Ding Dong, Farewell Vietnam

In Nha Trang, a seaside town and Vietnam's unofficial scuba diving capital, we decided not to do any diving. We heard it isn't that spectacular due to underwater garbage and the effects of dynamite fishing. Instead we spent a day at Vinpearl Land - a scaled-down version of Canada's Wonderland (or Disneyland, to our non-Canadian readers). For $16 we got unlimited access to outdoor rides (including a roller coaster), animal shows (complete with monkeys wearing silk and riding tiny bikes), indoor arcade games, a "4D" movie theatre, and a waterpark with a lazy river, slides, and a wave pool. Also, our three-km-long cable car rides (the world's longest over water) to and from the island were included. Since the place was chock full of Vietnamese families, we considered it "immersing ourselves in local culture."

Next up was the refreshing climate of another hill town (elevation 1500 m), Dalat. During our three days there it was between 15 and 20 degrees Celcius - ahhh. Unfortunately, it also rained on and off. But the $2 (!) bottles of red wine (locally produced) and the $2 baguette and cheese deals at the bakery made up for the rain.

Sidenote: the only cheese that stores carry in Vietnam is triangles of "Laughing Cow" cheese. While it is an alright cheese, we really miss a nice sharp cheddar, a savoury brie, or some old blue cheese (well, actually only Craig misses the smelly blue cheese).

Our final town was Ho Chi Minh City, formerly Saigon (and actually still called Saigon by everyone in the south - hmmm, a small rebellion against communism?). We visited the War Remnants Museum with its American planes and tanks. The photo exhibits, primarily from the "American War" (aka the Vietnam War), were heart-wrenching. The jars of miscarried Agent Orange babies were a little much. And although the museum was pretty anti-American and presented a very one-sided, propagandist view of the war (you'd think the Viet Cong were saints), it was a touching tribute to the millions casualties on both sides, including civilians and international journalists.

We meandered down the Mekong on a two-day tour, staying the night at a floating hotel, and entered Cambodia via a riverside border crossing. We're currently in the capital, Phnom Phen ("nom pen"), where we're getting our bearings before heading south to the beaches. For the last two weeks or so, we've been travelling with Marlous, Floris, and Vanessa, two Dutchies and a Brit. It's been great to play cards and share drinks with a group of like-minded people.

In our blog we try to be positive about where we go and our experiences. There are always giong to be high and lows of travelling. However, so far Vietnam has been the least favourite country we're visited. There are more scams and tricks to separate you from your dong (money) than anywhere else. The bargaining is excessive, many hotels tried to cheat us, and we just got sick and tired of it. If you get a few glasses of wine or beer into us when we return home in six weeks we'll have some good stories to tell that we can laugh at with the benefit of hindsight. While Vietnam has a lot to offer - beautiful cities, cheap beer, alright food (though it has nothing on Thailand) - Southeast Asia has much more friendly and welcoming countries than Vietnam.