Lan Ha Bay

No trip to Vietnam is complete without a stop in the Halong / Lan Ha Bay area. It is a world wonder of geology. Huge limestone columns rise out of the blue ocean, and somehow trees manage to grow in the cracks.

It was as beautiful as advertised. We stayed on Cat Ba island, and did a day tour of both bays, including lunch and kayaking. Unfortunately the amount of plastic waste in the ocean definitely detracted from the experience.

There are huge amounts of tourists in the area, both foreign and domestic. The sheer number of vessels in the water is staggering.

On Cat Ba we also visited a fort with an awesome view of the city, had dinner at a floating restaurant, and went out for a hotpot seafood feast with new friends from Portland.

Phong Nga

Phong Nga national park is the first time we have come across Vietnam's  limestone karst country. It is absolutely breath taking.

The park is home to countless caves, including Hang Son Doong, the largest found yet in the world. It's pretty remote (a guided tour costs around $3000 per person) so we stuck to the easily accessible ones. Unfortunately it's monsoon season and many were closed the few days we were there.

We got a boat down the river and into the Phong Nga cave. Very impressive.

We did another self guided motorcycle tour around the national park, visiting the botanical gardens, and generally being overwhelmed by the beauty of the limestone outcrops and dense jungle.

Hue

We spent a rushed day sightseeing in the city of Hue (pronounced hway).

Hue was the seat of power for generations of vietnamese emporers of the Nguyen dynasty. There is a huge walled palace complex in the middle of town where the emperor lived and held court.

We also visited emperor Tu Duc's tomb, final resting place for the emperor and his 104 wives. It was as grandiose as you would expect, except for the fact that he wasn't actually buried there, but in an secret location by 200 staff members who were beheaded to ensure it remained a secret.

We also visited a very strange abandoned waterpark attraction. Very cool, if not a bit creepy.

Hoi An

After a somewhat traumatic mini bus ride from Kon Tum (24 people in a vehicle designed for 16), we arrived in Hoi An.

We stayed with family friend Jane at the wonderful Christina's hotel. Jane works part of the year with the staff to maintain and improve the culture they have of genuine hospitality across the expanding hotel chain.

The staff had a welcome sign on arrival, a cake ready for Kellie's birthday, as well as a handmade card and bar of locally made chocolate. They really made us feel at home.

Jane and some of her friends showed us around the town over a couple days, including the best places to eat and drink.

Hoi An was an important trading port for centuries until the river got silted up, and business moved up the coast to Danang. The "old town" has been well preserved and has a collection of Asian influences including chinese and Japanese. The Japanese bridge is particularly interesting, it is featured on Vietnam's bank notes.

We hired a motorbike to travel north to Hue, we used a company that drops off a bike and transports your luggage by bus to the next hotel. It only costs $10 for the hire and service. We drove to Hue via the scenic Hai Van pass, made internationally famous by the Vietnam Top Gear special.

Vietnam's Central Highlands

We loved the central highlands so much, we decided to fork out for a tour guide and a couple motorbikes to travel two days from Da Lat to Buon Ma Thuot.

Our guide Bruno showed us around the countryside, including a bunch of places that we never would have found without a guide. We saw a weasel coffee farm (where these small cat-like animals are kept in small cages, fed coffee beans, and then the beans are harvested from their poos and roasted- the small cages are quite depressing), a rice-based moonshine operation, a floating village, a clay brick kiln, a silk factory, and an incense workshop.

We stopped at a huge waterfall, and got kidnapped by a picnicking family who fed us beer and snacks continuously and without mercy.

We drove through mountains and past vast rice paddy fields. We stayed one night in a village longhouse by Lak Lake. This village has a history of antagonism with the Government. The Government has therefore kindly erected speakers on the main street to keep the locals up to date with relevant political information all day, every day.

We ended our tour in the bustling city of Buon Ma Thuot, and caught an evening bus to Kon Tum. Kon Tum and the surrounding area are interesting for the large amount of ethnic minority villages. We went for a self guided, and somewhat intrepid, motorcycle tour around the region. We saw some "Rong Houses" with their unusually shaped thatched roofs. They provide a similar community function that marae do for Maori in NZ.

Da Lat

Cool weather...and rain....refreshing after a few days on the coast. Jumper weather even.

We caught a 5 hour bus up to Da Lat through the beautiful countryside. Saw a few rice fields, but mostly coffee farms. Didn't see much in the way of villages the whole way though which was surprising.

We immediately liked Da Lat. It's a picturesque town with a lot of character. Seems like a popular holiday spot for tourists and locals alike. We hired a motorbike to visit local waterfalls and a monastery via cable car.

We went out for a few drinks to the world's coolest bar "100 roofs". It is a six story maze like building built grotto style. It is easy to get lost. There are bars on multiple levels and many different alcoves to sit in.

Also went to the building that inspired it- the "Crazy House" was built by a local artist/architect. It frustrated uptight neighbours and town planners for decades. It was recently officially permitted by the authorities, and is now a big tourist drawcard. It is also still growing upwards...

We stayed at a great place called Tiny Tigers. Hosts Leo and Tiger were amazing. We had some amazing family style meals, lots of rice wine, and some karaoke with their 6 year old son Tintin.

Mui Ne

We got a 5 hour comfy "sleeper" bus ride from HCM City to Mui Ne on the coast ($9).

It is obvious we are here in the down season- the place is geared up for the hoardes, but feels quite empty. Although there are a few Russians about with their families. We only stayed a night and wouldn't recommend the place to anyone.

We hired a motorbike for an afternoon to drive the coast and check out the famous red sand dunes.

I had my first dip in the South China Sea. There were some small waves about with kids surfing.

We spent the evening at an enormous beach side bar where we were pretty much the only patrons for a few hours. We therefore had direct access to the house musician to request some Purple Rain.

Vietnam!

We are off on another adventure! We are travelling through Asia for three months, but without a van. We thought why waste a good blog site...so we are recycling this one.

We flew direct from Auckland to Ho Chi Minh City in a new Air NZ 787 dreamliner. You can order drinks and snacks any time during the flight from a menu on your seat display, what a time to be alive.

It is supposedly monsoon season in this part of the world, and while it is warm (30°) the rain is nowhere to be seen.

Ho Chi Minh is a massive and busy city. The roads are packed with motorcycles- crossing the road means walking slowly with your fingers crossed as the traffic parts around you.

There is also a lot of history in this town, from its beginnings as a backwater swamp, to a regional centre, to a French colonial administration, to being a national capital, to North Vietnamese tanks rolling into town and declaring that Saigon will now be known as Ho Chi Minh City (and not a capital).

We visited the reunification palace where this last event took place. There was originally a French-built palace on the site that was home of the President of South Vietnam after the country gained independence. The palace was bombed in a failed attempt to assasinate the President. It was ordered to be rebuilt in modern style (although the President didn't survive to opening day), and was then the centre of the US / South Vietnamese war effort. This all ended when North Vietnamese forces raised their flag from the roof.

The palace is worth a visit. They have left intact various war planning and radio rooms in underground bunkers. The palace itself is grand with various state rooms and offices. The previous owners even had a theatre, games rooms, and lavish rooftop party area.

We also went up the Bitexco tower to get a view of the ever expanding city and the Saigon River. We had a few bottles of Bia Saigon (50c to $1), and bowls of delicious Pho ($2.50). We also saw an inexplicable pink pigeon while wandering around the city.