01.06.2012 Saigon, Vietnam

We arrived in Ho Chin Min City (HCMC) also known as Saigon on the first of June, the day before my mum would arrive there at the airport. We found the "Than Thuong" guesthouse on Agoda.com and received a warm and caring welcome. A glass of ice cold grape juice was offered to us, whilst we sat on the couch and one staff was taking care of the check in procedure and the other one was explaining on a map about the highlights of the city. It was probably one of the best hospitality experiences in south east Asia so far.

In the evening we walked through the small and busy streets and had a delicious meal at one of the local street vendors stalls. On our way back we passed two other travelers we met on our journey a couple of days back. Emma and Christoph were sitting at a "bia hoi" place and had a draft beer for 5000 Dong. We joined in and sat half on the street on the children plastic chairs and had a good chat. Sun glass vendors with a huge variation of cheap, fake and probably short lasting products tried to convince you you needed some in the middle of the night. The book seller ladies, who carried a range of 30 copied books at the same time (respect for balancing so much weight on their arms) also seemed to be the best point of reference to buy ganja as they all offered that right after you told them that you are not interested in their books.

At some stage the police positioned themselves in the middle of the street and all the street vendors disappeared and all shop owners seemed to pull their merchandise away from the street and we also got pushed together, away from the street and closer to the house.

Next morning we took the local bus to get to the airport. With a Vietnam map and a warm welcome message ("Granny on Tour, welcome to Vietnam!") we picked up my mum. She had a long travel behind her and she was delighted about a cold bottle of water. In the bus back to town she started to tell us some of the highlights of her journey.

After a cold shower and fresh cloths, we went to have some lunch. We explored some of the highlights of the city. We went to the war museum were some relicts of the "American War" are on exhibit. We looked at the section of the results of the "Agent Orange" operation of the Americans. Unfortunately our time ran out and were not able to see everything.





We passed afterwards the palace and walked through the park and came to the "Notre Dam Cathedral". We heard a choir sing and were so inspired that we wanted to go inside. At first a lady didn't want let us enter as it was mess at the moment. I almost gave up, but my mum went back to say or do something and so we managed to go inside. We listened to a mess held in Vietnamese and even though we didn't understand a word,it was very touching. When finally the choir started singing, we enjoyed the acoustic and beauty of the moment.


We passed the famous post office on the way back to our accommodation. We wanted to have some Indian food for dinner and saw a nice restaurant earlier the day close by. We also introduced Uschi a Indian drink called "Lassi" which you can have sweet, salty or with fruit flavor and is kind of a special milk/yoghurt drink.





For the next day we booked a trip to the "Cu Chi Tunnels". It is a tunnel network which reached up to the Cambodian border and was up to 200km long. It was first used to fight against the French and then extended to fight against the Americans. They are claustrophobic small and I did only 40 meters and was not only sweating hot, but also sore for two days in my legs due to the crouching position I had to take to get through the tunnel. I can see the effectiveness of this system, as most western build bodies are just too large for this size.

I was able to try one of the access doors and hide in the tunnel.


We got shown the different traps build by the Vietnamese to hurt or kill their enemies. The creativity and effectiveness was scary.





Here is a little impression of the tunnel. The heat is unbearable. It is incredible to imagine that people lived, worked and fought from small tunnels like this for long periods of time.


The next day we took a bus to reach our next destination, Mui Ne.
We survived the busy city and crossed many roads without being hit by one of he many millions of motor bikes.


More Photos from Saigon.

30.05.2012 Can Tho (Mekong Delta), Vietnam

Driving through a few more showers we were relieved to arrive in Can Tho without rain. We stayed at the Hotel Xoai that we had booked ahead of time. The owners of our accommodation welcomed us so friendly and gave us tips how to get around town. The hotel is a new building, the budget room we choose is a little small but we managed with our big backpacks just fine. On the plus side you have a very clean room, high speed Internet and lovely hosts.
http://hotelxoai.com/


As it was already late we asked for a place to have dinner and were directed to the below restaurant. There we had a famous duck hot pot. Even the guests of the restaurant asked us how we found the restaurant. It was a great tip.


Next day we discovered the town. It was really hot so we needed cold sugar cane juice and iced Vietnam coffee to keep us cool.


Walking through small streets and markets to get to the shore of the Mekong River to have a stroll along at the park.





By accident we found the below tempel and enjoyed wondering around inside.





The panoramic view of Chan Tho from the roof top terrace of the hotel Xoai.


For the second night we investigated in trip advisor to do a home stay including a Mekong river tour to the floating market.


We quickly found out about "Hung's Homestay". You can call Hung or email him when you are close to or in Chan Tho to make arrangements:
Cell: +84 903 849 881
Email: hunghhomestay@yahoo.com.vn


We were picked up by motorbikes the next morning and drove about 20 minutes out of town. We were shown to our small bungalow and after we settled in, we went across the street to say hallo to the family and we also met Hanna and Christoph, who were also there for a home stay.


We had some free time until 3 pm and then Hung picked us up to visit the village. By boat we were dropped off up the river and walked slowly back. We saw how women weave bamboo mats to sleep on.


We learnt some tricks from Hung and the children. Robert showed with more or less success how to use a grass between thump and pointy finger how to make noise while blowing through the grass and fingers. We also learned a lot about local plants and traditions in the village life and Vietnam culture.


For dinner we learned how to make spring rolls and fried them as well. But we got much more than that. We got the ingredients for fresh spring rolls "elephant ear" fish and many side dishes. It was impossible to finish everything and it was so delicious! To finish the meal off we got "happy water" also known as rice wine. It was presented in a small plastic bag. To pour it, a chopstick is stuck from the inside through one of the corners. Through pulling it up, the "happy water" flows into the glass and through pushing it back down, it seals it off again.

The next morning we got up early to see the floating market. We had a great breakfast on board our boat.


Hungh explained that every boat shows on a long stick what they are selling.


The big boats come from far and situate themselves in the middle of the river to sell their goods for the next 3 to 5 days, until all fruit and vegetables are sold to the local merchants who come in smaller boats.


Vietnamese women go to the market to bargain to get the best price.


We were allowed to step on a large boat full of pineapples. She told us that she started off with around 30.000 pineapples. The lady cut each half a delicious fruit and we enjoyed the taste of the pineapple on the natural stick and the elevated view.


After the floating market, he took us to a rice paper "factory" and we learnt about the process.


The next station was kind of a garden center with baby plants.


All of us in the boat, in the heat. Hungh in the back.


Our last stop was at a farm and we learnt more about water melon and rice farming. Also Robert tried the local monkey bridge and proofed once again his animal talents.


Here more pictures from our time at the Mekong Delta

25.-29.05.2012 Hatien & Phu Quoc

After falling kind a in love with Kampot it was time to move on to Vietnam. A mini van that was supposed to pick us up at 9:30 am finally showed up after a call to the agency at around 10:30 am. The exit of Cambodia was smooth and with our Vietnam visa starting today we entered Vietnam. The person who measured our temperature asked for US$ 1 per person and with hesitation we gave it to him, (no receipt)! Should we have fought not to pay?!?


The whole trip was a short one of less than 2 hours. Hatien has no major sights, there is a nice beach with limestone formations about 40 km away, but we decided against renting a moto and to walk the city. We felt like we were the highlight of the day for the locals. Old and young greeted us cheerfully.


In the evening we went to the local market for dinner, they have so many water snails on offer and Robert went ahead to try one! Not so much our taste.


So after the snail we had a squid rice dish and a squid noodle soup dish which was much better! We finished the culinary experience with some kind of sweet rice, yum.


The next morning we took the slow boat to Phu Quoc. When we arrived at the island we had to take a mini van for US$ 5 each and it took about an hour on a really bumpy road to get to the other side. Another taxi for another US$ 5 drove us to our home for the next 3 days: "The Lounge"!


The Lounge is a basic accommodation in bungalows or rooms next to each other in lovely garden setting, however it doesn't have direct beach access. The rate included breakfast and as everything is more expensive on an island that was a great deal. The breakfast included eggs, baguette, honey, butter, coffee and fruit.


As it was off season it was very quite on the island and we were about to find out why so little people were on the island. Most of the time we were on the island it was raining hard and we had to spent our time in our room or in a restaurant. However on the day we had ferry tickets booked the sun finally came out and we were able to spent the morning at the beach.


Actually we walked to and along "Long Beach" three times. It is a lovely beach, but as most countries in South East Asia there was a lot of garbage on the beach especially after all the hard rain and the hotel staff hadn't had cleaned the beach yet. Nevertheless it is properly one of the nicest beaches we have seen and during dry season it must be gorgeous and wonderful especially for couples.


As it rained so much we were not able to rent a motorbike to discover more of the island, as it is a very big island.


We booked our ferry and bus to Can Tho with an agency and the lady wrote everything down for us:
12pm pick up
1 pm ferry to Ra Chia
4 pm bus to Can Tho

We got picked up 11.40am. When we arrived at the ferry port at 12:10 pm and showed our voucher, the ferry people showed a ferry that had already departed. First we thought they must had made a mistake. But then we realized the agency made a mistake. Luckily there were locals who called the agency with their cell phone to see what to do. There were still two ferries going the same directions. So we were sent from one ferry to the other and back. It was quite frustrating especially when you don't speak the same language. We ended up on one of the ferries and I think even the captain called in the end the agency, while cruising towards the main land. Everything was sorted out, we were not thrown over board to be shark food and the rest of the trip was as promised.


More pictures from both destinations.

21.-25.05.2012 Kampot, Cambodia

We arrived in Kampot city center first and the guesthouse we wanted to stay was full. A Tuk Tuk driver was very friendly and gave us a lot of information and offered to show us a place on the other side of the river. The fact that there were free bicycles, access to the river and that it was a quiet place sounded very good to us. After having a look at the "Bungalows at Kampot River", we decided to stay in one of their tree hut like bungalows.




We took a bicycle to explore the town and it's street live. The river promenade is nicely done and a good place to hang out.




After an early dinner we returned to our home to enjoy a sunset on the porch of the common area with the river flowing by gently. The atmosphere was great and the music out of the speakers as well. In the pleasant warms of the night we sat there for several hours and played some rounds of SkiBo.




Next morning our Tuk Tuk driver Coca came to pick us up for a tour to the country side. He was excited to be our guide and driver for the day. So were we!




"The Salt Fields"
First stop was at the salt fields. Water is pumped from the few km away sea and filled into this square fields. The sun vaporizes the water and the salt stays left behind. Then it is collected and shuffled together as piles before stored in huts waiting for buyers. The production is only possible during dry season. It takes 2-3 weeks to vaporize the water of one field. A KG salt costs 1$ here.








"The Caves"
Next we went to the Phnom Ch'nork caves. A little boy already joined us on the way and he drove with his bike on the side of our Tuk Tuk and talked to us in a very good English. We stopped at a cafe shop where Coca would wait for is, as Paul and Tikal would be our guides. The boy was 14 and the girl probably similar age. As the kids either go in the morning or in the afternoon to school, they had their morning off and it is some kind of tradition that the kids are your guide for the cave. Their English and knowledge about the caves is incredible.
A short walk brought us to the mountain where we had to climb 203 steps, passing several altars. In the caves are several animals to see. They are not moving anymore as they are part of the rock formation. So you can see an elephant, a cow, an eagle another elephant head, a turtle and other things. Without our guides we wouldn't have seen half of the animals! There is also a temple from back of the 6th century. A place for locals to come and pray and ask for health and children.
The kids then showed us a way through the cave system to the lower exit of the cave. Good that we had our headlamps with us and had such well trained and certified guides who led us safe through the steep, narrow and then wide cave. It was an great experience and we were able to ask the kids a lot of questions and got a better understanding of their life. Soon their guide life would be a little less as they will have to help on the fields as soon as the wet season starts to get the rice planted.
We left them a little tip for guiding us so well and said far well.












"The Fisher Village"
We passed a river with many fisher boats on it. This is the home of the Muslim fisherman who have their settlement right there. They are leaving to sea in the afternoon around 5pm and would return in the morning around 5 or 6am. There are 3 people working on the small boat. 1 sleeping at the time in shifts while the other pull the 10m long nets behind the boat. Each net usually catches up to 30kg of fish. When they arrive at the village there are usually merchants already waiting to buy the fish straight from them. Most of the fish will be brought alive to the market and sold alive to the end consumer. You see many market with bowls filled with a little water and fishes wiggling around in it.
During the day the man fix their nets again or gain more energy for the nights hard work and sleep. We found this woman who was roasting peanuts in their shell and I got a bag of hot peanuts, which I enjoyed on the ride with our Tuk Tuk.








"The Pepper Plantations"
The area of the Kampot province has always been very famous for it's pepper. There has been a time when on each good French restaurant the Khmer pepper mill would have been. A lot got destroyed during the reign of Pol Plot. Since 10-15 years the production is growing again and the farmers hope that the unique flavors of the Khmer pepper will soon be on the top of the pepper list of the world.
The pepper grows on sticks up into a hight of 3m. Unfortunately the harvest already had been and we only found this corn. We got a little explanation of the production and differences of red, green and black pepper.




"Kep"
As we had a stop in Kep, we ate some lunch from a lady close to the beach. She grilled a whole fish and some squids for us, which we ate with rice. The beer with it was ok, the green cream soda not so much! A very scary green color and a not natural flavor at all. We first considered to stay for a couple of days here in Kep, but after seeing the size and the not that spectacular beach, we made up our minds to stay in Kampot for the remaining time until we would go to Vietnam. The locals had fun playing around in the water. Some women rented out tires as floats. The Cambodians have a habit of jumping into the water with their cloths on and hang out in the water. We didn't figure out why, but they enjoyed themselves, so we didn't want to interfere.








"Back in Kampot"
Kampots streets never got boring for us. Our trips with the bicycles always brought unexpected delights. Seeing little boys pee standing on a wall, watched by a little girl, watching in amazement the chaotic traffic with people turning and driving everywhere and anywhere.




"Sister's II"
We found this oasis of delights of cakes in one of the many streets after we got interested through reading about it on Wikitravel. The carrot cake is so juicy and yummy and the owner is a wonderful character who told us many stories about her coffee she gets from Vietnam (the one with the S on it), and how she adopted her little boy Moses. Boys and especially brown boys are not very popular in Cambodia. Boys do not stay with their own families, they also need to pay up to US$ 4000 - 5000 to their future mother in law, to be allowed to marry her daughter. After they got married the boy moves to the girls family. Why brown? I don't know, but I saw "whitening skin cream" on the supermarket shelves.




Khmer Cooking Classes at "Captain :
We had dinner here one night and we loved the Khmer food and after seeing that they offered cooking classes, we signed up for the next day to take some lessons.




Rhea took us to the local market to buy some ingredients. The selection of fresh fish and seafood was incredible. Huge sea snails and many mussels I've never seen before were on offer. The vegetable and herb selection was just as unknown territory for us. We were able to ask her many questions and got a lot of things explained. After everything was set up in the small open room next to the restaurant we started our cooking. First we cut everything and prepared all the raw ingredients. Then we started to put everything together and create three yummy Khmer dishes.












Once everything was cut, the final preparation was very quick and we soon were able to sit down and enjoy our delicious food. Rhea was a great teacher and we had a great time. The time flew by and we enjoyed every little bit of it.




Our prepared dishes were:
Chicken amok
Lok Lak
Tom Yam
All yummy yummy in my tummy!



More pictures from Kampot