Well my trip is coming to an end (kind of). Today is my last day in Vietnam. I'm actually headed to the airport in 10 minutes so I will have to make this short. I spent my last day in Hanoi running around town buying last minute gifts and taking pictures. Had a good time as I hung out with my new American friend from Maine. Later today I will be flying back to Saigon where I will have a 5 hour layover. I'm thinking I might end up taking a taxi into town to have dinner. 5 hours is just way to long to spend in an airport like the one in Saigon - it's pretty pathetic! After that I fly back to Seoul, South Korea where I have a 12 hour layover. At first I wasn't too happy about the length of the layover but then I realized - hey I'll have a good 8 hours to explore the city! So that's should be fun! And then, of course, I'll be flying back to Seattle. This has been a FANTASTIC trip but I'm looking forward to going home.
Looking forward to seeing Lucy (my pup) and Andrew (and yes - you too MOM!), my comfy bed, and breathing fresh air!!!! Hope someone out there enjoyed reading about my time in Vietnam. I highly recommend this trip to anyone out there with an adventurous spirit. The country is beautiful and the people are incredibly friendly.
Friday, April 9, 2010
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Halong Bay
I spent last night on a junk boat on Halong Bay. It was a really good experience and some of the most beautiful scenery I've ever seen. All throughout the bay are hundreds of limestone formations and the water is emerald green. The Vietnamese are actually campaigning to get it officially classified as one of the Wonders of the World. And I agree - it's quite a place! It's one of the main reasons I wanted to travel to Vietnam. I remember seeing pictures on the internet and thinking....WOW! The tour I signed up for included transportation from Hanoi (about a 3-4 hour drive), one night on a "junk" boat and food for two days. There were only 10 of us in the group so it made for a really nice night. There was also another solo American girl on the boat. She ended up being my roommate. It was quite funny because everyone else on the boat automatically assumed we were on the trip together. It was super nice having another American to talk to! The rest of the group were all native English speakers (Aussies, English and New Zealanders) but the humor (particularly sarcasm) and common experiences are just not the same. Because of her, I ended up laughing a lot on the trip. I had a great time. I'm spending my last few hours in Hanoi tomorrow with her. We are going to do some last minute shopping!
Tonight is my last night in Vietnam. I can't believe it!
Tonight is my last night in Vietnam. I can't believe it!
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Perfume Pagoda - Crazy Hanoi
An interesting thing about Vietnamese culture is that fact that marriage at a young age is expected. Many times while I have been here I have been asked...."you married"? No? "you have boyfriend"? "why you no married"? "How old you"? "31 - and you no married"? "where your boyfriend"? "why not he marry you"? And yesterday I was told that I was an old maid and if were Vietnamese I would practically be shunned for not being married with children at the ripe old age of 31. Although the same guy who said this to me also asked if it were legal for me to live with my boyfriend/partner without being married. When I said - yes, of course - he then said - "oh wow - I move to your country". According to this guy if you are caught living with your partner without being married you and your family receive a huge fine. I guess that's an incentive for marrying young!
Anyways - yesterday I took a tour to an area in north eastern Vietnam called Perfume Pagoda. It was a great day with beautiful scenery! To get there I traveled by car about 2 hours outside of Hanoi and then took a paddle boat about an hour on the river. We ended up on some island that is a major tourist attraction for local Vietnamese. Thousands of people go there every day to see the Buddhist shrines - which are actually located inside of a cave on top of a mountain. It was pretty cool to be amongst the locals. I did see some pretty DISGUSTING skinned animals though. They were hanging all over the place. Some of the animals included squirrel and these small jungle/forest dear and one animal that looked kind of like a lemur. I have no idea what it was. I guess the locals go to these restaurants and buy chunks of the animals - they cook 'em up and serve them right there. (I'm a bit queasy thinking about it).
Today I took the walking tour of Hanoi - this is one crazy city. I wonder how many pedestrians are hit by cars and bikes in this city. I have a feeling it's quite a few every day. I lost count of how many times I have almost been hit by a moving vehicle. Today this car almost hit me in the cross walk and then had the audacity to honk at me. I had to hold back my normal response to such an act. Although if looks could kill he would be very dead! Saigon also has really crazy traffic but it's more organized and people seem to be very focused, whereas the drivers in Hanoi don't pay any attention - they eat, talk on the phone, smoke, etc. They completely expect the pedestrians to jump out of the way at the last moment.
Oh by the way - finally figured out the ATM issue. I guess I wasn't using the right cash machines (I tried 4 completely different machines and none of them worked). I called the bank and they said everything was right on their end. I finally found a Citibank and the card ended up working. It was sooo nice to see the money come out. It is not a comfortable feeling being in a foreign country with limited money! I took out 4 million Dong so I'm set for the rest of the week...yay!
Enough for now...tomorrow I'm headed off to Halong Bay for a night on a junk boat! Very excited!
Anyways - yesterday I took a tour to an area in north eastern Vietnam called Perfume Pagoda. It was a great day with beautiful scenery! To get there I traveled by car about 2 hours outside of Hanoi and then took a paddle boat about an hour on the river. We ended up on some island that is a major tourist attraction for local Vietnamese. Thousands of people go there every day to see the Buddhist shrines - which are actually located inside of a cave on top of a mountain. It was pretty cool to be amongst the locals. I did see some pretty DISGUSTING skinned animals though. They were hanging all over the place. Some of the animals included squirrel and these small jungle/forest dear and one animal that looked kind of like a lemur. I have no idea what it was. I guess the locals go to these restaurants and buy chunks of the animals - they cook 'em up and serve them right there. (I'm a bit queasy thinking about it).
Today I took the walking tour of Hanoi - this is one crazy city. I wonder how many pedestrians are hit by cars and bikes in this city. I have a feeling it's quite a few every day. I lost count of how many times I have almost been hit by a moving vehicle. Today this car almost hit me in the cross walk and then had the audacity to honk at me. I had to hold back my normal response to such an act. Although if looks could kill he would be very dead! Saigon also has really crazy traffic but it's more organized and people seem to be very focused, whereas the drivers in Hanoi don't pay any attention - they eat, talk on the phone, smoke, etc. They completely expect the pedestrians to jump out of the way at the last moment.
Oh by the way - finally figured out the ATM issue. I guess I wasn't using the right cash machines (I tried 4 completely different machines and none of them worked). I called the bank and they said everything was right on their end. I finally found a Citibank and the card ended up working. It was sooo nice to see the money come out. It is not a comfortable feeling being in a foreign country with limited money! I took out 4 million Dong so I'm set for the rest of the week...yay!
Enough for now...tomorrow I'm headed off to Halong Bay for a night on a junk boat! Very excited!
Sunday, April 4, 2010
First night in Hanoi
Guess what?! Hanoi IS colder. It's such a wonderful change to the intense sauna like heat of the last week. The only downfall is it is also rainy....a light mist. However, I live in the Seattle area so it's really nothing I'm not used to!
Anyways - yesterday I arrived in Hanoi. Although I shouldn't be, I was really surprised at how different Hanoi is from Saigon. I just assumed they would be similar being that they are both big cities in Vietnam. I haven't explored much yet but what it appears that Hanoi has much more to see in terms of history and architecture. There is also a lot more street life. Almost every block is riddled with little women cooking food over little fires in metal buckets. There are chairs and tables set up and the locals just come by for a bite to eat. It doesn't appear very sanitary but they all seem to enjoy it. Speaking of street food, I did enjoy a bit of "upscale" street food last night. I met another solo traveler in the hostel and we walked to this area of Hanoi that have all of these really nice food booths under this beautifuly lighted tent. They have pretty tables and chairs and you sit down and order like a restaurant. The reason it's still called street food is the food comes from all of the different booths - different styles of Vietnamese cooking. We ordered a bunch of different dishes...drinks...and two kinds of dessert and our bill came to 132k dong - which is about $6! It was great and the food was delicious. (Paula - I thought about you while I was there. You would have LOVED it). It's going to be hard coming back to restaurants back home. I don't want to pay much for food anymore!
I also am a bit stressed right now. Yesterday when I arrived in Hanoi I went to an ATM machine...just as I have everyday since I arrived in Vietnam but this time my card wouldn't work. At first I thought it was the particular machine but then after trying two more machines I figured out that it was my card. I've checked my account online and there is plenty of money in there. I'm assuming the bank has put a hold on the card being that there have been so many transactions from Vietnam. The sucky thing is it's Sunday in Seattle right now so I'm not going to be able to get a hold of the bank until late tonight. I'm really hoping I can get it figured out over the phone because I'd really like to have access to money. I have JUST enough money to get me through the rest of the week (if I don't do anything and eat cheap food) but I won't be able to go on the most important tour of the trip - sleeping on junk boat in Halong Bay. Crossing my fingers that it all works out! If not - Mom I'll be calling home for a money transfer (smiles)!
Today I'm going on a day tour to Perfume Pagoda (paid for it before I realized I was broke). It involves travel by bus, paddle boat, hiking and then a gondola to the top of a mountain (Pagoda is at the top). Should be fun!
Cheers,
Shauna
Anyways - yesterday I arrived in Hanoi. Although I shouldn't be, I was really surprised at how different Hanoi is from Saigon. I just assumed they would be similar being that they are both big cities in Vietnam. I haven't explored much yet but what it appears that Hanoi has much more to see in terms of history and architecture. There is also a lot more street life. Almost every block is riddled with little women cooking food over little fires in metal buckets. There are chairs and tables set up and the locals just come by for a bite to eat. It doesn't appear very sanitary but they all seem to enjoy it. Speaking of street food, I did enjoy a bit of "upscale" street food last night. I met another solo traveler in the hostel and we walked to this area of Hanoi that have all of these really nice food booths under this beautifuly lighted tent. They have pretty tables and chairs and you sit down and order like a restaurant. The reason it's still called street food is the food comes from all of the different booths - different styles of Vietnamese cooking. We ordered a bunch of different dishes...drinks...and two kinds of dessert and our bill came to 132k dong - which is about $6! It was great and the food was delicious. (Paula - I thought about you while I was there. You would have LOVED it). It's going to be hard coming back to restaurants back home. I don't want to pay much for food anymore!
I also am a bit stressed right now. Yesterday when I arrived in Hanoi I went to an ATM machine...just as I have everyday since I arrived in Vietnam but this time my card wouldn't work. At first I thought it was the particular machine but then after trying two more machines I figured out that it was my card. I've checked my account online and there is plenty of money in there. I'm assuming the bank has put a hold on the card being that there have been so many transactions from Vietnam. The sucky thing is it's Sunday in Seattle right now so I'm not going to be able to get a hold of the bank until late tonight. I'm really hoping I can get it figured out over the phone because I'd really like to have access to money. I have JUST enough money to get me through the rest of the week (if I don't do anything and eat cheap food) but I won't be able to go on the most important tour of the trip - sleeping on junk boat in Halong Bay. Crossing my fingers that it all works out! If not - Mom I'll be calling home for a money transfer (smiles)!
Today I'm going on a day tour to Perfume Pagoda (paid for it before I realized I was broke). It involves travel by bus, paddle boat, hiking and then a gondola to the top of a mountain (Pagoda is at the top). Should be fun!
Cheers,
Shauna
Saturday, April 3, 2010
Leaving Hoi An...Headed to Hanoi
Well today is my last morning in Hoi An. I fly to the Vietnam capital of Hanoi in a couple of hours. Although I think this little city is charming, and I've enjoyed my time here, I'm definitely ready for a change of scenery! I'm tired of walking past all of the clothing shops.....NO I DON'T want to order any clothes (that's what you have to say over and over as you walk by). Speaking of clothes - I had to ship a box home yesterday. There was no way I was going to fit it into my luggage. I chose the "sea mail" option over air mail because it was much much cheaper (over $100 cheaper). So that means that I'll see my new clothes in about 3 months! Crazy huh. I did keep a few items...a couple of dresses, my new suit (I need it for work) and the gifts that I have purchased for people. It would be kind of weird to tell friends/family...umm I have a gift for you from Vietnam but it won't be here for a couple more months!
Anyways - I'm looking forward to arriving in Hanoi. Crossing my fingers that the northern location means cooler temperatures. Perhaps less humidity? Doubt it - ugh. Oh - one thing I have heard (from locals) about Hanoi is that they serve interesting street food. Like Lucy on a stick....roasted DOG! NO I won't be trying any...will definitely be sticking to my vegetarian diet while I'm there.
Will keep you all posted!
Anyways - I'm looking forward to arriving in Hanoi. Crossing my fingers that the northern location means cooler temperatures. Perhaps less humidity? Doubt it - ugh. Oh - one thing I have heard (from locals) about Hanoi is that they serve interesting street food. Like Lucy on a stick....roasted DOG! NO I won't be trying any...will definitely be sticking to my vegetarian diet while I'm there.
Will keep you all posted!
Friday, April 2, 2010
Scuba Diving...and Cham Island
I spent my third day in Hoi An on a Scuba Diving tour to Cham Island...about an hour or so by boat from Hoi An. The boat ride to the Scuba site was great. It was so nice to be on the ocean and to get some much needed pollution free air and sun! The actual dive turned out to be kind of sucky though. I can easily say it's been the worst dive I've done so far. Due to a recent storm the visibility was AWFUL. I could barely see my dive partner, much less anything else in the water. We dove near a recently sunk fishing boat. I'm sure it's a pretty cool dive when you can actually tell what you are looking at. At one point my dive partner and I lost the rest of the group. After a couple of minutes of waiting for them we slowly made our way to the surface. We almost decided to scrap the dive right then and there. Fortunately/Unfortunately our dive master found out a couple of minutes later and we caught up with the rest of the group. Even though it was a pretty crappy dive it was probably a good experience for me. I'm really bad at sticking with my partner while diving. I've been known to see a pretty fish and take off. More than once I've lost my group. Obviously this can be very dangerous so at the very least this dive taught me a lesson on the importance of sticking with your buddy. (Oh by the way...my dive buddy was not only from the States but from Seattle and his name was Shaun....weird!)
After the first dive we had about a hour break before the second dive. While on break, I learned that the snorkelers on the trip were being ferried to the nearby Cham island which is inhabited by a very small fishing village. I decided to skip my second dive and go to the island. This turned out to be a very good decision as the village and island were so amazing to see. We walked around the island...literally through rice paddies to a small little Buddist Pagoda in the hills. It was lovely. We then walked about 2 miles to a private beach and restaurant where we were served traditional Vietnamese food family style. It was a lot of fun.
This is where my day turned quite sour. And I'm sure many of you have been just waiting for this story....I got sick....very sick! I started getting a headache and feeling nauseaus while still on the island but I was hoping maybe I just got a bit too much sun. So I took some ibuprofen and drank some water. Well this didn't help much because I got extremely sick on the boat ride back. I lost my lunch over the side of the boat...and then again and again and again over the next few hours. I was so out of it, when they dropped me off at my hotel they had to help me to my room. I have no idea what caused it...could have been a normal migraine...too much sun...sea sickness, lunch on the island..maybe all four. All I know is it was a miserable experience and after 17 hours in bed I'm still not feeling 100% today.
Well enough for now. I'm going to go find some 7up and go back to bed. Tonight I pick up all of my new clothes and tomorrow I fly to Hanoi!
After the first dive we had about a hour break before the second dive. While on break, I learned that the snorkelers on the trip were being ferried to the nearby Cham island which is inhabited by a very small fishing village. I decided to skip my second dive and go to the island. This turned out to be a very good decision as the village and island were so amazing to see. We walked around the island...literally through rice paddies to a small little Buddist Pagoda in the hills. It was lovely. We then walked about 2 miles to a private beach and restaurant where we were served traditional Vietnamese food family style. It was a lot of fun.
This is where my day turned quite sour. And I'm sure many of you have been just waiting for this story....I got sick....very sick! I started getting a headache and feeling nauseaus while still on the island but I was hoping maybe I just got a bit too much sun. So I took some ibuprofen and drank some water. Well this didn't help much because I got extremely sick on the boat ride back. I lost my lunch over the side of the boat...and then again and again and again over the next few hours. I was so out of it, when they dropped me off at my hotel they had to help me to my room. I have no idea what caused it...could have been a normal migraine...too much sun...sea sickness, lunch on the island..maybe all four. All I know is it was a miserable experience and after 17 hours in bed I'm still not feeling 100% today.
Well enough for now. I'm going to go find some 7up and go back to bed. Tonight I pick up all of my new clothes and tomorrow I fly to Hanoi!
Thursday, April 1, 2010
Someone please take my ATM card away from me...
So it is official. I have spent more than twice as much money on clothes than I anticipated. And I was planning on spending quite a bit (even by American standards). I'm actually a little sick to my stomach about it but I'm sure I'll get over it soon. It just means that no one back home will be receiving any gifts from Vietnam (kidding). This is what I have purchased:
2 evening dresses (tried them on today and they are lovely)
8 day/summer dresses
3 cotton skirts
1 suit - jacket and pants (very nice material...I did not skimp)
3 dress shirts
1 pair of knee high leather boots
1 pair of sandals
1 knee length wool coat
All of these items were custom tailored so I suppose the money was well spent. I had my first fitting for 4 of the dresses today and I was very impressed with the worksmanship. In about half an hour I'm scheduled for another fitting for the boots and a few more of the dresses. They are with a different tailor so I'm really hoping the quality is up to par. I'm not quite sure how I'm going to get all of this home....looks like I'll be paying some shipping costs too!
Anyways - I didn't spend the entire day shopping for clothes. I woke up early this morning and walked around the city to take pictures. It's been one of my favorite moments in Vietnam so far. Just me and my camera and an absolutely beautiful setting. I also spent some time at one of the local spas. For $20...I got a 30 minute facial and a 60 minute Thai massage (this just means deep tissue...no happy ending for those who have dirty minds......you know who you are....EL, MT, PJ, SA, DL...any maybe even ACP).
Moving on....
After my fitting this evening I plan to visit one of the local backpacker "pubs" for some local beer and Vietnamese noodles. Maybe I'll meet another American...probably not though. I seem to be a rare breed.
Cheers...shauna
2 evening dresses (tried them on today and they are lovely)
8 day/summer dresses
3 cotton skirts
1 suit - jacket and pants (very nice material...I did not skimp)
3 dress shirts
1 pair of knee high leather boots
1 pair of sandals
1 knee length wool coat
All of these items were custom tailored so I suppose the money was well spent. I had my first fitting for 4 of the dresses today and I was very impressed with the worksmanship. In about half an hour I'm scheduled for another fitting for the boots and a few more of the dresses. They are with a different tailor so I'm really hoping the quality is up to par. I'm not quite sure how I'm going to get all of this home....looks like I'll be paying some shipping costs too!
Anyways - I didn't spend the entire day shopping for clothes. I woke up early this morning and walked around the city to take pictures. It's been one of my favorite moments in Vietnam so far. Just me and my camera and an absolutely beautiful setting. I also spent some time at one of the local spas. For $20...I got a 30 minute facial and a 60 minute Thai massage (this just means deep tissue...no happy ending for those who have dirty minds......you know who you are....EL, MT, PJ, SA, DL...any maybe even ACP).
Moving on....
After my fitting this evening I plan to visit one of the local backpacker "pubs" for some local beer and Vietnamese noodles. Maybe I'll meet another American...probably not though. I seem to be a rare breed.
Cheers...shauna
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
First day in Hoi An
I left the city of Saigon this morning and flew to Hoi An which is located on the coast somewhere in Central Vietnam. At first I was a bit disappointed in the town - however that was just based on the taxi ride to my hotel from the airport. Once I had an opportunity to walk the streets to "Old Town" I figured out why so many tourists love this place. It is SO charming. There are all of these little beautiful, colorful, historic buildings. The town is also inundated with tailor shops. I was expecting this...but damn! There are a lot of them. I did my part and stopped in on one. Walked out about an hour later with four new dresses ordered....two summer dresses and two formal dresses. I'm not exactly sure when and where I'm going to wear these formal dresses but it was fun choosing the design and fabric and all. I also made a very rash decision and purchased some custom leather boots. I paid a fortune for them so I'm crossing my fingers that I'll love them. Boots (knee high) are not an easy thing to come by at home....I'm shorter than the "average" female so they never fit right. These should definitely fit I just hope I like how they turn out.
I also ended up visiting this free trade store in which all of the products sold are either made by the indigenous people living in the hill side or by mentally and physcially disabled Vietnamese. They have a really nice shop in the back where you can watch them sew and such. I spent a lot of money but I got a beautiful - one of a kind - quilt, two handbags and a silly gift for ACP (smiles). Ummm...I'm definitely going to need to buy some luggage while I'm here. Crap - just realized that.
Well I'm going to go make my way to a store - need to stock up on water for the night!
more tomorrow......
I also ended up visiting this free trade store in which all of the products sold are either made by the indigenous people living in the hill side or by mentally and physcially disabled Vietnamese. They have a really nice shop in the back where you can watch them sew and such. I spent a lot of money but I got a beautiful - one of a kind - quilt, two handbags and a silly gift for ACP (smiles). Ummm...I'm definitely going to need to buy some luggage while I'm here. Crap - just realized that.
Well I'm going to go make my way to a store - need to stock up on water for the night!
more tomorrow......
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Saigon and Cu Chi Tunnels
If I had to describe my experiences from the last two days I could probably summarize by using two words....sensory overload. Saigon is crazy. I love it..but it's crazy. I would never never live here but I do have to appreciate the fact that it's very much it's own city with it's own vibe. It has so much energy.
So Saigon (formally named Ho Chi Minh city) has a population of about 7 million people and based on what I have seen...I'm pretty sure that every single person in the city has a moped/motorcycle. It is like a sea of mopeds everywhere you look. AND...I'm not exaggerating when I say this...it's LITERALLY like the game Frogger when crossing the street. In order to cross you must say a little prayer and then slowly and deliberately cross the street - not too fast and not too slow. You must never jump, run or stop. The cars and bikes expect you to stay at the same pace. They speed by right in front and right in back of you. If you change your speed you are toast! Surprisingly I mastered the art of crossing the street very quickly. I attribute this to my research prior to arriving. So thankful I'm such a planner!
Today I took a tour outside of Saigon. For the grand total of $4.50 - I traveled by air-conditioned bus to the area of Cu Chi. Which is about 70km outide of Saigon. This area was made famous by the Viet Cong tunnels during the Vietnam war (Vietnamese call it the American war...go figure). I was really looking forward to this part of my trip and I wasn't disappointed. A group of us were able to see some really cool things....all of the tiny tunnel entrances...weapons that were used by the guerillas...we even had the option of shooting a few rounds of bullets from several different guns. I chose the AK47. For about $10 I received 10 real bullets and used a REAL AK47. I have a sweet picture to prove it and well....some minor hearing loss. It was extremely loud...even hundreds of feet away but I figured that I would probably never have the chance to shoot a gun like that again. I rarely pass up such an opportunity. The tour ended with the option of crawling down in the tunnels...about 50 meters. Thankfully I am small enough that I didn't have to actually crawl. Like the Vietnamese..I was able to crouch/walk. By the end though I wanted the hell out of that tunnel. It was dirty and SO humid. Before getting back on the bus we all watched a short documentary that was filmed during the early 70's. This was the only uncomfortable part of the tour for me. Americans were referred to as the "crazy devils" and the film highlighted interviews with guerillas who were famous for killing many many Americans. I have not received ANY negative responses to the fact that I am an American but there was definitely an anti-American vibe during the film. I was happy to scurry back on the bus! I also have a new found appreciation for my boss Fred. He's a Vietnam veteran. If he were here I would hug him!
Well that's all for now (or all I have the energy to write about). Tomorrow I leave Saigon and board a plane to Hoi An (central Vietnam).
Cheers...shauna
So Saigon (formally named Ho Chi Minh city) has a population of about 7 million people and based on what I have seen...I'm pretty sure that every single person in the city has a moped/motorcycle. It is like a sea of mopeds everywhere you look. AND...I'm not exaggerating when I say this...it's LITERALLY like the game Frogger when crossing the street. In order to cross you must say a little prayer and then slowly and deliberately cross the street - not too fast and not too slow. You must never jump, run or stop. The cars and bikes expect you to stay at the same pace. They speed by right in front and right in back of you. If you change your speed you are toast! Surprisingly I mastered the art of crossing the street very quickly. I attribute this to my research prior to arriving. So thankful I'm such a planner!
Today I took a tour outside of Saigon. For the grand total of $4.50 - I traveled by air-conditioned bus to the area of Cu Chi. Which is about 70km outide of Saigon. This area was made famous by the Viet Cong tunnels during the Vietnam war (Vietnamese call it the American war...go figure). I was really looking forward to this part of my trip and I wasn't disappointed. A group of us were able to see some really cool things....all of the tiny tunnel entrances...weapons that were used by the guerillas...we even had the option of shooting a few rounds of bullets from several different guns. I chose the AK47. For about $10 I received 10 real bullets and used a REAL AK47. I have a sweet picture to prove it and well....some minor hearing loss. It was extremely loud...even hundreds of feet away but I figured that I would probably never have the chance to shoot a gun like that again. I rarely pass up such an opportunity. The tour ended with the option of crawling down in the tunnels...about 50 meters. Thankfully I am small enough that I didn't have to actually crawl. Like the Vietnamese..I was able to crouch/walk. By the end though I wanted the hell out of that tunnel. It was dirty and SO humid. Before getting back on the bus we all watched a short documentary that was filmed during the early 70's. This was the only uncomfortable part of the tour for me. Americans were referred to as the "crazy devils" and the film highlighted interviews with guerillas who were famous for killing many many Americans. I have not received ANY negative responses to the fact that I am an American but there was definitely an anti-American vibe during the film. I was happy to scurry back on the bus! I also have a new found appreciation for my boss Fred. He's a Vietnam veteran. If he were here I would hug him!
Well that's all for now (or all I have the energy to write about). Tomorrow I leave Saigon and board a plane to Hoi An (central Vietnam).
Cheers...shauna
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Hello from Saigon
Well...I made it to Vietnam. After almost 24 hours of traveling I made it to my hotel in Saigon last night. Surprisingly, the trip went extremely fast. Thanks to free wine and Nyquil!
So now, here I am at my hotel sitting in front a fan drinking Vietnamese iced coffee (yum). It's about 10am on Monday morning and I'm about to go explore the city. On the agenda - war history museum, Vietnamese market, Reunification Palace and a trip on a motorcycle taxi to Saigon's China town.
Oh before I forget - I experienced my first dose of censorship in this Communist country. I got on the internet and attempted to log in to my blog account. Guess what? It's blocked! As is Facebook. The woman at the hotel had to show me how to log in to an anonymous surfing site so I could get the websites I wanted. Crazy!
Anyways - I'll write more later. For now I'm going to go enjoy the city.
So now, here I am at my hotel sitting in front a fan drinking Vietnamese iced coffee (yum). It's about 10am on Monday morning and I'm about to go explore the city. On the agenda - war history museum, Vietnamese market, Reunification Palace and a trip on a motorcycle taxi to Saigon's China town.
Oh before I forget - I experienced my first dose of censorship in this Communist country. I got on the internet and attempted to log in to my blog account. Guess what? It's blocked! As is Facebook. The woman at the hotel had to show me how to log in to an anonymous surfing site so I could get the websites I wanted. Crazy!
Anyways - I'll write more later. For now I'm going to go enjoy the city.
Monday, March 15, 2010
Trip Details
Now that I've starting blogging about my upcoming trip I suppose I should actually talk about the trip itself. For those of you that don't know....
I'm taking a two week solo trip to Vietnam at the end of March. I leave Seattle on Saturday, March 27th and I return on Saturday, April 10th. I don't have a strict itinerary set but I will be spending time in the cities of Ho Chi Minh (Saigon), Hoi An, and Hanoi. I'll also have a 12 hour lay-over in Seoul, Korea on the way back so I'll have some time to explore the city while I'm there. I've learned from past travels that it's best not to book everything. Once I get over there I'll figure it out. It's one of the things I love about traveling....being spontaneous. I'm crossing my fingers that the language of English is in actuality "universal" as as I speak NO Vietnamese. Otherwise I'll be spending a lot of precious time pointing and making stick figure drawings.
So far I've taken care of most of my pre-travel arrangements. I've gotten my entry Visa, required vaccinations, malaria prescription (although haven't decided if I'm taking it yet), a new travel back pack, Vietnam specific first aid kit and I've booked the hotels and plane tickets within Vietnam. I still need to purchase travel insurance and make copies of all of my important documentation. Within the next couple of days I'll also need to start packing. I'm a terrible packer - I usually pack half of my closet. However, this time, I'm only bringing what I can carry on my back so this will be a learning experience for me.
We'll see what happens....
I'm taking a two week solo trip to Vietnam at the end of March. I leave Seattle on Saturday, March 27th and I return on Saturday, April 10th. I don't have a strict itinerary set but I will be spending time in the cities of Ho Chi Minh (Saigon), Hoi An, and Hanoi. I'll also have a 12 hour lay-over in Seoul, Korea on the way back so I'll have some time to explore the city while I'm there. I've learned from past travels that it's best not to book everything. Once I get over there I'll figure it out. It's one of the things I love about traveling....being spontaneous. I'm crossing my fingers that the language of English is in actuality "universal" as as I speak NO Vietnamese. Otherwise I'll be spending a lot of precious time pointing and making stick figure drawings.
So far I've taken care of most of my pre-travel arrangements. I've gotten my entry Visa, required vaccinations, malaria prescription (although haven't decided if I'm taking it yet), a new travel back pack, Vietnam specific first aid kit and I've booked the hotels and plane tickets within Vietnam. I still need to purchase travel insurance and make copies of all of my important documentation. Within the next couple of days I'll also need to start packing. I'm a terrible packer - I usually pack half of my closet. However, this time, I'm only bringing what I can carry on my back so this will be a learning experience for me.
We'll see what happens....
Jumping on the blog bandwagon
So I've decided to jump on the blogging bandwagon. I've made this decision based on a few different reasons. Number 1 - I have an interesting vacation coming up and I've had a number of people ask me to keep them updated on what's going on. Which leads me to reason Number 2 - I'm lazy (smiles). I'd rather write one post on my daily on-goings in Vietnam rather than have to write numerous emails while I'm there.
Lastly, I personally enjoy reading blogs. I think it's great to be able share in the exciting moments (albeit behind a computer) of other peoples lives. With that being said - perhaps someone will enjoy reading about my life (well at least my Vietnam travel stories). I'm pretty sure I will have a funny story or two to share. If this trip is anything like my last solo trip, there's going to be lots of laughter, a few tears, probably an itinerary change or two, and some definite crazy moments. It will be interesting...to say the least.
Lastly, I personally enjoy reading blogs. I think it's great to be able share in the exciting moments (albeit behind a computer) of other peoples lives. With that being said - perhaps someone will enjoy reading about my life (well at least my Vietnam travel stories). I'm pretty sure I will have a funny story or two to share. If this trip is anything like my last solo trip, there's going to be lots of laughter, a few tears, probably an itinerary change or two, and some definite crazy moments. It will be interesting...to say the least.
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