Vietnam: Saigon and Mui Ne

Louise and I just got back from two sensational weeks in Vietnam that were abounding with adventure and anecdotes, bereft of boredom.  Now we face the issue of how we are going to blog about it all.  We have decided to split up the work into four separate blogposts - two each - to really do justice to the amazing things we saw and did.  A link to our photos is at the bottom.

I have been charged with portraying the hustling, bustling, madness that was Saigon.  It is no easy task without seeing it for yourself.  Navigating to our hostel, we found ourselves tucked away in a charming building in one of the many vibrant alleyways of Saigon; a stone’s throw away from the heart of the backpackers district.  We awoke on day one and decided to trek to the CuChi Tunnel System. The first thing we noticed was the sheer number of motorcylces on the road.  Crossing the street was an intimidating experience that involved shuffling hand-in-hand at a slow and steady pace, allowing for the bikers to move around you.  When crossing the street you put a lot of faith in the driving abilities of the Vietnamese people which becomes somewhat stretched when you see four people packed onto a single motorcycle (including a nursing child) or a refrigerator balanced on the back.  You know the saying "everything but the kitchen sink"? Yeah, that didn't even apply in Vietnam because I actually saw someone carrying a kitchen sink on the back of a motorcycle; except it was still attached to the kitchen counter-top and was standing vertically in the air and held in place by the passenger's chin.  For what it's worth, you would expect to see more accidents on the streets but it seems to just work.  It's like organized chaos or a school of fish where one moves and the entire system reacts.  

We took a local bus out to the tunnels which are just a portion of a massive network used by the Viet Cong during the Vietnam War.  The tunnels stretch and spider out almost to the Cambodian border and played a huge role in stagnating US troops.  It was very eye-opening to see a Vietnamese perspective when we were shown a propaganda video profiling certain war heroes praised for how many Americans "white devils" they killed.  The highlight of this visit was definitely the opportunity to squeeze down into the tunnels, not for those who have the slightest fear of claustrophobia, and literally shuffle through history.  The tunnel system was cramped and dark but really showed you the home-field-advantage that tilted the war in the Viet Cong's favour.  The bamboo booby traps were grim evidence of this.  We were shown array of virtually undetectable entrances and “chimneys”, which are disguised as rocks and are strategically placed miles away from the underground homes they are ventilating, all of which would have been otherwise invisible to our eyes. We met an Australian couple and spent the day touring around with them followed by lunch on a river.  On the bus back to Saigon we got our first reality check.  Our Lonely Planet guide had warned us of bus drivers that try to scam foreigners by overcharging for tickets. So, when the ticket collector made his rounds and informed us that it was 7000 dong (about 34 cents) as opposed to the 3000 we were expecting (15 cents....) our tourist guards instantly went up and immediately questioned the validity of this bus company.  "Woah, woah, woah buddy.  We're onto you".  Only after we turned over the 68 cents for the 40 minute bus ride did we take stock and actually laugh at ourselves for the typical tourist idiots we were. 

A couple of nights in Saigon only allowed us a taste of what the city has to offer and unfortunately we weren't able to visit the war museums that sounded so interesting.  It did, however, allow us to taste the nightlife and get back into the backpacker mindset.  Huddled around low plastic tables drinking fifty cent beers and chatting with fellow travelers was a great welcome back to the lifestyle we so dearly missed.  There was a trailmix of nationalities, each with identifiable approaches to their travels.  Some have itineraries and deadlines, some do not.  Some stick out like a sore thumb, some look like seasoned veterans of the global trend that is traveling.  One thing that we noticed was the high level English competency in the locals.  Paired in stark contrast to the level of English we have become accustomed to in Korea, it was pretty evident that tourism itself has driven the Vietnamese to be more adept as well as confident in their conversational English.  The millions of Korean Won that are being poured into a strict education system by a proficiency-obsessed culture are not having the same results as having millions of backpackers pass through a country on a daily basis.  

From Saigon we headed north on a night bus to a seaside town called Mui Ne.  We knew we would be arriving late at night so we agreed to allow the bus company to book us a place for $15 each.  When we got there, we were led to our own bungalow.  We noticed that the crash of the waves sounded very close so we excitedly hurried to our balcony.  We were right, the waves were very, very close.  They were crashing right below our window! At high tide the erosion had pushed the beach back so far that it gave a new meaning to sea-side bungalow.  It was an awesome sound to wake up to.  We had the chance to check out the beach the next day.  The conditions were perfect for kite-boarders who showed up in droves and littered the sky with sails to the point that you wondered how more didn't become entangled.  The waves were ripe for body surfing and we jumped at the chance to be tossed about by the violent sea.  After a dip and a delicious lunch on the beach, we were picked up by a tour guide who took us in a 4x4 to these massive sand dunes in the area.  They were definitely an unexpected highlight of our trip.  For Louise it was a totally new experience and for me it took me back in time to "dune-bashing" in Dubai and Bahrain with much nostalgia.  I had forgotten what it felt like to take three steps and only move two feet.  We watched the sun go down on the sand-dunes with a couple of beers as our tour guide patiently waited in the car.  Our tour that day also included a leisurely stroll down a gorge surrounded by red clay cliffs on one side and a lush forest on the other.  Needless to say, the sights in Mui Ne were both unexpected and breath-taking.  Since we were bound by time and had to get North, we weren't able to stay in Mui Ne any longer but we definitely would have if time allowed.  But alas, it was time for the next leg of our journey....but that can wait until next time.

For a photo summary capturing some of the more vivid moments of this leg, check out my flickr account set for a slideshow at this link: http://www.flickr.com/photos/75862272@N08/sets/72157629195840743/