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22/8/2013: So long, farewell
I promised myself, I wouldn't write a long sentimental piece about what this trip has meant to me, but there are a few things, I would like to say, before I end this year's travel blog:
This adventure came about only because I had to retake my final year of college due to the illness I suffered before Christmas. However, it ended up being so much more than just compensation for a shit (I know it isn't a very nice word but truly sums up the) situation.
I think it is fair to say, that the illness really took its toll on me. Yet it was a combination of many things, that slowly over a long period of time made me less positive, enthusiastic, strong and most of all less happy. I started planning this trip, so that I wouldn't feel, that I was wasting time repeating the year but instead gaining experience that I was hoping (and still hope) to benefit from after college. However, this trip turned out to give me so much more than just work experience!!! Arriving at Pom Pom Island I had a lot on my mind, all the frustration, anger and confusion was all mixed up inside of me, but over the past 5 months all these thoughts have slowly come in order, and I believe, I am now more in peace with myself than I have been for a while. Somewhere along the way I rediscovered the reason why I moved to Dublin to study in the first place. I rediscovered my passion for environmental sciences and interest in environmental issues and I believe I have regained the strength, determination and will power that I had during my experiences with the Galathea 3 science expedition (many years ago now), Young scientists (almost as many years ago now) and when I moved to Dublin, but which I out here realized I had lost over the last few years.
I am no longer angry or disappointed that I have to go back to Trinity College in September. I am actually really, really happy that I get to come back to Dublin to finish what I started, finishing it knowing exactly why I am there and not just to finish for the sake of finishing in order to move on, but to finish having learned and gained everything I possibly could.
I have realized that I only have 8 months left in Dublin. Those 8 months will be the last months that I get to be a resident there, after that, I will come back as a visitor only. I had lost sight of why I was so far away from my family and friends, was so focused on just finishing and going home but what a shame it would have been if I had finished like that.............. Instead I now get to come back and enjoy all the great opportunities that Trinity can give and in 8 months time I will graduate, confident that I made the right decision in chosing to study Environmental Sciences!!! :)
It is truly amazing how (as little as) 5 months of challenges can change ones mindset completely! It has been amazing, great, awesome, fantastic, frustrating, difficult, mind boggling, confusing, stressful, breathtaking, incredible, encouraging, scary, challenging, unreal, tough and a million other things but I have learned so much from it all! Surviving on Pom Pom Island, working in Kuala Lumpur, visiting friends in Singapore, making new friends in Melaka, eating in Penang, doing fieldwork in Perak, relaxing on Tioman Island, discovering Vietnam and winding down in Bangkok!! Have met inspiring people all along the way, people whom I very much hope to see again someday!!
Travelling in Asia is a challenge in itself but facing that challenge on my own has made me stronger, and has made me realize how much it means to have a place where you feel completely safe, where you know that your family and friends have your back at all times and I am looking forward to going home to that place now!! As amazing as it has been, I am ready to come home to all the people that I have missed immensely and whom I wish I could have brought with me on this journey :)
I believe it was Julius Caesar who once said: "We came, we saw, we conquered", I didn't conquer anything but I believe that I on this trip "Came, explored, experiences and learned"!!
Before I go I want to say a million thanks to all of you who followed my journey, read my blog, left messages and got in contact - Every single view on this page and every single message has put a smile on my face, thank you for that!
There is now roughly only 25 hours until I touch down in Copenhagen, so I will try to get a few hours of sleep before I start my journey home.
Goodnight everyone, I hope you are all having a fantastic day!!
All the very best to you all,
Susannah x
P.S This website will in a month or two be turned into my new Environmental Science blog where I every months will write an article on a current environmental issue - so if you are interested please drop by in the beginning of every month where there will be facts, stories and debates ready for discussion.
P.P.SI just realized that dispite my promises this post did in fact end up as a sentimental bla bla, I just couldn't help myself!! It is like the words just shoot out of me and I can't control it :D
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20/8/2013: Last day in Vietnam
Today was my last day in Vietnam, tomorrow morning it is time for the final stop before I'm going home namely Bangkok!
Today wasn't very interesting really. I did a bit of last minute shopping, bought the last few presents that I for strategic reasons had waited until my day to buy. However, the weather wasn't great so I spent most of the day sitting at a street cafe reading my book, watching as everyone around me went on with their normal business regardless of the rain. I have now packed my bags and is ready to get up at 5.15 to go to the airport - It made me think of how great a time it has been here in Vietnam!!
I arrived expecting nothing less than a great holiday and I am happy to say that it definitely has been a great holiday!! It has been different than what I expected, it has been physically and mentally exhausting trying to cram it all into such a short time but it has, like the rest of my trip this year, been fantastic!
Saying that it say been different from what I expected probably requires an explanation but is a mixture of many things so it is a little bit difficult to explain but I'll try: I had heard lots of stories from friends and family having been to Vietnam and I guess I was expecting a nation very much in touch with its roots. Still very much going on with their own lives regardless of the tourism. A friendly nation with an openness towards foreigners. Yet I don't feel that is the Vietnam I have seen these past few weeks.... In many of the places I have been, I have been met by what has felt like tiredness, hesitation and reservation (is that even an English word? Being reserved is the meaning anyway) from the locals.
I have often gotten the feeling, that they have just had too much of all the tourists, that they feel like their normal lives have been invaded by this massive tourist industry that while generating a lot of money, to some extend prevent the locals from going on with their normal life, almost changing their lives into a musem display or some kind of circus. In the cities you see people in the streets making money off having their photo taken by tourists, in the smaller villages you see women getting on with their daily work surrounded by a 20 tourists all talking about the women as were they not there. Don't get me wrong I completely understand the curiosity of the tourists, I myself is no different, I came to see "the real Vietnam", I came to see the local villages and the daily life of the Vietnamese and to learn about their history and culture, but I now see, that the extend of the tourism, makes a huge impact. One of the results (or at least what I think is a result of this) is that you in many places are met by Vietnamese that wants nothing from you but your money - they want to sell you a tour, a motorbike ride, food or accommodation but even if you buy something from them, they are not really interested in talking to you. I am aware that this could also be caused by the language barrier that many Vietnamese are faced with if their English isn't very good, but the reason I have made the other conclusion is that when you go just a little off the big tourist pathways, the story seems to be different.
The local fishing village I visited with the photo workshop was full of people that regardless of their poor English skills were very interested in communicating with us - it was mostly sign language/pointing/single word conversations but they were engaging/interacting with us in a very different way than I saw in the villages that were targeted by large tourist agencies. And it wasn't only in that village that I saw a different attitude, it was the same in Ninh Binh where everyone I met were happy to share their knowledge (again those who were able but the rest contributed in their own way) and proudly told about their culture and the history of the country. But both in Hanoi and Hue (and to some extend in Hoi An but not as pronounced) I definitely got the feeling that a lot of the people would prefer to go on with their own things rather than interacting with tourists. And I guess I understand, because I think Vietnam has seen, especially from young travellers, a lot of tourists behaving in ways that aren't the Vietnamese style. You see westernes getting angry (which is an aboslute no no here), getting really drunk, being rather rude (instead of smiley which is key around here) and in general just not being very respectful. In Europe we wouldn't have half the patience that the Vietnamese have. So even though I find it sad that so many of these beautiful cities are now less friendly and open than what it seems they previously were, I admire the Vietnamese for their way of dealing with such a sudden change. The economic benefits that tourism brings are huge and I even though I had hoped for more interaction with the locals, I understand how it must be difficult to "sell" their traditions and culture (because I think most people will agree that being in Vietnam is about much more than just experiencing beautiful landscapes) without distancing themselves from the craziness of it all.
Not sure if any of that made any sense - as I said earlier, it is very difficult to explain but I guess my main point is that I think tourism has affected Vietnam a lot and not necessarily in a good way (except obviously from the economic benefits). I hope that the economic benefits are not so influential that the Vietnamese don't feel like they can say no. No one should feel like have to "sell" parts of themselves, their culture or heritage to the tourist industry if they don't want to - But I guess that is easy to say when you have enough money to travel around the world and engage in the very industry that might be the problem.
Please don't take this as an attack on the tourist industry - I am in no position to take up the discussion about the impact of tourism (or at least I do not wish to do so in a public forum like this). This entry is merely a description of observations made during my travels and with all of that said, I have met no unfriendly people here just more reserved than I had expected and maybe I am completely wrong about the root cause of all of these observations :)
It is now time for me to go to bed - It has taken surprisingly long to write this so it is waaay past my bed time!
Sleep well everyone,
Susannah x
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19/8/2013: 24 adjectives and many more had I been an English vocabular wizard - Ha Long Bay
Fantastic! Great! Awesome! Exceptional! Wonderful! Marvelous! Amazing! Brilliant! Excellent! Astonishing! Fabulous! Superb! Phenomenal! Outstanding! Magnificent! Incredible! Terrific! Sensational! Remarkable! Extraordinary! Spectacular! Splendid! Glorious! Breathtaking! The highlight of my Vietnam trip!!
I think the above pretty much sums up my experience at Ha Long Bay and I would be tempted to say that no more words would be needed but that would rob those of you that haven't been to Ha Long bay yourself the chance to hear why Ha Long bay was the best! So here we go:
Ha Long Bay (meaning the descending dragon bay) is a UNESCO world heritage site and is currently considered one of the 7 wonders of nature by the "New 7 wonders of Nature" initiative which is an initiative to create a list of seven natural wonders of the world chosen by people through a global poll.
The bay features around 2000 islets and many more karsts of various sizes and shapes most of which are limestone, the biggest of which is Cat Ba Island.
Geologically this area is very interesting which is also one of the reasons why I was so keen on going: The limestone has gone through more than 500 million years of formation in different conditions and environments and the development of the karsts have taken more than 20 million years, a development under the impact of the tropical wet climate found in this area.
Ha Long bay is one of the biggest tourist attractions in Vietnam and there are therefore an endless number of different tour operators working in the area which means that you can find trips in all shapes and sizes and in all price ranges. Some of the cheaper trips are not as safe though (there have been reports of boats sinking in the middle of the night) and so I decided to spend a little more than I usually spend on tours and go with the 3days/2 night trip offered by Vega Travel – My family was on this trip 4 years ago and had highly recommended it so decided to follow in their footsteps!
After being picked up at my hotel we drove to Ha Long bay in a nice little minivan, a 3 hour drive, where we in no time were checked in on the boat ready for departure soon after 12 O’clock. I have by now been on a lot of different trips and tours around Vietnam and I have been really lucky with the people I have met along the way but I was rather worried that a trip like this potentially could attract lovey-dovey couples leaving me rather secluded on my own but this was absolutely not the case at all – I can honestly say that the group of people I met in Ha Long Bay are some of the coolest people I have met during my travels this year!! We were a nice little group of 12 people: 2 German couples, 2 Dutch couples, 1 Australian couple, a Dutch sole traveller and I. We gelled really well from the first day, everyone had interesting backgrounds and great stories to tell and most importantly everyone was up for fun, joking and lots of laughter!!
After check in on the boat, the most amazing lunch was served while we slowly started cruising through the stunning scenery. The early afternoon was spent on the sundeck on top of the boat enjoying the sun, the view and great stories of Vietnamese history and culture told by our FANTASTIC guide Chuc. After a few hours we made a stop at some of the many caves found in the area (there is a photo of the largest one among the photos from the trip – link) and afterwards we went kayaking among the many limestone karsts. Willemien (the other sole traveller) and I were awesome at the kayaking if we are to say it ourselves!!!
Back at the boat we had time to shower and relax a little before dinner was ready – a great dinner!! Not only do they make absolutely delicious food on the boat they also decorate all the serving plates with the most amazing handmade vegetable decorations. There were doves made of potato, flowers made from carrot, radish and chillies and turtles made from cucumber, it was unbelievable what they could create. After dinner we had a few beers, shared travelling experiences and talked about everything from “the killing” to forensic doctors, Boeing airplanes, Lego land and teaching. It was amazing how we were all so different yet we had so much to talk about!
The next morning we had an early start, breakfast was ready at 7am and shortly after we headed off in a small boat to Ti Top Island where we climbed the 427 steps to the top of the hill where there was a nice view over the bay. The 427 steps nearly killed us in the heat but arriving at the top we all agreed it was worth the effort :) Safely back at sea level we enjoyed the small artificial beach for a short while before heading back to the boat. The rest of the day was spent on the boat chilling in the sun, jumping off the boat, swimming, kayaking and some people went for a hike and cycle to a local village on one of the islands. I chose to stay on the boat as I felt that I by now have done enough cycling and village visiting for this trip and was ready for some more relaxation time in the sun (I have heard that the weather in Denmark is turning rather cold so need to enjoy the last bits of summer before going home haha).
At 5.30pm we arrived at Cat Ba Island where we spent the second night in a very nice hotel. We were all very tired so decided to go for an early dinner so we met up at 6.30pm and headed out. We had been recommended a few different places but on our way to one of those places we passed a small hotel restaurant where a large group of Vietnamese were having a very loud dinner party so we decided to join them instead – a choice we did not regret!! We ordered what they were eating and soon after came tonnes of food: Squid, shrimps, muscles, fishcakes, French fries, other fish, and various vegetable dishes. There was enough food for a whole army. After dinner the Vietnamese party had gone home but the staff at the restaurant had started their own party, and they were very keen on us joining their karaoke party so we did!! What a jolly good time we had!! I don’t think I have ever danced so much crazy dance, sung and cheered so much at 8pm while being completely sober…. The locals on the other hand were hammered and insisted on giving us free “company beer” (we are still not sure what company they were referring to but beer is beer, right?) so the party kept going for quite a while longer than we planned and soon the whole street outside was full of people that had heard about the craziness going on – fun, fun, fun times. By 11pm we were all in bed though!!
The next morning we yet again had an early start, leaving the hotel at 7.30am. It was time to start the journey back to Ha Long harbour but we got 4 more ours of “sightseeing” from the boat before the trip ended with another delicious lunch and a bus ride back to Hanoi!
Looking back I think 20% of the experience was being in Ha Long Bay (already having been to Ninh Binh seeing similar karsts just on land probably made the scenery a little less impressive so this category would possibly have a higher mark if I had been to Ha Long Bay before Ninh Binh), 30% was having an amazing guide who was not only very interested in telling us lots about the area and customs of Vietnam but who was also in on all the fun and laughter going on and the last 50% was meeting the great group of people!! I can highly recommend Vega Travel to anyone looking for a great trip to Ha Long Bay with excellent service and a fabulous itinerary!!!!!
I am now back in Hanoi for a few days before going to Bangkok. Even though I have a few days left it somehow seems like this trip to Ha Long Bay mark the end of my many adventures here in Vietnam, maybe it is because I have been in Hanoi a lot already or maybe it is because it is now time to start mentally prepare myself for going home – either way it is/was a perfect ending!! Tomorrow I will meet with my friend Tim’s ex colleague Chi for lunch. She works at a school here in Hanoi but I don’t know much more about her. And after that I guess it is time to pack my bags and head to Bangkok where I will spend two days in a nice hotel with a pool – am not planning on seeing a whole lot in Bangkok, lying by the pool will hopefully be the main activity of my stay, can’t wait!!!
Hope you are all well, I really wish I could have had you all with me at Ha Long Bay because it was truly the highlight of my stay here in Vietnam (even though Hoi An was a close second).
Susannah x
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15/8/2013: Ho Chi Min Mausoleum and the Temple of Literature
After the few lovely days in Ninh Binh, I yesterday afternoon arrived back in Hanoi! I was actually planning on a quite day (they had predicted rain so what better thing to do than read a book) but I met two very nice German girls at the hostel I am staying at and they asked if I wanted to come to the Ho Chi Min Mausoleum so I decided to go with them instead.
I don't know exactly how de describe the experience, I mean I can describe all the physical details of the queueing, the many people paying their respects, the buildings and the many guards there but what I cannot really describe is the feeling I had being there. I went in having absolutely no expectations whatsoever but I left with sort of an odd feeling of I don't know what - It was a very odd experience walking in a long line among lots of Vietnamese to see a dead man in a uplight box.......... It was strange.... It was weird...... It was in a way creepy..... Leaving the mausoleum all three of us looked at each other and didn't really know what to say!!! I personally felt a bit uneasy about the whole experience but I am happy that I went because it is clearly something that means a lot to a lot of Vietnamese and travelling is all about seeing new places but also about experiencing things of local importance!!
 "The Ho Chi Min Mausoleum from behind - there was absolutely no phography inside or near the building!!"
After the visit to the mausoleum we went through the gardens and saw the Ho Chi Min stilt house and the Ho Chi Min museum. It was a nice walk but none of us found it that interesting. Lonely planet had suggested that you get a guide at the Ho Chi Min Museum and I now understand why! We didn't get a guide and I can truly say that we got absolutely nothing out of being there (totally our own fault for not hiring a guide but we didn't know that we would get anything out of it on our own - so if you ever go, for your own sake, get a guide!!).
"They were very strict with foreign tourists hushing them around but at least foreigners read the signs - Note the no stopping on the bridge sign in front HaHa"
After a couple of hours we felt that we had satisfied our need for Ho Chi Min sightseeing and walked down to the Temple of Literature. The Temple of Literature hosts the "Imperial Academy" which was Vietnam's first university built over a thousand years ago - A place with great history!! I unfortunately didn't take many photos because I have gotten kind of "photo-tired" by now (something that will hopefully that will change again very soon) but I did take a photo with this dragon/bird/turtle thing below.
It was a really fun day, lots of laughter and joking around (not in the mausoleum obviously as you are not even allowed to smile) so I am very happy that I chose to go with SIlvana and Krissi (and my book is always there to raed another day)!
Tomorrow I'm finally heading to Halong Bay - A trip I have been waiting for for many months now! Halong Bay was one of the big draws when I was deciding where to go after finishing my internship in Malaysia. I haven't heard of a single person going to Halong Bay who didn't like it and so I knew it was a place I had to see :) I get picked up at my hostel tomorrow morning at 8am and will return to Hanoi in the afternoon of the 18th so there won't be any updates for the next 3 days but tune in again on the 19th when there hopefully will be lots of photos from the trip.
"Me, Silvana & Krissi sightseeing in Hanoi"
I will finish off with a little writing from the Danish writer H.C Anderson:
"To move, to breathe, to fly, to float
To gain all while you give
To roam the roads of land remote
To travel is to live... "
I heard it from a friend and I instantly loved it, you truly do feel very alive when travel to remote places!
Enjoy the next few days and take care of each other.
Susannah x
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12/8/2013: A very long bus ride!!!
Yesterday afternoon I left Hoi An at 2pm and was meant to arrive at my next destination Ninh Binh at 4am in the morning but this time I wasn't as lucky with the bus as I previously have been. The previous day I had had a bit of stomach bug and had been in bed more or less since coming home from the sunrise trip at the beach and so I wasn't feeling too great about getting on a 14 hours bus ride but I managed to get a really good seat in the sleeper bus and was positive about the trip prospects. However, already after 2 hours the bus had to stop due to engine problems and that pretty much continued on every couple of hours (and occasionally more often than that) which meant that the total journey time ended up being 18 hours. This in itself wasn't too bad BUT the power problems affected the aircon which meant that we during the many stops and most of the time driving as well didn't have aircon. I normally find the aircon too cold anyway but 14 hours without aircon in a tiny bus (with no toilet either by the way) jampacked with people and packages was just too much.
Nevertheless, I survived it all and got to my hotel at 8.20am where I was SO ready to get some sleep. To avoid the issue that I have had in most places to far which is that checkin time is not until 2pm, I had booked the room for both the 11th and the 12th so that I could check in straight away on arrival regardless of how early it would be. I was obviously a bit annoyed that I had then paid for a night when I didn't even get to spend a few early morning hours at the hotel but I still thought it was worth the money as it would have been really useful had we arrived on time. So I just arrived thinking that I had wasted a night but I didn't care, I just wanted to sleep but when I got to the hotel they asked, since I hadn't actually stayed the night that I had already paid for, if I would not just like to check in right away and spend the following two nights at the hotel for the price I had already paid - How brilliant service is that? They fully in their right to say that since I had done a "no-show" I couldn't claim anything back!
Very happy to be checked in and able to go to sleep after having a lovely breakfast I unfortunately found ants in my room. But again excellent service, when I told them at the reception they immediately apologized, gave me an upgrade to a nicer room with a bigger bed, chairs and a table, aircon and the most gorgeous shower I have had in months (and there were no ants)!! Can you believe it? All this fantastic service for the fabulous price of 9 US dollars, I am amazed!!!
After a couple of hours of sleep I decided to make most of the lovely weather since the weather forecast says that rain is on its way, rented a bike and cycled the 9km to Tam Coc. May I just add that 9km doesn't sound like a lot but I can promise you that 9km is a lot in 34 degrees heat from a cloudless sky! See the photos from my trip here :)
Even though it was a long day/night on the bus I am really happy that I made it to Ninh Binh and I cannot wait to see more of the surrounding area tomorrow and the day after.
Hope you are all well,
Susannah x
P.S As I was writing this the receptionist just came to my room with a fresh mango smoothie - a free goodnight drink for everyone at the hotel! 9 USD a night?! AMAZING!!!
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11/8/2013: Leaving Hoi An :(
I cannot believe it is already time to leave Hoi An! I feels like I just got here and I don't feel like leaving yet (I do however think my wallet might want to continue on from this seductive place where it is impossible to stop buying more tailor made items).
However if I don't leave today I will miss out on Ninh Binh which I would regret! Ninh Binh itself is just a quiet town with not much happening but the area around is supposed to be stunning - they call the area the land version of Halong Bay. I leave Hoi An at 1.30pm and should arrive in Ninh Binh 16 hours later, an awfully long drive which I am not really looking forward to to be honest BUT it will all be worth it when I sail down the river through rice fields with a backdrop of gorgeous limestone casts - I can't wait!!
Take care and be safe until I write again,
Susannah x
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9/8/2013: Countryside bicycle tour
Today I went on the most fantastic tour I think I have ever been on - Not so much for the things we saw or did but purely because the tour guide was absolutely amazing!! After doing the photography workshop I though that signing up for a bike tour would give me a chance to take a few more good photos of the beautiful landscape that surrounds Hoi An and I therefore signed up for a trip with the bicycle tour company "Heaven & Earth bicycle tours" who in their brochure promises "more than a cycling tour but a spiritually up lifting experience"! I thouht those were pretty big words so my expectations were high and I was so happily surprised when it more than lived up to all my expectations :)
We were only three people on the tour (Ben from Kuala Lumpur, Elizabeth from the states and I) yet we had two guides with us (the main guide and an assistant) which I thought was a fantastic service. The main guide Tinh was exceptionally good at her job. She instantly made us all relax and even before we had left the office all 5 of us were laughing and joking, and we didn't stop for a minute until we arrived back at the office. She also had a impressive knowledge of not only the area but also of all the local traditions and she knew most of the people we met along the way (all of whom seem to like her as much as we did). The tour started with a 45 minute boat ride to one of the islands close to Hoi An and after getting off the boat she took us to one of the traditional farming houses where she told us many great facts and stories. One of the things she told us was that they struggle with flooding in Hoi An every year and that means that once or twice a year the whole family will have to move upstairs in the house. The funny fact here is related to what they move first when the flooding begins, what do you think?? We guessed it would be religious objects or the baby of the family or the older family members but none of those were correct, the order of moving things is as follows: Food, drink, TV and then the grandmother!! What do you think Bedstemor? Would you like to only be the 4th object that is rescued during a flood?
Tinh also told us a lot about marriage traditions and how most of their houses have 3 doors, one for gentlemen, one for women and one for the spirits. When a young couple gets married here they enter the husbands house through the "spirit's door" the first time they enter the house and this is because the deceased family members that are there in spirit has to be introduced to the newly wed woman so that they can protect her as well. However, if the woman is pregnant when she gets married she will have to enter the house from the back door and everyone at the ceremony will know that she is pregnant which will cause a lot of grief for her family.
Anyways, enough about traditions. After visiting the farmer's house (we also saw how they mad woven mats that serves as beds) we picked up the bicycles and started cycling through the lovely landscape of rural Hoi An where we crossed immense rice fields, discovered boat builders, crossed floating bridged and we tried to sail the basket boats. There is funny story related to these round boats namely that when the French ruled the area they taxed the Vietnamese for the boats but the Vietnamese weren't very happy with this and started making the boats round so that if the French asked they could just say that they were gigantic baskets and they therefore couldn't be taxed - Smart people!!!
We also saw how a few of the local crafts are made but this part of the trip wasn't nearly as much fun as the rest of it!
After 5 hours we returned to Hoi An old Town where we did a small tour around the marked area before ending the tour back at their office! If you ever come to Hoi An and want a bicycle tour you should definitely sign up for this trip - It was super fun and I feel like I learned a lot more about Vietnamese culture. The only downside was that I had hoped to get a chance to take a few more photos but the tour was so jam-packed with things to see and do that I didn't get a chance to take many photos but I did get a few snapshots which can be seen here
Hope you are all well, I wish you were here in Hoi An with me to experience it all with me!
Susannah x
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6/8/2013: Tailor day
I am disappointed to admit that I have not managed to learn the lesson I set out to learn today, namely to relax and not stress around trying to take it all in, in one day! I was planning on a quiet day by the pool (reading a book) but I just couldn’t do it …. I woke up at 6.30am and by 8am (after having a lovely breakfast with a wide range of local and western options on the buffet table) I was out and about, walking around, taking in the atmosphere of the old part of Hoi An!
I haven’t been in Hoi An for long yet but this is my conclusion so far: I liked Hanoi and Hue was nice but I LOVE Hoi An!!!! All the little streets, the busy life at the market, the smiling people, the small little houses, all the bicycles and happy, relaxed looking tourists is just so charming BUT while being a lovely place this little town of Hoi An makes you want to pull your hair out at the same time – Why? Because there are SO, SO, SO many people trying to sell you anything from lamps, clothes, shoes, souvenirs, clothes, tours, clothes, shoes, laundry services, clothes, sunglasses, clothes, shoes, leather item and I could go on all day!!! I don’t think I there is anything that they do not sell here (maybe cars, I haven’t seen many of those). The main thing being sold though, as you probably have guessed from my list above, being tailor made clothes!
This wasn’t supposed to be a surprise, as everyone I know who has been to Hoi An, has told me about the tailor business here, but the extent of it still surprised me hugely. It is not an exaggeration to say that every 3rd shop is a tailor (if not more in some areas), all having a display of the most beautiful items hanging outside their shops for all the tourists to see and admire. But the problem with walking among all these small shops that can make anything you could possibly want is, that it is impossible to choose where to buy it.
As I walked down the streets I wish I could buy one item from every single shop. Not so much for me (even though the dresses are beautiful so who wouldn’t want 600 of them) but for the shop owners who are all desperate to sell their things. And while pushy sellers usually turns me off wanting to buy anything, the situation here is slightly different, the reason being that the competition between these tailors is so fierce, that many of them are struggling to stay in business.
24 years ago there were 14 tailors in Hoi An, this increased to 140 in 2002 and today there are more than 600 tailors in this little town. Some of these are trying to get by on very small earnings by pricing fairly, producing quality items and providing good customer service while others are pushing the prices to ridiculously high levels trying to get most out of the tourists. I had read a lot about this before arriving in Hoi An and I knew that finding the right tailor was going to be a jungle-walk, so already before I arrived I had decided that I was going to get my clothes made from one of the stalls at the Cloth Market. Most of the tailors at the cloth market are trying to keep cost down while keeping up the quality of their products by not spending an obscene amount of money on a shop - they are all small individual tailor businesses trying to get by. Whether the reasoning behind this decision was worth anything or not (there are obviously always two sides to one story so who knows if the internet has got it right) I made the decision based on the information I was able to obtain from the internet and so even if the quality is not as good (which I have no reason to believe is the case by the way) I still believe I made the right decision in going to the cloth market as I will rather support the small businesses. Had I however not done a bit of research and given it a lot of thought before arriving I would no doubt have gone into one of the shops as that somehow gives more of a feel of quality.
I had heard about a stall at the market called “Miss forget me not”, and I was planning on going there, but I didn’t actually manage to get all the way there before finally (after strong willed having passed at least 25 people trying to get me into their shops) surrendering to the lovely ladies at one of the other stalls at the market. Before I left Kuala Lumpur, I had printed pictures of a few different dress designs, that I would possibly like to have made here, and wow was I happy I had done that!! Some people find it difficult to order a coffee at Starbuck’s because you have to answer a lot of questions: “Skinny or full fat? Grande or tall? To go or for here?” but if you find that difficult, I can tell you that you would HATE getting clothes made by a tailor….
The ladies there were amazing, both patient and helpful, but I was so overwhelmed by the amount of decisions I had to make. The pictures obviously helped hugely as the basic design was decided upon, but then came all the other decisions: “How long? How low at the back? What kind of neckline? How deep a neckline? What fabric? Print or no print? Lining or not?” ……… It took me a good while to decide on all the different parts, but after a good while I finally seemed to have decided on all the things I needed to, and had ended up ordering two more dresses than I had originally planned: 2 long dresses (one in silk, one in chiffon), 1 cocktail dress (laze) and one casual dress (cotton) – all for the stunning price of 150$... Can you believe it?? I got all of that for the same price I got 1 dress in Thailand last year!
Now I am super excited (but also a bit nervous) to go back for my first fitting tomorrow afternoon – I hope they are beautiful and fit well but I think the experience of it all will be much more precious than the actual dresses. Seeing the passion with which these ladies were giving advice and the enthusiasm they had for making the right choices (they kept saying that I should take my time and not make the decisions too fast) of fabric, design and colour was simply enchanting!
The whole shopping experience was so exhausting though that I after having found a new hotel to stay in from tomorrow night had a little nap! If rating the success of the day based on what it was meant to involve I am afraid it was a rather unsuccessful day as the total amount of time spent by the pool was 15 minutes but I loved my day and there is always tomorrow where maybe I will relax with my book.
Take care,
Susannah x
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5/8/2013: One of those days.....
I think all travellers occationally have those days where you by the end of it kind of wish you had just stayed in bed all day and today it was my turn to have one!! I woke up at 6am this morning (which by now seems to be the regular thing that happens every day even if I don't have anything planned) and went for a nice long relaxed breakfast where I got a chance to upload the photos and stories here on bricksite and afterwards I went for a little walk around the outside of the citadel just to soak up a bit more of the atmosphere in Hue before leaving for Hoi An. At 10 am I got back to the hostel to pack my things and this was where my sort of bad mood/tiredness came about - it turned out that the staff had thought I had checked out and someone had taken my make-up bag. See now you might ask why that is big enough an issue to throw my mood but there is a simple solution: It wasn't so much the bags content even though it did contain a beautiful golden ring, all my ear rings and a few make-up products it was basically that I have now been wearing the same 6 t-shirts and 2 pairs of shorts for more than 4 months, have slept in the weirdest and most basic accommocation with communal showers (or outdoor showers on Pom Pom) and room sharing/tents since I arrived in Malaysia in April and my make-up (containing very, very few items by the way) was the last thread of femininity that I had left... The last little treat that on special occations could make me feel human and even almost like a girl!!! It doesn't matter who took it (even though I sincerely hope they value it as much as I did) but after 7 days with a new bed every night, the combination of frustration with the loss of the bag and my pure tiredness I just wasn't up for another day of travel. Unfortunately it wasn't an option to stay in Hue another day because the ticket was bought and I had already booked a hotel in Hoi An so after one last visit to the Mandarin cafe I went back to the hostel to get picked up by the bus.
While I was sitting there I was trying to get in a better mood, trying to remember all the good things ahead but when a motorbike guy came to pick me up instead of a bus I failed at that attempt (and I also failed at getting through to my mum and Arne on skype - it was more of a "hello, you there" kind of conversation). The motorbike guy told me that he was to get me to the bus so I went with him and after 5 minute drive he told me to get off. Starting to unload my things he said "Big white bus" and before I could ask any questions he left......... I was then standing in the middle of everything for a few minutes (completely confused) until I saw a white bus which luckily stopped and took me on after waving at it !! I can't really explain why I was still in a mellow mood because everything was going according to plan and I mean it was only a make-up bag...... But I guess I just had one of those days where I just wasn't up for all the hassle that travel brings with it!
Anyways, it turned out to be a very pleasant bus ride where I managed to get an hour sleep and after 4 hours I arrived in Hoi An where I took a taxi to the hotel I had booked. What I arrived at can only be described as heaven!!!!!!!!!! I had for the first time on this trip booked a hotel (no youth hostel) with a nice double room, bath tub, free internet, breakfast included, swimming pool, aircon and even a nice little balcony overlooking the busy streets of Hoi An - in my view it is a perfect place for a few days of relaxation :D
Had I known how much difference arriving in a nice hotel can make I would have done it before - I would have done it in Semporna, KL and maybe even Penang. But until now I haven't realized how much energy it "costs" to be sharing your space with strangers every single day. On Pom Pom island I stayed in a tent and we had new people arriving all the time, in KL I stayed with the other interns that I didn't know, I stayed in dorm rooms every weekend I went away in Malaysia and that hasn't changed since coming to Vietnam! How could I not have realized that a bit of "luxury" (out here you can even get "luxury" for 25$) can make you relax so much?? How could I not have realized that as much as meeting new people is great, sometimes it is nice to have a bit of privacy? I think that is the most important lesson I have learned on this trip so far!!! The second most important lesson is that it is okay to relax, sit back and not do a whole lot some days. That is unfortunately a lesson I have not yet learned but I am hoping that having 6 days here in Hoi An will give me a chance to breath a little and not constantly feel like I have to go on tours, walk around and arrange for trips around the areas because I have realized that it is rather stressful to be out and about for the entire day every day. So, my aim for the next few days is to learn to sit and relax a little, starting from tomorrow where I plan to spend the whole day by the pool - I cannot wait :D
After regaining my good mood and surprisingly enough already gaining energy I will now have an early night so I am ready for a relaxing day tomorrow.
How are you all doing? Not being on facebook out here cuts me off from what has been my main news flow since leaving Denmark :)
Wish you could all be here and enjoy Vietnam with me, it is truely an amazing experience (even if it is a little stressful at times)
Susannah x
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4/8/2013: Boat trip on the Perfume River
Today I went on a really nice (but also a bit too long - explanation to follow) boat trip down the Perfume River. The Perfume river is a river that crosses the city of Hue and it got is name from the flowers from orchards that fall into the water upriver from Hue in the autmn, giving the river a perfume-like aroma.
The trip started at 8am from the Mandarine cafe where one of the staff members walked us to the boat. There was only a British couple and I leaving from there but there were another few people meeting us at the boat and we ended up being 15-20 people on the boat. The first stop was the Phu mong Garden house which is an old garden house that illustrate examples of grand dynasties past. The building was a traditional old timber hosue, featuring the typical brickroofing of Hue and set in the middle of a beautiful lanscaped garden. after another 20 minutes on the boat we arrived at the Thien Mu Pagoda (the heavenly lady pagoda). An old legend says that people living in the area used to see a vision of an old lady appearing on the hill where the pagoda is built and upon seeing people the old lady always said that someday a leader would build a pagoda at the hill, bringing peace to the country. In 1601 Lord Nguyen Hoang heard this story when passing the area and ordered the construction of the pagoda.
After this stop we had 1½ hour river cruise, slowly sailing along beautiful farming scenery. The heat was getting its toll on some of the people on the boat so quite a few people took the opportunity to take a little nap before arriving at the Hon Chen Temple. Back on the boat we got a delicious lunch consisting of tofu and pineapple salad, rice, noodles and beef stirfry. We all agreed (the British couple, a retired alone traveller from Holland and I) that it is amazing what Vietnamese (and other Asian nationalities) can cook from nothing in the middle of nowehere (two women had been cooking the lunch at the back of the boat during the trip)!!
After lunch we went to the Minh Mang Tomb where the emporer Minh Mang is burried and after spending 50 minutes there a bus came to pick us up to take us around the last 3 sites. At this point we were all looking very much forward to getting into a bus but we soon regretting that as the bus didn't aircon had and we went from being super warm to being ridiculously warm....!!!
The Khai Dinh tomb was the second last stop and at this point I think we were all a bit tired and had lost interest in seeing anymore temples or tombs but I must say that it was a beautiful tomb. The Khai Dinh tomb is an example of Vietnamese "neo-classicism" with a great influence of western culture and as a result his tomb has many elements of Western architecture mixed with eastern art.
AFter a quick visit to a incense stick and conical hat making village we finally made it to the last stop which was the Tu Duc Tomb. HOwever, at this stage most of us were too tired to care and went to get a cold drink in the shade instead - A lovely little break!! All in all it was a fanstastic trip, the scenery was unreal, met so many nice people on the trip and I saw lots of beautiful temples and tombs - so definitely a trip that can be recommended!!!
Click on the link and see the photos - Link
I now have to run because my bus to Hoi An is coming in a minute! Story to be continued on arrival in Hoi An where I have booked (at least what looked like) a nice hotel with a swimmingpool - after 4 months of low budget travelling it is time for a little luxury :)
Take care,
Susannah x
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3/8/2013: Bus trip to Hue
This writing won't be long because I am so tired that I can barely stay awake and I need to get up in 5 hours. This morning I arrived in Hue after what I can only describe as the easiest 14 hour bus ride you can possibly imagine - if only all bus rides will be as easy as this one but am not getting my hopes up too high since I know it is highly unlikely that is the case!! I was picked up at the hostel along with 7 other people and brough to the travel agency from where the bus departed and after a slightly chaotic rearrangement of luggage, people and a lot of myterious boxes we departed at 7pm. The bus was a sleeping bus and that has a very different layout to the sleeping buses I have seen in Europe (see below).
 
You basically get a little canoe-box-like compartment where you can lie fully stretched (unless you like a few of the guys on the bus are more than 190cm) out and it is actually relatively comfortable. I ended up at the back end of the bus which I had read was the place to avoid but it ended up being the best end of the bus since I met a group of really nice British students and 2 British buys (yes I believe England must be rather empty at present as I think I by now have met about 95% of the British population out here......) and we had a ball - we were laughing and joking about the fact that the 3 tallest and broadest shoulder guys were lying in the smallest part of the bus (we named the place the dungeon) and after about 3 hours we all fell asleep and I woke up at 7am the next morning when the sun began to shine. What can I say, I was tired but even if I hadn't been as tired I actually don't think it would have been a bad trip at all!!!! However, on arrival I did meet two girls who had been on the other bus that departed at the same time as us and that trip had been an absolute nightmare (smoking on the bus, the driver falling asleep and lots of noise) - so I guess it is a bit of a gamble whether it is good or not!
We arrived at the hostel at 8.45am and since we couldn't check in until 12pm I just changed out of my warm clothes (am not a big fan of that aircon thing so I wear long pants, 2 t-shirts, a sweater and a wollen scarf when I travel - and sometimes it is even cold when wearing all of that.... I think I might have a heat problem when I get home) and went sightseeing!
I walked around town for a little bit, then went to the Mandarin cafe which my mum had recommended. The owner of the Mandarin Cafe is Mr. Cu who is also a photographer. At the cafe you can buy his photos and they are so unbelievably stunning that I cannot even describe it - You just have to see it (http://www.mrcumandarin.com/?cat_id=3)!! I was really interested in his photography so I had a little chat with Mr. Cu himself and somewhere in the conversation it came up that my family had visited his cafe a few years ago and he was so happy that we all liked the place that he gave me one of his latest photographies to bring home to my family to say thank you for recommending his place to others.
After a few hours of sightseeing I went back to the hostel to check in and then I ended up hanging out with the girls from my dorm for the afternoon (again British.... is there any left in England??) and after dinner I found out that the group I had met on the bus (but who had gotten off the bus before Hue) had made their way to Hue afterall so we had a few drinks and ended up going to a pub/nightclub together after happy hour ended at our hostel.
It has been a really nice day but I am now REALLY, REALLY tired and I am sure that I with the few drinks we got I will sleep like a baby (for the 5 hours)!! Tomorrow morning I am going on a boat trip down the perfume river - am looking so much forward to it!!!
Hope you are all well, I wish you could be here and experience it all with me
Susannah x
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2/8/2013: Storm is coming - trying an escape
This morning I woke up super early (was meant to wake up at 7am but was awake from 5am) and at 7.15am I went down to have a chat with Vega travel, through whom I booked my Halong Bay trip. Unfortunately they had bad news; the rumours were right, there is a massiv storm heading our way and Halong bay habour has been shot for the next few days which means no Halong bay trip today!! I was obviously a little disappointed but if there is one thing that is important when you travel it is flexibility (a skill that at times isn't very fun but highly necessary) and so I quickly came up with a new plan.
My original plan was to go to Halong bay today, come back to Hanoi for a day, then travel to Tam Coc and Hoa Lu before heading south to Hue, Danang and Hoi An but now I am heading to Hue today insteaed. Hue should according to the weather wizards be south enough to be safe from the storm and by leaving tonight I should be able to get out of Hanoi in time before the weather hits the city - it is expected that the storm will last 2-3 days and so I am very keen on getting out of Hanoi before the storm arrives as I do not want to be stuck here for that long (and also will have to miss out on certain things is I waste so many days already). The hostel I stay at has arranged a transport to Hue for me, so at 5.30pm I will start the 14+ hour bus journey south - so easy!!
After Hue I'll then head to Hoi An for 4-5 days before heading back north to stay in Nihn Binh for a few days to see Tam Coc and the surrounding area and I have then rebooked the Halong Bay trip for the 15th of August which will be the last stop before returning to Hanoi for 2 days which will mark the end of my trip. EXCITING!!!
There will probably be many more changes to the plan as I go along but I am sure it will be possible to see most of the things I want to see within the next 21 days, the order of it all might just change :)
As this whole day in Hanoi was a bit unexpected I didn't actually do much. I met Talia from Australia at the hostel and we went for a nice little walk around town for a few hours, had a nice juice break and enjoyed the lively atmosphere. I am now back at the hostel where I have to get ready for the insanely long bus journey - luckily they have shower facilities even for people who has checked out so I will take a shower, change clothes and repack a few things before heading out to buy a few supplied for the trip (I have heard that pringles and Oreo's are standard things you have to bring so I guess I will find something similar and then lots of water if cause, but not so much that you need to pee every 30 minutes haha)!
I hope you are all happy! For those of you in Denmark I hear that a heatwave is hitting you this weekend - good luck, I hope you can keep some of the nice weather for when I come home.
Susannah x
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1/8/2013: First day in Vietnam
I actually can't believe that I am already in Vietnam - Since I arrived in Malaysia 4 months ago this part was going to mark the end of my trip and now it is already here!!
Arriving in Hanoi I was expecting to find the amount of traffic super overwhelming but actually that wasn't the case at all, what I since I arrived have been most worried about is that I am no longer finding myself in a country that drives on the left side of the road..... Luckily I soon found that the driving side seems more like a guideline than a law as most of the traffic go in both directions regardless of what the traffic signs might say - but I will probably still need to start looking in the other direction that I am used to!!
My flight was ridiculously early in the morning (was picked up at the office at 3am) and so when I arrived at the hostel in Hanoi I was more than just a little tired and if cause the typical thing that happens when you are exhausted happened: I got worried and frustrated!! The hostel I am staying in is in many ways great, it is clean, has lots of facilities, large rooms, nice and helpful staff members BUT it is also very different from what I have been used to the last few months and that was just a little too much for me!
The hostel is geared to young western people who wants to see Vietnam through beer goggles (partying all the way through) and so while I was waiting in the lounge area (couldn't check in before 3 hours after I arrived) I started to panic. The panic was partly fuelled by the new surroundings of unfamiliar territory and partly fulled by the attitude of worry that I have met a lot lately when I have told people that I am going to travel around Vietnam alone, namely the "Are you sure that is a good idea? Isn't that dangerous for a girl like you? You are being safe now right? No buses or anything at night, right?! Be careful of scams!! Shouldn't you maybe find someone to travel with??"-attitude! I started to worry that I would be worried 24/7 for 3 weeks (which is very tiring), started to imagine all these awful scenarios of what could go wrong, awful scenarios of what could happen to me and was thinking about the attitude towards young travelers.... I all of a sudden wasn't sure that I was ready to travel alone which is insane as I have been doing exactly that for 4 months now - I have been away on my own meeting lots of interesting people more or less every weekend since arriving in KL and Pom Pom island was basically a back to nature experience that moved boundaries.
As soon as I could check in I took a quick shower and decided that I had to deal with my fear head on and went outside to take a little walk around the Old Quarter in Hanoi and I don't think it is an exageration to say that I after only 3 minutes walk found myself completely calm again!! It wasn't until then that I realized that it was the atmosphere at the hostel (probably combined with my tiredness) that had caused the whole thing. As soon as I was in the streets I felt safe and comfortable - I felt at home and I relaxed completely!! The noises, smells and a little reminder of the lack of a personal space when walking the streets in Asia reminded me that I am perfectly capable of travelling out here alone because it is no different than being anywhere else: You need to be careful, you need to be observant, make sensible decisions and you will be just fine and I can honestly say that those things I try my very best to do every day both at home and out here!!
I was a little worried that the thoughts and worries would reappear when I got back to the hostel but they didn't - I am now 100% ready to conquer Vietnam (and I guess a total of 40 minutes of panic within 4 months isn't too bad)!!
I actually wanted to write a lot more about my day here in Hanoi but I booked a trip to Halong bay for tomorrow morning so I need to get up early and it is already late so I think I should get some sleep. I have however just heard that there is a really bad storm on the way and that a lot of trips have been cancelled for the next few days so I might be so unlucky that I won't actually make it to Halong but then I will just have to come up with a plan B (will then probably head to Hoi An and wait out the flooding and storm there).
Anyways, goodnight everyone!!
Take care of each other and I promise to take care of myself
Susannah x
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