I just recently got back from Vietnam, after spending two weeks travelling, which is why I haven't been writing regular posts and why my first post back was about airports and jet lag. I had such a wonderful time in Vietnam, as the people there were so friendly, the places we visited so interesting and the food... OHMYGOODNESS! the food was absolutely delicious! I actually think that the highlight of my trip was the dishes that I had the opportunity to eat. I would even go as far as saying that this holiday was a culinary journey, rather than a break from everyday life (which most holidays are about).
Vietnam is a really popular holiday destination, and a few of my friends and family have visited before and all of them have given this wonderful country high praise. My holiday began at Halong Bay, which is so beautiful and really is a paradise. We spent a night on a ship, which gave us two whole days cruising around the mini islands, one of which we spent exploring these massive caves that look like something from a fantasy world, and the other day climbing to the top of an island where we saw a lovely view. It was so peaceful there are I didn't want to leave, however the rest of the trip was just as wonderful but in completely different ways.
The next stop was Hanoi, which is super busy, especially in the Old Quarters where I stayed. The roads are constantly filled with motorbikes. There is no such thing as rush hour traffic, because it is always rush hour, which sort of makes me think that those people's job must be just to create traffic. Crossing the roads and just walking down the street (you had to walk on the road most of the time) was a mental exercise to make sure you don't get hit. Everyone who lives there must have excellent co-ordination skills, because it is quite exhausting walking around purely on the method of walking. But I had a fantastic time, visiting the different pagodas and one night seeing a traditional water-puppet show, which I thought was quite amusing to see. It was spoken in Vietnamese, so I didn't understand what was being said, but you were able to follow the short skits.
Travelling south, I then visited Hue for a few days, which was considerably less traffic than Hanoi, which was a bit of a relief. I spent a day doing a tour along the Perfume River, visiting a few of the royal tombs, which were really amazing to walk around, as they are extremely elaborate buildings. On that day, we were taken to a traditional Vietnamese home, where the guide told us about certain features of the house, for example, the pond at the front is to keep out spirits. This is because spirits don't have a reflection, because only material things have reflection, so when they can't see themselves, the spirit knows they don't belong there. That was one of the many facts that he told us, all of which, I found extremely interesting. I also spent a day exploring the citadel, which is a popular tourists attraction, because Hue is the old capital of Vietnam.
I then spent the last week in Hoi An, which is such a beautiful place. At night, the lanterns are lit up all around the Old Town and all along the river. It is like a festival, but it is every single day, which I think is amazing; imagine every single night looking like a wonderland of lights! Also, the hotel I stayed at was wonderful because the staff were some of the loveliest people ever! They really made me feel welcome and on one of the days, was invited to their staff 'end of Luna year' party, where I got to mingle and talk to them and afterwards joined them at a karaoke bar. I've never gone to a karaoke place before, and it was so much fun! I'm definitely going to do that again sometime in the future.
So, for anyone who is thinking that they want to travel somewhere: Vietnam is amazing! And I can't praise the food enough!
No comments:
Post a Comment