How slack am I.... Nha Trang to Ho Chi Minh City

Hi all,

Sorry it's been a little while. I knew that I'd have some downtime today and tomorrow, so basically I've been keeping this 'til last - something like saving the chocolate that comes with your coffee right up until the very end. I am enjoying doing this blog, but it feels very self-indulgent, it amazes me that people are reading it! Thank you!

So, my last post finished at the mud baths. Unfortunately no photos, we didn't take our cameras into the mud and the photo that we would have paid for didn't work. Alas!

So I am spending five or so nights in the glorious Ho Chi Minh City. I am being completely cynical using that word. Basically, it's an Asian city. Not dissimilar to Bangkok, but smells better. Marginally fewer cripples and beggars, but only just. It's about 34 degrees and 90+% humidity, which increases to 100% humidity reasonably often. Going outside=sweat and motorbikes, more motorbikes than you could possibly imagine. Crossing roads in Vietnam is an interesting experience requiring intensive training. Our tour guide provided this training early on. "Just walk, go slow. If you wait, you wait for long time. They will avoid." Now in most places in Vietnam the locals have an unerring ability to do just this. Lolloping Westerner steps onto road, fourteen motorbikes beep and swerve gently and elegantly to avoid them. Here in Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) I get the feeling they just consider us sport. Drivers regularly go through red lights and pedestrian crossings, which I think is actually legal if you are turning. It's nuts, but you just sort of look in ten directions, take a deep breath, pray to whatever gods tickle your fancy, and go! La!

Anyway, I should recap a little 'cos I have missed some great days. In Nha Trang we did a fantastic boat trip which took up most of the day. We left in a big fishing boat (set up for tourists, of course), made our way to an island where we went snorkelling (OK nothing on the Great Barrier Reef, but still fun), went to a local island and got a glimspe into the lives of the islanders, got paddled around in giant baskets by the local ladies (see photo), devoured a pretty reasonable on board lunch then got massages, or hair plucking as required and basically just chilled out on a stony beach! Perfection! I have very nice toenails now, painted for the vast sum of around $5 AU with tiny flowers. The guys had theirs done too in an overwhelming show of bravadery... for a bunch of Aussies and poms they weren't half bad!

After that, an overnight train. Had one of those nights where you stay awake just in case you sleep in....!!

We then arrived here in HCMC, which seems like forever ago. I elected not to go to the Cu Chi tunnels, much to the narrowly concealed disgust of our local guide. I don't choose to immerse myself in reminders of war, particularly when I have to pay extra for the privilege. But I should point out to my readers that I am not unaware of the tragedies that occured during the American War, much more so now (I did visit the War Remnants museum, featuring terrible photos of war crimes and dead babies). I acknowledge and share my Nation's guilt. Oh now that's terribly deep!

So, what else, Mekong Delta where we visited the islands, were paddled in canoes, ate exotic fruit, watched coconut candy being made, rode at breakneck speed on the back of little truck motorbike things and wore lovely hats. COOL!

Anyway, must go and share this PC time.

Love lots,

Donna x x x