Return to Nam

We had decided to go back to Vietnam as we still felt we had undiscovered land to explore there, plus we had managed to convince my parents to come and visit us for two weeks and couldn’t think of anywhere better, with the vast range of different landscapes and the mentalness of Hanoi, we thought it was a perfect stamp for them to acquire on their passports and a ideal reason for us to return.  

 We entered Vietnam on the Mekong from Cambodia, heading to Can Tho for the floating markets and a riverboat canal trip along this bustling water way. Our trip started like any other with the meeting of  locals, the border brought us into a Chau Doc so we had to get a bus to Can Tho, we hopped onto some rather amusing bike taxis and were cycled through the streets to the local bus station, being dropped off at local bus station we climbed onto a mini bus and became enthralled at watching some women eating some hard fruit/veg, dipping it in chili then munching away, my staring was caught out and suddenly some of the said fruit was being pushed into my mouth, yum…. no not really, I still had no idea what it was and thought it was some sort of gherkin, later finding out it was unripe mango (we think). 

Our stay in Chau Doc was short and sweet but was definitely worth it, we hadn’t yet managed to get to a floating market and I really wanted to experience one, we thought the Mekong was the best place to appreciate this with it being such a huge run way for passing trade. We booked a 5am start with a local tour, securing a boat for the two of us and a driver. As sunrise crept in our first stop was the wholesalers market which was full of roaring trade and sellers, Sam noticed on the top of each boat was a stick with fruit/veg attached, soon realising this being what was being sold, after that we headed to a more local market which was a number of women selling a range of goods, so many squashes, toiletries and other goodies. We got right into the middle of all the selling and it was so nice to hear the women chatting away, pushing each other’s boats out and selling like crazy. The floating market was different to how I first imagined and in my mind it would be more a market style on the river, whereas what we found was just loads of boats selling loads of goods, no order, slight chaos but it worked none the less. It made me think of the scooters in Hanoi and to us it looks like there is no order but to the Vietnamese people they know the order and that’s how it works. 

After our market trips we had a wonderful boat ride through the back canals of the Can Tho river, it reminded me of the boat trip we took at the start of this trip in Kerala, souring through the waters, surrounded by palm trees, the backwaters were beautiful and we got off a few times for walks through orchards of jackfruit and bananas. The palms encased the river paths and it was so relaxing (even when it rained) to be away from the roads and people, just us and our boat, I imagined a life of when people only used the waters as their main passageway enjoying the calm we were feeling, wondering if at one time that calm wasn’t present due to the waterways being more like the roads are now in current day Vietnam. The waters is such an incredible beautiful way to travel though and one that makes a complete sense of ease due to the surrounding nature, we pulled in at a local home stay and were treated to a breakfast of pho (traditional Vietnamese breakfast) which was so good, we took an hour to enjoy the surroundings and watch local life pass by. After breakfast we headed back onto the bigger passageways and our lovely boatman shared fruit with us and made a number of different gifts out of banana leaves, constantly surprising us with something new. We arrived back at land at 1pm and headed back to our hotel for an afternoon of rest before our bus journey the following day to Saigon, HCMC. 

We took a morning bus to Saigon, again a quick stop over to catch a flight to Hanoi to then head to Sapa that evening. We stayed one night in Saigon, my main experience of the city being from our last trip where I enjoyed our stayed but could feel the more business side of the city, it felt ‘cleaner’ and that economy flourished more in this capital rather than Hanoi, it reminded me of the difference between Mumbai and Delhi, it definitely had a Mumbai city feel to it. We didn’t do much apart from arrive, ate and had a small wander before resting up for our long travel day the following day. 

We arrived into Hanoi in the morning and headed straight to the train station, we hadn’t managed to get to Sapa last time due to us only being away for three weeks and had other places on our route so we knew this time it was a must on our list. We booked our night train for that evening and planned 3 days in Sapa, leaving on the 3rd day back to Hanoi for my parents arriving. We secured a carriage all to ourselves, bonus and enjoyed our first experience of Vietnamese trains. The journey went well apart from the unknown time of waking up and therefore being up and down from 4am, however it was comfy and we got some sleep, we arrived into a town next to Sapa then you get the bus up to Sapa itself. We sorted our bus journey and arrived at the Sapa Cozy resting up for the day enjoying wandering around, working out where to get the best cake and tea in the hills. Sapa really reminded me of Dalat, we had visited Dalat last year which is another hill town, both have a real back in time feel with everyone going about daily life, living in the hills like the life down below doesn’t really exist, Sapa had more of a tourist hub feel due to it being a main stop on the travel trail, however in both towns it’s the hills that have the adventure and the town is just sleeping nest. We decided against doing any trekking, we wanted to get on a bike and really explore that way, we had read about the Ta Throm Pass and this seemed a perfect day out and an ideal way to see the beauty of what Sapa holds. 

The Ta Throm Pass is a mountain pass through two mountain ranges, and it was possibly one of the most beautiful sites of our whole trip. The green was like a postcard and the scenery just rolled on and on, never a dull site and always a new landscape to enjoy, whether that be waterfalls, rivers, farmers working, hills, random cows being walked from one village to another or the small delicate looking homes in the middle of nowhere, it was just spell binding to witness and I sat on the back of the scooter dazzled by the spectacular view.  The pass runs for miles and we had chosen to head to a particular village, which would take us a few hours, then turn around and head back, at no point was there a boring moment and the sun blazed down on us making the ride complete, we hopped on and off taking photos, going for river side swims and lazing in the heat of the day, as afternoon started approaching we headed back happy with the feeling we had really seen the Sapa countryside, we ended the day with tea and cake, a standard Sapa requirement and wondered how tomorrow could come close to the beauty we had already indulged in. 

The following day didn’t go as planned and we ended up heading back onto the Ta Throm Pass, finding a nice spot to put our blanket down and enjoy the views again, I got my diary out and Sam found his book, taken a few hours to relax with the gorgeous greenery before heading back to go for our night train. We were so chuffed with our few days ad felt humble with the experience we had, definitely feeling we got what we wanted out of Sapa.

We woke the next morning at 6am, it was Sam’s 30th and we had a day planned in our favourite city, Hanoi, we were booked into a swanky hotel and headed there from the night train, smiling knowing we had two weeks of nice stays and luxury in front of us, travelling digs being left behind, Ma and Ron were on their way. 

I had a number of plans for Sam’s birthday, hoping to make it memorable in every way, I had got a number of videos from friends and family, all of them wishing him happy birthday, and had a street food, bia hoi food plan mapped out. We arrived at our hotel and enjoyed a morning of coffee, birthday treats and relax before heading out for breakfast, Sam was overjoyed with his videos and smiled at the efforts people had put it. 

Our plan was to hit 6 street food restaurants and then whatever beer hoi we passed, we then had a chart I made to score the restaurants so we could take M&R back when they arrived, giving them a real slice of Vietnamese food. Our first stop was delicious pho, Sam enjoyed a tasty pho bo as I sat on and watched, sadly street vendors don’t sell vegetarian pho, the first meal went down a treat and Sam rated it a top high score stating it was his favourite pho bo he had ever tasted. The day went on from there and although we didn’t reach the 6 vendors we wanted we did however manage 4 tasty meals, the best for me being the crab spring rolls and another restaurant that sold a noodle, salad, stew like meal that was really fresh and full of garlic and ginger. Vietnamese really do their street food well and although it’s classed as street food its different from our style of pop up eateries, there more local restaurants cooking traditional food.  We also embraced the bia hoi and found a number of local stops serving the famous 30p locally brewed beer. At around 4pm we retreated for a rest and were surprised with a birthday cake from the hotel staff, after a slice of that was munched down we headed back out to a craft ale bar Sam had read about, sadly it wasn’t as we had hoped, however Sam enjoyed two tasty ales, pleased to have tried out the craft scene in Hanoi, we walked our way back to a bia hoi street stall and spent the rest of the evening watching Hanoi life scoot pass and talking of Sam’s next 30yrs.

We woke early the next morning to head to the airport to meet M&R, there flight was in at 6am and we wanted to be there for their arrival, my stomach was full of butterflies, it had been 7 months since I had seen my parents and I was so excited for two weeks in Vietnam with them. Knowing this was a huge trip for them both (and probably the last big trip they have, mother hen doesn’t love flying) so we wanted to make it the best trip ever for them. We had planned the first week in Hanoi, doing day trips, Ha Long Bay and the second week relaxing in Hoi An. 

Seeing them come out of arrivals was magic, we embraced smiling and laughing, so happy to see one another, there trip had been long so we headed back to the hotel so they could rest up. Their expressions were just as we had hoped, amazed by the manic roads, scooters everywhere and so many people, their faces were a picture and we knew we had made the right decision bringing them here first. 

Our first week was spent exploring the streets of Hanoi, taking them to local restaurants and getting into the life of being a tourist in Vietnam. We headed to Tam Coc for the day which is classed as the Ha Long Bay on land; the day was really fun and nice to see a different perspective of the limestone rocks from the view at Ha Long Bay. We took a boat trip along a lazy river, in awe at our lady Lin rowing and the beauty of the views she was showing us around. So much green with huge beautiful rocks jutting out of everywhere, sitting in the boat was incredible and I felt like a borrower with the grandness surrounding me. 

We also headed to Ha Long Bay, which turned out to be great; however we had planned 3 days, 2 nights but there was a typhoon which meant a number of trips were cancelled, ours being one of them. We did however manage to arrange a 1 day trip which for me was possibly a better experience then the original trip planned. We were picked up in a private car and had an awesome tour guide, Nam. We then had a private junkboat to ourselves (junkboats are what are used for the big trips, so it could normally fit 15 – 20 people on), Ronnie was gob smacked and kept saying, ‘I can’t believe we have this boat just for us’, we laughed away as our boat shipped out of the dock ready for an amazing exciting day ahead.
The day was incredible and like Nam said if you haven’t visited Ha Long Bay you haven’t visited Vietnam, M&R enjoyed the day, and for Mum who loves boat trips she was in her element. We cruised through Ha Long Bay, enjoying a feast of seafood taking in the UNESCO beauty of the centre site and the spell binding beauty of the scene in front and all around us. 

We visited the caves in Ha Long Bay, attempted Kayaking but the rain poured so we chose to head to the bay and viewing platform, the rain calmed by this point and Sam and Ronnie decided to climb, mother hen wasn’t feeling great so we took the option to laze on the beach bay letting the boys do the walking work. The viewing platform is a great way to get a bird’s eye view of Ha Long and is worth the walk, it’s a hefty climb though and definitely one you need a good amount of energy for. We took the next hour relaxing on the beach, the sun came out and we swam in the sea and drank some coconuts. Mum perked up after a little snooze and came and paddled in the shore.  Our journey back let us all reflect, taking in the last hour as we slowly cruised back, so happy we got our day and so happy M&R had loved it as much as S and I do. 

The next day we headed out to Hoi An, we had booked our favourite villa, where we stated last time and knew this week was about total relax. M&R loved Hoi An Garden Villas and were overjoyed with their room. The whole week went amazing, we found hidden beaches, cycled loads, got some amazing clothes made, took a cooking course and eat so much delicious food, delving into the relaxing world of Hoi An. M&R looked at home in the cobbled streets, they looked like they were soaking in every moment they could and I could tell the beauty of Hoi An had reached into their hearts and stolen their love. We couldn’t have asked for a better week and were all sad to leave, we had our routine of beach, pool, pre drinks on the river then food and were still wanting more of M&R time, sadly everything must come to an end and we embraced our last few days with a lot of laughter, nice talks and reflecting over their time in Vietnam. 

We headed back to the big city for M&R flight home the following day, we said our goodbyes that evening, so thankful for the holiday and experience and so proud of how they had taken the last two weeks, I knew it hadn’t all been easy and had been a huge culture shock, but as they left but embraced us both stating it had been a trip of a lifetime and they were thankful for the experience. 

We had two days left and spent it doing nothing, we hibernated and slept, catching up in the afternoons with the lovely Mike and Ash again, roaming the streets, drinking bia hoi, catching up on the last few weeks and hearing about future plans. We found some great street music and ate at some of our favourite street vendors soaking up our last two days before we left the capital. 

Our time came to an end quick and we said a huge goodbye to M&A, knowing this time it would be a few years before we saw one another again and not just a few weeks. It wasn’t goodbye but see you later and we group hugged for one last time, talking of how many countries we had travelled together and how thankful we were for the friendship developed. 

As we walked back to our hotel that night the streets were empty, we hugged, I had a tear and we talked of the beauty of our time in this incredible part of the world. SE Asia has been more then I could have hoped for and I know it’s a place I will travel forever, it holds so much beauty and culture, it has everything I love about travelling and this trip has changed me, it’s made me look deeper at myself and made me aware of my strengths and my weaknesses, it’s made me appreciate this life I have and be thankful for it every day. We are blessed to have these experiences and I hope I never forgot that when I return to England, life couldn’t be better than it is now and I feel so grateful for that. 

Now though it’s time to fly away and head to Mexico for our last month.

Courgeous Cambodia

Cambodia to me has been the one place I have left feeling impacted the most, it was like a history lesson from the minute we entered to the minute we left, being able to see the devastation of war everywhere, from the population to the experiences of the Khmer people, Cambodia for me is a perfect example of the courageous survival of human kind.

From Angkor Wat we headed to Ko Tah Kiev island for 3 days at Crusoe Island, Crusoe island is a rustic island stay we found quite a few months back, maybe even last year and we both had been so excited for this experience of island life, Crusoe just looked a dream, it looked what island life should be like, rustic, laid back, hammocks and the sea on our door step, we had booked one of the bungalows, the vie.  When we arrived the sun was shining and the view stood up to its name, It was an open bungalow that looked straight onto a nook of beach and the ocean, ah heaven! We made our nest and got straight into the water, happy, smiling, and content. Ash and Mike were in the explorer cabin next to us and we all agreed things were going to be great, what more could you want then sun and ocean for three days?

Well without going into it too much, the rain come and Crusoe Island went drastically downhill, we did however manage to string some hammocks up in the only communal area and read and drink tea/coffee, so relaxing did happen, just in a very different form to how we had imagined.

We did however find some space when the rain stopped to go and clean some of the beach (in exchange for beer), sadly the beach is cluttered with rubbish and we managed to gather around 8-12 bags of plastic bottles before the drizzle started again, at this we jumped into the ocean and attempted to body surf the waves. For around 2hrs we played like children in the sea, laughing, joking, being swept under, riding on top of the waves and making the most of the storm brewing above us, making the sea a delightful playground.

That evening we were informed the kitchen had run out of food, at that point we knew we couldn’t wait to get off the island and head to our next destination, Kampot. We took a stroll along the beach that evening and went back to the restaurant we had enjoyed lunch at, having a feast of pizza and wine, it was nice to feel humbly fed with food and drink, retiring that night with the joyful thought of no rain tomorrow and a room that didn’t have sneaky mice stealing from you as you snoozed.

We took a taxi to Kampot the next day, Sam had booked us a floating bungalow on the river kampot which just looked so beautiful and M&A had a treetop bungalow out in the gardens of Bodi Villa. Kampot was such a lovely stay, really relaxing and just what we needed after our time on the island. For the three days we were there we just relaxed by the river, swam, ate and drank delicious wine. It was a great place for reading, writing and just enjoying the blissful calm of life in Kampot. Mike turned 29 when were there also so we chose to take a day trip to Kep, sadly the weather turned but we didn’t let it stop our plan, we took our scooters and travelled the hour’s drive to Kep market. Kep is known for its tasty crab and we found a perfect shack to enjoy a tasty feast. It was like a northern day at the beach, the rain was coming down, blustery winds and cool in the air, for us though it made it feel like home, both being from cold countries we embraced the chill and enjoyed the gusty day at the seaside.That evening we headed home in time for our firefly tour, we had no idea what to expect for our evening boat trip but we certainly were not dissapointed. The four of us heading out on a priavte boat, docking up at the side of a mud drawn road, we all looked at each other as if to say 'what the hell' but our lovely tour guide got us walking and took us through a muddy puddle into a bushy area, at this he pointed out one firefly and the moon, great we thought one firefly, oh and the moon! but then suddenly a tree in front of us just flashed, like a christmas tree, the lights of the fireflies intermittently going on and off, we all gasped with happiness and our tour man started singing happy birthday (in Cambodion). With a huge roar of laughter we all broke down, totally unaware of how he knew it was Mikes birthday, we sang away though and enjoyed such a magical moment. Another 30mins passed and we enjoyed the array of activity these little insects brought us, smiling with wonderous joy at each flicker of light, another one of the worlds wonderful creatures. Our tour came to an end and we headed back to Bodi for an evening on the pontoon, drinking wine and talking about Mikes 30th plans ahead.

The following day we packed and headed for our next stop in Cambodia, Phonm Phen, we had decided to take two days to explore the capital, taking in the museums and history of this wonderful country we had been travelling and taking so much richness from. I had started reading a book recommended to me about the Cambodian civil war which for me was a great way to prepare me for the horrific sad information to be given at the museums. My knowledge of history is dire and so I am aware of the Khmer Rouge regime but wasn’t as fully aware as I should have been, by the end of day 2 though my brain felt like it could have exploded with the sadness, terror and stories heard of this devastating period and the impact it still has today.

We started the day by heading to S21, this used to be an old high school before the Pol Pot regime took it over and used it as a prison, we chose to get a guide for the few hours we would be spending there, our guide was a women who had lived through the regime and told us her story of how she had lost her brothers and sisters due to the child labour camps and starvation they suffered as children,  her parents had also been killed for no other reason than being from the city. Her story was like so many others and my heart broke at the information surrounding us. The high school – prison – museum held such strong messages and a proportion of it was still in the same structure as it had been in the 1970’s. In one part the walls are lined with images of child soldier’s, innocent faces turned evil for power, brain washed by a man clearly unstable in his own mental health all for a notion of sheer madness, I read somewhere that even if you wore glasses you would be killed. We learnt that over half the population were killed, that’s 1 in 2 people were murdered for no reason, I don’t even know If I can still digest the information now but I know I feel utter admiration for Cambodian people, their courage to carry on is inspiring after such a brutal attack on their society. We entered one part of the museum which was dedicated to foreigners caught up in the attack, one guy was from Newcastle, my home town (as most of you know), it didn’t have much information so I chose to read some more on the internet, it again was another tale of horror, he was seized whilst yachting and was taken to S21, captured and tortured and made to admit he was part of the CIA,  this was a method the Khmer Rouge used when killing, by people admitting they were part of the CIA they then felt they had allowances to kill the said victim, none of it makes sense, the Pol Pot genocide was one of sick  intention and in S21 alone 14,000 people were tortured and killed.

From here we headed to The Killing Fields, I had no idea what to expect from this museum and was surprised at how well it was organised for such a horrific but important memorial site. The Killing Fields was another area people were taken to before being killed, there is a number of these all over Cambodia but the one in Phonm Phen is the biggest. The memorial is carried out as a audio tour,  each stop informing you what this area was and what was carried out here, the detail is to harrowing to write up and I think it’s more important to experience or read more about it yourself if interested. The emotion it stirred in all of us was indomitable and we all had to take some time out to regain ourselves and feel the sadness and devastation that was being stirred.  For me at first I didn’t really understand the true importance of people going to visit these museums and have these experiences but as I walked around I realised I was mourning the loss of thousands of lives, mothers, babies, fathers, children, families taken away for no reason, butchered for no reason, the killing fields was a memorial to these people to be remembered and never forgotten, it’s so important to remember these periods of history and stop civil wars and genocides like this happening again and if places like this do that then the message is being put out there and a nation is not being forgotten.

We took the evening and following day to be with ourselves and enjoy the feeling of being in PP after the devastation it suffered, looking at the pictures of how the city was prior to it being captured to how it was during and how it had been built back up now, booming with industry and travelers. I was proud to wander the streets and experience the culture, feeling blessed to be in this life and with the people I was with. Our last day in Cambodia was one of reflection and my time in this beautiful country had been more then I could have expected a highlight on the travel train, how it has opened my mind and eyes, making me feel a different appreciation for life and the experiences I am having.

We said our goodbyes to Mike and Ash, arranging to see one another again in Vietnam, they headed up to Kratie for dolphin spotting and we had to get ourselves to Vietnam for our time in Sapa before the parentals arrived. We took the mighty Mekong out of Cambodia, crossing the border to Vietnam on the river, entering back into familiar territory and excited for the next month of travel.