Another day, another border crossing, if only it was that easy!!!
We had to get an early start to make our next destination Phu Quoc Island (yes back in the salty sea) south of Cambodia in the Gulf of Thailand but owned by Vietnam. The border crossing has only recently been opened to enable tourist’s “better” access to the southern parts of both Cambodia and Vietnam. We booked the trip to include the first bus to the border, then another bus from the border to a seaport Ha Tien and from there a 1.5hr ferry trip across to the island. The first bus was in fact a minivan which surprisingly made the distance with a flat battery, no horn and no wipers, thankfully it only rained for about 15 minutes, we also had to keep yelling at the driver to keep him awake, finally he pulled over and bought a can of red bull, it worked. After hearing stories through out our journeys from other travellers in similar situations we expected to be dumped at the border without any connections but to our surprise another minivan was waiting, this one was better and the driver much more with it. We crossed the border which looked like something out of a western movie, paid our bribes and continued on our way hoping to arrive before the 1330 ferry departed. The 1330 ferry became the 1630 ferry with a totally illogical explanation that made no sense at all for the delay and subsequently we arrived at our hotel at 1930, yes 3hrs later, please don’t ask why!!!
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| Border crossing between Cambodia and Vietnam in the deep south |
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| Part of the reason for taking so long was the 0.5km long jetty we had to traverse at Phu Quoc after getting off the ferry |
Phu Quoc is quite a large island and home to many fishing villages which supply Vietnam with good quality seafood, by far the best we have tasted so far in Asia. Our hotel/resort was pretty good especially after we upgraded to the beachfront bungalow. Exposed to the southwest winds the beach was cool and lovely but the seas a bit rough and unfortunately full of plastic rubbish (when will they learn???), it was low season and not many guests till the day before we left. Luckily the rain held off for the 4 days we stayed. The island also hosts a large prison which was used during the Vietnam War to house the Viet-cong prisoners and is still operational with much propaganda written about its history. We hired a bike to explore the island and found a nice beach on the leeward side which was free of plastic and had a very pleasant swim; the bike trip was more like a trail ride similar to the islands in Laos and great fun for one of us anyway.
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| Unloading the catch at the southern end of Phu Quoc |
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| Best swimming spot was on the leeward side of the island |
We found our hotel with the help of a friendly cabby and after the 3rd room decided to stay albeit at a higher rate than we had budgeted. It is best not to book ahead as there are plenty of hotels and you get to choose the room or change hotel if not satisfied. We checked out the local restaurant scene and found our favourites about 2km walk away where all the backpackers hang out. The backpacker rooms are just too basic for us and the beds are mostly just a piece of foam, besides walking around Saigon is part of the fun and best way to see the entire goings on. Hiring a bike is not an option as the congestion on the road makes it way too dangerous.
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| A back street in Saigon, we believe the crossing is only for show, you have absolutely no rights as a pedestrian |
The next day we headed for the Independence Palace, the place where the tank pushed down the gates and the remaining US staff fled by helicopter only hours before. Next it was off to the war museums. Again a sombre time to reflect on the tragedy that took place not many years ago except this time the perpetrators were Aussies and Yanks. The atrocities against the local people (including women and children) were horrendous especially with the use of defoliants and napalm which not only killed but led to future birth defects which are visible in the population all over the city.
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| A cross-section of the triple level tunnel system showing pyramid shaped living quarters, water well, traps and under river access |
The next day we went on a tour 60km west of Saigon to the Cu Chi tunnels where the Viet-cong hid during the continual bombardment and chemical spraying. The construction of the 250km2 tunnel system was ingenious and completely baffled the US army. They actually built a base on top of the tunnel system and still couldn’t understand why they were being ambushed on their return to the base. They imported German shepherd dogs to ferret out the tunnels but soon the Viet-cong turned that to their advantage and captured, killed then ate the dogs. A good source of protein provided by the enemy (dog is still on many menus even today). The enemy also provided all the materials for the Viet-cong to make weapons, don’t forget these people were peasant farmers and weapons were virtually non-existent. The war was certainly the classic David and Goliath battle and proved the saying, “it’s not the dog in the fight but the fight in the dog”. The south (called US puppet regime by the Viet-cong) didn’t have a hope in the world of ever winning that war and despite the hundreds of thousand if not millions of people that died and suffered the same is still occurring again today in other parts of the world. Anyway enough of the wars!!!!
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| Access hatch to one of the tunnels, much too small for farangs to access or find |
The transport system north of Saigon is much more advanced with both rail and bus services. We opted for an open bus ticket which allows for a single purchase with multiple stops at nominated locations between Saigon and Hanoi which is valid indefinitely and you can elect as you go the days or nights that you want to travel to the next destination. It works out much cheaper than individual purchases and the buses are much better than the local ones, they even have sleeper buses for the night runs. Tuktuks are not present in Vietnam which in a way is good so the bus companies provide free pickup from your hotel; taxis are available and pretty cheap. Walking has been a big part of our days and nights which is keeping us fit and healthy especially as the food is fantastic so far, different to all else in Asia and believe it or not cheaper. The beer, good variety but our favourite is Bia Saigon from $0.50 per 450ml bottle cold at a restaurant, we also found a nice local rum (spelt rhum very nautical eh) and only $1 (20,000 dong) for a 650ml bottle.
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| Would you argue with this guy??? |
Our first trip on the open ticket was luxury compared to our other bus experiences as we headed for the hills and a city called Dalat 1500m above sea level, very picturesque and the first mountains we’ve seen since leaving China. At that elevation both the temperature and humidity are much lower a very pleasant change. It seems we have dodged the wet season thankfully and now that we are on the east coast of Vietnam the Southwest Monsoon has little influence other than perhaps a rogue typhoon in the South China Sea which hopefully shouldn’t come till September/October.
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| Local produce market in Dalat |
Dalat is a strange city that is stuck in the 60’s, perhaps because it was spared contact with the war. All the locals hang out at “cafes” playing draughts drinking iced tea or coffee, there are “Peace” Hotels and “Peace” restaurants scattered around the city and a motor bike tour company called Easy Riders. They grow the most amazing fruit, vegetables and pot no doubt, but strangely didn’t include vegetables in any recipe prepared at either of the restaurants we visited even after numerous requests. Our hotel ended up being owned by the brother of the owner of the one we wanted to stay at but couldn’t as it was full, it was 1km further up the road but the included breakfast spread was exceptional (even had vegemite) and well worth the extra walking. 2 days was enough for us, the sights were miles out of town in all directions so we did a 7km circumnavigation of the lake located in the city centre by foot and inspected the local produce market.
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| Dalat!!! |
Bus trip no 2 was as good as the first but with better scenery as we descended more rapidly back down to sea level via a big valley which was full of glass houses growing all sorts of produce and flowers. Several waterfalls cascaded down the cliff face and through a drain under the road then down the other side.
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| Local hawkers, the cooly hat is a fashion accessory here |
Our destination this time was Nha Trang, a beachside city that could best be described as the Gold Coast of Vietnam, heaps of tourists and semi high rise accommodation. The water here is crystal clear and BLUE not green as we are now in the Pacific Ocean region not the Indian. Long white sandy beach and NO!!! plastic in the water other than Asians donned with an assortment of coloured floaties.
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| Magnified view of nearby island from our balcony in Nha Treng |
We looked at 6 hotels before choosing one that we were happy with, it was opposite the beach facing East on the top floor (5th) with a balcony and an uninterrupted view to kill for. Full height corner window so you could lie in bed and look at the sea and cost only $30/night. Only downside is the incessant horn blowing from daylight to about 2100 but that comes with being in Asia.
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| Cable car access from mainland to the fun park island Vinpearl |
Had a fun afternoon on Vinpearl similar to Lunar Park and Waterworld. A cable car ride to and from the island is the highlight and a ride on the rollercoaster brought back long distant memories. We had a swim in the wave pool but declined on the slides as many kids were coming out battered and bruised and our aged bodies have suffered enough punishment over the years. There was also a world class aquarium with tunnel and conveyor which was superb and full of giant grouper, cod, sharks, rays and even a coral trout. Faith has been returned that big fish do exist still.
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| Familiar territory again without getting wet |
Beers and Cheers or in this case Bia Saigon
J&J
It sounds like Vietnam is pretty good (after a few normal transport hiccups!). The transport challenges must be making you stronger!! The accomodation, food and sights of Vietnam sound great. M&R
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