After freezing our buns off in Sa Pa, it was a relief to arrive back in
Ha Noi at 5AM after an overnight train ride. We dropped our bags
off at the hotel and then headed off to the lake to watch people doing
their morning exercises. On the way, we stopped off at the airline
ticket office to find a flight to Nha Trang. To our dismay, there
was only an 11AM daily flight. We weren't sure we'd be able to
make it since we had clothes tailored and weren't scheduled to pick them
up till 10AM and it takes about 40 minutes to get to the airport.
We rushed over to the shop to see if our clothes were ready and, if not,
perhaps have them shipped back to the US. Fortunately the tailor
had finished early and then we hurried back to the ticket office.
We were disappointed to be told that the flight was sold out, but after
further discussion, the sales agent said she wasn't able to sell the
tickets so close to departure time, but we could possibly get them at
the airport. So we rushed back to the hotel to pick up our
baggage, bade a quick farewell to a surprised Co Phi, and dashed off to
the airport to try and catch the flight.....we made it just in time :)
We will never forget Co Phi's kindness and hospitality. She
wouldn't even accept any money from us. The offer stands for
anyone else in the Le/Do family, too....the first visit is on her.
This place is a traveler's dream: nice hotels for about $15, beers
for a buck, bowls of pho for less than that, taxi and motorbike
rides for crazy cheap (the ride to the airport was less than $10,
airline ticket from Hanoi to Saigon is less than $100 and an
open bus ticket (you can stop and stay at major towns along the
way) is about $25. Our most expensive meal so far consisted of 2
appetizers, 2 entrees, 4 beers, 2 mango shakes, and half a
lobster....all for less then $40!!! The most expensive part of
this trip is the plane ticket....so forget about the bird flu and all
the nonsense you've heard and get your butts over here.
Our first day in Nha Trang was spent finding a hotel (we splurged and
got a room at the Yasaka), booking a scuba diving trip and finding other
fun things to do. We were picked up the next morning at 730AM to
go diving. The weather before we arrived had been kind of crappy
so the water temperature was pretty cold and visibility was terrible.
To enjoy the incredible marine life, we had to swim right up next
to it and if we didn't swim closely together with our dive partners, it
was pretty easy to lose them. The waves were pretty big, too, and
the boat ride made me (Phuoc) very sea sick (even though I had dramamine
and an anti-motion sickness wristband.
The next day we were scheduled to go on Mama Linh's party boat, but I
wasn't ready to risk getting ill again so I relaxed by the pool.
Shawn did go on the island tour/drunk fest and he'll have to tell you
all about it since he came home wasted later on that evening. Our
last day in Nha Trang was spent enjoying a long, leisurely breakfast,
hanging out at the pool and getting massages ($15 bucks for sauna and
steam bath treatment and an hour-long massage). The breakfast
buffet was amazing at the Yasaka, but it didn't include much that
foreigners would consider breakfast (only cereal and omelets made to
order). We feasted on Pho (noodle soup), Com Chien (fried rice),
Banh Beo (no translation), Com Tam Bi (a rice dish), Bo Kho (beef stew),
Chao (rice soup), Mi Xao (stirfried noodles), Xoi (sticky rice), and
deliciously sweet papaya, watermelon and pineapple. At 730PM we
were picked up by a bus bound for Saigon (no one here calls it Ho Chi
Minh City). It took about 10 hours to get to our destination, but
we figured it was worth the $5 fare. (We could have flown for $50
or taken the train for $26).
We took a short taxi ride to Bac Bach's house and visited with the rest
of the family. Chi Hoa and Anh Phong took us on a motorbike tour
of the city (much bigger and busier than Ha Noi). We stopped at
the world famous Pho Hoa for breakfast and then they helped us search
for a hotel. More to come from our adventures in Saigon...
Phuoc and Shawn
