SOUTHERN VIETNAM - Mui Ne, HCMC/Saigon, Cu Chi Tunnels, Mekong Delta

After some last minute changes we decided to move onto Mui Ne from Hoi An as opposed to Nha Trang for a quieter and less developed beach scene. We had planned on taking the train because the journey was going to be about 15 hours and our past overnight train experiences had been enjoyable. But we were too late in booking it and so had to resort to taking the bus. We were both really not looking forward to spending 19 hours on a bus and dreaded the time we would need to board.

We arrived early at the office to ensure good seats near the front. After waiting around for 15 minutes or so we walked over to the bus terminal and started boarding. We were pleasantly surprised to find reclined seats close to the ground on what is known as a “sleeper bus”. We even found a seat with extra leg room for Adrian. Being sick and tired still, the 19 hours actually passed quickly because we slept most of it. 

Sleeper bus

We arrived in Nha Trang around 6am and had to wait around until 7:30am to transfer to another bus to take us to Mui Ne. So we had some breakfast and freshened up a bit. Once on the bus again we slept some more until we were close to Mui Ne.

MUI NE (June 7-11, 2013)

As soon as we arrived and had checked into our hostel room, we were instantly content with our choice to stay in Mui Ne. The ocean was practically at our door step and the hostel had friendly staff to greet us. The town itself consisted of one main street which was lined with modest low-rise resorts and restaurants – nothing compared to what Nha Trang was like. The only con was that Nha Trang had the diving while Mui Ne is well-known for their kite and wind surfing. So instead we just spent our time there relaxing on the beach chairs and going for swims.

Almost beach front accommodation

The kite surfers are out

The sun and sea are powerful forces and must have some therapeutic elements because by our first full day we were both feeling much better! We did take it easy but our appetites were coming back and we had more energy for things.

So on our last full day we went on a half day tour of the surrounding area. We went to Fairy Springs and walked through a stream that led us past patches of sand dunes and some cool rock formations. There was an opportunity to ride an ostrich but we just watched a girl in our group do it. We didn’t really have a desire to try it but also weren’t too confident the bird could hold our weight! From there we drove a ways to arrive at the white sand dunes. There you could rent quads to zip around on the dunes but we also passed on that instead opting to chat with some other backpackers on the tour. Our final stop was the red sand dunes where you could rent crazy carpet type things to “toboggan” down the hills. It wasn’t the most exciting tour we have been on but it was nice to get out and do something after being sick for so long not to mention it was only a few dollars.

Fairy Springs

White Sand Dunes

Red Sand Dunes

The next morning we made our way to Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC)/Saigon via a six hour bus ride.

HO CHI MINH CITY (SAIGON) (June 11-15, 2013)

Our bodies seemed to miss the sun and sea already because by the time we reached HCMC Adrian was really achy and had a fever and my stomach was bothering me and I had a swollen fingertip. When does it end?! Wanting to nip all this in the bud we went to see a doctor a few hours after checking in. After spending $340 (yikes!), Adrian was diagnosed with a common flu (really??) and apparently I just had indigestion and an infected finger, which cost me $140. So we got stocked up on more medication and caught a cab back to the guesthouse. Thankfully we have travel insurance and can get reimbursed!

Our first two days in Saigon were spent resting and pill-popping wanting to get better as soon as possible. By the third day we were feeling better enough to wander around the backpacker area and check out some of the markets. Saigon is so different from Hanoi. It is very modern with skyscrapers and malls and is the economic heart of the country whereas Hanoi was a mix of new and old for culture, architecture and attitudes. Well comparing the areas we stayed in anyway. We heard Saigon was even crazier for the number of motorbikes and walking around but the areas we were in, we found it much easier. Or maybe we had finally advanced from a novice level of street crossing?

On our fourth day we took a half day tour to the Cu Chi Tunnels to gain more knowledge about the Vietnam War. $8 well-spent! Our guide was a Viet vet named Jackie (nickname derived from the fruit “jackfruit”) who provided a passionate and detailed account of the Vietnam War from a South Vietnamese perspective. We had a pit stop after an hour or so of driving in a local village where a handicraft shop is set up employing those affected by Agent Orange. Agent Orange was a chemical in bomb form that was dropped by the Americans in Southern areas of Vietnam to kill off vegetation in order to better see and control activity of the North Vietnamese/Viet Cong. Unfortunately this had a terrible affect on the Southern Vietnamese of these areas which resulted in cancer, deformities, missing limbs, etc. that could and were passed down through several generations. Some sources say Agent Orange is still around but our guide believes it has finally left the areas because vegetation, crops and insects are abundant again.

Another 30 mins or so down the road we arrived at the Cu Chi Tunnels. The tunnels are known for their use by the Viet Cong (from the North) to take over and control this area in the South. The tunnel system consisted of over 200km and extended all the way to the Cambodian border. A lot of it is inaccessible now but we did get a chance to descend into an original tunnel and literally crawl through another to get a feel for what it was like for the Vietnamese back in those times.  Disturbing demonstrations were given of how the many booby traps where set and used in the area including the one our guide was trapped in until he somehow managed to escape. There is also a shooting range in the area where Adrian along with some of the other guys in the group shot off AK-47s. I think it’s more of a guy thing because I was just happy taking photos of Adrian but it put a smile on his face for the rest of the day! The tour ended with us watching a film of the War in Cu Chi which brought me back to social studies classes. If you had to choose the Vinh Moc tunnels in the DMZ or the Cu Chi tunnels, we would definitely recommend the latter. Yes there were less people at Vinh Moc but with the Cu Chi you can get a great guide and heaps more information.

Heading into an original tunnel

Even with his height, Adrian was able to descend as well

Adrian shooting off the AK-47

Into some more tunnels

MEKONG DELTA (June 15-16, 2013)

From Vietnam we planned to go to Cambodia and we heard one way you can do it is by boat via the Mekong River. So thinking that was a pretty cool way to go about it versus by bus or plane, we booked the transportation along with a trip through the Mekong Delta, the southern-most area of Vietnam. The Mekong Delta was an amazing area to see but the tour itself wasn’t that great.

To start we had to drive almost three hours from Saigon to the Delta. Once we arrived we took a boat to what we were told was one of the floating markets. I guess maybe still part of the markets but it didn’t seem like it is where we were shown around. We were shown how they make coconut candy, rice paper, popped rice (squares) and rice wine. From there we took another boat ride for an hour and stopped at a place to pick up some bicycles. The bike ride was nice but short-lived, only maybe 10 minutes long. We then arrived at a homestay for some lunch but were told we were behind on time and only had ten minutes to eat. Once back on the boat we drove for another half an hour or so, got in our original van into the Delta and drove another hour to pick up another group. Another half an hour down the road we stopped at a crocodile farm which we didn’t even know was part of the itinerary and given another short amount of time to wander around. Our last drive was another two hours to arrive at our hotel for the evening. So all in all, a lot of driving and not a lot of seeing and doing.

A church along the Mekong River

Some houses along the River on the way to the floating market

Explanation of how the rice wine is made

Some ladies we passed on the way to lunch

The croc farm

As we had come to expect, our room in the hotel was very basic and supper was greatly overpriced and pretty disappointing. At least we had good company over supper, chatting with a Belgian couple who had done some backpacking through Canada and a Polish guy working for Google.

In the morning we had an alright breakfast but we had to pay for it when it said it was included in the itinerary. Luckily after breakfast we didn’t have to spend extra time at the hotel; we were off to a fish farm and then a wander through a Cham village. After that and a wait in a café for a bit it was finally time to board our boat to the Cambodian border.

The fish farm

Stilt houses near the Cham village

It took about an hour to get to our first stop which is where we applied for our Cambodian visa. A fairly easy process with us filing out the application forms and then our guide taking the documents and submitting them to the authorities. It was the waiting around that was a bit of a challenge, originally told it would take around an hour which then turned into almost two. Oh well, the important thing is we got our visas and were then on our way to the border.

About a five minute drive down the river we stopped off at the border. Another easy process. The authorities didn’t even look at our passport photos, just the visa. Stamp, stamp and we were on our way into Cambodia!

Taken after getting our stamps