Vietnam – The Travelogue.

Hanoi, Vietnam

Gavin Greene — Wed, 28 Nov 2018 13:30:54 +0000

And it was. After our last few days spent in the relative tranquility of H? Long Bay and Phong Nha-K? Bàng, the frenetic pace and nine million mopeds of Hanoi took a bit of getting used to. We decided to make the traffic even worse by treating ourselves to a taxi for anything over a 30 minute walk, using the ‘Grab’ app, the southeast Asian version of Uber, but where a 20-minute taxi ride cost only…

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Ha Long Bay, Vietnam

Gavin Greene — Wed, 21 Nov 2018 13:30:37 +0000

Before planning our trip to H? Long Bay, we had carried out some careful research. The bay has earned a reputation for being full of rowdy tourists, often to the point where you can barely see the water for boats. We didn’t want to encounter (or add to) the problem, so opted instead for a little private boat for the two of us, in which we would explore to the quieter waters of Bai Tu Long Bay and…

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Phong Nha-Ke Bàng, Vietnam

Gavin Greene — Wed, 14 Nov 2018 13:30:48 +0000

We had caught the train from Hue to go to Phong Nha-Ka Bàng National Park, an area in central Vietnam which borders Laos. The national park is home to the world’s largest cave (a five-day round trek through the jungle), and the third largest, which was only a two-day trek. Perfect, we thought; what could be better than a lovely relaxing two-day trek through a humid jungle and an overnight stay in…

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Hue and the Hai Vân Pass, Vietnam

Gavin Greene — Wed, 07 Nov 2018 13:30:36 +0000

Due to various Vietnamese laws which I won’t pretend to understand, we weren’t allowed to rent a car, so we asked a taxi to take us over the Hai Vân Pass from Hoi An to our next stop, the former French capital, Hue. The 21km pass climbs to 3000m over the Truong Son mountain range, and provides some pretty panoramic views of the South China Sea. Empty, other than a few tourists…

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Hoi An, Vietnam

Gavin Greene — Wed, 31 Oct 2018 13:30:49 +0000

Now a Unesco world heritage site, Hoi An used to be one of Vietnam’s main trading ports with the Japanese and Chinese. In the 18th Century, the river started to silt up, and trading moved to other more suitable ports like the nearby Da Nang. As a result Hoi An has remained largely intact, avoiding destruction in the war, and over-development like much of the rest of the coast. The result is a…

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Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

Gavin Greene — Wed, 24 Oct 2018 12:30:52 +0000

After a short bus ride from the airport to Ben Thành market, we grabbed our rucksacks and climbed off the bus straight into the gutter, where an elderly woman was sitting among discarded fruit having her head shaved. Wearing jeans and warm jumpers, and sweating far more than is socially acceptable, we navigated our way though fifty lanes of weaving traffic and checked into our hotel.

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