Sunday, February 7, 2010

Amazing Vietnam!

Vietnam is AWESOME. We have loved every single city so far! Maybe that is because it is Chinese New Year so everywhere we go there is a party, but I think that's only part of it. Saigon (Ho Chi Mihn) was FANTASTIC, we can't wait to get back. They actually USE the parks for what they are for. Jazzercize class at dusk was my total favorite :) We got cheap perfume (hope they're legit!) and some DVD's we're excited about. We've heard most of them work, and even if they don't it was way cheaper than renting them anyway! Scott is most excited about Invictus :)

So, basically Ho Chi Mihn was a total highlight! Our hostel had the SWEETEST guy who did everything possible to help us. The Pho soup was delish, in fact we had it for both meals we ate in Siagon (same as Ho Chi Mihn, Siagon is the ancient name which the people prefer) We saw the most amazing hackysacking going on- the boys would do handstands and kick the sack over their heads backwards!

The sleeper buses were pretty nice. Better than sitting buses for sure, but still very cramped. We've done sleepers 2 nights in a row now and we're pretty sick of it. I didn't sleep a wink last night, and Scott didn't really ever fall asleep the night before that. Obnoxious.

Our next city was Nah Trang. That is a gorgeous beach town! Rivals Thailand for sure! We paid about $1 each for a matted beach chair for teh whole day and just read and played cards and relaxed. Some local kids came to play, so Scott had them splashing around in the South China Sea and we learned some Vietnamese hand games from them. They ended up collecting seaweed/flowers for me and presenting them to me at the end of the day. So great :)

We had streetfood for lunch and dinner there. Dinner was $1 total (Vietnam is significantly cheaper than the rest of SE asia) and we tried all these great flavored rices and chicken with no bones! That was a first! Our laundry never dried from the night before, so we went back to the bus station roof where we'd hung them in the morning and collected all our clothes. Then, we showered at the public bus station. That was probably an all time low. It stunk. It was dirty. People everywhere... I mean the shower stall was private, but everyone was moving everywhere and the ground was muddy and the shower... cold. So we boarded the bus again for our 12 hopur bus ride to Hoi An.

Hoi An is the world's hub for tailor shops. And yes, we are waiting for a coat, and fitted dress shirt to be finished :) We'll taxi into Datrang tonight and we have a FLIGHT to Hanoi tonight. Luckily our hotel there is already arranged so we won't have to wander the streets at midnight when our flight arrives. We are excited to spend our next and final 2 days of our trip at Halong Bay! We've spent some time job searching online today and we are both very excited to get jobs and begin our real lives!!! But until that time comes, Vietnam is the BEST!

4 comments:

Heather said...

wait until you come back and experience boneless, skinless chicken breast!

glad you won't have to scramble for your hotel when you get in so late. I never could sleep on sleeper buses either.

Celebrate Chinese New Year's for us!

Julie T said...

No one ever seems to hear that much about VietNam because I guess so few go; but they will now since you've got a public post! I hope the clothes come out looking and fitting great! Why do you think the people are especially kind and friendly there? Is it because you're such a novelty? No problems with sunburn or mosquitos?

I just have to say, I am so grateful for all the details you are taking time to share while you are still there...somehow hearing them at the time is 50x better than hearing how it was later.
Don't forget to record a few sounds of the city/country in case you decide to put together a movie down the road. Good luck with your job hunting! How's your backpacks working out and your free space for purchases? Have you had to jettison much?

Noelle said...

You are making me want to go to Vietnam really bad. I am glad you guys were ale to try it out and can give us tips if we ever make it that way again. Have a fun last couple days! Phil

Noelle said...

I am jealous of your Vietnam experience too! I guess Phil and I will have to go back! I can't believe you're coming home so soon! What an adventure you've had. Love ya!