TUESDAY 16TH DECEMBER
After getting on the overnight sleeper last night we eventually arrived in Nha-Trang at 6:30a.m. Within one minute of getting off the bus we were accosted by approximately 6000 locals trying to get us to there guesthouse. I had the arse-ache as I'd had about 4 hours kip again due to the massive comfy beds on the bus. Went to bed when we finally got to our hotel as we were both knackered and didn't leave the hotel until about 3p.m. When we did go out we went for a walk to see the beach. Very nice, apparently this is where the Americans went for there R&R during the war. Went to an ice-cream parlour and bought the sweetest ice-cream ever. Delicious. Booked a trip to the local islands for tomorrow so it should be fun. Didn't do much else.
WEDNESDAY 17TH DECEMBER
Off on another boat trip today to do a bit of snorkeling and sunbathing. The boat was quite overcrowded so it wasn't very comfortable. The trip was good fun despite the overcrowding. Went snorkeling but I didn't go in as it was too cold for me. Got fed on the boat which was alright even though there wasn't enough to go round. Then the guide for the day, who was very funny decided to sing for us. There was a Bass player, Guitarist, and our guide was the Drummer whose equipment consisted of a rotting bass drum, a homemade cymbal and two upturned plastic bowls. They were surprisingly good, they sang Proud Mary, Last Christmas and a Vietnamese song. They did well even though they can't sing r's or n's. Got back to shore around 5p.m after a stop-off at a beach you had to pay for! Went back to the hotel room to shower and change and then went for dinner. After dinner we went pub-crawling to all the places that gave away free mojito's with every drink. I paid for all my beer and Louise drank the free ones which amounted to about 15. Add to that free Connect 4 (I won 30-6) and free pool it turned out a very cheap night even though I lost at 9-Ball and it cost me a J&B whisky at 35000VND (1.40 GBP) the most expensive drink in the pub.
THURSDAY 18TH DECEMBER
Woke up with a bit of a hangover so decided to go to the beach and sweat it out. Sat there in a mardy after a bit of a hungover argument with Louise, so I didn't put any suncream on my back. A young girl kept coming to us to sell postcards but Louise told her to come back in an hour, so exactly one hour later she was back. After the third time we eventually gave in. Drank some home brew lager at an expensive bar on the beach. It was rank. Went back to our lodgings and had a shower. Screamed like a girl due to sun burnt back. Went for dinner at an Irish bar that was nice except for the pissed up ex-pats arguing over their bill. Went looking for some books to read on the coach in a couple of days and had an argument with the manager of the shop over the price of the books he was selling. He wanted $9 for a book that was only $10.50 brand new. Told him to bollocks and bought some cheap copies off a man on a bike.
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Sunday, December 21, 2008
Scooters (15/12/08)
MONDAY 15TH DECEMBER
Having stopped in a room full of damp, I woke up breathing like a 60 year old, 40-a-day fag smoking asthmatic. Because we had already arranged to leave for Nha Trang later that night we decided to hire a couple of scooters to pass the day. At $10 for two it was money well spent. Louise, although she's been driving for 10 years, has never ridden a scooter. This was going to be a laugh. We set off to the outskirts of town, me going at at a steady 30mph, Louise crawling around 20mph. We managed to turn onto a side track that took us to some old women selling some crap. After saying no to buying anything, I tried to turn round on the bike and the back wheel skidded and nearly pinned a woman of about 70 to a garden wall. Not the proudest moment of my life. We motored round for about 3 hours getting a puncture on the way. Went to get it fixed and made an 18 month old cry (losing a bit more pride), and seeing people, who by the looks on there faces, had never seen a westener. Pulled up outside a pool hall. Promptly beat a 17 year old, who was trying to hustle me, at 9-Ball gaining a little pride back. Went to drop the scooters off at tea-time, Vietnam rush-hour. Trying to turn the bike round in the road, the throttle stuck and I was within a foot of totaling a bike and a middle aged woman. Zero pride left.
Having stopped in a room full of damp, I woke up breathing like a 60 year old, 40-a-day fag smoking asthmatic. Because we had already arranged to leave for Nha Trang later that night we decided to hire a couple of scooters to pass the day. At $10 for two it was money well spent. Louise, although she's been driving for 10 years, has never ridden a scooter. This was going to be a laugh. We set off to the outskirts of town, me going at at a steady 30mph, Louise crawling around 20mph. We managed to turn onto a side track that took us to some old women selling some crap. After saying no to buying anything, I tried to turn round on the bike and the back wheel skidded and nearly pinned a woman of about 70 to a garden wall. Not the proudest moment of my life. We motored round for about 3 hours getting a puncture on the way. Went to get it fixed and made an 18 month old cry (losing a bit more pride), and seeing people, who by the looks on there faces, had never seen a westener. Pulled up outside a pool hall. Promptly beat a 17 year old, who was trying to hustle me, at 9-Ball gaining a little pride back. Went to drop the scooters off at tea-time, Vietnam rush-hour. Trying to turn the bike round in the road, the throttle stuck and I was within a foot of totaling a bike and a middle aged woman. Zero pride left.
Friday, December 19, 2008
The Bus (12-14/12/08)
FRIDAY 12TH DECEMBER
Packed again for the second time in two days. I'm getting quite good at it now as all my stuff fits in my bag again like it did when I first started. Couldn't really go too far today as we had to catch the night bus to Hue at 5:30p.m. I got into a bit of an argument with the receptionist at the hotel. She told me the exchange rate for the dong was 17,400 dong to the dollar when its only 17,000. She was trying to con me out of 8,000VND which isn't a lot, in fact it's about 32p, which in hindsight I could really have let pass. Mind you we are on a budget.
We had one last stroll around the town and had a bit of lunch, and watched the world go by as we sat pondering what state our sleeper bus would be in. We arrived at our designated pick up point 30mins before the bus was due, and subsequently waited 2hours for it to arrive. Somebody should give these people the telephone number for the speaking clock, or maybe even just a watch that told the right time.
So to the bus itself. On first appearances it looked OK, but then first appearances can be very deceptive. Turns out this was probably the most uncomfortable I have ever been in my entire life. Louise was in a bed two rows down from me as we were the last on the bus so we had to get in the last beds available. I was on a top bunk next to two Italians who new about as much English as I new Italian (which for me happens to be; hello, goodbye and 1, 2, 3, and 4.) and a guy from Israel who only spoke Hebrew, which left our interaction at a quick nod, so zero conversation for me for 15 hours. I am not a small man, but when you have a T.V hanging about 10 inches above your area, on what can't be the sturdiest of racks in the first place, attached by one bolt to the ceiling, it doesn't make for a comfortable nights sleep. So my journey consisted of; 10 hours of ipod music, a dead arm, two dead legs, a side strain, a neck strain and almost freezing to death due to the air-con fans not shutting either side of me. All in all I had approximately 5 hours of sleep, constantly interrupted by the honking of the horn every 20 mins by the craziest bus driver ever who uses the white lines in the road as a a guide not a lane marker.
SATURDAY 13TH DECEMBER
After getting of the bus we stopped at the first hotel we came to, which happened to be the one we were dropped at. We went straight to our room and got a couple more hours sleep as it was only 8:30a.m. We finally arose from our pit and went to do a bit of a recce of the town. We found the Purple Palace and went for a look around. First though we had to purchase our entrance tickets. This involved us paying 55,000VND each (2.20GBP) and receiving our ticket. Literally 8 yards away was another man sat at a desk within full view of us, who then proceeded to ask us for said tickets, which I had just put away, so that he could check to see if we had paid. I know the Vietnamese are renowned for their bureaucracy but that takes the piss. We were in the grounds of the palace for less than an hour as it was being restored and was mostly a building site. Not recommended. Made our way back to the hotel, showered and changed and booked our journey to Hoi An as there isn't a lot to do here. Went out at night and ate the best Italian food I've ever had whilst being watched by a 15 inch rat. Got half cut, lost at pool, watched the football and went to bed ready for the 8:00a.m bus tomorrow.
SUNDAY 14TH NOVEMBER
The bus was only an hour late this morning. It seemed like three because of the effort it took to try and have a conversation with the most difficult Australian I've had the misfortune of meeting. A five hour bus journey was brightened up by a middle aged American named Jim who found it difficult to understand us both because of our accents. He did tell us a bit about what to do and not to do in Cambodia, and to try an visit San Diego instead of L.A. on the way home, as it's more chilled. Also he couldn't comprehend why Brits in general say 'proper' when they're referring to something that's not rubbish or correct, as in: 'Take a look at this map it's a proper one, not a photocopy.'
Hoi An is a quaint little town with a big river running through it. We arrived there at the bus companies hotel and told them to ram it when they wanted $25 for a double room when a single was only $10. Found another hotel for $8. Louise realised it was full of damp the minute she walked in. I have the same sense of smell as an anosmia sufferer (laymans: no sense of smell). She also left her fleece on the bus which pissed her off even more. Had a walk into the town later and it seemed pretty quiet so we went on the internet for the afternoon and set up Skype. It's awesome. Managed to speak to Louise's mum and dad which was nice. Found the bus that we came on parked down a side street and retrieved the lost fleece, so in the end it was a good day.
Packed again for the second time in two days. I'm getting quite good at it now as all my stuff fits in my bag again like it did when I first started. Couldn't really go too far today as we had to catch the night bus to Hue at 5:30p.m. I got into a bit of an argument with the receptionist at the hotel. She told me the exchange rate for the dong was 17,400 dong to the dollar when its only 17,000. She was trying to con me out of 8,000VND which isn't a lot, in fact it's about 32p, which in hindsight I could really have let pass. Mind you we are on a budget.
We had one last stroll around the town and had a bit of lunch, and watched the world go by as we sat pondering what state our sleeper bus would be in. We arrived at our designated pick up point 30mins before the bus was due, and subsequently waited 2hours for it to arrive. Somebody should give these people the telephone number for the speaking clock, or maybe even just a watch that told the right time.
So to the bus itself. On first appearances it looked OK, but then first appearances can be very deceptive. Turns out this was probably the most uncomfortable I have ever been in my entire life. Louise was in a bed two rows down from me as we were the last on the bus so we had to get in the last beds available. I was on a top bunk next to two Italians who new about as much English as I new Italian (which for me happens to be; hello, goodbye and 1, 2, 3, and 4.) and a guy from Israel who only spoke Hebrew, which left our interaction at a quick nod, so zero conversation for me for 15 hours. I am not a small man, but when you have a T.V hanging about 10 inches above your area, on what can't be the sturdiest of racks in the first place, attached by one bolt to the ceiling, it doesn't make for a comfortable nights sleep. So my journey consisted of; 10 hours of ipod music, a dead arm, two dead legs, a side strain, a neck strain and almost freezing to death due to the air-con fans not shutting either side of me. All in all I had approximately 5 hours of sleep, constantly interrupted by the honking of the horn every 20 mins by the craziest bus driver ever who uses the white lines in the road as a a guide not a lane marker.
SATURDAY 13TH DECEMBER
After getting of the bus we stopped at the first hotel we came to, which happened to be the one we were dropped at. We went straight to our room and got a couple more hours sleep as it was only 8:30a.m. We finally arose from our pit and went to do a bit of a recce of the town. We found the Purple Palace and went for a look around. First though we had to purchase our entrance tickets. This involved us paying 55,000VND each (2.20GBP) and receiving our ticket. Literally 8 yards away was another man sat at a desk within full view of us, who then proceeded to ask us for said tickets, which I had just put away, so that he could check to see if we had paid. I know the Vietnamese are renowned for their bureaucracy but that takes the piss. We were in the grounds of the palace for less than an hour as it was being restored and was mostly a building site. Not recommended. Made our way back to the hotel, showered and changed and booked our journey to Hoi An as there isn't a lot to do here. Went out at night and ate the best Italian food I've ever had whilst being watched by a 15 inch rat. Got half cut, lost at pool, watched the football and went to bed ready for the 8:00a.m bus tomorrow.
SUNDAY 14TH NOVEMBER
The bus was only an hour late this morning. It seemed like three because of the effort it took to try and have a conversation with the most difficult Australian I've had the misfortune of meeting. A five hour bus journey was brightened up by a middle aged American named Jim who found it difficult to understand us both because of our accents. He did tell us a bit about what to do and not to do in Cambodia, and to try an visit San Diego instead of L.A. on the way home, as it's more chilled. Also he couldn't comprehend why Brits in general say 'proper' when they're referring to something that's not rubbish or correct, as in: 'Take a look at this map it's a proper one, not a photocopy.'
Hoi An is a quaint little town with a big river running through it. We arrived there at the bus companies hotel and told them to ram it when they wanted $25 for a double room when a single was only $10. Found another hotel for $8. Louise realised it was full of damp the minute she walked in. I have the same sense of smell as an anosmia sufferer (laymans: no sense of smell). She also left her fleece on the bus which pissed her off even more. Had a walk into the town later and it seemed pretty quiet so we went on the internet for the afternoon and set up Skype. It's awesome. Managed to speak to Louise's mum and dad which was nice. Found the bus that we came on parked down a side street and retrieved the lost fleece, so in the end it was a good day.
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Halong A Minute (06-11/12/08)
SATURDAY 6TH DECEMBER
Woke up full of the joys of the season and decided to try and navigate around the madhole that is Hanoi. Had a walk to the museum thing that is in the middle of the roundabout/lake. Took a few pictures but couldn't get any decent one s due to the dreaded Japanese tourists being in every single one. The Fuckers. Went looking for some dog meat to eat but didn't find any.I will before I leave try some. Having failed to secure some dog meat for tea we opted for KFC. KFC is the worlds number 1chicken related fast food outlet chain. Q:What is the one thing that you do not expect KFC to run out of? A:Chicken. What did the Hanoi branch of KFC run out of, you guessed it CHICKEN. I must write to the Colonel to show my displeasure. Had to have rice for tea again! Went to watch the football in a quiet bar whilst next door the Vietnamese were having a massive party in a tiny pub. After the match had finished around 11:30p.m we went to go in the aforementioned pub. Unbelievably it had closed and was completely empty. I think the Viet Cong must have some tunnels still knocking around somewhere as there is no other explanation for the quick disappearance.
SUNDAY 7TH DECEMBER
Don't really know what time I got up as there was a massive power cut in Hanoi in the night and no alarms went off. Apparently it's a regular occurrence. Eventually when the electricity returned I watched the De La Hoya-Pacquiao fight just to see who would fight Hatton next year. Did a bit more sightseeing and went to the local market to by some cheap crap again. Bought some ipod speakers for less than 2 quid, a model of a pedal cyclo for less than 3 quid, and best of all a bottle of Gordon's gin for a fiver. It did however have a sticker on it saying 'Singapore Duty Not Paid.' Still it doesn't mean I shouldn't buy it and it does mean that we get massively ripped off at home at about 15 quid a bottle. Had a more successful venture to KFC today as Louise was craving it. Sat in bed eating it and watched The Rock on T.V.
MONDAY 8TH DECEMBER
Got woken up really early by the hustle and bustle of the, on first appearance seemed to be, impromptu street market outside our window. It kept going quiet and then becoming noisy every so often, which confused me a little. Turned out the market sellers weren't supposed to be there so every time the police came they all had to run and hide in the shops for fear of being prosecuted/bribed/beaten. Had a few beers in the afternoon whilst I finished my sixth book of the trip. I didn't read that many books while I was in secondary school. After I'd finished the book I decided make use of my day by noting down all the beers that I've tasted so far. After I leave SE Asia I'm going to compile the complete list, so far I'm up to about 20. Went to the travel agent to book a mini cruise to Halong Bay and get out of the city for a few days. Although it's no where near as dirty as Bangkok it's still a big Asian city and it's a bit too hectic for me.
TUESDAY 9TH DECEMBER
Up at 6:30a.m for a 7:45a.m pick up to Halong Bay. The bus was nice and prompt at 8:30a.m. It wasn't too bad a journey as the roads in Vietnam between the main cities are quite a high standard. Stood around for quite a bit waiting for our Junk boat to arrive. Finally got on the boat to discover our double room was just two single beds pushed together. Met up with our guide who although didn't look like, did sound exactly like Ting-Tong off of Little Britain (Oh, Mister Duddwy). Did some walking round some caves that were full of stalactites. They did look really good but for the cheap lights that made it look like a 1980's roller disco. Also did some kayaking around all the big limestone karsts and isles that adorn the bay in various shapes and sizes. It was strange being the only two people anywhere, paddling in the middle of these great big rocks at that moment in time, you could just hear the sound of silence. Went back and Louise nearly fell out of the kayak. At night we relaxed on the boat with a few gins and retired to bed at about 9:30p.m. It's pretty tiring doing stuff on a relaxing holiday.
WEDNESDAY 10TH DECEMBER
Breakfast was cold, greasy fried eggs and some cold hard toast like my sister Amy used to insist on having as she didn't like it hot (she even put it in the fridge to cool down when we were kids). Went for a walk or bike ride around monkey island, it was our choice. When we booked it we were adamant (not Adam Ant) we were going to bike around the island. However, when we got there there weren't any mountain bikes, only Hovis bread bikes, so we decided to go on the walk. Big mistake. On the map the walk is only around 800m as the crow flies, but when its up hill it works out closer to a mile. MAGIC!!! Although it was fairly shaded it was about 80% humidity so I was sweating like the proverbial pig, especially in a long sleeve t-shirt as the previous hotel had stolen my Liverpool shirt, the last clean short sleeved t-shirt that I thought I had. It could have been a lot worse though at least I had walking boots on. Louise, because we were supposed to go on bikes, had opted for flip-flops leaving her boots on the boat. In the afternoon we went to the beach and relaxed in the sun, all the while Louise cursed me for making her walk up the hill which was 200m high as well as a mile to the top. Stopped in an expensive hotel for the night, this is where the 50 dollars extra went that we spent, compared to half the people on our boat. Did get a pretty good slap up meal but it wasn't worth $50. Went for a walk around the harbour with another couple, James and Josie, and tried to explain to them the delicacies of Ritz cracker sandwiches with kraft cheese.
THURSDAY 11TH DECEMBER
Had a slow cruise back to the harbour in the morning for our afternoon bus ride back to Hanoi. So slow in fact that I listened to three albums while Ting-Tong was telling me about the sights in the bay. Arrived on shore at bloody dinnertime, and didn't have time to finish dinner as we were packed on to a mini-bus that had drop down seats in the middle of the aisles, no chance if we crash. Arrived in Hanoi at 5p.m checked in the hotel and went to claim my Liverpool shirt back of the thieves at the last hotel. It took less than 15 minutes for them to locate it and bring it too me. Funny that. With me being 17st of Western bulk and them being 8st Asians it wasn't much of a discussion. Wandered round the town for a bit and booked our sleeper bus to Hue 12 or so hours away. Should be fun.
Woke up full of the joys of the season and decided to try and navigate around the madhole that is Hanoi. Had a walk to the museum thing that is in the middle of the roundabout/lake. Took a few pictures but couldn't get any decent one s due to the dreaded Japanese tourists being in every single one. The Fuckers. Went looking for some dog meat to eat but didn't find any.I will before I leave try some. Having failed to secure some dog meat for tea we opted for KFC. KFC is the worlds number 1chicken related fast food outlet chain. Q:What is the one thing that you do not expect KFC to run out of? A:Chicken. What did the Hanoi branch of KFC run out of, you guessed it CHICKEN. I must write to the Colonel to show my displeasure. Had to have rice for tea again! Went to watch the football in a quiet bar whilst next door the Vietnamese were having a massive party in a tiny pub. After the match had finished around 11:30p.m we went to go in the aforementioned pub. Unbelievably it had closed and was completely empty. I think the Viet Cong must have some tunnels still knocking around somewhere as there is no other explanation for the quick disappearance.
SUNDAY 7TH DECEMBER
Don't really know what time I got up as there was a massive power cut in Hanoi in the night and no alarms went off. Apparently it's a regular occurrence. Eventually when the electricity returned I watched the De La Hoya-Pacquiao fight just to see who would fight Hatton next year. Did a bit more sightseeing and went to the local market to by some cheap crap again. Bought some ipod speakers for less than 2 quid, a model of a pedal cyclo for less than 3 quid, and best of all a bottle of Gordon's gin for a fiver. It did however have a sticker on it saying 'Singapore Duty Not Paid.' Still it doesn't mean I shouldn't buy it and it does mean that we get massively ripped off at home at about 15 quid a bottle. Had a more successful venture to KFC today as Louise was craving it. Sat in bed eating it and watched The Rock on T.V.
MONDAY 8TH DECEMBER
Got woken up really early by the hustle and bustle of the, on first appearance seemed to be, impromptu street market outside our window. It kept going quiet and then becoming noisy every so often, which confused me a little. Turned out the market sellers weren't supposed to be there so every time the police came they all had to run and hide in the shops for fear of being prosecuted/bribed/beaten. Had a few beers in the afternoon whilst I finished my sixth book of the trip. I didn't read that many books while I was in secondary school. After I'd finished the book I decided make use of my day by noting down all the beers that I've tasted so far. After I leave SE Asia I'm going to compile the complete list, so far I'm up to about 20. Went to the travel agent to book a mini cruise to Halong Bay and get out of the city for a few days. Although it's no where near as dirty as Bangkok it's still a big Asian city and it's a bit too hectic for me.
TUESDAY 9TH DECEMBER
Up at 6:30a.m for a 7:45a.m pick up to Halong Bay. The bus was nice and prompt at 8:30a.m. It wasn't too bad a journey as the roads in Vietnam between the main cities are quite a high standard. Stood around for quite a bit waiting for our Junk boat to arrive. Finally got on the boat to discover our double room was just two single beds pushed together. Met up with our guide who although didn't look like, did sound exactly like Ting-Tong off of Little Britain (Oh, Mister Duddwy). Did some walking round some caves that were full of stalactites. They did look really good but for the cheap lights that made it look like a 1980's roller disco. Also did some kayaking around all the big limestone karsts and isles that adorn the bay in various shapes and sizes. It was strange being the only two people anywhere, paddling in the middle of these great big rocks at that moment in time, you could just hear the sound of silence. Went back and Louise nearly fell out of the kayak. At night we relaxed on the boat with a few gins and retired to bed at about 9:30p.m. It's pretty tiring doing stuff on a relaxing holiday.
WEDNESDAY 10TH DECEMBER
Breakfast was cold, greasy fried eggs and some cold hard toast like my sister Amy used to insist on having as she didn't like it hot (she even put it in the fridge to cool down when we were kids). Went for a walk or bike ride around monkey island, it was our choice. When we booked it we were adamant (not Adam Ant) we were going to bike around the island. However, when we got there there weren't any mountain bikes, only Hovis bread bikes, so we decided to go on the walk. Big mistake. On the map the walk is only around 800m as the crow flies, but when its up hill it works out closer to a mile. MAGIC!!! Although it was fairly shaded it was about 80% humidity so I was sweating like the proverbial pig, especially in a long sleeve t-shirt as the previous hotel had stolen my Liverpool shirt, the last clean short sleeved t-shirt that I thought I had. It could have been a lot worse though at least I had walking boots on. Louise, because we were supposed to go on bikes, had opted for flip-flops leaving her boots on the boat. In the afternoon we went to the beach and relaxed in the sun, all the while Louise cursed me for making her walk up the hill which was 200m high as well as a mile to the top. Stopped in an expensive hotel for the night, this is where the 50 dollars extra went that we spent, compared to half the people on our boat. Did get a pretty good slap up meal but it wasn't worth $50. Went for a walk around the harbour with another couple, James and Josie, and tried to explain to them the delicacies of Ritz cracker sandwiches with kraft cheese.
THURSDAY 11TH DECEMBER
Had a slow cruise back to the harbour in the morning for our afternoon bus ride back to Hanoi. So slow in fact that I listened to three albums while Ting-Tong was telling me about the sights in the bay. Arrived on shore at bloody dinnertime, and didn't have time to finish dinner as we were packed on to a mini-bus that had drop down seats in the middle of the aisles, no chance if we crash. Arrived in Hanoi at 5p.m checked in the hotel and went to claim my Liverpool shirt back of the thieves at the last hotel. It took less than 15 minutes for them to locate it and bring it too me. Funny that. With me being 17st of Western bulk and them being 8st Asians it wasn't much of a discussion. Wandered round the town for a bit and booked our sleeper bus to Hue 12 or so hours away. Should be fun.
Thursday, December 11, 2008
This Week I Have Mostly Accomplished NOTHING (01-05/12/08)
MONDAY 1ST DECEMBER
Woke up with a stinking head. Shitty buckets of whisky and red bull. Having crawled to a cafe for breakfast I went to write this blog as I was one week behind. It took me nearly 3 hours to remember what I had done in the last week and write it all down. Afterwards I had another beer hunger so Louise and i went to a street vendor and bought lots of pork and crackling and devoured it. Twenty minutes later I felt sick for the remainder of the day. Went back to my digs to sweat the beer out having arranged to meet Carla and James at seven for more food.
At 7p.m as agreed we met up for more food which I didn't really enjoy. Had a chocolate milk. All in all a thoroughly unproductive day. Tomorrow we leave for the capital Vientiane.
TUESDAY 2ND DECEMBER
Left our guesthouse and the very nice owner gave us a free lift to the bus station. Arriving at the bus station seeing all the clapped out buses put is in a very nervous frame of mind. Got on the bus. It was quite sturdy looking compared to the rest. There were only 5 people on board, me, Louise, a Canadian we met at the station and two locals. Bargain! loads of room to lay down and listen to the ipod. Or so I thought. For the next twenty minutes we stopped at every bus stop within 2km, the bus was full and people were sitting on bags of rice in the end. It was dead bumpy on the way and I needed a new arse by the end of it. Oh the joys of Lao public transport (even though, it still only cost 30,000kip for a 200km journey).
Arrived in Vientiane at about 5p.m. A tuk-tuk driver tried to rip us off. Made it to the town centre unscathed. Not knowing where to go we headed towards the river. Went into every guesthouse and hotel along the riverside and the connecting streets. Every one was full. At this rate we were gonna end up in the Plaza at $200 a night! Finally after 1.5 hours we found a place within the budget, and it was the last room. 4 flights of stairs later, we were in. Shower changed and out for tea. Had a massive Indian. Stopped at a bar to get a coke, opened it and poured as directed. Nothing came out as it had frozen. Went back to the room in a mardy. Couldn't sleep because I'd eaten too much. Got up twice in the night with the shits, brilliant! I've also got a massive ulcer under my tongue, a supposed side effect of the anti-malarials. All I need now is Hep A to complete my day.
WEDNESDAY 3RD NOVEMBER
Woke up at around 11a.m having got to sleep around 3a.m. Had a shower, opened the curtains to let in some fresh air, and there's a bloke sat on our balcony. Closed curtains. Had a wander to the shopping centre for something to do. Bartered dead hard for a magnet for Louise to add to her collection. Then had a walk to the Arc de Triomphe replica, Patouxai as its known. It looks quite good from the outside but when you get up close there's not much to see. Inside is only half finished so it looks a bit shit, and then there are homeless people in some of the pillars, one of which had a gun stuffed down his jeans. We're finding it hard to find anything interesting to do in Vientiane, and we have another full day here still. Later on we spotted James and Carla walking down the street, they spent another day in Vang Vieng. They booked the VIP bus and it got stuck in second gear for the entire journey, which took 7.5 hours instead of 4.5. Had the biggest prawns ever for my tea and then sat about watching the world go by.
THURSDAY 4TH NOVEMBER
Went to get all our photos put on to disc for Carla and James. The fella did it for us and then I went to put it on facebook and none of the photos would come up. It took 4hours to sort out the problem, by which time James and Carla had gone back to their digs and I had had a row with Louise. In the evening we met Carla and James for the last time as we were going our separate ways from tomorrow. It had been really nice meeting up with another couple rather than groups of lads or girls as most of them are on the piss constantly. We only did it twice in about 9 days.
FRIDAY 5TH DECEMBER
Finally after 3 and a half days we are leaving Vientiane for Ha Noi, capital of Viet Nam (2 words) not Saigon as many people think, albeit by plane. I'm not too thrilled as I'm shit scared of flying. All my fears were realised when I saw the plane we were going on. It was a tiny little thing with two seats either side of a smaller than usual aisle. The engines weren't nice big 747 Rolls Royce engines, no they were from a meccano set. And the pilot looked no more than 25, he could only have had about 6 hours of flying time in his life.
Arrived in Hanoi after 1hr 20min flight which seemed like a lifetime to me. Got on a bus for $3 each, not $20 the taxi driver wanted. Its 18miles to central Ha Noi so I'm glad I didn't walk. Got a nice hotel room for $15 which is not bad considering the Aussie backpacker place wanted $7.50 each for a six bed shared dorm. Left my little bag on the minibus so the hotel gopher went after it on his scooter and got it back within 20 mins. Had a walk to the lake in the middle of the French quarter. When you cross the road here you just have to go and hope all the scooters go round you. It's not for the feint hearted.
Woke up with a stinking head. Shitty buckets of whisky and red bull. Having crawled to a cafe for breakfast I went to write this blog as I was one week behind. It took me nearly 3 hours to remember what I had done in the last week and write it all down. Afterwards I had another beer hunger so Louise and i went to a street vendor and bought lots of pork and crackling and devoured it. Twenty minutes later I felt sick for the remainder of the day. Went back to my digs to sweat the beer out having arranged to meet Carla and James at seven for more food.
At 7p.m as agreed we met up for more food which I didn't really enjoy. Had a chocolate milk. All in all a thoroughly unproductive day. Tomorrow we leave for the capital Vientiane.
TUESDAY 2ND DECEMBER
Left our guesthouse and the very nice owner gave us a free lift to the bus station. Arriving at the bus station seeing all the clapped out buses put is in a very nervous frame of mind. Got on the bus. It was quite sturdy looking compared to the rest. There were only 5 people on board, me, Louise, a Canadian we met at the station and two locals. Bargain! loads of room to lay down and listen to the ipod. Or so I thought. For the next twenty minutes we stopped at every bus stop within 2km, the bus was full and people were sitting on bags of rice in the end. It was dead bumpy on the way and I needed a new arse by the end of it. Oh the joys of Lao public transport (even though, it still only cost 30,000kip for a 200km journey).
Arrived in Vientiane at about 5p.m. A tuk-tuk driver tried to rip us off. Made it to the town centre unscathed. Not knowing where to go we headed towards the river. Went into every guesthouse and hotel along the riverside and the connecting streets. Every one was full. At this rate we were gonna end up in the Plaza at $200 a night! Finally after 1.5 hours we found a place within the budget, and it was the last room. 4 flights of stairs later, we were in. Shower changed and out for tea. Had a massive Indian. Stopped at a bar to get a coke, opened it and poured as directed. Nothing came out as it had frozen. Went back to the room in a mardy. Couldn't sleep because I'd eaten too much. Got up twice in the night with the shits, brilliant! I've also got a massive ulcer under my tongue, a supposed side effect of the anti-malarials. All I need now is Hep A to complete my day.
WEDNESDAY 3RD NOVEMBER
Woke up at around 11a.m having got to sleep around 3a.m. Had a shower, opened the curtains to let in some fresh air, and there's a bloke sat on our balcony. Closed curtains. Had a wander to the shopping centre for something to do. Bartered dead hard for a magnet for Louise to add to her collection. Then had a walk to the Arc de Triomphe replica, Patouxai as its known. It looks quite good from the outside but when you get up close there's not much to see. Inside is only half finished so it looks a bit shit, and then there are homeless people in some of the pillars, one of which had a gun stuffed down his jeans. We're finding it hard to find anything interesting to do in Vientiane, and we have another full day here still. Later on we spotted James and Carla walking down the street, they spent another day in Vang Vieng. They booked the VIP bus and it got stuck in second gear for the entire journey, which took 7.5 hours instead of 4.5. Had the biggest prawns ever for my tea and then sat about watching the world go by.
THURSDAY 4TH NOVEMBER
Went to get all our photos put on to disc for Carla and James. The fella did it for us and then I went to put it on facebook and none of the photos would come up. It took 4hours to sort out the problem, by which time James and Carla had gone back to their digs and I had had a row with Louise. In the evening we met Carla and James for the last time as we were going our separate ways from tomorrow. It had been really nice meeting up with another couple rather than groups of lads or girls as most of them are on the piss constantly. We only did it twice in about 9 days.
FRIDAY 5TH DECEMBER
Finally after 3 and a half days we are leaving Vientiane for Ha Noi, capital of Viet Nam (2 words) not Saigon as many people think, albeit by plane. I'm not too thrilled as I'm shit scared of flying. All my fears were realised when I saw the plane we were going on. It was a tiny little thing with two seats either side of a smaller than usual aisle. The engines weren't nice big 747 Rolls Royce engines, no they were from a meccano set. And the pilot looked no more than 25, he could only have had about 6 hours of flying time in his life.
Arrived in Hanoi after 1hr 20min flight which seemed like a lifetime to me. Got on a bus for $3 each, not $20 the taxi driver wanted. Its 18miles to central Ha Noi so I'm glad I didn't walk. Got a nice hotel room for $15 which is not bad considering the Aussie backpacker place wanted $7.50 each for a six bed shared dorm. Left my little bag on the minibus so the hotel gopher went after it on his scooter and got it back within 20 mins. Had a walk to the lake in the middle of the French quarter. When you cross the road here you just have to go and hope all the scooters go round you. It's not for the feint hearted.
Monday, December 1, 2008
Welcome To Laos (23-30/11/08)
SUNDAY 23RD NOVEMBER
I was woken up at 7a.m by the phone ringing, a friend from home it was midnight there so that's OK then. I'd been in bed for less than 5 hours so it wasn't the friendliest greeting. I wanted to be up early to watch the Hatton fight but not this early. Found a bar that was showing the fight so sat down and relaxed to watch that with a massive full English that was piping hot, can't complain at that. Finally moved out of the bar at noon and went for a wander around. It was a bit hot so we went back to the hotel for a swim. Even though we're on a budget hotels are dirt cheap so you might as well stay at one. Early evening went to the Sunday walking market to buy some tat. Was a bit shocked when the Thai national anthem came on and around 3000 people stopped what they were doing and stood to attention, even the foreigners stopped still in the street! Went to the night market and bought some junk and got conned when I bought a couple of knock off RL Polo's that turned out to be two sizes smaller than the one I tried on. Third week in and the first con, so I haven't done that bad.
MONDAY 24TH NOVEMBER
Had to go to the post office to send all the tat home we'd bought, and a couple of things I didn't need to bring. it cost more than 35 quid for less than 4kilos and it was by sea mail that takes 2-3 months. After we hand been robbed by the post office, joy of joys a 7 hour bus ride to Chiang- Khong border crossing. Apart from stopping off at a dried fruit place I did nothing other than read, Louise slept and dribbled a bit. Arrived in Chiang-Khong about 6:30p.m went to our basic room after a feed. Nipped out for a few beers and a couple of frames of pool and retired to bed.
TUESDAY 25TH NOVEMBER
A bright and early start ready for the rigmarole of visa checking and the like at the Laos border. Was up at 7a.m I don't really know why because the boat didn't leave until 11:00a.m. In the intervening 4 hours I was offered weed three times by three different people. *Note to self: must shave more regularly. On to the Boat for two days. They call it a slow boat which is right, but they should also call it the loudest slow boat in the world. The noise was so bad i got hoarse from shouting. The seats are only about 8 inches deep so for half the 7hour trip I was either sat on the floor playing poker or stood up. Met a really nice couple James and Carla both psychiatric nurses on a 6 month break spent they day talking to them and ended up at the same guesthouse as them for the night in Pak Beng. Not a lot there a couple of restaurants and that's it. Good job really cos the towns power cuts out at 10:30p.m anyway.
WEDNESDAY 26TH NOVEMBER
Back on the boat for the remainder of the journey to Luang Prabang, got sent off with a packed lunch of, you guessed it, rice. Did some more reading and listened to the ipod and tried to teach James, Carla and Louise some card games with limited success. We got one bench each on this journey as they realised that they'd put too many people on yesterday. Arrived in Luang Prabang at 4p.m which wasn't that bad going considering. Found a guesthouse for 85000kip a night which is about six and a half quid. Had a quick tour around and had some dinner with our new friends. I ate raw chicken, I didn't notice as it was pretty dark and we were outside. Got practically thrown out of the restaurant at 10:30p.m, there's a curfew in town, all foreigners have to be in their room by 11:30p.m.
THURSDAY 27TH NOVEMBER
Got up and had a nice breakfast. Because it was French occupied until 1954 the influence is everywhere. None more so than at breakfast time, fresh baked croissants and the like. Hired a couple of bikes and went for a ride around the town for a few hours. Much to my dismay we visited some more temples, but at one I did see a lady boy. Ended up at a coffee shop for about two hours just talking. The bikes didn't get used that much. Planned to go bowling at night cos there's nothing else to do. Hired a tuk-tuk which was the engine and the front half of a 200cc Honda bike welded to a trailer with a roof. Somehow we got four of us and the driver in it. Arrived at the bowling alley, there was no one there so we left straight away in the same death trap we arrived in. Had some beers and told some stories to J&C went to the guesthouse just in time for curfew.
FRIDAY 28TH NOVEMBER
It took nearly 4 weeks but after hunting around I finally found somewhere that did Cornflakes. Ate them and a Danish pastry for breakfast with a mug of hot tea, Was then hungry for the rest of the day. Tried to plan where to stop off tomorrow. Looking like Vang Vieng which they say is 5 hours in an air-con bus for 135000kip each(11quid roughly, have you realised yet there's no pound sign on Asian computers.). Chilled for the rest of the day. The pace of life in Laos is very slow, using the international measure of costing, local beer, one large bottle 10,000kip (85p), it's also really cheap, my kinda place. Went to the street market for tea, had the usual which is chicken, rice, veg and buffalo intestines. They're a bit rubbery and don't taste of much. Realised too late that I need to change my flight to Hanoi, got to go in the morning which is gonna be a rush as the office doesn't open til 8a.m and we get picked up at 8a.m. Whoops!
SATURDAY 29TH NOVEMBER
Managed to change my flights and make the bus, good going on my part. Sat on the bus for almost 8 hours not 5 as stated. Listened to a lot of AC/DC, which is always a pleasure. The drive is a little bit hairy as it's along mountain roads for the first half of the journey, you can only go about 30mph. It does give you time to appreciate the scenery which is absolutely breathtaking. Arrived in Vang Vieng at 5p.m and found a guesthouse. Had a little walk around, in the lonely planet it states that all the bars show endless re-runs of Friends, and they do. Got our bearings and found somewhere to have dinner, I went to get a jumper cos it's quite cold at night. While I was away Louise assured me that she would order me some dinner. Everyone except me ate. Drank some more and agreed to go Tubing tomorrow.
SUNDAY 30TH NOVEMBER
Tubing involves sitting on a tractor inner tube and floating between bars along the river and trying not to get so drunk that you drown, which has happened a few times. We did this for the day and it is a great way to get wet and drunk. Along the way Louise managed to lose her flip-flop, this is going to the first bar! At the second bar there is a rope swing which is around 40ft high, me and James did it. It hurts when you land. Another lad did it and lost his wedding ring, a couple of people went to look for it but to no avail. A local went in with some goggles and within 20 seconds found it, don't ask how, he just did. Another local then bought Louise her flip-flop back. It must have just kept floating down river. Had lots of drink, which after 2 beers was a bucket full of cheap Tiger whisky a bottle of red bull some lemonade and ice. I don't like whisky or red bull but at less than 3quid a bucket I'll drink it. At another bar there is a mud bath in which we all had a wrestle and got completely filthy. Then went on a massive slide into the river, it is very fast and you don't look too graceful and hurts more than the rope-swing when you land. Bruised my little toe quite badly I think it might be broken. Got back to the guesthouse and had a shower which involved washing my hair and body twice, which is not easy when your drunk and have a busted foot. Went for dinner at some bar. Watched the Manchester derby, got even more drunk, lost a lot at pool and had roast lamb with real Yorkshire pudding. Delightful. It took four weeks but I found somewhere that did it. Went home after too much beer and river fun. Managed not to die. A good day all round I think.
I was woken up at 7a.m by the phone ringing, a friend from home it was midnight there so that's OK then. I'd been in bed for less than 5 hours so it wasn't the friendliest greeting. I wanted to be up early to watch the Hatton fight but not this early. Found a bar that was showing the fight so sat down and relaxed to watch that with a massive full English that was piping hot, can't complain at that. Finally moved out of the bar at noon and went for a wander around. It was a bit hot so we went back to the hotel for a swim. Even though we're on a budget hotels are dirt cheap so you might as well stay at one. Early evening went to the Sunday walking market to buy some tat. Was a bit shocked when the Thai national anthem came on and around 3000 people stopped what they were doing and stood to attention, even the foreigners stopped still in the street! Went to the night market and bought some junk and got conned when I bought a couple of knock off RL Polo's that turned out to be two sizes smaller than the one I tried on. Third week in and the first con, so I haven't done that bad.
MONDAY 24TH NOVEMBER
Had to go to the post office to send all the tat home we'd bought, and a couple of things I didn't need to bring. it cost more than 35 quid for less than 4kilos and it was by sea mail that takes 2-3 months. After we hand been robbed by the post office, joy of joys a 7 hour bus ride to Chiang- Khong border crossing. Apart from stopping off at a dried fruit place I did nothing other than read, Louise slept and dribbled a bit. Arrived in Chiang-Khong about 6:30p.m went to our basic room after a feed. Nipped out for a few beers and a couple of frames of pool and retired to bed.
TUESDAY 25TH NOVEMBER
A bright and early start ready for the rigmarole of visa checking and the like at the Laos border. Was up at 7a.m I don't really know why because the boat didn't leave until 11:00a.m. In the intervening 4 hours I was offered weed three times by three different people. *Note to self: must shave more regularly. On to the Boat for two days. They call it a slow boat which is right, but they should also call it the loudest slow boat in the world. The noise was so bad i got hoarse from shouting. The seats are only about 8 inches deep so for half the 7hour trip I was either sat on the floor playing poker or stood up. Met a really nice couple James and Carla both psychiatric nurses on a 6 month break spent they day talking to them and ended up at the same guesthouse as them for the night in Pak Beng. Not a lot there a couple of restaurants and that's it. Good job really cos the towns power cuts out at 10:30p.m anyway.
WEDNESDAY 26TH NOVEMBER
Back on the boat for the remainder of the journey to Luang Prabang, got sent off with a packed lunch of, you guessed it, rice. Did some more reading and listened to the ipod and tried to teach James, Carla and Louise some card games with limited success. We got one bench each on this journey as they realised that they'd put too many people on yesterday. Arrived in Luang Prabang at 4p.m which wasn't that bad going considering. Found a guesthouse for 85000kip a night which is about six and a half quid. Had a quick tour around and had some dinner with our new friends. I ate raw chicken, I didn't notice as it was pretty dark and we were outside. Got practically thrown out of the restaurant at 10:30p.m, there's a curfew in town, all foreigners have to be in their room by 11:30p.m.
THURSDAY 27TH NOVEMBER
Got up and had a nice breakfast. Because it was French occupied until 1954 the influence is everywhere. None more so than at breakfast time, fresh baked croissants and the like. Hired a couple of bikes and went for a ride around the town for a few hours. Much to my dismay we visited some more temples, but at one I did see a lady boy. Ended up at a coffee shop for about two hours just talking. The bikes didn't get used that much. Planned to go bowling at night cos there's nothing else to do. Hired a tuk-tuk which was the engine and the front half of a 200cc Honda bike welded to a trailer with a roof. Somehow we got four of us and the driver in it. Arrived at the bowling alley, there was no one there so we left straight away in the same death trap we arrived in. Had some beers and told some stories to J&C went to the guesthouse just in time for curfew.
FRIDAY 28TH NOVEMBER
It took nearly 4 weeks but after hunting around I finally found somewhere that did Cornflakes. Ate them and a Danish pastry for breakfast with a mug of hot tea, Was then hungry for the rest of the day. Tried to plan where to stop off tomorrow. Looking like Vang Vieng which they say is 5 hours in an air-con bus for 135000kip each(11quid roughly, have you realised yet there's no pound sign on Asian computers.). Chilled for the rest of the day. The pace of life in Laos is very slow, using the international measure of costing, local beer, one large bottle 10,000kip (85p), it's also really cheap, my kinda place. Went to the street market for tea, had the usual which is chicken, rice, veg and buffalo intestines. They're a bit rubbery and don't taste of much. Realised too late that I need to change my flight to Hanoi, got to go in the morning which is gonna be a rush as the office doesn't open til 8a.m and we get picked up at 8a.m. Whoops!
SATURDAY 29TH NOVEMBER
Managed to change my flights and make the bus, good going on my part. Sat on the bus for almost 8 hours not 5 as stated. Listened to a lot of AC/DC, which is always a pleasure. The drive is a little bit hairy as it's along mountain roads for the first half of the journey, you can only go about 30mph. It does give you time to appreciate the scenery which is absolutely breathtaking. Arrived in Vang Vieng at 5p.m and found a guesthouse. Had a little walk around, in the lonely planet it states that all the bars show endless re-runs of Friends, and they do. Got our bearings and found somewhere to have dinner, I went to get a jumper cos it's quite cold at night. While I was away Louise assured me that she would order me some dinner. Everyone except me ate. Drank some more and agreed to go Tubing tomorrow.
SUNDAY 30TH NOVEMBER
Tubing involves sitting on a tractor inner tube and floating between bars along the river and trying not to get so drunk that you drown, which has happened a few times. We did this for the day and it is a great way to get wet and drunk. Along the way Louise managed to lose her flip-flop, this is going to the first bar! At the second bar there is a rope swing which is around 40ft high, me and James did it. It hurts when you land. Another lad did it and lost his wedding ring, a couple of people went to look for it but to no avail. A local went in with some goggles and within 20 seconds found it, don't ask how, he just did. Another local then bought Louise her flip-flop back. It must have just kept floating down river. Had lots of drink, which after 2 beers was a bucket full of cheap Tiger whisky a bottle of red bull some lemonade and ice. I don't like whisky or red bull but at less than 3quid a bucket I'll drink it. At another bar there is a mud bath in which we all had a wrestle and got completely filthy. Then went on a massive slide into the river, it is very fast and you don't look too graceful and hurts more than the rope-swing when you land. Bruised my little toe quite badly I think it might be broken. Got back to the guesthouse and had a shower which involved washing my hair and body twice, which is not easy when your drunk and have a busted foot. Went for dinner at some bar. Watched the Manchester derby, got even more drunk, lost a lot at pool and had roast lamb with real Yorkshire pudding. Delightful. It took four weeks but I found somewhere that did it. Went home after too much beer and river fun. Managed not to die. A good day all round I think.
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