Vietnam: Ninh Binh

We had an early rise for our bus tour out to Ninh Binh, south of Hanoi.  On the way, I experienced my first hole in the ground toilet.  I would like to thank my freedom camping experience in NZ allowing me to conquer this challenge with ease! 

We had a boat ride along a river which curved along rice fields and mountains—it was beautiful.  We had an elderly couple as our rowers--the only English they knew was “money” tapping Erik on the shoulder throughout asking for it.  They paddled us through the three caves.  We bought the couple some drinks and a snack, but they kept trying to sell us things and ask for money.  It definitely takes away from the experience, but Vietnam is a third world communist country and people are trying to get by the best they can. 

A river side home at the foot hills

At the gate to a temple in the "city" of Ninh Binh.  Doesn't Shelley look excited!

The colorful flag flown at temples throughout Vietnam.  We see them everywhere.

Doorways were definitely not made for fat Americans

Shelley at the front of the boat taking in the sites and wishing we could row the boat for some exercise.

Erik perfectly content being rowed and sweating up his own river!?

A view down the river, isn't it pretty?

Another view of the surrounding hills and rice fields and a curious westerner

There are temples at every turn along the river and in the hills as well

The Vietnamese do still were the traditional hats

A dragon on the top of a hill by a temple...look closely

Exiting the cave you can see Shelley's cute profile (a cool pic if I may say so)

A bed off the water in a hole in the cave.  Yes, someone lives there

Erik and the two rowers, right before she kept tapping him saying "money"

After a fun boat ride, we rode bikes with a French man along the rice fields, the ducks, the goats (a local delicacy we had at lunch), shacks, and a school until the road ended.  It made me so happy to ride a bike, even if it was a only a one speed!

On our bike ride through the countryside.  It was a lot of fun, and of course Shelley showed me up--Shelley rides a professional bike at home and I like ones with engines

At the end of our ride there was this little town.

Hours later we made it back to our hotel and went out for a pina colada (we actually found a place that sold them!)—not quite the same as in Mexico but refreshing nonetheless!

Vietnam: Hanoi

With our 3AM wake up call, we rolled out of bed for our departure to the airport for Hanoi, Vietnam.  Stepping out of the taxi at the wee hours, Erik realized something just didn’t look right—we were at the wrong airport!  Thank goodness our airport wasn’t too far away—the joy of the language barrier.

Dysfunctional would be the best word to describe the visa process in Vietnam.  The process is not clearly explained—not in guidebooks, online or blogs.  So we were ready for just about anything to happen.  We did make it through and now for our next challenge….getting to our hotel!

Our first scam in Vietnam: On our way to the hotel by taxi, our driver stopped at a random hotel with a man opening our door, asking for our information, holding a brochure from our hotel which Erik had previously told the driver.  Erik reacted quickly—having heard about this scam-- and asked the man to give us our information.  They basically tell you the hotel you are in is overbooked and they put you at a different (i.e., worse hotel) losing your deposit on the hotel you booked. 

Scam #2: A girl claimed to be a student and working for the Red Cross.  She showed us some sheet, asked for money, and then couldn’t understand why wouldn’t help her.  We walked away.  We see her again two days later and Erik called her out from across the street and saved another unsuspecting tourist.

We have had to learn quickly (with all of the previous countries we visited) to be on our guard at all times! 

Onward and upward…

Traffic swarms around with people on scooters, cars, bicycles and some unusual transport concoctions with everyone obeying their own rules—none.  The rare traffic light--no one obeys it.  It is a symphony of chaos.  To cross the street, you must have nerves of steel and move slowly or you will be road kill. 

Awesome street crossing in Hanoi

They hate the sun here, so this is how the woman ride their bikes.  Mind you it is over 100-degrees, plus it is a little scary to see tons of riders looking like this

For lunch, we tested our taste buds with some snails and “vegetarian buns no vegetables” (true to their word, they were plain buns).  With our ambitious itinerary, we saw the Hoa Lo Prison Museum, Opera House, History Museum, St. Joseph’s Cathedral, Dong Xuan Market all in the Old Quarter (our home base), shops and lovely Hoal Kiem Lake. 

Hanoi Opera House.  No we were not allowed in, boooo!

St. Andrew's Church.  Again, we could not enter

Sunset on Kiem Lake along with a small shrine on the lake

A necessity for us as we tend to walk over 20-km everyday it seems

Communist sign indicating the beginning of the "liberation" celebrations

A little red bridge on the left going to the temple on the lake

Erik standing guard, protecting the temple from sweaty tourists

 

Hanging out on the red bridge on the lake...the only place with a breeze.  Can you spot the dry area on Erik's shirt??

While in the Lo Prison Museum, it was obvious we were in a communist country with their interruption of their many wars and the “luxurious” treatment toward captive soldiers.

It was a great day that ended with a delicious dinner which included frog legs and some local beers.  Cheers to Hanoi!

From Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam

Happy Birthday Brittany!!  Enjoy your day and the weekend...say "hi" to everyone.  Love you!  My gift to you is a spot on the blog.

Just arrived in southern Vietnam--Ho Chi Minh.  We spent around a week in central Vietnam, with poor internet service.  It is better here and will update everyone on our Vietnam experience so far.

It has been enlightening.

To bed we go..

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Determined to add color to our plates for breakfast in the morning, we loaded up on fruits and lettuce (among other things) at the hotel.  We walked to the botanical gardens, leaving a sweaty trail behind us.  To our surprise, everything was basically closed but walked the grounds and saw most the sights.  Later that afternoon, we went to the Golden Triangle in Bukit Bintang—their version of Michigan Avenue.  Many malls, shops and hawkers stands.  We made it to the Petronas Twin Towers and hung out in the KLCC Park right next to the towers.  It felt like we were in the west with many modern things—we even saw runners on a running path!

Shelley monkeying around at the botanical gardens in KL

Taking a break at an ampitheater

Lots of walking...need more breaks

The Petronas Towers...lovely 

Cool sculpture of a whale, sharks, and dolphins in the park by the towers

Emulating the towers.  Shelley was mad that her arm wasn't in the right spot

Night pic of the towers.

The rain ultimately ushered us to a roadside food stand and home.  Erik caught our waiter trying to over charge us (not a real surprise anywhere here in southeast Asia) but had it fixed, consequently the cook dumped out half of his dish back in the wok—always an adventure here?!  Last night in Malaysia with a 3AM wakeup call ahead! And on to Vietnam…

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (aka "KL")

View of the Patronas Towers and the Menara Tower from our hotel

A couple of games of Uno, a movie, and the flight to Kuala Lumpur was over.   We took a bus with the locals and explored our way on a train to get to our hotel.  No easy way i.e., taxis, shuttles for us.  

We checked in and walked around looking for a place to get some water and food.  The food vendors spoke no English, so another adventure with a couple of spicy dishes and lots of water all for $3.  Oh, and two more dollars for some ice cream to cool my palate.  No simplicity in this adventure of ours.  Exhausted and lips burning from the spices, we passed out.

With some z’s under our belts and full tummies from an interesting buffet breakfast at the hotel (cuisine crash course of cultures) our feet hit the hot pavement to uncover the Malaysia.  Although we had a map, most of the time we would stumble upon a market and take our own detours.  Today was no different.  We explored the Central Market (outside and inside) with its many booths and shops of arts and crafts, food, name-your-knock-off, fabric, phones, sunglasses, etc.  This was a step up from the markets in Bali and felt a little bit cleaner.   

Next up a textile museum which made both of us appreciate the craft and history behind the many styles.  

We continued to the City Gallery which contained a cool city model and explained the history of Kuala Lumpur (1957 declared independence from British rule).  Exiting the gallery, Erik was warmly greeted from a very excited little man missing most of his teeth.  He not only had Erik take pictures of him posing around the Royal Selangor Club but had me take pictures of the two of them together.  Big smiles all around!  Erik made his day.  Picture by the 100m flag pole, one of the tallest in the world and we were off for Chinatown.

Tallest flag pole in the world...it's tall!

Shelley loving KL, Malaysia.  Ask her to sing her "Malaysia" song

Most photographed building in KL, the Sultan Abdul Samad

Royal Senegal Club, no we cannot enter!

Freedom Square...Shelley doesn't feel so free in this country

Cool fountain in the city.  We wish we could have jumped in.

Woman hawking flavored rice pudding dipped in peanuts.  They were chewy and good

Another beautiful shot from our hotel room

Can you tell we love the view??

Tons of research done by Shelley for each new location.  "I am so tired"

We sightsaw until we dropped and ended the night with dinner in Chinatown in the rain and winding through the maze of the night market.  

Bali: Kuta area

Last day at the hotel on the beach and we started the day right…with ping pong.  Granted the table was warped by the humidity but I, Shelley Knight, was the winner!  Best out of three…OH YEAHH!!!  I only gloat because Erik always wins (Erik interjecting—“I was being nice”); maybe Bali is rubbing off on me favorably.  

The only one swimming...Erik

Give me a nice big hug Shelley!

Okay Erik, I'll give you a hug!

We walked into town again hearing the usually sounds, “Massage?  Transport?  Manicure?  You look my shop?  I give you best price!,” etc.  This has been really off putting, as everywhere you go people trying to sell you something, from bow and arrows, puppets, wood carvings to hats, shirts, sunglasses, blah blah blah.  We don’t think we’ve ever said “no” so many times in one day!  The day ended with another late night dip and….

Sunset on Bali

Hottie on the beach at sunset on Bali

Our postcard to everyone back home.  Miss you!!

Shelley trying to get every drop of sun!

Robbery!  The next morning we realized the money we took out the night before was stolen out of our wallet that we put on our nightstand (not the safe) before our late night swim.  Between 10 and 11pm, while we swam and spoke to our new Canadian friends by the pool, someone broke in our room and the money was gone.  

We reported it to the hotel, and all they kept saying “Not our fault”.  Trying to get over it-- we retreated to the beach and pool.  A perk on the beach for Shelley were the two cute little girls insisted on having their picture taken with the model…that started the improvement for our day! 

Our day ended nicely with a visit to Un’s for their special frozen drink mixed with orange, pineapple, honey, lemon and their local alcohol.  The alcohol was a mix between sake and vodka—thanks for the free shot Un!  It was the first frozen drink we have seen in Bali.

Packing up for our last day, we rubbed our weary eyes from an interrupted sleep.  It sounded like an animal or something was stuck in our ceiling crawling around.  Erik tried whacking the ceiling with an umbrella to scare away the creature but no such luck. Maybe it was the hobbits we brought from New Zealand!  So, we relied on our ear plugs and sound machine for respite. 

On the last day we had a couple of hours to chill by the pool.  We were greeted with a huge rain shower and overcast skies—needless to say, we enjoyed our stay but ready for the next leg of our trip…Kuala Lampur, Malaysia here we come!