Good Morning Vietnam! (Friday, April 11, 2008 / 11:22 pm)
Howdy! I'm back. Even though I haven't experienced the rest of 2008, I'm pretty sure that the past 7 memorable days that I've spent in Vietnam are gonna be the best days of 2008.
Day 1Went to the budget airport and took Tiger Airways for the first time!
While sitting on the airplane, I was still wondering to myself: Okay, this is my first time on a 'backpacking' trip. Well, I hope everything's gonna turn out fine and 7 days are going to be over in the blink of an eye! Simply put, I wasn't as excited about the trip as I was before.
Finally, we reached Noibai International Airport at 10+pm. Then, before we even stepped out of the airport, there were already cabbies outside the airport all ready to poach us. Getting flustered, we got help from a man working at the airport and got directions to the sign that read 'Mini Bus'.
To our surprise, there was already a minibus there at the airport! After paying 60,000 VND (Note: 10,000VND = s$1), the driver found a few more customers and stuffed them at the back of the minibus. I was glad to be sitting at the front seat cos it looked crampy and stuffy at the back! Apparently, the driver doesnt stop you directly outside your hostel so we were pretty shocked when the driver suddenly shoo-ed us down the minibus! Worst still, there was already a crowd of about 6-7 motorcyclists outside the minibus waiting for us to be their customers.
Worried that they might cheat the pathetic amount of money we prepared with us, we shook our heads and headed off in a random direction so as to shake them off. And well, before setting off for this trip, we printed ot an unbelivably blurred map of the Old Quarters (the place we were residing in Hanoi). With the aid of the dim street Hanoi lights, the map didn't prove to be that useful. So, we started off walking into guesthouses/hotels and asked for directions with our poor Vietnam accent.
Me: Hi, may I know where's Hanoi Guesthouse?
Man in hotel/guesthouse/travel agency: (looks puzzled)
Me: It's at 14 Batsu Street. (there's a vietnamese way of pronouncing their street names which I've yet to master)
Man in hotel: Buutshoo?
Me: Batsu
And fortunately, after a few different pronounciations of Batsu, he got that name and we slowly headed off to the Hanoi Guesthouse! Eventually, after 30 over minutes of walking (despite taking the minibus which was supposed to stop us somewhere NEAR our hostel), we arrived at 14 Batsu Street! In the guesthouse, we heard a few Caucasians talking about their backpacking experiences. Some of them have been travelling for months (gasp!) and weare discussing about their next destination. I bet I was green with envy.
Around 11+pm, we settled in APT guesthouse (since Hanoi guesthouse was full) and slept, recharging ourselves for the next day!
Day 2
We awoke at around 7am and went for breakfast at the guesthouse! The Vietnam bread (bun) is certainly one of the best I've come across(: Yums. Thereafter, we headed off to the Dong Xuan Market which was popular with tourists, as we've heard. And wow! It was packed with throngs of people! Vietnamese people to be exact. In fact, the DXM is a kind of wholesale plaza i presume, and the stuff they sell ranges from lingerie to backpacks, souvenirs to a hell lot of clothes!
And.. I finally look like a backpacker with the new fake North Face Backpack I've got for only S$20!
Despite the hot and humid weather Hanoi is experiencing, the Vietnamese and even most tourists, DO NOT, i repeat DO NOT wear shorts! How is that possible!? Thus, on the first day, I swear we were the only ones roaming around in shorts! There were weird stares from the locals and I even received a pinch from one of the motorcyclists which gave me the goosebumps!
We settled for lunch at the Cha Cha La Vong which was famous for its grilled fish. The menu (a piece of 20x10cm paper that was laminated) read: Only one dish served in this restaurant. 90,000 VND/person.
LOL, it was something like that, couldnt exactly remembered the words. We wanted only one set initially, but the waitress wouldnt budge and gave us this horribly long face until we succumbed and paid her 180,000 VND! It was like S$9/person for a fish that wasnt exactly as nice as what you could get in Singapore. Oh well, it's Vietnam! (The food here wasnt exactly as cheap as what we portrayed it to be unless you're eating at the roadside stalls which didn't really appeal to me).
Rice noodles also known as pho. A must-eat in Vietnam.
The Dong Xuan Market which was situated in a 3 storey building.
After checking out the guesthouse in the noon, we went for a 4 hour long walk in the Old Quarters.Actually, there's nothing much to see except for the Hoan Kiem lake which was pretty foggy and more temples which didnt really amaze me since I'm not exactly of fan of such monuments/architecture of such historical value.
Before I even forget, the best part I love/hate about Hanoi is the TRAFFIC!
It's such a thrill to cross the road initially.
Imagine: You're a character in a video game. The aim of the game: cross from one side of the road to the other without getting knocked over by motorists.
Anyway, the traffic in Hanoi is OUTRAGEOUS. There're no lanes in a wide road. You can even hog the road by driving in the middle of it and await the honks thereafter! Apparently, the Vietnam motorists do not honk like Singaporean motorists. They honk, i assume, for the fun, the thrill, the warnings and whatsoever. Interestingly, they have honks in different versions in Hanoi. If you're going to Vietnam, you'll get my point.
We went for a tea break at the Fashion Dive Cafe after our legs gave way. I inculcated the culture of super slow eating in Vietnam. Half a club sandwich took me about 45minutes to finish. Amazing, isnt' it? We proceeded to even more walking after the short break. We visited the Hanoi Opera House since I couldnt visit the one in Sydney); Then, I was supposed to lead the way to the Womens' Museum but I fumbled with the map and lost the way. Lol, so we had to rush off to the water puppets show in the evening.
Tickets to the Water Puppet show.
It was kind of boring actually, i thought. A one hour long water puppet show in Vietnamese which was accompanied with Vietnamese music. Couldnt understand any part of it and most actions were repetitive. I was polite enough to not doze off, unlike my sister haha.
An artistic shot of the foggy Hoan Kiem lake.
A wee bit of motorists on the road. There're twice or thrice more during their rush hour which starts at 4+pm and ends at 7pm.
Had dinner at Bun Bo Nam Bo (name of shop). Bo refers to Beef in Vietnam, and stupidly, i forgot so we ordered it and didnt eat much of the meat.
For the first time, I visited the Hanoi Railway Station and took a night train to Sapa! The cabins were pretty small and the toilet stinked! Overall, it was still quite fine as i only awoke 3-4 times during the night. (not being sarcastic, cos i normally do that during my stay in Vietnam)
Our room mates for that night were 2 Vietnamese tour guides! What luck! So we asked for some travel advice and chatted a little before we dozed off.
Day 3
We arrived at Sapa at around 5:18am.
DO YOU KNOW... that the train guy woke us up by banging a metallic object against the metal door. Picture that scene. So most of the travellers awoke out of fright.
We didnt even realised that we were supposed to get off the train until my sister suddenly realised that the train wasnt moving! So we ended up as the last people to leave the train haha.
This is the bun I'm referring to! We stayed in the Auberge Dang Trung Hotel, quite a nice place to stay in! The waitress who served us breakfast in the morning turned out to be our tour guide later on when we trekked to the Cat Cat Village! That shocked us too!
The Sapa Market.
The tour guide cum waitress. She has amazing stamina! When we trek, she strolls as if she's heading off to a picnic on the beach. No wonder she's so thin and I'm so...
A primary school in the village amongst the rice paddies and terraces.
Food cooked for the pig! Dawn, i didnt know you feed on such stuff!
The villagers even have a TV set in their rundown homes! I'm really surprised!
The waterfall we were brought to. Wasn't as big as I pictured it to be unfortunately, but the treks are really geographically satisfying!
Sweating profusely after hiking up and down the hills. When I thought that the trek had gone pretty well, the guide suggested a 'short-cut' instead of taking the long, winding roads. I couldnt believed I agreed to it and within a minute, i regretted. She brought us up this really steep slope where I had to literally climb up the slope on my hands and feet. In the end, she gave me a hand and pulled me up the last 1/3 of the slope. Omg, felt so useless but so thankful at the same time. Without her, I'd probably rolled down the slope and squashed my sister who was beneath me.
The fog and clouds in Sapa are unbelivable. Once they set in, you cant see the mountains within moments.
Day 4
Outside my hotel room which I had to climb a flight of stairs before reaching it!
Really pretty rice terraces and valleys after valleys. Stunning, isnt it?
On our second/last day in Sapa, we headed off for our 5hour long trek to Lao Chai - Tavan Village. We trekked a total of 16km on the 2nd day! Yay! But our meals in Hanoi didn't made me feel that good.
I need to highlight the aboriginal Black H'mong woman standing beside me. Btw, I'm not that short! I was just standing on a lower ground. Anyway, let me get back to the point. Without her, I'd have probably slipped down hundreds of rocks and fell into the river and probably get washed into the Mekong Delta. Okay, that was really a bit of exaggeration but you get my point. Basically, our 2nd day trek was far more tiring than the first! We had to walk down slippery muddy slopes covered with rocks which were unstable. Then, we had to cross the rivers with logs/unstable bridges/rocks of a myriad of sizes. The Hmong woman saved my life by using her strong hand to cup my wrist and my whole weight was practically on her most of the time. She made me felt so ashamed as she was already carrying a 5kg basket.
Despite her help, one of my dunks got soaked into MUD ew.
See those rocks? Those were our pathway to our lunch stopover.
One of the few Vietnamese friends we made in Sapa! A friendly and cute guy who was working as a guide in another hotel. We had a really long 2hour talk while walking around, exploring Sapa town.
We saw many children amidst the trek and immediately, I popped in for a photo!
We were on the trek with 3 other backpackers! One was a Japanese who was brought up in New York named Sakura (cliche!). The other was from Israel and the last guy was a marine biologist from America! He's planning to teach for a week or so in Central Vietnam.
The 16km trek only covered the bottom right part of the map. The place is really HUGE!
Day 5We arrived at Hanoi again around 4:30am. Had a really nice yet pricey breakfast at the Tamarind Cafe for USD$11.50.
Then, we hopped onto the tour bus to Halong Bay which took us 3-4hours.
The first day at Halong Bay was pretty foggy so I couldnt enjoy the sunshine on the deck!
At the limestone cave also known as the 'Surprising Cave'. The cave's really bigger than the ones I saw in NZ!
Spot me! I was chatting with the Holland couple we met who are really interesting and nice people! After an hour long chat or so, I finally got to know a lot of fascinating stuff about Holland that intrigues me! Like, they dont really suffer from natural disasters either except for occasional floods. So it's a safe place to reside in! Also, Holland's pretty much a welfare state so you don't have to pay to visit the doctors but the taxes are high though! And, in Holland, they only have one dish during their meals! They'll cook their veggies and meat all in one dish! Sounds a bit boring though haha.
A peddler selling a wide variety of snacks and drinks including vodka!
There were 15 people on the junk. We met travellers/backpackers from a lot of countries including Holland, Canada, France, Germany, Austria. More than half of the bunch were backpackers and they were planning to travel for a month and one of the French Canadian we met had even travelled in SEA for 1 year previously! All of a sudden, I really felt so damn small. Like a frog in a well who hasn't gone out to meet the world): The 3 French guys were really passionate and funny. They lied to us about being doctors and photographers so one of them suggested helping us to take a shot of my sister and I talking. It was supposed to be natural but we looked the exact opposite.
At night, we were even offered shots of vodka which were supposed to be toasts to the new friendship! And my sister poured hers off the deck and half of mine away! Shhhh. Lol.
The French Canadian we met looked like a pirate (seriously), but in fact, his job was far more noble and totally unlike him!
Me: So.. what do you work as?
FC: A lot of people don't know my job even after I tell them. I work for an environmental company and I'm a G-O morphologist. (For a moment, I thought of General Office haha.)
Me: You mean a GEOMORPHOLOGIST?!
FC: Yes! You've heard of it?
Me: Yes! But I don't really know what you do though.
And after more chatting sessions with him, I found out that his job scope is SUPER INTERESTING. His environmental company will send him and the team to various places via helicopters. Then, they'll stay there for a month or so researching about the geography of that area and whether it's okay to develop that area into a coal mine/resort or whatever. Super amazing job! It's a really long story but I shan't put it here to prevent lagging.
And he's really a knowledgable and wise person. Despite his usual shabby attire and slipslop attitude, he's a interesting, humourous and nice person to chat with! Anyway, he just took this 4 month leave to travel around SEA again.
Day 6
We chose the biking option on the Cat Ba Island amidst our 3 Day 2 Nights tour. Deceived by the thought of a vehicle with 2 wheels, we thought it'd be far easier than trekking!
Apparently, we were mistaken! Little did we know about the horrors that lay ahead of us!
Initially, we were cycling on wide tarmac roads which I thought were boring and thus I was still complaining to my sister that they should provide us with biking trails instead of roads. Soon, we were brought into the rice paddies area. The biking trail was SO NARROW and you had to cycle in such a straight manner that any swerving of the bike would probably lead to a bad fall. Worst, we were cycling beside steep slopes that ranged from 0.5m to 5m perhaps! Bad fall refers to falling off your bike and flying down the slope with a bicycle landing on you! One of the England guys biking with us fell down a 3m slope and suffered that ending! Poor him! My sister fell 2 times unglamly and fortunately, I was pardoned!
After biking, we went for lunch on a really isolated small beach. Then, I finally got to kayak again after my OBS horrors. Fortunately, my sister's quite an experienced kayaker and with her behind me, my worries soon disappeared after I started to marvel at the wonders of the limestone caves in Halong Bay.
Day 7
Our final time on the junk and enjoying the warm sunshine breathing down my neck.
I've also learnt that Russians are really proud of their country! We met 3 Russians along the way and they're always harping on the vast size of the country. It's about 9000km from the west to the east and 3000-4000km from the north to the south! HUGE country!
One of the most treasured photos that was taken during the trip! A friendship that spanned 3 continents(: On our left was a Canadian couple who were really really really friendly! The lady spoke practically to anyone whom she sees! Made me felt really introverted. On my right was the nice Holland couple whom we spoke to most of the time! Was glad that we suggested taking this photo. It'll be nice to flip through it and hopefully meet them during our travels next time!(:
We spent the remaining day sourcing for the restaurants we found from the Lonely Planet Vietnam guide book which the couple lent us. Had a sumptuous yet inexpensive dinner at Bar 69.
Day 8
It was really boring to walk through the same old streets of the Old Quarter once again. We visited the Ho Chi Minh Masoleum to see the real HO CHI MINH laying in a coffin like structure. He was really well preserved so I can assume that the Vietnamese really worships him.
The Ho Chi Minh Masoleum which was the finest structure you'll ever come across in the Old Quarters.
On a cyclo on the last day. Unfortunately, we still got cheated by that seemingly acting friendly old man behind me! We were supposed to pay him 45,000VND for a city tour which last 1 hour on the cyclo. In the end, he only cycled us around for 40minutes and demanded us to pay him 100,000VND! We were fuming with rage yet we couldn't argue against him since he looked pretty fierce and there were other cyclos around. So I fished out 90,000VND and he was so glad to accept that. Cheater!
One of the last few photos I took in Vietnam. Outside the St. Joseph Cathedral.
There you go, finally, I've come to the end of my entry. I'm planning to make a photobook as we heard the other couples talking about the books they made when they toured other countries!
It's kind of sad to leave the backpacking life and return to the bore of the Singapore life I'm experiencing. Nevertheless, good things all come to an end. So, I'm really glad I took a step out and tried to experience the joys of a backpacker this April. It's really different from joining group tours as you really have no idea of what awaits you when you reach the country. And definitely, I admire those who just book a ticket to the country and scoot off to an unscripted journey over there. I've plenty of thoughts I wished I'd be able to pen down in a journal, but somehow, I decided not to because I dont wish for them to come to an end after I finish my last sentence. This trip has really opened me to much more sights than what I've expected(:
And to Rhemond and Mathilde: if you guys read this, happy touring the rest of Vietnam and your short stay in HongKong! Be sure to contact us if you guys visit Singapore in the near future(:
