Hello all.
I'm starting this Blog by letting you all know that it will be my last. It is with regret and extreme sadness that I have to say my Grandma passed away Thursday Morning. I am now back home and with my family. My Grandma used to love my blogs however, my mum used to read them to her and show her the pictures whilst I've been away, including while she was in Hospital. Therefore, it would be wrong of me to finish on such a downer without bringing a proper conclusion to my travels, Grandma would have wanted me to finish it. So this, is for you Lil, I love you and miss you so much, but I am happy now that you are no longer suffering.
My mum broke the news to my after I returned back from the WaterPark - not the best news to return home to at any time, especially after such a wicked day with the awesome guys I had met. Luckily, Archie#1 was in the dorm with me and offered me great help and support, which I will never be able to thank him enough for. understandably, I wanted to get home as soon as I could, so had to devise a plan of action to return home. This included having to search for flights from Saigon, organising a coach to Saigon and asking for extra money from Dad to be able to afford the flight (apparently lastminute.com has yet to embrace Vietnam as a destination). Every minute I was taking, I was watching the price rise dramatically - I felt like a competitor watching Apple's share rise second by second, hopeless to stop it! Eventually, I was forced to ditch taking a flight with a reputable operator and plumped for a "budget airline" of long-haul flights, Turkish Airlines.
I was supposed to be going out that night for a meal with the Archie's and the guys from the WaterPark and as much as I was struggling I knew Lil would have hated it if I had changed my plans and missed out for her. So I went out for a very nice meal, again at the guy who was cooking from his front room. He managed to prepare 4 starters and 6 meals all on two hobs on what most campers use to cook with in Devon! And this was his business! He was also the waiter, and there were two other groups eating too! All the food brought perfectly in time together! Well worth the £3.50!
We then went back to the club and met up with more people from the hostel, all of them being very supportive and kept me entertained and occupied. Ended up having a really good time, beating 3 girls in a game of pool (oh yea, We're hard) and having a bit of a skank to the Dubstep (it's a kind of Dance Mum and Dad, before you get worried) before settling down for a chat in the last bar getting to know everyone, as well as set a few of the guys on course ;). Charlie and The Archie's (Sounds like a 70's band) were a particular great help and It was really great getting to know them over the last few weeks.
The next day was mental. I was supposed to get the bus at 8am, but it didn't leave til 8.45. This was slightly alarming, because although my bus was supposed to arrive with a plenty of time before my flight, still left me a little anxious. However, I recently had put onto my phone Shrek, Puss in Boots, Rush Hour 2, Jimmy Carr and Blackadder all put onto my phone to watch, so I was sufficiently relaxed in my extremely uncomfortable bus - it was another sleeper bus, another one designed for people 5ft and under and with no legs. We stopped off eventually at another classic Vietnamese Services, which was a "restaurant" and shop in the middle of nowhere - literally - and with animals just running around freely. And apparently these "services" didn't believe in toilet paper either.
Back on the bus, we passed through Mui Ne - which looked nice, with the famous waves and sand dunes set an awesome setting. The trip until now had gone quickly and well. However after we passed Mui Ne, this is where it all went wrong and I went into Freak mode. I'm normally quite calm and laid back in most situations, but things like this make me panic a tad. The bus broke down. I don't know what was wrong, because the drivers didn't actually tell us we had. In fact, they didn't really say anything at all (as per all bus and drivers in Vietnam, they didn't speak any English and were in fact complain morons, for want of a stronger, publishable way). All I knew was that after about 20 mins I noticed that we hadn't moved for...well, about 20mins (I was way too engrossed with Puss In Boots, which was actually a good film!) and all I could see was two guys and what looked like pneumatic drills going to and from the rear of the bus, clearly in no hurry to finish the job (again a trait of the Vietnamese - don't get me wrong, they are very friendly people, but won't rush anything. Not in a perfectionist kind of a way, more like a CBA kind of way). It was at least another half an hour or so before we moved off.
When we reached the outskirts of Ho Chi Minh (do you mind if I call it Saigon? It's easier and everyone knows what I mean by it! Just don't tell anyone) I realised I was in serious trouble. The traffic was horrific - crawling pretty much all the way. We were gonna be late. Very late, as in too late to catch my flight. Bugger (I may have said something stronger). It was then a mad panic to organise on the phone with Lucy, and Mike (Brother Mike not Leeds Mike) a new, later flight and more money to buy it (this was made even frantic as I had very little battery left (damn those Movies)). After a lot of faffing, it became apparent it was too late to book over the internet, so I'd have to take my chances at the airport...if I ever got there.
We did eventually arrive, and I jumped into the first taxi I saw. Despite the airport only being about 15 mins away, it some how took 40minutes to get to the airport...bloody traffic. On top of that, it was 8pm - according to the taxi driver, 7-12pm in Saigon was Overtime, enforced by the government (fitting that my last contact with Asia would be yet another scam) so I got absolutely ripped off - about £15 for a 15 minuted journey (of actually moving time - it was like being back in Bristol!)
After searching the airlines, I managed to get a flight with Vietnam Airlines direct to Gatwick, which made the journey much shorter. It also wasn't quite as expensive as I thought it would be (not that it was cheap by any means) - Finally I started to relax. I was coming home. That wasn't the end of the drama, however.
As I was going through Immigration, just as the officer was about to stamp my passport, someone else in a uniform shouted and took my passport for "inspection". Shit, they'd finally caught up with me!
Haha I'm only joking, I was actually Bricking it. There was absolutely nothing I could think of to lead them to want my passport. I was really worried. Eventually the officer returned with my passport (encased in a nice plastic wallet, so wasn't all bad) and thanked me for my "Co-operwayshun". I still don't know why he wanted my passport, something to do with the type of passport I had (apparently legitimate British passports arouse suspicion (do I mean arouse?) - why is it that no one speaks English when you want them/need them to?)
That was the end of the fiasco's. As I was boarding the plane, a stewardess informed me that I had been upgraded into Deluxe Economy Class - Grandma looking after me still, Like she always has, Like she always will.
And that's basically it. An absolutely amazing trip which was cut short by the most devastating of tragedies. I have had an absolutely amazing time and met some amazing people and I've loved every minute of it and have some amazing memories.
Thank you to all of you that have been reading my blog and keeping up with my posts. I hope you've enjoyed reading my blog as much as I've enjoyed writing them - and as much as I've loved living and experiencing them.
You Stay Classy San Diego
P.S If you want to hear the songs that I performed on Cairns Fm, Here are the links! (you can also find them on my Facebook Page, if you're a friend.
Jono - A-Team (Cairns Fm Cover)
Jono - Kaleidoscope (Cairns Fm, Joe Brooks Cover)
Jono - Complete (My Own Song, Cairns FM)
Sunday, 1 April 2012
Friday, 30 March 2012
Nha Nha Nha Nha Nha Nha Nha Nha NHA TRANG!
The bus journey was surprisingly good. A couple I'd already met were getting the same bus, so I was talking to them for a bit. After a few hours, I sought to 'borrow' a blanket from one of the drivers, as I didn't have one and the gale force Air Con was freezing! A guy helped me to mastermind the mission, guess where he was from? Knowle! His girlfriend from Horfield! Haha I love travelling. So we talked for much of the way which seemed to pass a lot of time, and I actually managed to sleep on this bus...for a bit anyway,
Luckily, we were late arriving into Nha Trang - I'm not sure as to why, but I do recall the driver driving for about 20 minutes in First Gear. This bus, whilst slightly comfier in its seats, filled me with as much confidence as the bus to Hoi An, but this bus was climbing mountains and winding round cliffs.
We arrived at 6am, and after saying goodbye to the 4th and 5th people is met from Bristol, I set off in search of my hostel, which only took about 15 minutes. I arrived around 6.30 and told that I'd have to wait til 12 to check in. Great. So I set about trying to work out how long I could waste on the computers. I briefly caught up with the Patchwegians, who were leaving that morning. It was nice to see them again, and the briefed me on Nha Trang, before leaving - but not without the promise of knocking on my door to ask me to come out to play on their return :)
Luckily, I was allowed to check in at 8, which meant I could go to bed earlier - for all of an hour. I did awake , however, to the friendly, familiar faces of Charlie and Archie #1, who were staying in my dorm (Archie #2 was downstairs). It was nice to see a familiar face again! Later we went to the beach and relaxed...well I say relaxed, Archie2, Charlie and I hit the waves - which were 10-15 foot and bashed us around. It was good fun, the fear of timing going under or over a wave just right or risk getting a wet slap in the face! This was all fine until I caught one that I wasn't expecting, crushing me on the sea floor and bending me in half...the wrong way.
After a bit of a chill on the beach, we went back to the hostel for a bit before heading out again for dinner. The guys had found a little place, literally cooking out of their front kitchen. Despite the simplicity, it was very tasty, and good value! The guy was really friendly too, offering us free extra rice. We headed back to the hostel bar after dinner, this is where everyone goes. It was buzzing! After a few games of pool me and Charlie gate crashed a game of Ring Of Fire - I haven't played this since Uni and I wasn't gonna kiss another opportunity! It was awesome! There was about 15 of us, mixed nationalities all learning things about each other that their close friends didn't know (defo in the case of two people, funny stuff! I love this game).
It was after this I came into my own. Archie2 grabbed me en route to the toilets to ask if I fancied talking to a group of girls he'd spotted. Basically, my job was to play Wing Man, the other 2 being preoccupied with their own missions.
So we set about our task. The girls were Norwegian but spoke very good English. Archie2 set his target and my job was to occupy and amuse the other 2. I've been a very successful wingman in my Time, so I was quietly confident. We moves to the next bar, Why Not Bar (why not indeed), my job becoming easier as one girl went home. Why Not was a wicked bar(much better than its name sake in Hoi An!) with good music, cheap beer and lots of seating. I disnt want a late night, but ended up staying out til 3.30 because of the duty bestowed upon my, but the mission was accomplished after I managed to persuade the girl I was talking to to play pool - a simple, yet effective tactic - and separated the girls, leaving Archie to work his magic. Absolute Classic.
NB I want to say this might paint me, and all guys in a bad light, but this isn't the case. The girls were genuinely lovely and I enjoyed talking to them. Both guys and girls do this, (Girls do, but it's slightly more subtle than guys, as with most things girls say guys are bad for).
The next day we were all feeling a little delicate, so we decided the best thing to do would be to go to the Vinpearl waterpark resort! We had to get there via the longest cable car in the world, but the Vinpearl Island was unbelievable. Essentially man made (the mountain was at least) it had a Waterpark, 2 storey arcade, theme park, 5star luxury resort, Golf club and more! It was amazing! The only downfall? The fact it rained all bloody day. Lucky we were getting wet anyway or I'd have been miffed!
We went with 2 guys and a girl we'd met in Hanoi, which was nice to catch up and enjoy some banter with things we all could actually relate to (like Sofie falling into the lake in snake village haha).
The waterpark was pretty awesome, it's rides as fun as any in The West but without the Health and Safety, which was both a blessing and a curse.
See, being in Asia, all the rides and restrictions were made for Asia people, not Westerners...especially 5 Western guys weighing over 13 stone each and a girl! This was fine on some rides, like the Tsunami, which meant as a threesome we were the only ones that touched the top of the first dip, but not so good on the "Family slide". This was a ride design for a maximum of 6 people, all sitting in a raft. We were not ready for what we got.
The ride was stupidly quick, with really steep sides..but the sides weren't quite steep enough for Westerners in a raft. Every turn we nearly fell out, nearly falling over the sides. A couple of times, one hand grasping a bit of cloth was all that kept me from flying out the raft! It was mental! There is no way in hell that ride would be legal in the West! But, for some reason, we rode it 3 times! Everytime coming closer to doom...the attendant, realising how close we were coming to falling out, actually gave us a massive push start! What an idiot! (I had the last laugh though, I grabbed his hand as he let go and pulled him half down the slide with us :p) nonetheless the ride was certainly an adrenaline rush, so I loved it.
There was also a wave machine, which was a fiddle compared to the waves at the beach! Waning other things, we had shoulder fights (one person on another's shoulders) between us. Josh picked up a little Russian boy of 12 (God there were so many miserable Russians in Nha Trang!) who, on fight off, proceeded to slap Archie2 right in the face! We were only play wrestling! It was hysterical!
We left earlier than planned, cos ye rain got so heavy all the theme park rides closed. On the way back, we nearly got in a fight with our taxi driver, who refused to give us a discount after he'd gotten lost and driven a long way past our hostel! What a nobhead! After trying to reason with him, we just walked away - we paid less than he wanted, we refused. It was his fault, if he didn't know he shouldn't have said he did! Having said that, we were arguing over 50p, buts the principle! They've got to know that ignorant white Westerners are always right! (I'm joking, of course)
Luckily, we were late arriving into Nha Trang - I'm not sure as to why, but I do recall the driver driving for about 20 minutes in First Gear. This bus, whilst slightly comfier in its seats, filled me with as much confidence as the bus to Hoi An, but this bus was climbing mountains and winding round cliffs.
We arrived at 6am, and after saying goodbye to the 4th and 5th people is met from Bristol, I set off in search of my hostel, which only took about 15 minutes. I arrived around 6.30 and told that I'd have to wait til 12 to check in. Great. So I set about trying to work out how long I could waste on the computers. I briefly caught up with the Patchwegians, who were leaving that morning. It was nice to see them again, and the briefed me on Nha Trang, before leaving - but not without the promise of knocking on my door to ask me to come out to play on their return :)
Luckily, I was allowed to check in at 8, which meant I could go to bed earlier - for all of an hour. I did awake , however, to the friendly, familiar faces of Charlie and Archie #1, who were staying in my dorm (Archie #2 was downstairs). It was nice to see a familiar face again! Later we went to the beach and relaxed...well I say relaxed, Archie2, Charlie and I hit the waves - which were 10-15 foot and bashed us around. It was good fun, the fear of timing going under or over a wave just right or risk getting a wet slap in the face! This was all fine until I caught one that I wasn't expecting, crushing me on the sea floor and bending me in half...the wrong way.
After a bit of a chill on the beach, we went back to the hostel for a bit before heading out again for dinner. The guys had found a little place, literally cooking out of their front kitchen. Despite the simplicity, it was very tasty, and good value! The guy was really friendly too, offering us free extra rice. We headed back to the hostel bar after dinner, this is where everyone goes. It was buzzing! After a few games of pool me and Charlie gate crashed a game of Ring Of Fire - I haven't played this since Uni and I wasn't gonna kiss another opportunity! It was awesome! There was about 15 of us, mixed nationalities all learning things about each other that their close friends didn't know (defo in the case of two people, funny stuff! I love this game).
It was after this I came into my own. Archie2 grabbed me en route to the toilets to ask if I fancied talking to a group of girls he'd spotted. Basically, my job was to play Wing Man, the other 2 being preoccupied with their own missions.
So we set about our task. The girls were Norwegian but spoke very good English. Archie2 set his target and my job was to occupy and amuse the other 2. I've been a very successful wingman in my Time, so I was quietly confident. We moves to the next bar, Why Not Bar (why not indeed), my job becoming easier as one girl went home. Why Not was a wicked bar(much better than its name sake in Hoi An!) with good music, cheap beer and lots of seating. I disnt want a late night, but ended up staying out til 3.30 because of the duty bestowed upon my, but the mission was accomplished after I managed to persuade the girl I was talking to to play pool - a simple, yet effective tactic - and separated the girls, leaving Archie to work his magic. Absolute Classic.
NB I want to say this might paint me, and all guys in a bad light, but this isn't the case. The girls were genuinely lovely and I enjoyed talking to them. Both guys and girls do this, (Girls do, but it's slightly more subtle than guys, as with most things girls say guys are bad for).
The next day we were all feeling a little delicate, so we decided the best thing to do would be to go to the Vinpearl waterpark resort! We had to get there via the longest cable car in the world, but the Vinpearl Island was unbelievable. Essentially man made (the mountain was at least) it had a Waterpark, 2 storey arcade, theme park, 5star luxury resort, Golf club and more! It was amazing! The only downfall? The fact it rained all bloody day. Lucky we were getting wet anyway or I'd have been miffed!
We went with 2 guys and a girl we'd met in Hanoi, which was nice to catch up and enjoy some banter with things we all could actually relate to (like Sofie falling into the lake in snake village haha).
The waterpark was pretty awesome, it's rides as fun as any in The West but without the Health and Safety, which was both a blessing and a curse.
See, being in Asia, all the rides and restrictions were made for Asia people, not Westerners...especially 5 Western guys weighing over 13 stone each and a girl! This was fine on some rides, like the Tsunami, which meant as a threesome we were the only ones that touched the top of the first dip, but not so good on the "Family slide". This was a ride design for a maximum of 6 people, all sitting in a raft. We were not ready for what we got.
The ride was stupidly quick, with really steep sides..but the sides weren't quite steep enough for Westerners in a raft. Every turn we nearly fell out, nearly falling over the sides. A couple of times, one hand grasping a bit of cloth was all that kept me from flying out the raft! It was mental! There is no way in hell that ride would be legal in the West! But, for some reason, we rode it 3 times! Everytime coming closer to doom...the attendant, realising how close we were coming to falling out, actually gave us a massive push start! What an idiot! (I had the last laugh though, I grabbed his hand as he let go and pulled him half down the slide with us :p) nonetheless the ride was certainly an adrenaline rush, so I loved it.
There was also a wave machine, which was a fiddle compared to the waves at the beach! Waning other things, we had shoulder fights (one person on another's shoulders) between us. Josh picked up a little Russian boy of 12 (God there were so many miserable Russians in Nha Trang!) who, on fight off, proceeded to slap Archie2 right in the face! We were only play wrestling! It was hysterical!
We left earlier than planned, cos ye rain got so heavy all the theme park rides closed. On the way back, we nearly got in a fight with our taxi driver, who refused to give us a discount after he'd gotten lost and driven a long way past our hostel! What a nobhead! After trying to reason with him, we just walked away - we paid less than he wanted, we refused. It was his fault, if he didn't know he shouldn't have said he did! Having said that, we were arguing over 50p, buts the principle! They've got to know that ignorant white Westerners are always right! (I'm joking, of course)
Tailor Town
Hoi An
Just a short bus ride and I was in Hoi An - though by the look of the bus, I wondered if we'd ever make it at all! The bus was so old in made Westward Travel buses look state if the art! Nevertheless we made it safe and sound.
My hotel had sent a minibus to pick me up, and just 10 mins later I was at my hotel. And what a hotel! It was tr nicest place I've been since I've been travelling (with the exception of Mine and Lucy's Koh Tao resort, which was spellbinding). The room was a double, small, but with everything I'd need - tv, Shower,toilet, Bed, Minibar (not necessarily in that order). The only downside was this hotel seemed to house couples and families - neither of which seemed overly approachable here.
After a shower I took a wander into Hoi An 'Ancient' Town, 15 minutes walk away (I tell you, I'm gonna be fit coming back after all this walking!)...(or fitTERat least). The town wasn't what I was expecting. Whilst all the old buildings and streets were beautiful in their quaint and old design, every single building was either a souvenir shop, tailor or bar/restaurant - this place was either a tourist's heaven or hell. There was an obscene number of tailor shops, many springing up due to tourism rising, many not actually tailors. Despite the constant barrage of locals trying to make me buy stuff that would serve no purpose in my life other than to remind me how I'd been scammed out of £5-10 I didn't wanna spend on something I didn't want, the walk round was pleasant (it would have been better had the weather been better). Walking through the market was a laugh too - I do like markets for the weird things you see, like old women sleeping on a table whilst someone decapitates chickens. The town was divided by a river littered with boats of all different sizes - big ones, small ones, some as big as your head (this would never have happened under Mufasa...) and the centre piece was the Japenese Covered Bridge...which whilst beautiful and intriguing, couldn't capture your attention for overly long.
I managed to shake off the desperate attempts by 'tailors' to buy a suit, or even go in and look, though I admit I was kinda tricked into looking in one less than 15 metres from leaving my hotel!
That night, I met up with the Archie's and Charlie (did I mention these before? I met them in Hanoi and again Hue) for free cocktails in their hotel. We then headed out for dinner and fresh beer (literally a day old, which made it so refreshing...and at 13p a glass seemed a good buy. Funnily enough, at the same restaurant we met Mike and the people he was staying with! After we ate we headed out to enjoy the Hoi An nightlife - and enjoy we did, including a free motor bike ride with a nutcase local between bars!
The next day, whilst nursing a very slight hangover, I watched films in my room...all day...not even joking, I only left my room for 20 mins to get dinner! I must have watched about 20 films that day! It was nice though, just having a bit of privacy. So not much interesting to write here...
The next day nearly promised to be the same, til I forced myself out of bed. I hired a bike and cycled the 5km to the beach. The beach itself was really nice, but the lack of friends and decent weather meant my stay was very short. Instead I much preferred my slow cycle to and from, cutting through countryside. It was really quite stunning and interesting. Hoi An, although not having an awful lot to do there, is a really pretty place. I headed back to the town for lunch, where I bumped into Mike again. After another lap of the town, I headed back to my own private theatre (A bit of a waste of time I know, but I was knackered! Plus Rocky was on).
My final day really has nothing to report. I checked out, wandered round town again looking for a bargain in the market, before coming to the conclusion that anything I bought would be for the sake of buying something, for me or others). My bus left at 6, and arrived into Nha Trang for 5am, where check in to my hostel was at 12... I couldn't wait.
Just a short bus ride and I was in Hoi An - though by the look of the bus, I wondered if we'd ever make it at all! The bus was so old in made Westward Travel buses look state if the art! Nevertheless we made it safe and sound.
My hotel had sent a minibus to pick me up, and just 10 mins later I was at my hotel. And what a hotel! It was tr nicest place I've been since I've been travelling (with the exception of Mine and Lucy's Koh Tao resort, which was spellbinding). The room was a double, small, but with everything I'd need - tv, Shower,toilet, Bed, Minibar (not necessarily in that order). The only downside was this hotel seemed to house couples and families - neither of which seemed overly approachable here.
After a shower I took a wander into Hoi An 'Ancient' Town, 15 minutes walk away (I tell you, I'm gonna be fit coming back after all this walking!)...(or fitTERat least). The town wasn't what I was expecting. Whilst all the old buildings and streets were beautiful in their quaint and old design, every single building was either a souvenir shop, tailor or bar/restaurant - this place was either a tourist's heaven or hell. There was an obscene number of tailor shops, many springing up due to tourism rising, many not actually tailors. Despite the constant barrage of locals trying to make me buy stuff that would serve no purpose in my life other than to remind me how I'd been scammed out of £5-10 I didn't wanna spend on something I didn't want, the walk round was pleasant (it would have been better had the weather been better). Walking through the market was a laugh too - I do like markets for the weird things you see, like old women sleeping on a table whilst someone decapitates chickens. The town was divided by a river littered with boats of all different sizes - big ones, small ones, some as big as your head (this would never have happened under Mufasa...) and the centre piece was the Japenese Covered Bridge...which whilst beautiful and intriguing, couldn't capture your attention for overly long.
I managed to shake off the desperate attempts by 'tailors' to buy a suit, or even go in and look, though I admit I was kinda tricked into looking in one less than 15 metres from leaving my hotel!
That night, I met up with the Archie's and Charlie (did I mention these before? I met them in Hanoi and again Hue) for free cocktails in their hotel. We then headed out for dinner and fresh beer (literally a day old, which made it so refreshing...and at 13p a glass seemed a good buy. Funnily enough, at the same restaurant we met Mike and the people he was staying with! After we ate we headed out to enjoy the Hoi An nightlife - and enjoy we did, including a free motor bike ride with a nutcase local between bars!
The next day, whilst nursing a very slight hangover, I watched films in my room...all day...not even joking, I only left my room for 20 mins to get dinner! I must have watched about 20 films that day! It was nice though, just having a bit of privacy. So not much interesting to write here...
The next day nearly promised to be the same, til I forced myself out of bed. I hired a bike and cycled the 5km to the beach. The beach itself was really nice, but the lack of friends and decent weather meant my stay was very short. Instead I much preferred my slow cycle to and from, cutting through countryside. It was really quite stunning and interesting. Hoi An, although not having an awful lot to do there, is a really pretty place. I headed back to the town for lunch, where I bumped into Mike again. After another lap of the town, I headed back to my own private theatre (A bit of a waste of time I know, but I was knackered! Plus Rocky was on).
My final day really has nothing to report. I checked out, wandered round town again looking for a bargain in the market, before coming to the conclusion that anything I bought would be for the sake of buying something, for me or others). My bus left at 6, and arrived into Nha Trang for 5am, where check in to my hostel was at 12... I couldn't wait.
Saturday, 24 March 2012
Hue
A 14-hour long, uncomfortable sleeper bus ride south (and boy do I mean long) stood between Hanoi and Hue. The journey was made all the longer after they turned off the lights after an hour, so I couldn't read. All I could do was watch Titanic, which they were kindly playing for us....but with the sound too low to hear, and subtitles in Vietnamese. Helpful.
I eventually arrived to find a group of taxi drivers, hotel sellers and ladies selling all kind of crap - it was like
Being greeted by the paparazzi, they're like vultures, not even letting me get my bag off the bus before telling they're place was the cheapest, the best, blah blah blah. Eventually I got a taxi bike to the hostel...which was fun, having my big bag on the back too, feeling like I was gonna fall off at every turn...as well as clothesline every rider coming the other way.
The hostel was nice enough, a lot smaller and simplistic compared to the one in Hanoi, but was still nice. I actually arrived at the same time as my friends from Hanoi, which was nice (I feel like I'm writing a Year 8 English story, everything's nice).
I went for a quick wander round the bit of Hue I was staying in - soon realised that it was a world away from Hanoi - for a start, the roads could accommodate at least 1 car and a person at the same time. It was a lot quieter than Hanoi as well, not nearly as crowded or people goading you into buying crap you don't need (this is obviously not including the people at the market...who knew being White made you seem important....). Hue is actually quite a pretty City, lots of green, and the riverside flanked by parks with statues and other things.
I then went back to the Hostel for a bit of a chill, and met a guy from Leeds in my room (Ottley, actually, but as you travellers know, so many people here don't know where you live, you just say the closest big city to you...for most Englishmen, it's London(being the only city anyone knows)).
He tagged along to to me and the Patchwegians, adding a fourth wheel, making me feel slightly better about the situation.
We went and grabbed some food, then went for a few drinks somewhere offering a free bucket and free pool. The beers flowed. We made our way back to the hostel for Happy Hour, and made our way through the 16 Vodka shots above the bar (Nb. During the day, we noticed that they were all different flavours...and not conventional ones, so made a pact to get through them all).
In a game of chance, each of us had 2 shots. My 2 were Fishermans Friend (actually very nice) and Garlic (not so nice, almost as bad as Snake Blood...) Stevie had Arse flavour (fish, though some American's belief it must be fart flavoured is much funnier, especially when accompanied with his mine of funnelling it into the vodka). Among the other flavours, Jon had Chilli. We thought this was gonna be fine, having had chilli shots at home...but not like this. This was vodka fused with about 50 chillis...hot chillis, even for the locals. So few people drank it, it sat on the shelf stewing, getting stronger an Stronger. After the initial taste of vodka, and the brag of how easy it was, Jon was in the toilets 5 seconds later. I was in stitches. We all were. We ended up getting 4 others to have it too, just to add to the hilarity. There mouths we're numb for hours.
We moved to a bar, Brown Eyes, which boasted that they stayed open 'until the last one passes out'. It didn't take long to realise that was an accurate statement. After ordering a round of beers, we were then bombarded with free nibbles and shots - proper shots, sambuca - and then presented with a flaming Sambuca Tower, prepared on our table before us. There was free pool, music, and lots of locals. We had a blast. So much so, we went back the next night!
I'll give a little break in the text for day 2...that enough?
The next day, the 4 of us took a Cuty tour of Hue, taking in an incense factory (more like a stall on the roadside, apparently the campaigners for workers rights hasn't got to the incense industry yet) 3 temples (they were all amazing, but writing about all 3 would take forever, so you can just look at photos on Facebook later) a martial arts show, the Citadel (which whilst interesting, was a slight disappointment, as all the main buildings short of the Gatehouse had been destroyed and yet to be rebuilt, though planned for within 15 years, when it will be spectacular) and a Buddhist Pagoda, which was pretty awesome and has the car that the guy drove to the protest when he burned himself alive (it's on the front of one of the Rage Against The Machine Albums, it's in the picture! It's famous! Go check it out!)...oh yea, and a boring 30 minute dragon boat down the river, which was slow, noisy and offered, souvenirs from Venezia! The tour was awesome, I got to see some awesome sights, and it was nice to see something and know what it was and why, as opposed to touring on your own and going 'Ooh that's nice, wonder what that is'. One funny thing on the tour was that one of the temples was by a Banana plantation, and with loads of people trying to sell bananas (made a change from coke and water). The way they sold though was different. One woman held (in a very bad way) her disabled son as she tried to sell. The rest of them, mostly children, attempted to sell by using clearly the only line of English they knew, in a chant that was quite unnerving (but kind of funny) - 'Mister Madame you buy Bananaaaaa?'. There was also one little boy, about 3, who the tour guide was toying with (much to our amusement), as he was trying to sell in the watchful eye of his mother. After the tour guide asked the price, the optimistic little boy asked for $5! He was so cute, the tour guide gave him 10,000 Dong - 30p.
As I said that night we went back to Brown Eyes, but not after meeting up with more friends from Hanoi and a lovely Aussie guy. Being more of us, we had even more fun that night...meaning my head hurt a lot more the next day.
The next day, it was just me and Mile left, and we went for another wander, to the market. It was huge, and really quite fascinating with some of the stuff they were selling. The hustle and bustle of a proper market was awesome, something I'd been looking for. Anyway we kind of used that day as an admin day, I blogged and read and sorted stuff for Hoi An. After trying some local food, we headed back for an early night...but not in that way...2 heavy nights had taken their toll!
I eventually arrived to find a group of taxi drivers, hotel sellers and ladies selling all kind of crap - it was like
Being greeted by the paparazzi, they're like vultures, not even letting me get my bag off the bus before telling they're place was the cheapest, the best, blah blah blah. Eventually I got a taxi bike to the hostel...which was fun, having my big bag on the back too, feeling like I was gonna fall off at every turn...as well as clothesline every rider coming the other way.
The hostel was nice enough, a lot smaller and simplistic compared to the one in Hanoi, but was still nice. I actually arrived at the same time as my friends from Hanoi, which was nice (I feel like I'm writing a Year 8 English story, everything's nice).
I went for a quick wander round the bit of Hue I was staying in - soon realised that it was a world away from Hanoi - for a start, the roads could accommodate at least 1 car and a person at the same time. It was a lot quieter than Hanoi as well, not nearly as crowded or people goading you into buying crap you don't need (this is obviously not including the people at the market...who knew being White made you seem important....). Hue is actually quite a pretty City, lots of green, and the riverside flanked by parks with statues and other things.
I then went back to the Hostel for a bit of a chill, and met a guy from Leeds in my room (Ottley, actually, but as you travellers know, so many people here don't know where you live, you just say the closest big city to you...for most Englishmen, it's London(being the only city anyone knows)).
He tagged along to to me and the Patchwegians, adding a fourth wheel, making me feel slightly better about the situation.
We went and grabbed some food, then went for a few drinks somewhere offering a free bucket and free pool. The beers flowed. We made our way back to the hostel for Happy Hour, and made our way through the 16 Vodka shots above the bar (Nb. During the day, we noticed that they were all different flavours...and not conventional ones, so made a pact to get through them all).
In a game of chance, each of us had 2 shots. My 2 were Fishermans Friend (actually very nice) and Garlic (not so nice, almost as bad as Snake Blood...) Stevie had Arse flavour (fish, though some American's belief it must be fart flavoured is much funnier, especially when accompanied with his mine of funnelling it into the vodka). Among the other flavours, Jon had Chilli. We thought this was gonna be fine, having had chilli shots at home...but not like this. This was vodka fused with about 50 chillis...hot chillis, even for the locals. So few people drank it, it sat on the shelf stewing, getting stronger an Stronger. After the initial taste of vodka, and the brag of how easy it was, Jon was in the toilets 5 seconds later. I was in stitches. We all were. We ended up getting 4 others to have it too, just to add to the hilarity. There mouths we're numb for hours.
We moved to a bar, Brown Eyes, which boasted that they stayed open 'until the last one passes out'. It didn't take long to realise that was an accurate statement. After ordering a round of beers, we were then bombarded with free nibbles and shots - proper shots, sambuca - and then presented with a flaming Sambuca Tower, prepared on our table before us. There was free pool, music, and lots of locals. We had a blast. So much so, we went back the next night!
I'll give a little break in the text for day 2...that enough?
The next day, the 4 of us took a Cuty tour of Hue, taking in an incense factory (more like a stall on the roadside, apparently the campaigners for workers rights hasn't got to the incense industry yet) 3 temples (they were all amazing, but writing about all 3 would take forever, so you can just look at photos on Facebook later) a martial arts show, the Citadel (which whilst interesting, was a slight disappointment, as all the main buildings short of the Gatehouse had been destroyed and yet to be rebuilt, though planned for within 15 years, when it will be spectacular) and a Buddhist Pagoda, which was pretty awesome and has the car that the guy drove to the protest when he burned himself alive (it's on the front of one of the Rage Against The Machine Albums, it's in the picture! It's famous! Go check it out!)...oh yea, and a boring 30 minute dragon boat down the river, which was slow, noisy and offered, souvenirs from Venezia! The tour was awesome, I got to see some awesome sights, and it was nice to see something and know what it was and why, as opposed to touring on your own and going 'Ooh that's nice, wonder what that is'. One funny thing on the tour was that one of the temples was by a Banana plantation, and with loads of people trying to sell bananas (made a change from coke and water). The way they sold though was different. One woman held (in a very bad way) her disabled son as she tried to sell. The rest of them, mostly children, attempted to sell by using clearly the only line of English they knew, in a chant that was quite unnerving (but kind of funny) - 'Mister Madame you buy Bananaaaaa?'. There was also one little boy, about 3, who the tour guide was toying with (much to our amusement), as he was trying to sell in the watchful eye of his mother. After the tour guide asked the price, the optimistic little boy asked for $5! He was so cute, the tour guide gave him 10,000 Dong - 30p.
As I said that night we went back to Brown Eyes, but not after meeting up with more friends from Hanoi and a lovely Aussie guy. Being more of us, we had even more fun that night...meaning my head hurt a lot more the next day.
The next day, it was just me and Mile left, and we went for another wander, to the market. It was huge, and really quite fascinating with some of the stuff they were selling. The hustle and bustle of a proper market was awesome, something I'd been looking for. Anyway we kind of used that day as an admin day, I blogged and read and sorted stuff for Hoi An. After trying some local food, we headed back for an early night...but not in that way...2 heavy nights had taken their toll!
Thursday, 22 March 2012
Hanoi Part Deux and Snake Village
So on returning from Halong Bay, Lucy and I had one full day before she had to leave and go home....sad times. Guess what exciting times she had planned? Shopping! Oh the joys....
Actually to be fair it was quite fun, looking at all the 'Same Same but Different' things in all the shops, dashing all the shopkeepers hopes nd wasting there time by not buying anything :p and the haggling was fun too, arguing the toss over £1/£2, just cos we could. Though it was a lot d money to them.
We ended up getting quite a lot for not a lot, quite a few bargains (though not as many as Lucy may have wanted, she was better than me at haggling, to the point I was getting her to buy my things, to save that extra 50p ;p)
We visited the markets that day too, although they werent really all that. Interesting, but not exactly what we were after. If you want good fake clothes and a bag or wallet, then you'd love it.
The next day, Lucy was gone :(
But I moved Into Hanoi Backpackers, and soon moved on :p haha only joking. But Hanoi Backpackera was a real Backpackers hostel, busy with travellers who were getting drunk (some starting on Gin from 10am!) and I soon met a few people from my dorm and round the bar - what with it being St Paddys day, the hostel was in full swing. I met a guy who had motorbiked up Vietnam, and he took me for a spin round Hanoi on his Bike - which considering how chaotic the roads are there, was really thrilling! He even gave me a quick lesson down the alley, not that I achieved much. I got into 2nd gear, but then stalled and burnt my leg on the exhaust. Think I'll stick to cars...at least for a bit :p
The weirdest thing was, I ended up bumping into only the 2&3 people I've met who also live in Bristol...a young couple in my year...and as it turns out, they live 10 doors down from me! How mental is that! Yet we've never seen each other before! How bizarre! We ended up spending the next few days (in Hanoi and Hue) together, including St Paddys night, though the massive party under the bridge, as it had been billed, was actually a crap band at a bar next I the bridge. The only thing going in under the bridge was guys using it as a urinal.
I spent the next two days chilling round the hostel, taking advantage of the fact it had everything I needed - wifi, bar, restaurant, pool, cinema (or a big flat screen which showed 3 movies a day, remember the Lion King Blog?)
On the Sunday night however, I took part in one of the most bizarre nights of my life - Snake Village.
Bear in mind, I did this on the advice and guidance of my Friend James, who said it was awesome. He was kinda right.
There were about 20 of us, 18 backpacking Englishmen (and the odd canadian) and a Brazilian couple, who were just as up for it. We were taken to a little village restaurant place, about 10 minute minibus ride (which included a lot of drunken singing, including 'back seat of the bus', for all you Uni people, you'll know this song. Our record was 12! Not bad on a mini bus!
On arrival, we were allowed to handle the snakes that we would be eating, nothing new or exciting there, I've done it in Cairns. But then the big one. A King Cobra. Watching the cobra get angry and flare up and attack at the handlers was pretty cool.
We were then taken to our little room, one of many little bamboo huts on a pond. The room was nice, and would be the scene of a lot of drunken banter...and some barbarity. When we sat down, we were called one by one to a space, where we invited to help cut open the snake, and bite our the heart, which the hosts and scooped out. No this sounds bad, but taste wise it was fine, it was more the thought of it. Not that I particularly wanted to do it, but I couldn't really back, especially with the drunken rabble I had ended up with.
After the hearts, we returned to
Our table, donned in war paint, and we were invited to 2 toasts - one with snake blood, one snake Bite, both mixed with rice wine. That was horrible. We were then treated to 8 dishes, all snake. Snake meat, testicles, rib, liver, skin. It was actually quite tasty I must admit!
The night was made more interesting by the fact that we had to have a shot of rice wine for every toast made by a different nationality. There were 8 nationalities in total. (including the guides). Then, every toast that someone wanted to make. We ended up having about 15-20 shots of rice wine, which was in fact Moonshine, made by the restaurant itself, with no knowledge of how strong it was. I can tell you, friends, how strong it was. Bloody strong. It was like drinking Vinegar and White Spirit. And with a chaser of Beer, it didn't take long for the effects to harvest amongst my peers, who resorted to boyish acts of punching each other in the nuts to see who was hardest. (as in most manly, you dirty minded people, it wasn't that kind of trip)
All in all, the experience was awesome, one ill never forget. It was a lot of fun, if completely bizzare. On return to the hostel, we were rewarded withies
Beer, and with everyone else we headed for a nightclub, where I had yet
More beer. And danced. A great night had by all.
Oh and thank you to anyone that prayed for my Grandma, as far as I know the Op went well as Shes doing great, even better news :)
Actually to be fair it was quite fun, looking at all the 'Same Same but Different' things in all the shops, dashing all the shopkeepers hopes nd wasting there time by not buying anything :p and the haggling was fun too, arguing the toss over £1/£2, just cos we could. Though it was a lot d money to them.
We ended up getting quite a lot for not a lot, quite a few bargains (though not as many as Lucy may have wanted, she was better than me at haggling, to the point I was getting her to buy my things, to save that extra 50p ;p)
We visited the markets that day too, although they werent really all that. Interesting, but not exactly what we were after. If you want good fake clothes and a bag or wallet, then you'd love it.
The next day, Lucy was gone :(
But I moved Into Hanoi Backpackers, and soon moved on :p haha only joking. But Hanoi Backpackera was a real Backpackers hostel, busy with travellers who were getting drunk (some starting on Gin from 10am!) and I soon met a few people from my dorm and round the bar - what with it being St Paddys day, the hostel was in full swing. I met a guy who had motorbiked up Vietnam, and he took me for a spin round Hanoi on his Bike - which considering how chaotic the roads are there, was really thrilling! He even gave me a quick lesson down the alley, not that I achieved much. I got into 2nd gear, but then stalled and burnt my leg on the exhaust. Think I'll stick to cars...at least for a bit :p
The weirdest thing was, I ended up bumping into only the 2&3 people I've met who also live in Bristol...a young couple in my year...and as it turns out, they live 10 doors down from me! How mental is that! Yet we've never seen each other before! How bizarre! We ended up spending the next few days (in Hanoi and Hue) together, including St Paddys night, though the massive party under the bridge, as it had been billed, was actually a crap band at a bar next I the bridge. The only thing going in under the bridge was guys using it as a urinal.
I spent the next two days chilling round the hostel, taking advantage of the fact it had everything I needed - wifi, bar, restaurant, pool, cinema (or a big flat screen which showed 3 movies a day, remember the Lion King Blog?)
On the Sunday night however, I took part in one of the most bizarre nights of my life - Snake Village.
Bear in mind, I did this on the advice and guidance of my Friend James, who said it was awesome. He was kinda right.
There were about 20 of us, 18 backpacking Englishmen (and the odd canadian) and a Brazilian couple, who were just as up for it. We were taken to a little village restaurant place, about 10 minute minibus ride (which included a lot of drunken singing, including 'back seat of the bus', for all you Uni people, you'll know this song. Our record was 12! Not bad on a mini bus!
On arrival, we were allowed to handle the snakes that we would be eating, nothing new or exciting there, I've done it in Cairns. But then the big one. A King Cobra. Watching the cobra get angry and flare up and attack at the handlers was pretty cool.
We were then taken to our little room, one of many little bamboo huts on a pond. The room was nice, and would be the scene of a lot of drunken banter...and some barbarity. When we sat down, we were called one by one to a space, where we invited to help cut open the snake, and bite our the heart, which the hosts and scooped out. No this sounds bad, but taste wise it was fine, it was more the thought of it. Not that I particularly wanted to do it, but I couldn't really back, especially with the drunken rabble I had ended up with.
After the hearts, we returned to
Our table, donned in war paint, and we were invited to 2 toasts - one with snake blood, one snake Bite, both mixed with rice wine. That was horrible. We were then treated to 8 dishes, all snake. Snake meat, testicles, rib, liver, skin. It was actually quite tasty I must admit!
The night was made more interesting by the fact that we had to have a shot of rice wine for every toast made by a different nationality. There were 8 nationalities in total. (including the guides). Then, every toast that someone wanted to make. We ended up having about 15-20 shots of rice wine, which was in fact Moonshine, made by the restaurant itself, with no knowledge of how strong it was. I can tell you, friends, how strong it was. Bloody strong. It was like drinking Vinegar and White Spirit. And with a chaser of Beer, it didn't take long for the effects to harvest amongst my peers, who resorted to boyish acts of punching each other in the nuts to see who was hardest. (as in most manly, you dirty minded people, it wasn't that kind of trip)
All in all, the experience was awesome, one ill never forget. It was a lot of fun, if completely bizzare. On return to the hostel, we were rewarded withies
Beer, and with everyone else we headed for a nightclub, where I had yet
More beer. And danced. A great night had by all.
Oh and thank you to anyone that prayed for my Grandma, as far as I know the Op went well as Shes doing great, even better news :)
Monday, 19 March 2012
Pray for my Grandma
Hello all, slight detour from my normal lighthearted blogs, getting a little serious.
Please can everyone pray for my Grandma. She's having an operation today and it's really hard for me being over here while she's not at her wind-surfing best!
Oh, and #prayformuamba
Thank you, carry on....
Please can everyone pray for my Grandma. She's having an operation today and it's really hard for me being over here while she's not at her wind-surfing best!
Oh, and #prayformuamba
Thank you, carry on....
Sunday, 18 March 2012
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