Travelling to Vietnam took long. First several hours in Singapore, the world's best airport ever (in our view) and then the whole night waiting in Kuala Lumpur. We decided against leaving the airport and spent the hours changing from restaurant to restaurant as they were closing for the night. It was morning quicker than we realised and suddenly had to hurry because of the airports absolutely ridiculous layout (our plane to Hanoi left in the domestic area).
First thing you notice when arriving in Vietnam are the motorbikes. Millions of them. Saigon (I use the old name for this city here as it is shorter, prettier and the only one used by locals) is supposed to be the busiest place but even in Hanoi we were amazed by the constant flow of traffic and the endless beeping of the horns. We booked a hotel in the old quarter and were pretty close to everything. The centre of Hanoi is easily explored on foot and that's what we did for some days. We got addicted to Vietnamese coffee right away and got ourselves a dose every couple of hours. We were also absolutely delighted by the Vietnamese food: fresh, clean flavours and lots of veggies - just how we like it! Pho soup, tofu, fried noodles... what a change to the overly meaty dishes of the Philippines. How much a few basics can change your mood! Even crossing the streets isn't as hard as everyone says, just watching locals and the traffic helps to give you a sense for it. After some gos it becomes as natural as having a wee. Also a challenge first is to get used to the currency, the Dong. 21'000 dong are or were around 1$ which means the brain has a lot of work to do throughout Vietnam (at least mine) which is another thing that makes every country so unique.
We didn't plan to go to Halong bay right away, my sister was supposed to arrive in 3 weeks time in Saigon so we saved this experience for later. Instead we left for Ba Be national park, some 8 hours north of Hanoi. A 2 day tour costs around 350 $ so we decided to do it the usual way, by public transport. The lady at the reception sent us to the wrong terminal but we sensed something and the taxi driver also said that it's probably not the right one. He drove us to the one in the east but after leaving the cab we found ourselves at the train station. Great. Now there weren't any taxis around any more, the area was too far away from any touristy place but we found one eventually as we were walking down a street heading the right direction (we guessed). The driver said he will use the meter so we didn't agree on a price but as soon as we sat in the taxi he fixed a price. First encounter with Vietnamese business style for us then.
At the bus terminal we caught a local bus to Cha Ra, a village close to the national park. It took long and stopped everywhere but we got to talk to some passengers, the bravest ones who tried their english with the very few tourists that came that way. Arriving after dark in a small place is always a bit awkward, it's impossible to figure out the size and style of a town. The bus stopped for us in front of the only guest house there and we were invited for a cup of green tea there. After the tea the owner announced the rates of his rooms and we were quite shocked. 450'000 dong which is about 22$ for a double room in the middle of nowhere. Not even Hanoi is that pricey. We got him down to 400'000 but that was about it. Too many guys were now participating in the haggle, we had no chance for more "discount". The room was good enough but then the owner started being a prick. We read in Lonely Planet that this guy organises trips and boats to the NP. It's possible to get a boat in, sleep a night or two there and then to get back to Cha Ra by boat again. Well not with him, he refused the option of just a transfer and wanted us to take a round trip. We took it eventually as we had no intention of spending the next day looking around for a guy with a boat. The price was fair too, cheaper than staying in the park.
Next morning we left by motorbike to the river, some 15 minutes away. There we hopped on a boat and we headed downstream towards the NP. The entrance is impossible to miss, it's a mountain with the river flowing through it, creating a massive hole filled with birds and bats. Especially the bats leave remarkable traces, a smell so acid and penetrant that it's hard to spend long time in there. Then we were in absolute awe by the nature along the river. It wasn't as impressive as the river cruise in Xingping, China, but just so green with bamboo everywhere and houses and boats scattered along the way. The river leads to a lake shaped a bit like a cross and we spent some time there before we headed to a waterfall. The walk there is short but it was so hot and humid we were soaked in minutes. The fall is nice but not spectacular. Back at the start of the walk we went for lunch in the restaurant. We sat down and waited. No one came to take an order or to ask what we want, we just suddenly got the table covered with plates full of things.It was good but expensive (probably the tourist set menu).
It was hard to persuade the driver to keep moving, he had some local liquor and also tried hard to make us drink and made fun of us when we didn't want to. He then just wanted to sleep but we were ready to head back. Eventually he got up and we headed upstream back to Cha Ra. It took about double as long as it took downstream and we enjoyed every minute of it. Not the racing with other boats though, the booze made the drivers a bit too boyish. Back at starting point we embarked and as we walked to the motorbike the driver asked "you walk back now?" We were confused first and said no, we want the motorbike back. Then we realised that he really didn't want to drive us back but it was too far to walk and besides that we didn't really know where the way back was. After some arguing he offered us a ride but for some money which we weren't willing to pay. So we argued that the trip includes pick-up and drop-off and after some more arguing he angrily agreed and drove us back. After all we enjoyed the trip and would recommend it. It's a long way to go there but you'll be away from tourists all the time. Only on the lake did we see some day trippers from Hanoi otherwise it's just you and Vietnam.
After another day in Hanoi we booked our first big bus trip in Vietnam to Hue. It's always interesting how transportation works in a new country and we had no clue about these "open tour buses" in Vietnam. We got picked up by a van at the tour agency and driven to the big bus. It was one with beds, similar to the one we used in China, just more comfortable. We were amazed how good we slept and arrived in Hue pretty relaxed. Sadly Annis belly started to work a bit too fast and we extended our stay day after day. Luckily it was the end phase of the ice hockey world championship and we were watching it every night. Sadly it was always on very late so we ended up going to bed at 3am and sleeping until 11. Very sadly Switzerland lost against Sweden in the final but I was still very happy with that result. The only thing we did outside the hotel was eating and visiting the citadel which was nice. But it was so hot that we had to escape to an restaurant with aircon. For the first time in our lives we were grateful for these machines!
Then off to Hoi An, a short ride away. One of the few places spared by the American bombs, Hoi An is a beautiful preserved old town with yellow houses along a river. We absolutely loved it and spent 5 days in shops and cafes. Hoi An is famous for its tailor shops where it's possible to get a tailored suit for 60$ in 24 hours. I got myself one for 120$ including a shirt in one of the shops. It's impossible to tell how good or bad those shops are, there are hundreds of them, we just chose a decent looking one without pushy staff. I think it's quite an OK suit but since this is my first ever I wouldn't trust my judgement and wouldn't be surprised if it would fall apart the second time I'll be wearing it.
Nha Trang wasn't on our list first but we gave it a go, mostly to break down the journey down south. It was as we feared, big, busy, modern and full of package tourists. On my dive trip to the outlying islands I was the only person aboard from a country west of Poland. And there were quite a few fellow divers on this trip. I read many times that diving Vietnam is not worth it or that it is disappointing but I really enjoyed it! Visibility was around 15m and there was loads of coral in much better shape than in the Philippines. What's missing is the big fish or fish in general. It's pretty empty. But then there's more time to concentrate on the small stuff which is plentiful, nudibranchs, crabs, needle fish and so on. And all day with lunch for just 45$! So diving in Nha Trang is good but the rest is nothing to come back for, unless you want to improve your russian or buy a stuffed baby crocodile waving at you holding a silver ball in its mouth. The beach is fantastic but you get the same beaches elsewhere without the hassle of all the touts.
Mui Ne is a weird place. It seems to stretch along the shore for ever and the beach is often enclosed with walls but we had a good time there. We found a cheap place opposite an amazing restaurant somewhere at the beginning of the beach. The further down you go the more upscale and russian it gets. One day we visited the famous sand dunes by motorbike and one day we just chilled. Then we went on the last stretch between us and Saigon. We also skipped the Mekong delta because we wanted to do it with my sister who was due to arrive in Saigon in two days. So we checked in in a nice hotel a it outside the tourist area of Pham Ngu Lao and got a 4 bed room for 400'000 dong to have a bed for my sister. And then we went for coffee.
