, I was able to go directly to one of the Vietnam banks today and withdraw a more sizable amount of cash from the teller on my bank debit card, which can be done as long as you have your passport with you. Going to a Vietnamese supermarket is quite a different excursion. Tricia and I needed some personal supplies, so we thought, lets try the supermarket! So, no handbags are allowed in the supermarket (Tricia had to check hers in with security). The supermarket (at least the one we went into), really stank, not sure of what, it was a very unique stench. Nobody speaks english, so finding the product you want is a challenge if you can't find it yourself. I never new that Vietnam has their own wine! It's undrinkable though, tastes like very sweet Welchade, I tried a sip from one of the vendors. There is a small selection of foreign wines (Australian, French, etc.) available. Interesting that you can buy a bottle of 1 dollar, Vietnamese wine and right one the same shelf is a bottle of Johnny Walker Blue (very top shelf scotch) for $150. This morning, after Tricia enjoyed a Yoga class, I ventured out on a bicycle into the downtown area in search of an ATM. Although the traffic is crazy, it all seems to work out and most motorists seem to respect the vulnerability of the 2 wheeled vehicle. We had a terrible meal tonight, one that I told the waitress we couldn't pay for because it was inedible. This was really only 1 of 2 bad meals we've had in almost 2 months of traveling in South East Asia. A very fortunate thing was that we happened to pass a street carnival on the way to dinner which we visited after our bad meal. We had an amazing time! Tonnes of kiddie rides for Bennett. None of the rides had any safety standards at all. The absolute highlight for me were the bumper cars which were battery operated, had no seat belt nor any bumper to speak of around the car. The bumper car area also had no fencing so anyone, including the many kids around, could walk right into the operating area. Tomorrow, we are off to a new city, just south of Hue, called Hoi An. We have hired a private car and driver to take us there. Apparently, Hoi An is famous for their custom made clothing stores where they will measure and fit you with your own custom made clothes. I've uploaded tonnes of new pics and vids, but I will also upload the vids from our carnival experience later on (the bumper car videos are especially hilarious!). I will get Tricia to update her log in the morning. Goodnight for now!
Tricia:Hue was a really nice city. We saw so many sites and it had a completely different vibe from Hanoi. Our hotel was AMAZING! It was so peaceful (until we got there) and serene. They had an incredible spa and yoga/meditation room and a fantastic morning yoga class. I LOVED it! It is SO HOT here though, we are melting...(and I am not saying that to make people back home jealous - it really is HOT). We visited several historical sites as Bart mentioned. Bennett was starting to get really annoyed with people touching him and taking his picture. It actually gets a little overwhelming. Some people grab him from us and pick him up and pose him...Bennett is not an overly huggy child so he started using some interesting words to tell people that he didn't like them. We have started putting him in the stroller with the cover down on him when he is not in the mood for pictures! The carnival last night was priceless. There were a few rides that I refused Bennett to go on...seriously, they looked like they would explode! We made the 3 hour journey to Hoi An today. So far it is a lovely town and I am looking forward to doing some serious shopping!
In Hue (pronounced "Who A"), Vietnam. To get to Hue from Hanoi would have been a long drive, so we decided to take a short, 1 hour, Domestic flight on Vietnam Airlines (they have a very good safety rating!). We didn't really warm up to Hanoi as it is quite big and very busy. We have really been loving Hue which is quite a bit smaller than Hanoi, more our style. The Hotel we chose (off of Tripadvisor) is excellent, called the Pilgrimage Village Hotel, and is a short 5 minute cab ride from the downtown area. Vietnam, in general, has a very different feel from the other South East Asian countries we've visited so far. English is not very widely spoken here by the locals. The street vendors are very aggressive and the motorbike/scooter traffic is insane. The weather, in Hue, is very hot, 30's (centigrade) with high humidity levels. Over the past couple of days here in Hue, we've seen many things. We have rented a car and driver in the morning and have gone out exploring the Hue area with specific destinations recommended by our hotel. There are lots of tombs and pagodas around the area. We've seen the following, the Minh Mang Tomb, the Khai Dinh Tomb, the Citadel and Imperial City, the Tu Duc Tomb as well as the downtown Market (quite a crazy place with many, many goods and crazy, aggressive Vietnamese vendors). Obtaining cash in Vietnam is a bit of an issue. Firstly, is finding an ATM that will accept your card (many I've tried seem to error out, with my cards anyways), secondly, when I've found a machine that works, it will only give me a maximum of 2 millions Dong (which is equivalent to about 100 bucks US). Each time you withdraw cash, a 3% fee is applied. Unfortunately, my Visa credit card became compromised a few days ago with about $2000 worth of unauthorized transactions originating in Malaysia. I noticed the unauthorized transactions on my on-line statement and quickly notified my bank. Disappointing is that my credit card company will only mail a new credit card to my home address in Toronto and it takes 7 to 10 business days. This is very inconvenient (time to change credit card companies maybe?). I also have an Amex card, but it is not widely accepted anywhere here. Ah well, all part of the adventure. Fortunately, I was able to go directly to one of the Vietnam banks today and withdraw a more sizable amount of cash from the teller on my bank debit card, which can be done as long as you have your passport with you. Going to a Vietnamese supermarket is quite a different excursion. Tricia and I needed some personal supplies, so we thought, lets try the supermarket! So, no handbags are allowed in the supermarket (Tricia had to check hers in with security). The supermarket (at least the one we went into), really stank, not sure of what, it was a very unique stench. Nobody speaks english, so finding the product you want is a challenge if you can't find it yourself. I never new that Vietnam has their own wine! It's undrinkable though, tastes like very sweet Welchade, I tried a sip from one of the vendors. There is a small selection of foreign wines (Australian, French, etc.) available. Interesting that you can buy a bottle of 1 dollar, Vietnamese wine and right one the same shelf is a bottle of Johnny Walker Blue (very top shelf scotch) for $150. This morning, after Tricia enjoyed a Yoga class, I ventured out on a bicycle into the downtown area in search of an ATM. Although the traffic is crazy, it all seems to work out and most motorists seem to respect the vulnerability of the 2 wheeled vehicle. We had a terrible meal tonight, one that I told the waitress we couldn't pay for because it was inedible. This was really only 1 of 2 bad meals we've had in almost 2 months of traveling in South East Asia. A very fortunate thing was that we happened to pass a street carnival on the way to dinner which we visited after our bad meal. We had an amazing time! Tonnes of kiddie rides for Bennett. None of the rides had any safety standards at all. The absolute highlight for me were the bumper cars which were battery operated, had no seat belt nor any bumper to speak of around the car. The bumper car area also had no fencing so anyone, including the many kids around, could walk right into the operating area. Tomorrow, we are off to a new city, just south of Hue, called Hoi An. We have hired a private car and driver to take us there. Apparently, Hoi An is famous for their custom made clothing stores where they will measure and fit you with your own custom made clothes. I've uploaded tonnes of new pics and vids, but I will also upload the vids from our carnival experience later on (the bumper car videos are especially hilarious!). I will get Tricia to update her log in the morning. Goodnight for now!
Tricia:Hue was a really nice city. We saw so many sites and it had a completely different vibe from Hanoi. Our hotel was AMAZING! It was so peaceful (until we got there) and serene. They had an incredible spa and yoga/meditation room and a fantastic morning yoga class. I LOVED it! It is SO HOT here though, we are melting...(and I am not saying that to make people back home jealous - it really is HOT). We visited several historical sites as Bart mentioned. Bennett was starting to get really annoyed with people touching him and taking his picture. It actually gets a little overwhelming. Some people grab him from us and pick him up and pose him...Bennett is not an overly huggy child so he started using some interesting words to tell people that he didn't like them. We have started putting him in the stroller with the cover down on him when he is not in the mood for pictures! The carnival last night was priceless. There were a few rides that I refused Bennett to go on...seriously, they looked like they would explode! We made the 3 hour journey to Hoi An today. So far it is a lovely town and I am looking forward to doing some serious shopping!
February 5, 2014.
In Hanoi, Vietnam. Vietnam is a full on Communist, Pinko country (as my uncle Greg would say), just like Laos, but, as a tourist, you would never now it. We arrived in Hanoi on February 1, which is the day after Chinese New Year as well as Tet which is the Vietnamese New Year celebration. Because of the celebrations here, most of Vietnam, including Hanoi, is shut down. As such, most of the stores are closed and traffic is a little bit lighter than normal (so we've heard). We checked into an incredible hotel, the JW Marriott in Hanoi. I booked on points and got upgraded to a suite, awesome! It's 5 star all the way at this brand new hotel, and because of my Gold status that means free breakfast and access to the incredible Executive Lounge which offers members free drinks (pretty much anything you like and all you can drink), free dinner, as well as a fantastic free buffet breakfast. It actually would have been worth coming to Hanoi just for this hotel, it has been unbelievable. The City of Hanoi itself has not be that great for us. It's quite a big city at over 7 million people. On our first day, we ventured out to an area known as the Old Quarter. It is a very busy place and right after stepping out of a taxi cab, we were immediately accosted by street vendors wishing to push their wares on us and many people wanted to take pictures of Bennett and even touch or grab him. We were totally overwhelmed, especially from just coming from the laid back atmosphere of Luang Prabang in Laos. We spent only a short time in the Old Quarter and then quickly proceeded back to the sanctuary of our suite at the JW Marriott to relax in the hot tub and swimming pool. The next day in Hanoi, Tricia ventured out earlier than Bennett and I to book a tour for us and do some shopping while Bennett and I again enjoyed the amenities of the Hotel. We met Tricia in the afternoon to go to a very popular and famous water puppet show in Hanoi. The show was very entertaining and quite unique. The stage was a water pool with puppets swimming in the pool. Yesterday, we drove to Halong Bay on a tour that Tricia booked for us. The drive is about 3 hours from Hanoi to Halong Bay. Tricia really did well with the trip she booked for us. Halong Bay, although extremely touristy, is an incredible and beautiful area that is classified as a Unesco World Heritage Centre. Our Tour consisted of transportation to our relatively small but intimate cruise ship in Halong Bay where we spent the night on, a rowboat adventure through a floating fishing village in Halong Bay as well as a visit to a beautiful cave then transportation back to Hanoi. The cruise ship we were on was very nice and quite modern. Our accommodation on board was nicely appointed complete with a private wrap around balcony. Breakfast, lunch and dinner were all included and the food was very good. The cruise in Halong Bay was amazing, with spectacular scenery all around us. Bennett enjoyed some time with some fellow Chinese children who were also on board. We met with many great fellow travelers on board as well. All in all, a fantastic trip and we would highly recommend a trip to Halong Bay to anyone who visits the Hanoi, Vietnam area. After Halong Bay, we headed back to Hanoi and checked into, once again, the JW Marriot Hotel. The staff have been so good to us here and the Manger, who was quite exceptional, offered us the same suite we had when we originally checked in. I've uploaded many pictures and videos of our time thus far in Vietnam, so be sure to savor them! Tricia will update in the morning. Tomorrow we catch a flight to Hue, Vietnam. We are working our way south and will eventually end up in Ho Chi Minh City.
Tricia:I was NOT loving Vietnam for the first day or so...I think it took us a good 48 hours to adjust after Luang Prabang...there are just so many people EVERYWHERE and it is loud and noisy and dirty and wonderful all at the same time. Our hotel was so swanky - we didn't want to leave! (and we kind of didn't!). The first day I had a horrible cold...we went down to the old quarter and tried to see the water puppet show but because it was sold out, we had to come back the next day. It was Chinese New Year and there were MILLIONS of tourists and a lot of things were also closed so it was not a normal view of Hanoi. I went to the night market (by myself) but sadly there were about 6 stalls open, so I wandered around downtown and then felt a little overstimulated so left after about 2 hours. The next day Bart took Bennett swimming and I headed out to go to the Ho Chi Min Mausoleum and the Temple of Literature and the One Beam Pagoda. It was really interesting and I'm so glad that I was able to see the history. The amount of propoganda is incredible! Then I met Bart and Bennett for the puppet show. It was really great and Bennett loved it. The third day we went to Halong Bay and it was amazing! The boat was really nice and we met some great people! We actually had people come up to tell us how good a boy Bennett was and how polite and well behaved he was...it was just because there was a Chinese family with 3 boys that were like a pack of wild animals...compared to them, Bennett looked like an angel! (Good thing they didn't hear his descriptive language he is really prone to right now!) Halong Bay itself is packed with tourist boats but it is still so worth it to see. It is breathtaking! Today we flew down to Hue and are staying at a beautiful resort...it's called the Pilgrimage Resort and it is absolutely amazing. I am going to Yoga in the morning! So far, Hue seems very laid back compared to Hanoi...I think we are already liking it!
***For anyone interested in meeting us in Europe, we are booked to fly to Frankfurt on February 18th. We plan on traveling around Eastern Europe and then South to Portugal in late April and finally Italy in May and June...Happy Birthday to Sam! ***
In Hanoi, Vietnam. Vietnam is a full on Communist, Pinko country (as my uncle Greg would say), just like Laos, but, as a tourist, you would never now it. We arrived in Hanoi on February 1, which is the day after Chinese New Year as well as Tet which is the Vietnamese New Year celebration. Because of the celebrations here, most of Vietnam, including Hanoi, is shut down. As such, most of the stores are closed and traffic is a little bit lighter than normal (so we've heard). We checked into an incredible hotel, the JW Marriott in Hanoi. I booked on points and got upgraded to a suite, awesome! It's 5 star all the way at this brand new hotel, and because of my Gold status that means free breakfast and access to the incredible Executive Lounge which offers members free drinks (pretty much anything you like and all you can drink), free dinner, as well as a fantastic free buffet breakfast. It actually would have been worth coming to Hanoi just for this hotel, it has been unbelievable. The City of Hanoi itself has not be that great for us. It's quite a big city at over 7 million people. On our first day, we ventured out to an area known as the Old Quarter. It is a very busy place and right after stepping out of a taxi cab, we were immediately accosted by street vendors wishing to push their wares on us and many people wanted to take pictures of Bennett and even touch or grab him. We were totally overwhelmed, especially from just coming from the laid back atmosphere of Luang Prabang in Laos. We spent only a short time in the Old Quarter and then quickly proceeded back to the sanctuary of our suite at the JW Marriott to relax in the hot tub and swimming pool. The next day in Hanoi, Tricia ventured out earlier than Bennett and I to book a tour for us and do some shopping while Bennett and I again enjoyed the amenities of the Hotel. We met Tricia in the afternoon to go to a very popular and famous water puppet show in Hanoi. The show was very entertaining and quite unique. The stage was a water pool with puppets swimming in the pool. Yesterday, we drove to Halong Bay on a tour that Tricia booked for us. The drive is about 3 hours from Hanoi to Halong Bay. Tricia really did well with the trip she booked for us. Halong Bay, although extremely touristy, is an incredible and beautiful area that is classified as a Unesco World Heritage Centre. Our Tour consisted of transportation to our relatively small but intimate cruise ship in Halong Bay where we spent the night on, a rowboat adventure through a floating fishing village in Halong Bay as well as a visit to a beautiful cave then transportation back to Hanoi. The cruise ship we were on was very nice and quite modern. Our accommodation on board was nicely appointed complete with a private wrap around balcony. Breakfast, lunch and dinner were all included and the food was very good. The cruise in Halong Bay was amazing, with spectacular scenery all around us. Bennett enjoyed some time with some fellow Chinese children who were also on board. We met with many great fellow travelers on board as well. All in all, a fantastic trip and we would highly recommend a trip to Halong Bay to anyone who visits the Hanoi, Vietnam area. After Halong Bay, we headed back to Hanoi and checked into, once again, the JW Marriot Hotel. The staff have been so good to us here and the Manger, who was quite exceptional, offered us the same suite we had when we originally checked in. I've uploaded many pictures and videos of our time thus far in Vietnam, so be sure to savor them! Tricia will update in the morning. Tomorrow we catch a flight to Hue, Vietnam. We are working our way south and will eventually end up in Ho Chi Minh City.
Tricia:I was NOT loving Vietnam for the first day or so...I think it took us a good 48 hours to adjust after Luang Prabang...there are just so many people EVERYWHERE and it is loud and noisy and dirty and wonderful all at the same time. Our hotel was so swanky - we didn't want to leave! (and we kind of didn't!). The first day I had a horrible cold...we went down to the old quarter and tried to see the water puppet show but because it was sold out, we had to come back the next day. It was Chinese New Year and there were MILLIONS of tourists and a lot of things were also closed so it was not a normal view of Hanoi. I went to the night market (by myself) but sadly there were about 6 stalls open, so I wandered around downtown and then felt a little overstimulated so left after about 2 hours. The next day Bart took Bennett swimming and I headed out to go to the Ho Chi Min Mausoleum and the Temple of Literature and the One Beam Pagoda. It was really interesting and I'm so glad that I was able to see the history. The amount of propoganda is incredible! Then I met Bart and Bennett for the puppet show. It was really great and Bennett loved it. The third day we went to Halong Bay and it was amazing! The boat was really nice and we met some great people! We actually had people come up to tell us how good a boy Bennett was and how polite and well behaved he was...it was just because there was a Chinese family with 3 boys that were like a pack of wild animals...compared to them, Bennett looked like an angel! (Good thing they didn't hear his descriptive language he is really prone to right now!) Halong Bay itself is packed with tourist boats but it is still so worth it to see. It is breathtaking! Today we flew down to Hue and are staying at a beautiful resort...it's called the Pilgrimage Resort and it is absolutely amazing. I am going to Yoga in the morning! So far, Hue seems very laid back compared to Hanoi...I think we are already liking it!
***For anyone interested in meeting us in Europe, we are booked to fly to Frankfurt on February 18th. We plan on traveling around Eastern Europe and then South to Portugal in late April and finally Italy in May and June...Happy Birthday to Sam! ***