Vietnam September 2018
We started in Hanoi which was busy, crowded, noisy and with so many scooters. I honestly thought we would never get out of the city without being run over! The old French Quarter where we stayed was a real maze of tiny alleys, packed with tiny bars and loads of street food places. One of the top things to do in Vietnam is to eat at a street food stall so we did it. Surprisingly there was nothing on the menu that disgusted us, some unusual things but no animals or insects!
We travelled down the country by sea plane to Ha Long Bay and had two nights on a beautiful Indochina sail boat. Cruising Ha Long Bay is one of the top 10 things to do in Vietnam and it was the highlight of the trip for me. This archipelago of over 3000 limestone islets in the Gulf of Tonkin is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Not the cleanest place I have been but scenery wise it was spectacular.
Onwards to Hoi Ann which is a very pretty town with cobbled streets, canals and a beautiful beach. We used push bikes to explore the countryside, we learnt how they still farm by hand and had a cookery class with the locals. A very restful town.
Then onto Saigon or now known as Ho Chi Minch City (HCMC for short). This city again is plagued by scooters and traffic. Its classed as a new city but with so much history. We spent time at the American Museum and were moved by the horror and history of the 1950's Vietnam War. We explored the Cu Chi tunnels and saw how the Vietnamese survived and killed their enemies. We all had a very emotional few days in this city.
Our last few days were spent on the wonderful island of Phu Quoc. Its Vietnam's biggest island and is down in the bay of Thailand. It has the most beautiful beaches and is their paradise. Lots of construction work going on and will be a very busy place in a few years so glad to have seen it before that happens. I loved Vietnam and would recommend the destination to all ages.