Just spent 26 days in Vietnam. The amount of awesome stuff in that time is unreal, and I should have/could have written many blogs about it all. But, because of all the awesome stuff we were constantly doing… I didn’t have time to blog! So, in an effort to make at least a few hours of the next 35+ hours of travel productive, I will now attempt to write one mega blog for Vietnam…

Let me start by saying this… I have mixed feeling about all of my fun times here in this post-war country. 36 years has not been long enough to right the wrongs, because no time will ever right them and no time will ever even explain them… and here I am having the time of my life on the very land and with the very people that “my people” (if there needs to be that such separation between humans) destroyed. Heaps of disabled and deformed adults walk the streets, thousands of children still born with devastating ailments from all the agent orange basically imprinted on their genes, old tanks, bomb shells, and other weapons of war scattered around the country, and of course the memories left in the minds of those who survived it, who still have no idea why it happened. I could go on for ages about how this has made me feel… visiting the museums, watching the documentaries, reading the books, being in the places… all while sledding down sand dunes, scuba diving, abseiling down waterfalls, laying on the beach, cycling, shopping, kayaking, water sports, sightseeing, partying… and the list goes on!!! What kept me alive and well though were the smiling faces of dozens of Vietnamese people who smiled at me upon finding out that I was American… I will never know why they liked me so much… hell, most Americans are not that friendly to middle eastern visitors to the US!!! In the end I learned to love Vietnam for everything it is today, and despise war more than I ever did before (the latter I did not think possible!)

Time to move on to a few highlights, the good and the bad;

• Ho Chi Minh City- cyclo tour of the city, acclimating to the absolutely crazy traffic, shedding some tears at the War Remnants Museum, our first delicious bowl of pho, a day at the water park, a day in Chu Chi learning about the ChuChi guerrilla army and walking in their underground tunnel city, traditional Vietnamese water puppet show, spoiling ourselves in a $10/person hotel, making our way all over like the locals do- literally 1/10 the price of the stupid tour agencies (2 hour bus ride for 30 cents baby, can't beat that!)

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• Mui Ne- Sand dunes, sand dunes, sand dunes... BREATH TAKING!

• Dalat- cold temps, allergies, local red wine, lots of fresh Vietnamese tea, avacado shakes, a few games of scrabble, CANYONING (trekking through a canyon, abseiling down the waterfalls), tandem bike, pho everyday, all day cycling through the mountains to our next destination on the coast.

Nha Trang- scuba diving x4- once down to 37 meters and getting nitrogen narcosis down there, lounging on the boat eating fresh asian fruits, delaying our departure, delaying our departure again, day on deserted and chilled out Long Beach with our scuba friends, fresh beer from a gas jug, Ice Bar, dancing the night away in the hottest room ever, too much western food, shitty (but free) dorm room that left us scarred and itchy!

Hoi An- designing our own custom clothes and shoes, biking along the old timey streets covered with native lanterns, visiting unesco world heritage site Cham ruins, running out of fuel in the middle of a 4-6 lane bridge on our motor bike, the hottest "sauna" dorm room yet,

• Hanoi- pleasant surprise of a wonderful documentary film festival about Vietnam, Museum of Ethnology, Hanoi Backpaackers Hostel, 3 day 2 night Halong Bay tour (aka- booze cruise, one night on a boat, one night on a private castaway island), actually standing up and riding on my first go at wake boarding, rock climbing, kayaking around the unbelievable limestone rocks in Halong bay, making it through the cave to the hidden lagoon with 40+ other semi-drunk friends, sleeping under the stars on the beach, wonderful street food, saying goodbye to an awesome friend and travel partner :(, and ending an epic 5 months with a bang!
  

Left behind without my bag...!

Aug 1,2011

Im on a bus… as usual… what a surprise! I’m riding 14 hours overnight on a double decker up to Bangkok, to catch a plane to Vietnam. I mind this kind of long travel WAY less than you may think. It’s like a little break from being busy, being hot, and staying in dirty places to sleep. I’ll read, listen to music, blog, ignore the obnoxiously loud thai movie on, and then pop a valium or xanax for a good nights sleep! :) Bye bye Thailand, love you long time!

About a minute ago I just made an almost fatal mistake. Here is the scenario; buses stop every few minutes to pick up passengers at what seems like completely random points, but they also stop frequently for smoke and toilet breaks. I have been on the bus for 5 hours, I have already drank one coke light, and some water, and already started and completed “Tuesdays with Morrie” (btw, great book) and this time we stop and pull into some kind of station. The driver gets out, a bunch of people get out and light up a cigarette, and by my stupid self-demise, I decide to risk it and get off to run to the bathroom. I literally run and pee in .5 seconds and hear the horn beep, just as I run out to see my bus pulling away!!!!! WTF man? I am the only white girl on here, and they all saw me get off, and heard me ask for the toilet, and my stuff was left in my seat. Really!?!? So, I’m there watching my bus drive off in the distance, and there are a bunch of guys around, so next thing I know I hop on the back of a motor bike to chase down the bus, we almost wreck by hitting a huge pothole, and then the motor driver honks at a woman in a truck, and quickly deposits me with her. (All of these people of course speak very little English). She is racing trying to catch up with the bus, which is farther and farther out of sight, and I am freaking out!!! (I have my money and passport on me, but not ALL the rest of my stuff). And just when the story is getting good, we see the bus in the distance, pulling to the side of the road, and as I board, I hear them saying “shs, white people…!” in Thai! HAHAHAHAHA. So, here I am now, watching the sunset out my window, thinking happy little valium thoughts, with 10 hours left to go… I think I’ll hold off on the water for a bit and keep my bootie in this seat until Bangkok at 4 am! LOL. Lesson learned.

I just left Phuket, where Leah and I met up with her mom for a few days. We had fun showing Janet the intricacies of Thai life and Thai food. We found a beach front bungalow with a great view, hung out and acted like the 3 of were still laughing teens at a reggae bar, ventured to Old Phuket Town for some historical back drops, and got lost on scooters while finding a beautiful orchid farm! Then, we happened to stumble on OnOn Hotel, the hostel from "The Beach" with Leonardo DiCaprio. Perfect last accommodation in Thailand! Look familiar?

Thailand has been amazing, and as I sit on this bus, recollecting the fun I have had so far, I am a bit sad to be heading to the next, and last, leg of my 2011 Asian journey. Leah and Janet are off for an Indonesian adventure, and I am meeting up with Alicia in Vietnam to make our way from Saigon to Hanoi for the next month. Bye Leah- You have been a great travel buddy, see ya back on the other side of the world! Wish you could taste this weird dried cherry type fruit I just got on the side of the road! :)

Vietnam, here I come baby!

Rai-lay from 28 meters high….

The rasta dude points us up the winding dirt path where we grab a simple native bungalow for 3 bucks/person. Rai-lay is tiny, but it has character. One side has a few upscale resorts, while the other (Railay East) is like another world… rock climbing shops, reggae bars, kayaks, caves, and unlimited cliffs to climb. We choose Highland Climbers, which also doubles as the best old school coffee and tea house in the world, run by a bunch of awesome Thai rasta men. Mark is our instructor, and we jump right into day one of rock climbing and belaying. A few things I learned on day one: # 1- Rock climbing is much harder than it looks. #2- I can actually push my entire body up a wall using only 1 finger and 1 toe. #3-Always watch out for monkey poop. #4- Never give up, just try until you fall, the rope will catch you. #5- “No pain, no gain!” AND, #6- I LOVE rock climbing.

Day two of rock climbing is at a site right on the beach. This day I tackle some climbs that I thought were impossible!!! I was sore from the first day, and convinced myself that I could not make it up the last climb of the day… 30 meters high (99 feet)!!! The last 5 meters of which is basically a flat wall that we are told to “just shimmy” on up! (When it looks hard as my instructor lead climbs to attach the rope, then it must be hard!) I make it up to about 20 meters, where I am stuck in a little cave, thinking “how in the hell am I going to get up and out of this cave?!?” Somehow I defy gravity and manage to get over, pushing onward, determined to do this. At 25 meters the wall is flat, with tiny little holes, and I am already in an unnatural straddling position, placing my foot up to my ear level, then pushing up, stunned that my toehold and my muscles actually came through for me. I make it to 28 meters (92 feet), take a good look around at the view of the bays to my left and right, realize that I just climbed 28 meters, and a few weeks ago I was 30 meters below the sea scuba diving…. I now have a 58 meter personal range of this earth!!!

So anyway, I’m 2 meters from the top, stuck in this crazy position, holding on by my fingertips, and balancing on 1 toe… Mark is belaying me and yelling “just shimmy straight up!”, and I’m like, “oh really? yea, ok, sure thing, thanks for the great advice.” HAhahahaha. I yell down that I’m about to fall, make my best effort to reach the top, and then fall backwards, rappelling quickly back to the ground! I almost cry when I realize that I just did something that I did not think I could physically do. My body and mind came through for me, and the adrenaline rush was crazy! Too often I stick to my comfort zones, and even though I am very adventurous in my life, none of it ever seems impossible. It always seems fun and exhilarating, but the rush and the feeling that I got from doing something that I thought I couldn’t do… that feeling cannot be beat. So, watch out world, here comes a girl that is ready to tackle the hard stuff, and never again will I say “I can’t,” until I at least try!!

We are dead tired after all the climbing and all the sheer adrenaline that rushed through our veins, but head out for a fun filled night at our favorite bars with our friends anyway. We listened to the same singers playing the same songs, sat at the same table and played one round of Yanif as usual, watched the same out of this world fire show, danced to the same music, and ended the night with our favorite people in our favorite bar, just as we had done every night in Railay… and it NEVER got old!!!!

Our last night in Railay was not just our last night in Railay, but it was the last night that just Leah and I would be together on this trip. (The next day we were due to pick up her mom for a few days in Phuket, then they were heading to Indonesia, while I was heading for Vietnam). So, in celebration of our last night together, we did it up right… all the way until sunrise of course!!! :)

Stranded in (or rather, away from) Tonsai beach

I am laying under a cliff against a smelly triangle pillow, on the deck of a bar, observing the interesting dynamics flowing between the climbers above me, the large family of monkeys surrounding the climbers, and the dog beneath the cliff warning the monkeys to stay away from the humans’ food! Could I imagine a place I would rather be???? The answer is no!!!!



It was time to move on from Ao Nang, and although this move was a short one, it was like another world away. We hopped a small, long-tail wooden boat to Tonsai Beach, a boat is the only way to access this tiny hidden bay. There are no cars here on Tonsai, there is one dirt path leading up into the mountain with neighborhoods of native bungalows, substantially more monkeys than humans, the whole place is run by generators that are turned on during select hours of the night, and the people are all laid back rock climber types. PER-FECTION. The beach has about 4 restaurants/bars and there is a dirt path with street stalls for the budget travelers… aka… ME! We came here for rock climbing, which happens to be some of the most unique in the world, with the clear waters and huge limestone cliffs to scale. The weather is not that great the first 2 days, so we ease ourselves into the environment by chillin out and watching the expert climbers tackle cliffs that look impossible to me.

We hang out for a bit and then head over to Railay beach while the tide was out, climbing along the wet rocks that are at the side of the cliff that separates the 2 beaches. The sun set on us as we were finishing the trek over, and we arrived on Railay beach!

We treat ourselves to some pizza, smoke some mint flavored shisha, and watch, literally, the best fire show on earth. I’m talking about 9 chizzled, shirtless, sweaty guys twirling fire and dancing to slow music, bumpin with the hip hop music, and going freaking crazy to rock music; one on top of the other ones shoulders, and then another one puts the ends of the fire lines in his mouth and head bangs, then they go across the seated crowd and throw the fire over the audience and catch it on the other side! Madness…


Time to leave, and we see the tide is in. We trek to the other side of the island and it is dead. No boats, the rocks that we climbed are now covered with water, and it is a little too far to swim in the dark. There is some mysterious path that you can take through the jungle, but we were not up for figuring that one out at 2 am by ourselves. So, we have a seat on some chairs to ponder whether or not to try and party til morning when we can get a boat, get a room on this side for the night, or sleep out on the beach, when I hear the sound of an engine from far away. I grab Leah’s light, and run to the beach, flashing it over and over again. A beat up little wooden boat pulls up and agrees to take us where we need to go for 3 bucks each. They have a deal, and we are dropped back to our secluded bay! How lucky are we!?!?

The next day we grab some kayaks and head out to sea, kayaking through little caves and in between huge limestone rocks in the clear waters. We take a dip as we please, swim around out in the middle of the Andaman Sea, and marvel at the scenery. Alicia, Leah, and I celebrate our last night together, which leads to a MAJOR chill out rainy day the next day, as Alicia takes off for her homeland. Tonsai may be about the chilliest pace ever, but Leah and I are ready for 24hour a day electricity and a more lively night crowd, so we jump the boat to Rai-lay, meet some friends, and schedule our rock climbing for the next day!!!!