Manila, Cebu, Dumaguete

We had  little look around Manila.  We browsed at the very busy Baclaren Market dodging motorcycle taxis and looking up wide eyed when we heard the train passing high over the stalls.

Next it was on to the city of Cebu.  We opted for a 24 hour ferry rather than a flight and enjoyed a smooth cruise.  The big cities have not been the Philippine experience we'd hoped for, so we soon headed out by fast ferry for the smaller city of Dumaguete where things are a bit slower.  Bella has been recovering from a fever and cold just in time to give it to Rob so we may lie low for a few days.

These Dumaguete "tricycle" taxis may not seem luxurious, but for a buck or so they take us anywhere we need to go. Trundling down the street en masse, their steam punk demeanor gives the impression that together, they could take over the world.

Manila, Philippines

We made it to Manila where communication is easier as the signs are all in English and we hear Spanish words in conversation.  The city is huge and malls seem to be what people want to find when here.  However, we've been here about 24 hours and seen only one group of 3 foreign travelers.  The rest must be out on one of the other 7105 islands having fun.

Jeepneys are the motor scooters of The Philippines.  Manila's streets are alive with them.  I had never heard of these public transit vehicles originally made from American Jeeps left at the end of the war that have become national icons. Over the years they have evolved into a much longer vehicle, often made of stainless steel, which is much cheaper to work with over here.  Each jeepney is indiviually and elaborately decorated by the owner/driver.  I saw one with "Miranda" elegantly scripted over the windshield yesterday.  The route is painted on the side and appears on the windshield with so many other stickers, that it's hard to believe that the driver can see anything.  The passengers sit on 2 long benches with the fare passed from hand to hand up to the trusting driver.

trisikads are also plentiful on the streets of Manila.  They are bike pedicabs suitable for only one person driven by kids as young as 12 , it seems.  These vehicles are also highly personalized and we often see the driver having a nap inside while waiting on a fare.

And then there are the faster, noisier, roomier, tricycles--motorcycle taxis.  Add in the cars, buses, armored hummers, and let's just say we look both ways before crossing the street.  Actually we try to just wait for a local to go and tag along beside.

Good Bye to Vietnam

...and its warm ways and warm people.  It's been a lovely three weeks!  Some things that amazed us:

The basket boats

The made to measure clothing--3 shirts in 2 hours, jacket in 3

The water puppets--wooden characters on long poles.  It was originally performed in villages over flooded rice fields.

Individually dripped coffee. The hot water bath on the bottom keeps it warm while you wait.  The sweet milk is at the bottom of the cup.

The always-smiling, hard working basket ladies.  Those loads are heavy.

The scooters and the traffic. But I have a feeling we'll see both in The Philippines

Phu Quok by Bella

I like playing with my beach toys.
It's a lot of fun here, but Mommy's scared of riding motorcycles.
There was a big wave and salt water came in my mouth!  The water is warm.
hdhjdjehdggsfhdgjsgwhnfbfhfbggfghfrfnbvax5xvxxxcaxcxxxbgdgmncggeefhwwgwgwgehghdfvbbr77r4yyyyyyyyreufhhnfhhfffbffdbfvdvbddghgbddddfvdffbfgd

Phu Quok

Always on the look out for quiet, not yet discovered places we booked a week, especially for Rob, of sitting still, no packing up, just relaxing (very tough for John).  Just south of Cambodia there is a lovely island, Phu Quok, that is now being touted as the place to go.  It's so nice, that Cambodia thinks it should be theirs rather than Vietnam's.  And thanks to the internet, it is now a discovered place with, as of last year, an international airport and an exploding tourist/resort industry.

Nevertheless, we are enjoying a beautiful beach with fine sand and very warm water and gentle waves.  Yesterday we went on a boat trip to snorkel and motorbike rides are planned for today.  We are discovering that we really are not resort people--can't handle the daily race for beach lounge chairs, among other things.  And I think I'm with Rob.  Speedos should be banned, at least for running. Come on.

We did some pretty good snorkeling

Yes, your tour boat is being piloted by a 4 year old.

Bus Trip

The View From up High

I was not looking forward to the 5 hour trip on the sleeper bus from Mui Ne to Ho Chi Minh City.  But when it picked us up from our hotel and we were asked to remove our shoes as we boarded, we were all pleasantly surprised.  For just 10 dollars each (except Bella who was free, but had her own seat anyway) we each had a seat that reclined to almost horizontal.  And no one had to have her personal space invaded as the seats were 3 across and 2 high, with an aisle beside each seat.  As John said,getting into the lower seats was a bit like squeezing into a sports car and the climb and recline up top made me think of astronauts strapping into the space shuttle.  I started in the front, centre, bottom seat where I could see out the front easily, but gave up my seat for a woman with one leg, who boarded later.  I moved upstairs between Bella and Rob just in time for the screen in front of me to play, over and over, the best Southeast Asia boy band videos.  Score!  Down below John, on the front, bottom, left had a great view outside and of the constantly yawning, overworked driver.  Luckily they send along a steward who doesn't seem to do much, but maybe his job is just to chat up the driver and keep us on the road.

Train Trip

We had some choices-- take a a 30 hour trip from Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh City on the Reunification Rail, take that trip by train, but stopover frequently on the way to see the sights, or fly and drive between some of the stops and take a shorter train trip.  We opted for the last.  We flew part way south, hired a car and driver for part, had a bus ride, but just had to try that Reunification line. Reviews of the train trip on line ranged from "Outstanding!!" and "Best thing we did on our trip!" to "It was a horror" and "Listened to rats and cockroaches all night".  We were prepared for anything.

We boarded about 11:00 at night and managed to stow our 5 suitcases and 2 packs in the 4 person sleeper.  We had only booked 3 berths, so the young woman who was trying to sleep in the 4th when we arrived had a bit of a rude awakening as we tried to store our stuff.  The room was a bit grubby, but there was plenty of space to sit up in beds.  The beds were narrow, a tight fit for Bella and I.  We were quite relieved when the porter brought clean sheets as people had just vacated the room.  The extreme rocking and clickety clacking proved to be lulling and we managed to get a reasonable sleep.

I complained about the size and firmness of the mattress--until we took a walk through the train in the morning.  If we had wanted to save $3 per person, we could have booked 2nd class, where passengers shared a room with 5 other people, stacked 3 high on mattresses less than half the thickness of ours.  Phew--dodged that.  We moved along the train to what was, I guess, 3rd class.  People sat in reclining seats, with a trickle of air conditioning and had no choice but to listen to the soundtrack for the "train tv" that played on a couple of flat screens above as they tried to snooze.  My mattress was starting to look a lot better.  A peek into 4th class with its wooden bench seating and open windows to attempt to cool the car sent me shamefully back to my precious mattress and luxury accomodation.

The scenes of mountains, ocean, rice fields, and endless dragonfruit orchards combined with the glimpse into Vietnamese life made the trip an adventure we're glad we had, evev without the rats and roaches.

A Dragonfruit Grove

Dragonfruit

Mui Ne

While we've really been enjoying the cooler temperatures of

northern Vietnam, we have been missing the sun. Between the north and the south there is only a difference of about 8 or 9 degrees, but what a difference it makes. We stopped at Mue Ne, a resort town famous for the nearby dunes. It turns out that even though it is a resort area on the ocean, it has no beaches and the tourists are content with their pools and mediocre service. Everywhere else the people have been so lovely and helpful, but here there are so many jaded people in the industry.

The Fairy Stream

Even so, we enjoyed a little walk down a tiny water way that at one time carved its way through the area's famous red and white sands.  Apparently fairies live around that area.

The highlight here was sliding down the amazing red dunes on Crazy Carpets rented out by kids who watch the parking lot for "live ones".  Who, especially  Canadians, could resist trying out sand sliding? So we ouch, ouched our way across  and were thrilled by rush of swooshing down the steep dune--well worth the sand in our teeth and eyes.  Very fun!

Hoi An

We hired a car and driver and had little trip through the mountains by the ocean which brought us to Hoi An a preserved trading port  from the 15th century, drawing a huge number of travellers--all getting clothing made to measure in less than 24 hours for peanuts.  Yes, we bought some too.

We also rented bikes, braved the craziness of the cars and motorcycles, and had a great time riding through the quiet  rice paddies just outside town.  

Ding ding, Dad!

It's all grown by hand and...

...water buffalo.  They do the plowing and are big in art and folklore

A duck ranch.  They are important in the crop cycle, but I can't figure out exactly what they do.

Hue

On the way to the Citadel

Hue is a very old city.  We didn't see all the sights there, but we did get to the Citadel, a Nguyen dynasty historical site which contains the Imperial City, which contains the Forbidden City (where the emporer and his family lived.)  In 1968 it suffered extensive damage from bombings and is still being reconstructed.  

It was a big site

Halong Bay

We took a tour south of Hanoi to go and sleep on a boat and see the islands of Halong Bay.  Now, I have been on tours before so I knew that the bus would take longer than the quoted 2 and half hours, and that they would stop at huge shops with grossly overpriced souvenirs, and that we would be herded like cattle from one place to the next, and that the wine and fruit party would consist of a third of a cup (an actual cup) and one fruit.  This was news to John, though, who has always been an independent traveler, so I think this may have been our last tour.  (I wish I'd known that the bed would have no mattress on it.)

But the bay made up for the shortcomings of the tour. It was spectacular.  The area has about 800 limestone islands jutting out of the sea, almost every one with vertical cliffs.  The shorelines have a distinctive shape as the water has carved away the base of each island and also has created a number of caves.

Everyone traveling to Vietnam wants to come here and stay over on a boat, which meant that we were one of at least 45 other boats in our little area each with a load of people wanting the same experience.  

The best part, besides just marveling at the islands, was a short kayak trip  paddling among the islands and watching the golden monkeys argue and scale the sheer rock faces.  Fantastic.