Mega Mashup

I have not posted for a long time and there is much to catch up on.  I will section this entry off into separate stories to make it less confusing... but before I do this here are some random things that have been happening.

There is a coffee lady that has a small cart with an umbrella on it, at the end of my street.  Sometimes I go there and buy an iced coffee.  One time when I was there, I noticed a small creature holding on to the umbrella pole.  It was a slow loris!  A pet slow loris!
A few days later I went back to the same coffee lady with Alex and showed it to him.  It was then that the coffee lady's daughter plucked the slow loris from the pole and shoved it into my arms.  It was super cute!

sleepy slow loris

:D

Alex and I went to the Black Cat Cafe and shared "The Big Cheese".  It was the biggest burger I have ever seen and was supremely tasty.  It had lots and lots and lots of bacon on it.

The Big Cheese

Having previously mentioned the bare-foot, shirtless tree gym that costs $7 a month, I finally took a picture of it... so behold... TREE GYM.

Tree Gym

CROCODILE FARM

Recently, myself, Alex and Sean went to visit a crocodile farm here in Saigon.  I was a short ride away and well worth the visit.  I grew up in the Northern Territory in Australia, but I never saw such large and powerful crocodiles up close before.  They were really quite scary, especially when the large adults in one pond started powerfully snapping their maws and then letting out a terrifying guttural roar to which others would respond from the same pond, but also from other ponds all around us.

MEKONG DELTA

I was fortunate enough to be invited to go along with Alex and a group of three other Germans on a trip to the Mekong Delta, where we stayed with a local family in their house, in a small village.  It was so good to be out of Saigon and in the quiet of of the country side.
It was quite an interesting trip!

We were treated to quite an array of different foods including, fermented fish, fish soup, home made spring rolls (which we helped make), fresh fruit straight from their garden, chicken (also straight from their garden :( ), snake, rat and two fish that Alex caught.

The river outside our host's house

Grilling rat!

Snake and papaya

This picture sums up rural Vietnam for me - motorcycles and chickens

Some of the local scenery

 DA NANG AND HOI AN

Alex and I recently flew to Da Nang with the intent to hire motorcycles and ride to Hoi An.  Da Nang has an awesome "dragon bridge".  On the weekends at 9pm, this bridge shoots out fire and water, much to the delight of the large crowds gathered to watch it.  Da Nang was another nice change from the hustle and bustle of Ho Chi Minh City.  Considerably less traffic, quieter and sleepier.  We found a small park with marble statues in it, by the river; we could even see the dragon bridge in the distance.

The marble statues in the park were amazingly carved and the detail in some of them was really impressive.  Nothing like the sculptures in St.Peter's Basilica, but impressive none the less.  Having been a huge monkey magic fan as a kid, one statue of a lion that I remember seeing a lot in that show took my fancy.

Ye olde lion statue!

Da Nang had a nice feel about it and I wouldn't have minded spending some more time there... but we had things to do!

Da Nang Dragon Bridge

After hiring our motorbikes, we decided to ride out to the Ba Na Hills resort.  On the way out there we road along the river and Alex noticed this on one of the ships moored at a dock.

Safety Firts

It was a pretty awesome ride out there through the country side to where we would catch a cable car up a fairly big mountain.  It was a twenty minute ride in the cable car and we were treated to some spectacular views as well as being scared little girls when the capsule started swinging back and forth and vibrating when it passed over the suspension towers and their little wheels.

Once we got to the top of the mountain and to the Ba Na Hills "Resort" we realised it more resembled a theme park than any sort of resort.  It seemed to be oddly themed in a medieval castle / fairytale motif and only really being about restaurants, most of which were closed (this probably explains the strange looks we received when we were going up the escalators to the cable car, while everyone else was coming down).

Welcome to Ba Na Hills Resort....

It was really quite nice up there, despite 95% of everything being closed and the rides and attractions either being closed or under construction.  I guess the big draw card was the awesome views from the high vantage point.  It was probably the only time in Vietnam that I have felt cold without it being at night and raining, simply due to the elevation.

Giant Buddha

We had to wait over an hour for the cable car ride back down and by that time it was pretty much night time.  Once we left the cable car station and escaped the range of the bright spot light shining out over the mountain side, the ride down was quite surreal, yet awesome at the same time.  We just drifted, through the darkness, slowly descending with the only lights being Da Nang city in the distance, glittering like a million cats eyes.  It was dead quite apart from the wind and the gently hum of the cable car moving along the cables.  It was such an awesome experience.

Once we reached the bottom, got our bikes back and headed off back to Da Nang, disaster struck.  Alex's bike (aka Blackie Chan) decided to conk out then refuse to start.  We tried for a while to start it; including me picking the rear end up and slamming it on the ground to try and clear a suspected fuel blockage.  No love.  Eventually a local man approached us and tried to help, but he could not figure it out either so he pointed us down the road to what we understood was a mechanic.

Once we got there, the mechanic tried to start the bike, then just began taking it apart.  We were given the usual Vietnamese plastic chairs to sit on while we waited.

Mr.Mechanic working his magic

I didn't dare take photos of what I saw, however just down the road from where we were waiting while the bike was fixed, was a large group of police.  I walked out to the road and watched, then a local man came to me and started talking full speed in Vietnamese at me.  Eventually, with body language, I understood that there had been a fatal accident there and those police were there to investigate.

After about 45 minutes of work, the mechanic cleared the fuel blockage and everything was good to go.  It cost a grand total of $7.50.  We made it back to our hotel in Da Nang without further incident.

The next day, we planned on riding to Hoi An.  On the way, however, we stopped at a place called The Marble Mountains.  There is a large marble quarry there, however there is also a pretty interesting attraction as well.  We caught an elevator to the top of the mountains and walked around looking at the various old Buddhist pagodas, caves, statues and so on.  It was really quite cool.

A view near the top

A confused and worried looking cat being ridden by some dude.

Buddha in the main cave

The top!

Upon returning to the ground from our Marble Mountain expedition, we walked back to our parked bikes, past the many many shops selling carved marble statues.  This scene caught my eye in particular.

And we were off, to Hoi An, to the town famous for it's authentic old style buildings and atmosphere in the ancient town area.  Also famous for it's stunning beach.  Good times ahead for sure!

We had both planned to have suits and shoes tailored for us as this is another thing for which Hoi An is renown.  There were tailor shops everywhere in this town; almost on every street!
Having done some research online, we decided on using Sesan tailor, as Trip Advisor rated them highly.

After choosing our fabrics, being measured and mildly groped by the tailor.... it was off to the shoe tailor for a matching pair of shoes to be made.  It was a pretty straight forward, process; we had our feet traced on some paper, then measured all over with a tape.  We chose our design from several tomes of printed our pictures of shoes, then picked our leather from a massive wad of choices.

We rode back to Da Nang after finishing with the shoe tailor, as it was getting late and we wanted to make it back in time to see the dragon bridge breath fire and spit water.  While we waited for the aforementioned dragon, we were mobbed by a group of locals on the bridge, all wanting their photos taken with us.  It was a very surreal experience, like we were famous or something.

On top of that, a TV camera and reporter decided to interview me on the bridge about the dragon and what I thought of Vietnam, adding to the sense of strange and misplaced celebrity.

Worst freeze ever!

The next day we set off on our bikes back to Hoi An; Alex had replaced Blackie Chan to avoid another breakdown.  On this trip I decided it would be a good idea to speed maniacally and soon realised I had left Alex behind.  I got all the way into Hoi An and to the tailors shop before I stopped, checked my phone only to realise that Alex's replacement bike had also broken down!  I rode back to try and find him but by the time I got there he had already organised a new bike and was mobile again. Now he had a yellow bike (Betty).

Ginger and Betty

We eventually arrived in Hoi An and checked into a hotel, so we could explore the town properly.  Hoi An was my favourite place in Vietnam; it reminded me of an Asian version of the small town I grew up in, except a lot of tourists and a slightly nicer beach.
We were in Hoi An in time for the full moon festival.  During this festival, only lanterns are used to light up the old ancient town area, giving the throngs of eager tourists a glimpse into the past of what old Vietnam may have been like.  It was an awesome experience and not something I will soon forget.

The beach was quite spectacular and we scored an awesome sunset swim in the warm ocean.  I almost didn't go because I was so tired and laying on the hotel bed, but Alex insisted.  So glad I went!

On our last night in Hoi An we went out drinking (surprise!).  After a decent amount, we were walking back towards our hotel when we were stopped on the bridge by a guy handing out flyers for "Why not bar?" - a bar... somewhere around.

"Free motorbike to get there!" he said.

"Why not!"

While attempting to jump on the back of my ride, misjudged it and caught the groin area of my shorts on the back of the bike and put a decent tear into them.  Fail.

The ride to the bar was extremely fast as it seemed our drivers were racing each other.  The bar itself was very small, most of the space taken up by a pool table in the centre upon which about 6-7 people were dancing.

We paid $8 each for unlimited drinks of either gin, whiskey or rum.  Needless to say we both indulged.
After a while of knocking back cheap drinks, I thought it would be a good idea to show the Vietnamese bar girl the hole in my shorts.  She laughed and immediately put both her hands into the hole and tore it completely open.  It was hilarious.

Vietnamese bar girl : 1  -  Pants : 0

The rest of the time in the bar smeared into a blur of madness.  I have no memory of leaving, getting back to the hotel or going to sleep; I just woke up thinking... what the hell happened.

Luckily Alex had a photo journal of the nights events.

I felt pretty wretched and tired that day, but it was a fitting goodbye to Hoi An.  We collected our suits and shoes and rode back to Da Nang to catch out flight home to Saigon.

Visit Hoi An, you won't regret it!

Neighbourhood Natives

There are some colourful characters that live in my street and the surrounding areas.

The next door neighbours to our right we dubbed "The fertilised egg lady" and "The fertlised egg lady's husband".  They opened a small restaurant there and there have been minor skirmishes about her customers sitting at tables across our entry way.
The name came from me ordering two eggs from her one night, thinking that they were just boiled eggs.  It was not the case.
Later at night, some of her customers are pretty drunk, so it makes for interesting interactions if we go in and out of the house.  Invitations to sit and drink are common, as well as slurred broken English, hand shakes and raised glasses.

Busted by the Fertilised Egg Lady while trying to sneakily take her picture.

To the left there is "The Pho lady".  This title encompasses her whole family.  They have a soup shop open early in the mornings and sell a cheap but mediocre pho.  Recently she had a new baby so we all chipped in and bought some baby soap and shampoo and gave them to her as a present.
A few days later, they threw a huge party outside their house with white table cloths on tables and much drinking, guitar and singing, followed shortly by an epic storm which cut things short.

A few doors down there is another man, who after 12 years of waiting and trying, was finally granted a green card to immigrate to the United States.

Around the corner is Sean.  He is Vietnamese, however he studied in Baltimore and is now back living in Saigon.  He took me to a local gym recently, which I joined.  It was a pretty funny experience.
No one in the gym was wearing shoes and everyone was using free weights.  The barbells have no stoppers on them to prevent weights from sliding off either.  As a cherry on top, there is an enormous tree growing through the middle of the building, about 4 metres around.... all for a paltry $7 a month.

Also around the corner is a random family that always waves and says hello to me whenever I walk past them.  This happens quite a lot here, especially with young children.  I have never seen a society with so many young children in it, it really gives the place a charm and colourful feel.

Vietnam is definitely full of robust characters.

Escape Escapades

Recently, I had the privilege of being part of Vietnam's music history. Through my house mate Daniel's connections, myself, Alex, Daniel and his girlfriend Suong, managed to obtain tickets to the first ever electronic music festival in Vietnam - "Escape".

It was an interesting evening.  Considering it was the first ever dance festival held in the country, the organisers pulled it off pretty well.  It was held at on Diamond Island at a complex of three luxury apartment towers.  Despite running out of food and alcohol early in the evening, torrential downpours and the police arriving at midnight and shutting everything down, it was quite a fun night.  The best part was the slamming pool party with a DJ booth on the edge, complete with a foam machine.

Above the pool was a large inflatable jellyfish suspended on a cable which was eventually pulled down by the raging pool party participants and subsequently swarmed by everyone... I managed to get underneath it!

The pool party was some of the best fun I have had in a long time; I am super happy I got to partake in it.

In other news, yesterday I went to the dentist to get my teeth cleaned.  I went with Daniel and another guy, Ed.  Ed and I were having the same thing done while Daniel was having his crowns seen to.
Before I left Australia, I tried to get in to see a hygienist and get a cleaning, however every clinic insisted I had to see the dentist before seeing the hygienist (despite me telling them I had seen a dentist only a few days prior)... one of them even said I had to see the dentist first BY LAW......what a joke.

The prices quoted ranged from $250-350 which I scoffed at and politely declined.

Now compare that to Saigon, where I walk into a large, busy, modern dental clinic; write down my name, phone number and birth date, sit down for 5 minutes, get called in for a quick inspection, wait 10 more minutes and get called in for the cleaning.  No appointment.

Oh.... and it cost $25.

The thing about the cost though, is even that price was seemingly "white man prices".  Ed's clean only cost him $17.50 (Ed is an American Vietnamese) and another German guy we met in the waiting room, having the same thing done as well, paid $20.  Even at these prices, we were still probably getting slightly ripped off compared to the normal rates.

I'm not complaining.

Mechanised Mayhem

It all started with the trousers shop.  "Let's go to the trousers shop" he said, "it'll be fun" he said.
En route to said trousers shop, following Alex on my "trusty" scooter steed, I rounded a corner and had to brake suddenly to avoid being impaled by a moto-cart driver transporting long lengths of metallic pipe.  It was at this time that my scooter decided that enough is enough and conked out dead, mid road.
No matter how I tried, the darn thing was dead and just wouldn't start, so I was left with the only option; to push the stupid thing all the way back home.  Luckily it wasn't very far.

I called Chi at the cafe where I rented the scooter from and explained the situation.  She agreed to send someone out to look at it and see what the problem was.
I waited in the doorway for what seemed to be about an hour until the "mechanic" arrived on a large white scooter.  He told me that we were going to swap scooters and he would take mine back to the cafe to look at it properly.  Good luck with that I thought.
He then proceeded to lift the scooter up by the back end and bang it on the ground over and over again quite hard, followed by slapping his hand over the open fuel hatch repeatedly.  He then started the scooter and rode off on it.  I guess that guy knows his scooters.

I eventually get my scooter back and it is in working order, no explanation was given as to what the problem was though.  Now for the epic journey.
Myself, Alex and his Vietnamese friend Nhat had planned to ride the 108kms to the coastal town of Vung Tau, but the recent events surrounding my scooter did not fill me with confidence.

To start the journey off on a wonderful note, I only had one hour sleep before leaving the next morning due to having a coffee too late in the evening, so I was amazingly tired.  Then we had to alter our route because of semi urgent petrol requirements, meaning it would take longer to ride down there, but also meaning that the traffic would be absolutely insane.  I had never seen anything like it.  Sections of jam packed road works, gravel, sand, debris, erratic and seemingly stupid scooter drivers.  Huge trucks and lorries would lumber out from side streets and driveways and simply barge into the stream of traffic without hesitation, blocking the swarming throng of scooters in their tracks.  As soon as the back of the truck had pulled out far enough, the scooter pack adapted like water and started flowing through the gap.  What an experience.

Upon arriving in Vung Tau and entering the lobby of our hotel, the woman who owned the place gasped in shock when she saw how filthy I was.  My face was covered in smears or grey and black soot; my white shorts were grey and my arms and legs were blanketed in grime too.  Hooray for traffic pollution!

After settling in, we went to one of the beaches to check it out.  We searched for a spot to sit among the thousands of other people there and went for the ocean.  Being the only two white people on the beach, we drew the attention of everyone around us.  From the shore, all the way out to chest height, people were staring at us; it was quite an odd sensation.

You can see Jesus on the hill to the left.

After the beach, we rode off to visit the giant statue of Jesus on top of a hill, a la Rio.  We had to climb up a lot of stairs to get to Jesus and they were pretty steep.

When we finally got up there, we climbed inside Jesus from his behind and all the way up onto his arms.  It was a pretty spectacular view and well worth the effort.

Click to enlarge!

On the way back down, it seemed our timing in climbing up was pretty good as the internal stairs were packed full of people waiting and it was a tight squeeze trying to get back down.

Dinner!

The next morning we rode to where we thought a market would be, parked our scooters and walked.  The entire place was empty apart from some half erected amusement rides and a lone shop selling giant carved wooden furniture.

Bring me Ned Stark's head.

On the way back to our scooters, Nhat suddenly mentions, "Oh I know why this place is closed... it is because of H1N1 virus".

Swine flu, wonderful.

Where the market was...

There being not much else to see in Vung Tau, we returned to the hotel to get our belongings ready for the arduous return trip.  This time though, we were taking a different route and using a ferry to cross the river; it was pretty interesting riding with a swarm of scooters on to a ferry.

The rest of the ride home was pretty straight forward.  We stopped at a plantation forest for some rest in hammocks and iced coffee, but the rest is history.