Liberation Day Saigon

Well, I'm going to have to work backwards for a little while.  Today is Liberation Day here in Ho Chi Minh (aka Saigon) and we've had a great day!  The AMA Lotus arrived in port around 9 AM and we disembarked our home for the past week.  The experiences we've had in Cambodia and Vietnam to date have been awesome and I'll get them updated shortly.  I'm sorry for the delay, but the ship internet was intermittent and I couldn't use my computer with the pictures on it....

However, today we saw another part of Vietnam and another face of the people.  The fields we passed by were lush and green and well irrigated.  We were told that the rice grown in this region is particularly special - coming from seeds with 300 year old pedigree.  It takes 200 days to grow rather than the newer versions used in the north which can be cultivated and harvested in 90-100 days.  The variety we were seeing today is much more expensive that the other type and apparently particularly fragrant and a delicacy even for the the Vietnamese.

We arrived in Ho Chi Minh after approximately 60 minutes and were taken first to a Chinese temple and then to the former palace, now Reunification building.  The tour there was interesting with many rooms furnished with ornate furniture, famous agreements having been signed there, and ending off with a walk through the lower levels designed and built for protection during a nuclear bomb.  The rooms had radio gear, living and working quarters, and long, narrow, hot hallways. There was a strategy room and individual offices for important people such as the president.  The whole thing reminded me of the underground tunnels and bunkers under the Dover Castle in England, from which a lot of the 2nd World War was watched and commanded.

It was a bit of a madhouse there today with hundreds of people out for the celebrations.  We even got held up because of a cycle race, blocking off certain road approaches.


We came along to the Notre Dame Cathedral and the old post office originally built as a train station and of beautiful French architecture.  Then on to a lacquer-ware production centre.  We learned that true quality lacquer-ware, with mother of pearl or duck egg shell embedded can take up to 9 months to produce.  Such a small workshop, but truly lovely products made.

We then enjoyed another extremely busy local market with hundreds and hundreds of vendors selling anything from embroidered shoes to pots and pans, from Hong Kong silk to tailor made suits and dresses.  All vendors are keen to sell and can be a little pushy, but then the competition is great.  A little bargaining goes a long way and most people were successful in getting a little something for their friends or grandchildren.

We enjoyed a typical Vietnamese lunch at a lovely restaurant, including another birthday celebration for one of our group.  The food included shrimp, vegetables, stewed beef, fragrant rice and....the inevitable beer - this time Saigon beer - another winner in the long list of local beers we've tried!

The rest of the day was left to ourselves and we headed to first, the post office for more stamps and second, to the pool to cool off!  After a nice, simple dinner in the hotel we retired to our room to awake the piece de resistance of the day - fireworks!

At the appointed time, we headed to the rooftop pool and our superb vantage point ready for the show.  It started exactly on time and we saw many old favourite types of colours and shapes.  It was a great night to be in Saigon and we enjoyed the show very much.

Off to the Cu Chi Tunnels tomorrow.
All for now!

Fast Forward to Cambodia - Siem Reap

Fast Forward to Cambodia – Siem Reap (the text transferred across but the pictures didn't! I'll get another new plan for next time!)

We are now in Cambodia – our connections have been minimal!  I had a great commentary written out last night, ready to hit send, and the power went out for a minute!  Uggg!  Lost the whole thing so gave up and went to bed!

Our journey to Siem Reap was uneventful and we arrived after dark to a fabulous reception at the Sofitel hotel!  My goodness!  A full buffet of local and western food, under the stars and a great Cambodian Dance folklore show to enjoy while we ate.

The hotel was in fact, a golf spa and resort and wow, we enjoyed the luxury of it all.  The rooms were spacious and well appointed and the property lush, modern and you felt like the Queen herself!  The pool water was somewhat hot, but then, what can you expect when the air temperature is 32C plus every day?!

Our tours of Siem Reap started with a visit to the Angkor Thom – a huge complex of ancient temple ruins with exquisite stone carvings, arches, staircases and stories-the history of early Cambodia etched on every rock.  In the afternoon we headed out to another temple site, Bantey Srei, which was a little easier to walk around as it was on the flat, but still very interesting and informative.                       

We ended the day with a stop at an orphanage school, where we were entertained by the children with traditional dances.  Again, the stories within the dances were easy to follow and it was most enjoyable to see the children so happy and willing to share.  They opened their home and showed us around the very minimal home, with just a boys room and a girls room and multiple bunk beds in each, a basic kitchen and all power created through a very rustic generator.  The school also teaches art and many of the children are very talented with pictures depicting local life, the nearby temples, and flora/fauna of the area.

The next day we went to the famous Angkor Wat – the largest Buddhist temple site in Cambodia (it did start as a Hindu temple).  We walked up a long causeway to the site, through many doorways and across ruins to finally ascending an extremely steep set of stairs to the main temple heights.  There are monks who still live on the property, easily recognizable by their bright orange robes, bald heads and very weathered skin.  They collect alms in the early mornings and are invited to all family events at the family's home.         

We left Siem Reap and travelled to our embarkation point down lake, because the Tonle Sap Lake levels have dropped too low to accommodate the boat.  The rainy season will soon be upon us, and we are grateful not to have rain, but of course, everywhere was particularly dry.  The fields in Cambodia were not lush green or in cultivation because they do not have the irrigation systems in place that Vietnam has. Farmers are lucky to get one crop of rice whereas the Vietnamese can get three or four, we are told.  On this trip we had an interesting stop…..to see  (and try!) local survival foods – by that I mean spider legs and crickets.  Ugg.  Not up my alley at all and although interesting to see, there was no way I was going to try either!  Several of our group did and survived (as I knew they would) but I have to say I drew the line for me.  Instead I continued to enjoy trial cans of local beer (the Hanoi, the Tiger, the 333, and Angkor have been good so far - Chuckle!                                     

More next time when the internet is up again! And hopefully the pictures of the above events!!!!!!

Catching up

Internet has been on and off, so I'm having to try different ways to get on to this blog.  I have several pieces written, so this aft I'm going to try and get them onto the blog by cutting and pasting from my own computer.
Hang in there - neat pictures to come!

Oh yes, I'm watching the fields of Cambodia slip past my window - the Mekong river is quite wide at this point and we are churning up a bit of silt from the bottom.  Lunch soon - more later!

The Road to Ha Long Bay World Heritage site

Our drive to Ha Long bay was most interesting as we left Hanoi and ventured out into the Vietnam countryside.  The city continued to show its urban side with tiny streets, crowded houses, garbage everywhere, building sites in various stages of completion from no start to frames only to empty finished dwellings.  Then we entered the motorway and crossed one of the many bridges near Hanoi and came upon velvet green rice fields and open market gardens.

There were not many  farmers working the fields as the planting was done but there were water buffalo about and some diligent farmers pulling weeds and scooping water into the irrigation ditches.  Some paddies were surrounded with white plastic which we were told was the keep out the rats as the rice matured.  Others had little white rags posted on poles to act as scarecrows to ward off birds.  No harvesting was in sight but generally the fields and countryside were beautiful.

 

As we drove along we saw several factories once of which was Canon.  There are 4 in Vietnam and they are very productive and offer good work for local residents. The other, just outside of Hanoi, is the Samsung factory - the largest one in the world - also a huge employer and local benefactor.

Housing in Vietnam is interesting in that most houses are very long and deep, having two rooms either side of center.  They are built up, to 3 stories and have no windows on either side but plenty front and back.  They are multi-generational and grandparents often look after little ones while parents are away as work.  There is also often a shop on the ground floor at the front and everyone sells almost anything from there.  Wages are extremely low and the US dollar seems to go a very long way.  For example, a 4 litre container of water costs about $3 and will last a family almost a month.  Other water is boiled for use and used sparingly.

I'll share more about the people and their lifestyle, but I should get on to Ha Long Bay which was the title of this Posting.  Ha Long Bay is very built up with many hotels and tourist amenities.  There are over 300 tourist boats ready to go out on the bay showing the beautiful limestone formations.  Some junks are overnight vessels while others are day trippers.  Our wooden junk with huge sails was a very new one and most comfortable for the one night we spent aboard.

We were welcomed by the crew with a yummy lunch and then we went on deck to enjoy the numerous islands.  The water is notoriously polluted and I really could not believe the govt allows it to stay that way. This is one of the best resources Vietnam has and the tourism dollars are plenty in the area.  Nonetheless, we sailed on by the icky water and enjoyed the sights.

It was very overcast with heat haze, which allowed us to sit outside and not totally melt as we had been doing in the city.  We went to see a fishing village and were afforded a seaside view from a little dory type boat rowed by a single local fisherman's wife.  We saw a small hatchery, their school, chapel, provision boat, floating homes and a truly different way of life.

After our visit we returned to our ship for more good food and fellowship.  We sailed between the islands eventually getting to one where guests could climb to the top for some stunning views!  My sister did just that with the following results!

  

Must get on now but tune in soon for another installment.  We've moved on to Cambodia and the Angkor Wat temples.  I'll post about that tomorrow.  

All for now.

Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum and Rickshaws!

Today, with temperatures of 30 C Plus, we headed out to the Ho Chin Minh Mausoleum.  This is a huge park area, with strict security control rules and a true sense of pride in a man who believed in the Vietnamese people and lived a simple life as they did.  After his death, and contrary to his wishes, his remains were preserved and his body now lies "in state" in a huge pyramid type building.  We lined up in the heat but were fortunately expedited through the queues and did not wait too long.  We filed, double file, past the body and then out to the State Palace house and gardens beyond.  Uncle Ho, as some call him now, never wanted to live in this palace and so built a small, simple wooden house on the nearby grounds.  When state visitors come, there are receptions in the big house, and the governments are asked to bring (send) a gift of a native tree to be placed in the surroundings.  This area was lovely to see and his simple life and beliefs came to light.
 

  

After this visit we returned for lunch and then were invited to partake of a rickshaw ride through the streets of the city -with all the other crazy mopeds, scooters, cars whizzing by us!

It was a fabulous way to experience all the traffic, with someone else doing the driving and knowing exactly what to do!  We saw the lake-side, the suicide bomber monument, the Turtle temple (where there are still 300 year old turtles in the lake beside), and went down all the tiny little streets where there were vendors of absolutely anything!  From raw meat to flowers, boiled eggs to flowers, pots and pans to silks and shoes, vegetables to breads and so much more.  The stalls were shoulder to shoulder and sellers sold from their house fronts.  Children, women and men were all crouched on the ground, next to produce or goods laid out on the street and working at preparing the produce in some way - cutting flower stems, polishing shoes, stripping fruits and vegetables of their husks, cooking the meats.  It was fascinating to see, all the while more scooters and mopeds whizzing by and nearly careening into the vendors and us!

 

We're off to Ha Long Bay tomorrow - some beautiful world heritage UNESCO rock formations anc caves to see - home of James Bond's "bad guy" in Tomorrow Never Dies.  We will spend a night on a wooden junk and enjoy the famous sunset and surroundings.  Have to be up and out by 7 AM so will sign off now!

I hope you are enjoying these posts and I look forward to more followers!

Oh My Goodness - Welcome to Hanoi!

The past 48 hours have been fabulous!  We arrived in Hanoi after 24 plus hours on the plane and fell, most happily, in to a super comfortable bed in the Sofitel Legend Hotel!  This French Colonial style hotel is the best in Hanoi and the impeccable service was felt from the moment we arrived at the door!

But on to Hanoi itself!  After a super breakfast buffet in the Bamboo room at the hotel (with ALL the fixings you could ever want) we headed out to walk the city.  We circled the hotel and first headed for the International Post Office!  (for those of you who know me.....I ensure I get stamps from every country I visit for my Mum who is a collector and of course, to send post cards to my friends and family).  The post office was on a beautiful boulevard across from the Lake of Returned Sword - a beautiful lake with the Ngoc Son Temple in the middle.  I must first however, tell you of the need to negotiate the "crazy" drivers and moped users!  Each road is crowded with them all and to cross it, even at a pedestrian crosswalk, you must watch carefully and then simply venture out and hustle across the road!  It is an experience and if you are timid, it's not for you!

  

After enjoying a beverage (had to try the Vietnamese Tiger beer 5% lager) we continued on to the far side of the lake, heading for the famous Hanoi Hilton.  We got to the historic prison used for many years including incarceration of American Pilots by the North Vietnamese.  It was as sad and morbid as one would expect, but interesting to see the struggles the people have gone through to gain liberation and freedoms they now have.  

    
      From here we returned to the lake area and enjoyed lunch at a roof top, cityview cafe.  The food was excellent and we enjoyed the light breeze - the day had soared to 37C, thank goodness it was overcast.

The next adventure was to the Water Puppet Show, which was the highlight of the day!  The puppets, wooden figures on long sticks, perform on a water pool with a classic theater style backdrop.  The figures depict traditional rural people and animals and each scene tells a story.  Accompanied by a 6 piece musical troupe playing traditional instruments and 2 singers telling the tales, we saw waterbuffalos fighting, farmers planting rice fields, fishermen catching extremely large and lively fish, drummers doing festival beats, ladies dancing and last but not least, dragons!!  They swayed and dipped and dived all around and on the whole - it was absolutely fantastic!  I'm so pleased we will have the chance to see this all again tomorrow!

  I'm only putting up a couple of pictures as it was so tricky to get them. The puppets moved so quickly and blurred easily!  But what a fabulous show!  (and by the way, I DID pay for the privilege to take these pictures - not an uncommon practice in museums and in this case, well worth the effort!)

There has been so many more fun things to share about today - from the small cultural differences we saw to the wonderful people we met and the interesting sights everywhere!  We could have bought literally anything from the many street vendors or taken tours from the numerous moped, rickshaw or bus owners!  

I'll just have to leave something more for tomorrow! (and sort out the computer hiccups I had tonight!  always some little thing...)

All for now....

1 hour to Boarding!

A great ride to the airport with Red Car and then a most hospitable welcome by the Korean Airlines staff in Terminal 3.  We are certainly going to enjoy the Asian culture as we travel.  Their quiet ways, polite nature and welcoming attitude will be a great reminder of the way the world should be.

Lots of security here today, but that is understandable - a comment on what the world shouldn't be.  Nonetheless, we've packed well and have nothing to worry about.

Speaking of worry - two of my group are travelling from Houston and Dallas this morning.  But the news of the tornadoes and major storms across the US has me worried about their eventual arrival in Hanoi.  I do hope the storms pass quickly and all is well.  At this point, we can only hope things work out.

The airport is quiet this morning - relatively- and people are just calmly waiting for their planes.  Quite different than a Friday or Saturday night in the winter season when everyone is heading for the islands and some warm R & R!  Can't complain, just be patient.

Must go now, but looking forward to letting you know how the experience on Korean Airlines is.  They are known to be in the top 10 of the Asian airlines, so it should be very comfortable.
AFN! (all for now)

Less than 24 hours!

This time tomorrow I should be ogling the airport shops and thinking what have I forgotten??  There will be 6 of us travelling together for the flight and I'm looking forward to snoozing alongside the others for our 13 1/2 hours to Seoul.  Well snoozing isn't really what I'll be doing!  It will be hard to know when to actually go to sleep, this being a daytime flight.  Usually when I fly to the UK, I simply have dinner on the plane, a nightcap and then sleep as we wing across the Atlantic!  I wake up all ready to go at 6 AM in London or some such stop!  This time, will definitely be different!  We arrive in Seoul at 3pm but my head will probably be saying, time to go to bed!  Ah, the joys of exotic travel!

More later - need to finish off the last of the packing!

Less than 48 hours!

Right - it is now only  40 hours to departure - WOW!!  Still so much to do but the most productive part of my day today was working with Candice LePage - my  good friend and Social Media Internet Guru!  She is awesome!  She helped me re-sort my Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter accounts, including the business page versus the personal page, and now this Blog!  I'm really keen to have folks reading the blog and enjoying the pictures and comments from my trip while I'm away!  One doesn't get to the Far East very often and aboard such a great ship as the AMA Lotus from AMAWaterways!  But the biggest thing Candice did for me was explain (in words of one syllable ) the benefits of the Twitter Feed Service.  This means that each time I post on the blog, everyone will automatically know it and be able to tune in!  Yay! AND she even set it up for me! Yay again!

Vietnam Cambodia Thailand

I've included the map here today so you can start to get a feel of the trip!  I remembered, while talking to Candice, that I will also be stopping in Seoul which resulted in reminding myself to pick up some more currency from Global Currency!  Now I have a small supply of Korean Won, Vietnam Dong, and Thai Baht!  Cambodian currency is not available outside the country so I'll have to wait and see what that looks like!  Hope I can keep it all straight!

I heard from one of my colleagues that the Seoul airport is a really interesting place to explore so I'm glad we have a couple of hours to investigate.  It's been named as the Best Airport Worldwide from 2005-2011!  I want to see the cultural "booths" and find out what is on offer. It even has a SKATING RINK!  What will they think of next??? At any rate, it beats sitting around and watching people eat or shop!  I'll let you know more when I've seen it!

So, if you are interested in seeing and hearing what I'm doing in the way of travel for the next few weeks - tune in tomorrow for the next update!  In the meantime, please spread the word and help me expand my following and LIKES on my Guelph TPI page and this blog!  See you tomorrow!

4 days to departure - Vietnam here I come!

The bag is virtually packed - all I have to do it measure it again to be sure it meets the airline criteria!  Vietnam Airlines is a stickler for size, weight, number of bags!  However, my concern today is more with Korean Airlines and the 2 delayed flights they had out in BC this week. Sure hope that ours from Toronto just jets off on time and makes it to Seoul on time (13 1/2 hours later....) and then on to Hanoi (another 4 1/2 hours).  I'll be ready for a snooze when I get there!

At this point in the countdown for a big trip like this, one really needs to look at the last minute things!  I've checked the tickets, my passport, the visas, the vaccinations, and gotten currency from Carinta at Global Currency, global-currency.on.ca (including some extra for someone who needs it!).  Now on to phoning Visa to let them know, and completing the online registry for Canadians Abroad (voyage.gc.ca).  That really helps if there is a natural disaster (like the tsunami they had near Indonesia this week).  The gov't can contact family members and in reverse, can look for you in a stricken area!  Always worth doing!

It's also a good time to pre pay bills where possible, contact the cell phone providers and ensure coverage overseas, check out the voltage and plug configurations and ensure you have the right adaptors to stay charged and connected!  Not everywhere is like North America! and as a good friend of mine says, Proper Planning Prevents Poor Performance! I also am checking over the camera and the batteries and the cards to ensure I have what I need!

My goal is to download pictures daily and post a select few with comments on this site.  Hopefully, you'll enjoy the trip as much as I plan to!

All for now, more as plans unfold!