Vietnam - Rest Day and a train to Lào Cai

we had a rest day today, and Julia from Minmax Travel adjusted our itinerary, as one of us was ill... But we are now on the train (overnight) to Lào Cai...

Hoo roo for now...

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Vietnam - Hue and the heavens opened...

Around 3-4am, we were all awoken by the rain, not just a shower, but HEAVY rain!!! And it was not relenting! And this was the day that we were to be seeing so many things as well! Our drive to Hue saw us leaving My Son, and our first stop was to buy a Buddha... M was buying, both J & I were looking! (this is not the purchased Buddha, but one I liked and was about 1m from L - R!)

With purchase made, we continued along the drive, and we soon started the climb up the mountainside. This pass, known as 'Foggy Pass', and it lived up to its name! There is, of course, a boring old tunnel we could have taken straight through, but thats no fun at all!, so we wound our way like a snake up the mountain to the 'check-point' that once was occupied by the US Forces. It is also at this point that South Vietnam (only has two seasons) meets the North, (which has four seasons)! So its an important stop!

We also stopped at the bottom, for a quick photo opportunity, that was stunning where the clouds were meeting the Pacific Ocean.

It was late in the day, and we were given the option of lunch first OR start seeing places, so as it wasn't raining, we opted for lunch - what a mistake! BUT, after lunch, we visited the Tu Duc Tomb, the Royal Palace and the Pagoda and Buddhist Monks.

We quickly stopped at our guides, dads, coffee shop, which had very small/narrow chairs!!

Hoo roo for now...

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Vietnam - Ancient Town - My Son Holy Land

Today, we had a bit of a drive to the religious centre of the former Champa Kingdom. It was a long drive, the weather was hot and humid, but the net result of the relics we saw, were simply amazing!

For our return into My Son, we had to do the final fitting from the tailor that was making our clothes. I had 2 x pairs of shorts, a T-shirt and a casual cotton shirt being made. I, as with J & M, were impressed with the speed that they were made as well as the quality! We then headed for lunch in the village.

We then headed back to the hotel, J had a foot massage whilst I grabbed a shoulders, neck and back; and I felt great for it! M rested a little, but ended up catching the bus up to the 'beach'! it was nearly time to head back into My Son, as we all wanted to get the lanterns and the bridge lights on tonight... We found a new place for dinner, and the mother of the owner was a cute little thing!!

Hoo roo for now...

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Vietnam - Hoi An - A walking tour

Today, after breakfast, we were met by the guide for this province of Vietnam, Hoi An. He also took us across the road to have our laundry done at a cheaper rate than that of the hotel! Today, will be a walking tour, taking in the culture and traditional style of Vietnamese county life.

the drive into the 'city' took all of 5 minutes, and we were dropped off at 'Blue - Mrs Tam Tam' handmade clothes. Here we were able to pick out clothes to have handmade for us, in as little as a couple of hours (for the first fitting)! We were to come back later in the day...

After a couple of hours walking around the city, visiting the museum and seeing the sights, we were then to have lunch at a local restaurant. Lunch here, even in the heat and humidity, was actually quite nice! However, after lunch, all I wanted was a swim, J a massage and M wanted to stay in town and shop! So when I got back, I closed the door, the handle came off, and I also managed to break the toilet roll holder! (earlier in the day, the safe did not want to work either, so all up, a couple of calls to maintenance was needed!).

The break, to be by ourselves was good, and when M and J returned, J and I went for a swim leaving M in the room to do what ever it was she was doing. The pool was delightful, cool and refreshing, just what was needed!!

When 6pm came around, it was time to collect the laundry, nicely pressed, and then get the shuttle bus into town at 7pm to have the first fitting. Everything was great, although J's shorts had a zip that wasn't expected, M had to have some finer tuning, whilst I requested a button fly and they had installed a zipper!

We crossed the river for dinner, as suggested by our guide, and afterwards, we (tried) to get some night shot of the lanterns that the city is famous for. Alas, some on the bridge finished at 9pm :(

Anyways, its late, again, and its an 8am start tomorrow!!! Happy Days!!!!

Hoo roo for now...

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