news from the capital

OK Zac. I was waiting for some pictures, but Steve's computer is getting a bit old and is taking a long time to load them. So, Steve and I are back safe and sound, and the house is in one piece! We had a great time. After reluctantly going to Singapore for a day, Steve is really keen to go back there to see more. Unfortunately we didn't see a lot in a day and there is so much to see there. I did get to Raffles for my Singapore Sling though which I was very excited about. So how's this for price difference: 3 Singapore slings and 2 beers in Raffles: $115. 2 Singapore Slings and 2 beers in the Foreign Correspondents Club in Phnom Penh, $8!! We had a great time in Vietnam, started in Cambodia on our boat trip. I know you can't pick who you travel with, but there was an ugly Australian on board- you know the type- hated Canberra, Catholics, Julia, Labour Party carbon tax and was very opinionated and loud!! I avoided him all week, and kept my mouth firmly shut! The Mekong was the highest it had been in 10 years with a lot of flooding. In Phnom Penh, we went to one of the prisons of the Khmer Rouge and also the killing fields- which I found very hard to take, and quite gruelling. Tears came to my eyes a lot that day. I thought the boat trip would be quite relaxing- but we had two excursions of the boat each day, I had to have a nap in between!

Loved Saigon, even though it was hot. Went to the CuChi Tunnels where the Viet Cong had tunnels that they lived in and ambushed the yanks.They had hospitals, sewing rooms, bedrooms, kitchens with an amazing chimney system so the smoke coming out of the mound just looked like mist. Lots of booby traps as well. Went down one for about 10 metres in length which was quite enough for me. I would not have made a very good guerilla. Mum, you would have hated it. Also went to the War Remembrance Museum, a lot of these photos were quite horrific and they had a gallery of pictures of birth deformities due to the chemicals. Some people had children there- I couldn't believe they would expose their children- who were below 12 to such photos. While it is true the victor writes the history- it really brought home to me what a waste of life and money- and what the hell were the Americans there for in the first place- playing policeman and trying to stop another communist government in Asia! Can I just say, considering they had a lot of the country bombed and destroyed they have come along way in the 36 years since- everything is rebuilt.

Hoi An was our favourite place I think, an old trading port by the river, and the bottom two streets only bicycles and walkers allowed, which gave us a break from dodging motorbikes. Got so many clothes made, had to post them back, luckily jewellery only takes up a small amount of space, so got plenty of that as well! I think there are about 500 tailors in Hoi An. When we were in Hue we stayed in a hotel built by the French in 1901, it was lovely. Went to the Ancient citadel and also went to a restaurant for dinner in the citadel, which was quite amazing, eating dinner inside an ancient citadel.

We liked Hanoi the least. I think the further the north you go the more communist you get. Everybody in Vietnam calls Ho Chi Minh Uncle Ho and revere him. I think the people in Hanoi like the tourists money and like taking their money but don't really like us. We caught an overnight train for 10 hours to Sapa, a hill town close to the border with China. While I liked Sapa, I was disappointed with the itinerary here. I thought we would have more time in Sapa but to spend 10 hours on a train, with hardly any sleep because of the noise of the train, we only spent one day in Sapa. The second day we were there we spent all day in a car to see some markets further up the mountains. While the scenery was spectacular I did think it was a waste of a day, particularly as we were dropped in Lao Cai- the border town with China (yes we saw China across the river) at 2.30 to wait for the train at 8pm. There is not a lot to do in Lao Cai, as Steve and I walked for an hour, then sat at the restaurant the guide dropped us off to only to sit and read and drink for 4 and a half hours!! The thing that got me in Sapa and the other little hill towns is a lot can be said for a socialist government- every town up in the hills had a primary and secondary school and a clinic, and every road was tarred!

A day afer we got back to Hanoi we were off again this time to Halong Bay- you must see this spectacular bay before you die! We went on an overnight junk trip. There were only six of us- Steve and I were the oldest (we were the youngest by about 10 years on the mekong cruise) And there were two young couples with us- 1 American 1 French. It was amazing- the scenery every second there was something even more spectacular than we had seen before. I think I took 100 photos in 2 days! Then it was back to Hanoi, then home.

The last week we had was a bit hard, as we had to check out to go to Sapa, come back three days later , check back in, then check out again for Halong Bay, then check back in for our last night, and every time we had a different room! However I am very pleased to say we managed to cross roads in Saigon, Hue and Hanoi without getting hurt or maimed! And I am also happy that out of 4 weeks, I only had one horrible meal. I know you don't want to travel Marty- but you would love Vietnam the heat and humidity as well as all those motorbikes!

Anyway, I think I've covered everything, hopefully will be able to post some photos in a few weeks. I did miss our girls. 4 weeks was a long time to be away from them, I was very happy to see them. It is good to know however they can look after themselves and the house. Thanks again Zac for taking time out to spend time with them.

Love to all, Annie