From Dalat, I took a seven-hour bus journey to Nha Trang. It was hot and muggy down by the coast, but it allowed my clothes to dry out. I rented a motorcycle and cruised around a bit, visiting a deserted resort abandoned in mid-construction. Someone told me that this place cost $100 billion dollars, which hardly seemed likely, but that's what people say. Anyways, as often happens in corrupt countries, they let construction continue to attract more and more investors, then they ran off with most of the money, so the resort, in its partially built magnificence, lies by the beach, empty and deserted.
Last night I took the overnight bus from Nha Trang to Hoi An. The air-con wasn't working, so it quickly turned into a sticky, sweating delirium-filled night. I arrived in Hoi An this morning and slept.
It's mid-autumn festival tonight, so there are drums and dragons roaming the streets. I think the dragons (played by kids) are supposed to get money in their mouths. Anyways, it's an interesting twist on Halloween.
Saturday, September 17, 2005
Green rolling hills around Dalat
I rode 3 km to this overlook dubbed the Valley of Love. They should have named it the Valley of Tacky Things with the carnival rides and wierd "Alice in Wonderland" sculptures everywhere.
Cruising around the lake
Cruising around the lake
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
The traffic wasn't so crazy that I couldn't take this shot of myself while riding the 7 km around the lake.
Does that radio tower look familiar?
The rainy season brought muddy brown water into the lake in Dalat.
Cruising in Dalat
Cruising in Dalat
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
Me riding through the hilly streets of Dalat. It was great to get on a mountain bike with functioning gears and brakes. The temperature in Dalat was perfect for riding around the hilly terrain.
Thien An Hotel
Thien An Hotel
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
From Saigon, I took a bus to Dalat, a hill station seven hours away. The weather was much cooler with the higher elevation. It was actually cold outside at night.
Dalat has the climate for growing a lot of vegetables including grapes for wine. Greenhouses are scattered along the countryside. It is a place for honeymooning Vietnamese too. There is a brown lake that the town is build around.
I stayed in this place, which was fantastic. It is owned by the same people who run Dreams Hotel. For $12 I got a room, tv, fridge, hot water bath/shower, family-style breakfast, a free bike, and free internet. This place was brand new.
Me and Robert on his last night in Saigon
Me and Robert on his last night in Saigon
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
It had been a year since I left Biloxi and last saw Robert. I had the shaved head back then. He was going back to Biloxi, Mississippi; the state of his home and possessions unknown. It's a good thing to embrace Buddhist philosophy.
Madame Cuc's Hotel 64
Madame Cuc's Hotel 64
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
Both times we were in Saigon, we stayed at Madame Cuc's Hotel 64 (madamecuc@hcm.vnn.vn) I highly recommend this hotel if you're travelling through. For $12 a night, you get breakfast and dinner, internet, cable tv, refrigerator, private bathroom with hot water, and free bananas, coffee, tea, and freshly squeezed orange juice whenever you want. The girls running the place are funny and always trying to joke around with you. If this one is full, they have three other places in the Pham Ngu Lao area that are the same.
Freaky-deaky dreamcatcher
Freaky-deaky dreamcatcher
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
Robert's drying socks and underwear make a wierd silhouette against the setting Saigon skyline.
Dinner at $1.50 a plate
Dinner at $1.50 a plate
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
We returned to this sidewalk eatery in Saigon. We had actually seen Andrej here the night before our delta trip when we were eating there. Here we were joined by Enrico and Anna from Italy. It was a nice change from the tourist restaurants at Pham Ngu Lao. Emily got a plate of clams in a nice sauce for about $1.50. It wasn't on the menu; she just walked up to the outdoor kitchen and pointed at the ingredients she wanted. And they didn't rip her off on the price!
To find this place, head south on De Tham street in the Pham Ngu Lao area, a couple blocks past the major intersection at Tran Hung Dao down a dark alley. You will see an intersection with lots of outdoor eateries there. This one is on the southeast corner.
Back at Allez Boo
Back at Allez Boo
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
We returned to Saigon after our three-day trip quite happy. It was a good way to see the Mekong and not work at it.
Similarities between the Deep South and south Vietnam? The mighty river deltas (Mississippi and Mekong rivers), the eating of frogs, snakes, and catfish, alligator farms, and French colonial architecture.
Cham village pier
Cham village pier
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
"One at a time..."
Robert tests the strength of Cham construction. The Cham people, one of several minority people in Vietnam, are the remnants of the mighty Cham civilization that made those red brick Hindu towers we saw in Nha Trang. They are now Muslim and sell woven souvenirs to tourists.
Fish feeding frenzy
Fish feeding frenzy
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
This is feeding time at the fish farm. The floating homes in the Mekong lie over fish farms. The lady opened the trapdoor and threw a couple handfuls of fish food into the water, and the fish came alive. I wouldn't want to stick a finger in there.
Wednesday, September 14, 2005
Stand up rower
Stand up rower
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
Hardy Vietnamese women paddled these boats around the Mekong. They do in the rain, wind, and storm.
Emily poses in the classic Asian way of making two "v's".
Rob takes a ride on a stand up row boat
We went to visit some floating homes (fish farms) and a Cham village via these stand-up row boats.
View from Sam Mountain
View from Sam Mountain
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
The next morning we visited Cavern Pagoda at Sam Mountain. This was a large rocky outcropping, an anomaly in the utter flatness that is the Mekong delta. The cavern pagoda was made for a woman who used to a small cave to hide Viet Cong soldiers during the "American War".
"You like massage?"
"You like massage?"
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
We spent the night at Chau Doc, near the Cambodia border. At the hotel's restaurant, waiters went around giving massages.
Sun setting over the Mekong
Sun setting over the Mekong
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
These rice patties are flooded by the high waters of the Mekong during the rainy season.
Villagers bathe in the "clean" water of the Mekong
Villagers bathe in the "clean" water of the Mekong
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
Our tour guide, Mr. John, explained that the water of the Mekong was very clean during the rainy season, aside from the brown color from the rain. The river people drank, cooked, washed, and bathed in this water without fear. As we floated down the Mekong for three days, all we met were happy folks eager to wave and greet us with a "hello!".
Floating river homes
Floating river homes
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
These floating homes were fish farms. They float with the help of empty 50-gallon drums underneath.
Floating on the Mekong
Floating on the Mekong
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
We met Suzy, an Melbournite, while cruising to Chau Doc for the night. She had travelled from Hong Kong into China and down through Vietnam. She was headed to Cambodia next.
Dude, dat's snake!
Mekong cuisine consists of delicacies such as snake, frogs, eels, and mice. This tasted okay. The skin was a little chewy. The meat was sort of nondescript. A little like fish. A little like eel. Like Mr. John, our tour guide said, "Snake really just tastes a lot like snake."
Taking a bite into stir-fried snake
Would I be doing this at home? Probably not, but trying different things is what travelling is all about. In this restaurant, they had glass tanks in the back with frogs, eels, and snakes.
Other wierd food in Vietnam? They have duck eggs (slightly larger than chicken eggs) with not-yet-fully-developed embryos inside. I've seen people sitting on sidewalk tables with a dish of hard-boiled duck eggs, and the patrons eating the eggs with spoons. Yum! I haven't tried this yet, but we'll see what happens in the next few weeks.
Visiting a rice mill
This is why my mom told me to wash my rice before cooking it. This place was covered in dust from dehusking and polishing of rice. Vietnam is either second or the third largest exporter of rice in the world (right behind the States and possibly Thailand). Half of their rice comes from the Mekong river delta and the other comes from the Red river delta in the north. Rice production involves seventy percent of their working population.
I read in the Lonely Planet guide that before 1986 growing rice was still under the laws of collectivism (this is still a Communist state, whatever that means). Vietnamese would try to smuggle out rice from the Mekong Delta (you were in violation if you were found with more than 10 kg of rice when leaving the area). After 1986, they changed the laws and allowed for profiteering, and three years later Vietnam went from a rice importer to a rice exporter, once again proving that most people need positive reinforcement to work harder. I love capitalism!
Poles indicate what the boats sell
Poles indicate what the boats sell
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
These fruits and vegetables on bamboo poles let people know what these vendors were selling.
Enjoying pineapple for 25 cents each
Enjoying pineapple for 25 cents each
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
We stopped at a pineapple boat and bought some fresh pineapple. Going clockwise from the bottom left are Anna (Italia), Heath (Australia), Olivia (France), Stella (Australia), Andrej (Slovakia), and Robert (USA).
Cai Rang floating market
Cai Rang floating market
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
This floating market was only 5 km up river from Cantho. We spent the night in Cantho so we could make it to the floating market in the morning (around 8 am)Unlike the floating market near Bangkok, this wasn't a staged area for tourists. The river traffic bustled with boats stopping to buy fruits and vegetables to sell at markets. Robert commented that the cheap fruit we bought in town had trickled down through at least four sellers (and mark ups) before coming to us.
Boat people
Boat people
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
This young woman does her laundry on the back deck of a boat. It can be cheaper for families to live on a boat than on land in the delta. Think of it as living in a Winnebago and using it as your office too.
Enjoying 40 cents worth of beer
Enjoying 40 cents worth of beer
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
Vietnam is one of the cheapest places to get drunk. Compare 20 cents a liter to about 50 cents for a 370 mL bottle of Tiger beer that you pay for in a restaurant. What a rip off!
The Vietnamese rum is cheap too: 12,000 dong (80 cents) for a big 700 mL bottle.
Bia Hoi
Bia Hoi
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
Bia Hoi means draft beer, which comes as cheap as 3,000 dongs to a Liter, which is about 20 cents/Liter. You see these places all over Vietnam, with their low tables and plastic chairs. These guys were drunk and kept coming up to us to talk to us, repeating the same questions again and again in English. Robert noted that drunks in Vietnam could be as annoying as drunks in the States.
Cupping
Cupping
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
This is the traditional medicinal technique known as "cupping". Glass cups are heat suctioned to your skin to suck out evil humors, or whatever. It leaves purple bruise marks on your body in the shape of circles. This man was doing this on the sidewalk and invited Andrej to give it a try. He had one on his shoulder for about a minute, not long enough to leave a bruise.
Trying some eel
Trying some eel
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
Trying a couple Mekong culinary delights: eel and frog. On the boat, we met Andrej, a Slovakian photographer living in Sydney for the past three years. We all hung out for the next couple days.
We spent the first night in the Mekong Delta at Cantho, a pretty large town. The tour guide said we could meet him in the hotel lobby in the evening and he would bring us to a place to get some traditional Mekong cuisine for cheaper than we could get it in Saigon. Of course, he would be taking us to a tourist place and possibly receive a kick back. We had dinner on our own, eventually finding this well-lit restaurant away from the riverfront area. They first gave us a menu in Vietnamese without prices, but we asked for English and got the menu with prices (possibly inflated? who knows?). The Lonely Planet book says you're supposed to order food at these restaurants without knowing the prices, but to ask for the price after you are done ordering. I think it's just another way to give tourists an inflated bill.
Vietnamese conical hat
Vietnamese conical hat
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
They sell these hats all over Asia, but this is the first place that I've see locals actually wearing them. Mostly women wear these hats, but also a few men. This hat cost about 50 cents.
Approaching Vinh Long
Approaching Vinh Long
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
The nice thing about taking a guided tour is that you don't have to think about anything at all. Everything is taken care of for you. We paid $25/person for this three-day tour of the Mekong. This included transportation costs and hotel accommodations. The only thing it didn't include was food.
If you're going to visit Vietnam (or Thailand, Cambodia, or Laos for that matter), don't book the tours from home. Book them when you get here because you will pay about a quarter of the price, and it's easy to sign on to multiday package tours once you arrive.
If you don't want to sign up for a tour, you can easily get around Vietnam on "open tour buses" which are offered by several companies on the tourist route. It's cheap and more convenient than the public bus system which would take longer in the long run. When we had gone from Saigon to Nha Trang, it only cost $8 and allowed us to get off in Mui Ne. You can take a bus all the way from Saigon to Hanoi like this.
Catholic church at Cai Ba
Catholic church at Cai Ba
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
The Mekong is dotted with small islands connected by boats and small footbridges. We stopped here for lunch and rode bikes around on the island for an hour.
Mekong river traffic and tv antennae
Mekong river traffic and tv antennae
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
A boat this size serves as a barge as well as a home for the workers on it.
The skyline is filled with antennae which is seen all over Vietnam. I guess everyone is plugged into the boob tube these days.
Tuesday, September 13, 2005
Drying rice pasta
Drying rice pasta
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
This is how they make rice noodles. They start with a gooey paste made from boiling rice. They pour this paste out and let it dry on bamboo racks. Later, they cut this into strips to make the vermiccilli used to make pho noodles.
A visit to a candy factory
A visit to a candy factory
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
On the first day of our tour of the Mekong Delta, we visited a candy factory. Here they puffed rice over a fire-heated wok with black sand. They sifted out the sand using the sieve, and used the husks to fire the wok. They later led us to a room where they made rice krispy treats, and we sat to sample their wares and enjoyed some tea. I didn't mind this commericial visit as there was no hard sell and we got to enjoy some snacks.
Bombproof hangers
Bombproof hangers
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
These concrete bunkers used to protect fighter jets.
Danang International Airport
Danang International Airport
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
We flew into and out of Danang, about 30 km from Hoi An. Danang was about 150 km from the DMZ separating north and south Vietnam, and the sight of the largest US military base in Vietnam. This is where thousands of American GI's entered Vietnam.
Shaping clay pots
Shaping clay pots
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
The old lady shaping clay invited us to try our hands with the mud, but we both declined.
A nice place to take a break
A nice place to take a break
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
We took a break and had lunch at a restaurant deck with this view.
Palm-lined roads
Palm-lined roads
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
This was the stretch of road to the beach from Hoi An. We rented the motorbike for less than $3, but it came with hardly any gas as we soon found out. On our way back from the beach, we ran out of fuel. We pushed it to the first gas station (a old fashion handpumped tank) being manned by a young girl who said it was a standard 10,000 dong per Liter. As she approached the bike to fill it, her father yelled out something in Vietnamese. She looked at us embarrassingly, and said it was 12,000 dong/L. No way! We pushed on to another gas station (only 50 feet away) where we were told the same story. Someone even said it we would have to walk for 5 km until we found a large gas station for 10,000/L, but it was the fourth place that actually gave us the honest price of 10,000/L without question. We thanked them and bought a bottle of water from them in return. Robert and I are all for capitalism and profiteering, but we also have no problem in teaching folks that we can walk away at an unfair price.
Peeling stucco walls
Peeling stucco walls
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
Unlike the crumbling moldy colonial towns in Cambodia and Laos, Hoi An is actively preserving their buildings with a fresh coat of paint. As patches of it falls off however, you can imagine what this place would look like without the paint. We were supposed to buy tickets to enter the old city, but I think this was just to let you enter five "museum buildings" or something like that. Robert and I didn't bother to visit any of these sights.
Drinks with little umbrellas
Drinks with little umbrellas
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
Robert and I spent an hour enjoying the view from the Lighthouse Cafe and Restaurant looking at Hoi An from across the water. This was a cool-looking new building constructed in the Old French Colonial fashion with large shutters and patio doors to let the fresh air in.
Sun setting over Hoi An riverfront
Sun setting over Hoi An riverfront
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
Hoi An is a UNESCO World Heritage site with a preserved city center and a maze of narrow alleys. In the evenings, you feel like you've walked on to a soundstage for a kung fu movie.
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