Welcome to the World Baby no name!!!!
Lauren: Congratulations to my dear friends, Sarah and Jamie who have just had a little girl (number two) Jamie, it looks likes your football team of boys wont' eventuate. No name last I heard but am very much looking forward to meeting the new chick in the gang. I have suggested that "Lauren" is a great name, still no word on the decision though....
Well, from Hoi we took the train, the Reunification Express (my inspiration for the trip here, as I had originally wanted to take the train the whole way) to Hue which took just around three hours but delivered some great scenery along the way. Hue is a great city, less hassle than anywhere else which made it a great spot to hire push bikes, see the town and basically just 'get lost'. We rode across the river to the famed citadel, found a great lunch spot and somewhere to watch the sun set. Was one of our best days to date.
Today, we spent the whopping $10US for a tour of the surrounding area, we are close to the 17th parrallel, the Ben Hai River acting as the former devide between the communist north and non-communist south Vietman which existed prior to the Vietnam War. The Rockpile, a large rocky mountain which served as a lookout for American Troops, was used for time and held a base where beer and prostitutes had to flown in for them. Of course the 'inacessable' hill was eventually scaled by Viet Cong (Nth Vietnames Communist) and lost. Dang Ha Town, Bridges, parts of the Ho Chi Minh Trail, Village and the Khe Sanh Combat Base where also on the agenda. The highlight though was the Vinh Moc Tunnels, we were able to walk through the labineth - pretty amazing stuff. The bus trip out there was another 'highlight' and we are back in Hue before pressing onto Hanoi tomorrow by plane. (Just as a side note; Vietnam Airlines place cameras at the front and bottom of the plane so you can see the pilots view on take off and the birds eye view on landing, this was great!)
Natalie; Nothing much more to add, so I thought I would give you a quick run down on the food thus far, (since we have been loving it everywhere we go...bar one)
The bad was what could only be described as 'clag on a plate' - description given...pancake...interestng concept. (It still makes us gag at the thought)
Our top dishes:
Siem Reap - Amok..must find recipe NOW! (this dish has put Cambodia on the culinary map) It is fish with lemongrass and curry etc.
Saigon - Pho...the breakfast that starts a nation (rice noodles with beef in a bowl of broth)
Hoi An - (By far the winner on all fronts) White Rose (wontons filled with love) My crab with tamarind...druelling already...Fish hot pot...OH YEAH
Hue - Cha Lau (You guessed it - more noodles) and the shrimp spring roles made fresh. A magnificent iced tea drink that tasted like berries....very refreshing when you have been cycling a while.
Loving the rambutans and some random fruit that I bought at the markets was not bad either.
The pineapple shakes, banana shakes, watermelon shakes...all good stuff. Iced coffee in the morning freshly brewed with sweetened condensed milk and massive chunks of ice, I know we have said this before - TRY IT NOW before it becomes commercial :) Lauren had her first steak tonight after obsessing about a wee little french restaurant - she is now 'ironed' up and ready to go. I took one look at the chips and being the good Irish/Polish girl that I am ordered some mashed potato - Granny would be so proud.
That's about it. We are off to Hanoi and onto Ha Long bay for some more local specialities and hopefully some great kayaking.
Happy Snaps - Approx 550...and counting (although I think there will be a massive edit when I get home)
Well, from Hoi we took the train, the Reunification Express (my inspiration for the trip here, as I had originally wanted to take the train the whole way) to Hue which took just around three hours but delivered some great scenery along the way. Hue is a great city, less hassle than anywhere else which made it a great spot to hire push bikes, see the town and basically just 'get lost'. We rode across the river to the famed citadel, found a great lunch spot and somewhere to watch the sun set. Was one of our best days to date.
Today, we spent the whopping $10US for a tour of the surrounding area, we are close to the 17th parrallel, the Ben Hai River acting as the former devide between the communist north and non-communist south Vietman which existed prior to the Vietnam War. The Rockpile, a large rocky mountain which served as a lookout for American Troops, was used for time and held a base where beer and prostitutes had to flown in for them. Of course the 'inacessable' hill was eventually scaled by Viet Cong (Nth Vietnames Communist) and lost. Dang Ha Town, Bridges, parts of the Ho Chi Minh Trail, Village and the Khe Sanh Combat Base where also on the agenda. The highlight though was the Vinh Moc Tunnels, we were able to walk through the labineth - pretty amazing stuff. The bus trip out there was another 'highlight' and we are back in Hue before pressing onto Hanoi tomorrow by plane. (Just as a side note; Vietnam Airlines place cameras at the front and bottom of the plane so you can see the pilots view on take off and the birds eye view on landing, this was great!)
Natalie; Nothing much more to add, so I thought I would give you a quick run down on the food thus far, (since we have been loving it everywhere we go...bar one)
The bad was what could only be described as 'clag on a plate' - description given...pancake...interestng concept. (It still makes us gag at the thought)
Our top dishes:
Siem Reap - Amok..must find recipe NOW! (this dish has put Cambodia on the culinary map) It is fish with lemongrass and curry etc.
Saigon - Pho...the breakfast that starts a nation (rice noodles with beef in a bowl of broth)
Hoi An - (By far the winner on all fronts) White Rose (wontons filled with love) My crab with tamarind...druelling already...Fish hot pot...OH YEAH
Hue - Cha Lau (You guessed it - more noodles) and the shrimp spring roles made fresh. A magnificent iced tea drink that tasted like berries....very refreshing when you have been cycling a while.
Loving the rambutans and some random fruit that I bought at the markets was not bad either.
The pineapple shakes, banana shakes, watermelon shakes...all good stuff. Iced coffee in the morning freshly brewed with sweetened condensed milk and massive chunks of ice, I know we have said this before - TRY IT NOW before it becomes commercial :) Lauren had her first steak tonight after obsessing about a wee little french restaurant - she is now 'ironed' up and ready to go. I took one look at the chips and being the good Irish/Polish girl that I am ordered some mashed potato - Granny would be so proud.
That's about it. We are off to Hanoi and onto Ha Long bay for some more local specialities and hopefully some great kayaking.
Happy Snaps - Approx 550...and counting (although I think there will be a massive edit when I get home)
posted by Natalie Mack at 11:24 pm
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