South East Asia 2009

Today I depart for Kuala Lumpur and after a couple of nights there, on to Hanoi. Lynn is staying on in Sydney for a few more days of Mosman R&R and to sort out our move to Adelaide.

On the way out I came across a piece in the in-flight magazine called “KL city tour”.  Having utterly failed to do any background research on the city, I decide to let this be my guide.

Over the next weeks these journal entries will attempt to give a slice of Vietnam and our experience of it. If you’re looking for a comprehensive and unbiased guidebook to Vietnam, you’ve come to the wrong place.

Off the a bright and early start (well, reasonably early), I launch out into the streets for the full-sized version. It’s almost impossible to describe, but the streets are complete eye-candy and the walk is a visual and auditory assault on the senses.

I’m spending the next night and two days aboard the Emeraude on Halong Bay. Halong Bay is about 150 km, or 3 hours east of Hanoi and should be included on even the most perfunctory of Vietnamese itineraries.

In the morning we way slowly made our way back to shore after a hearty, tasty and undoubtedly cholesterol laden breakfast. Along the way we visited one of the floating villages.

With my last full day in Hanoi before Lynn arrives, I toyed with the idea of a day tour out into the country to take in some pagodas and other attractions.

This morning Lynn flies in from Kuala Lumpur, so after a lazy start I ride out with the car and driver to meet her at the airport and fill her in on all the news and hard won Vietnamese local knowledge.

New day, new city. Lynn has us booked on flights to Danang this morning, which is the closest airport to Hoi An, our next port of call. The little I know if Danang has been gleaned from various war movies and Robin Williams’ one liners from 'Good Morning Vietnam'. Needless to say I was going in with an open mind.

Early this morning we say a fond farewell to Hoi An and drive back up to Danang to catch a flight down to Nha Trang. Since we’ve been diligent focusing on the sights and culture for these past few days (well kinda), we figure that we’re long over due for some R&R on the beach (those pagodas can be exhausting you know). Nha Trang is apparently one of the best beach destinations, so the plan is to spend a couple of nights here being lazy and recharging the batteries.