Wrapping it up.... heading home.

Our final outing on the Mekong included another visit to a small village with the highlight being Sonja getting the chance to make rice noodles along side the village women. From the cooking of the rice, to the rolling out of the thin paper to the cutting of the strips. From my perspective, it was super cool to watch her do this.

After leaving the village, we headed back to Saigon for our final day. This included meeting up with Stephanie Nguyen for lunch and the chance to meet her family. Of course, we had to head back to the market one last time to get rid of any spare Vietnamese dong that was in my pockets.

I'm writing this final blog entry from the airport in Seoul, Korea as we await our flight back to Seattle. We spent today in a very emotional way.... on a tour to the DMZ in Korea where we could look out at North Korea and head down into the tunnels that the North Koreans had dug to try and attack the south. Sonja's father fought in the Korean War and seeing the land where he walked and experiencing a little of his life in the marines was emotional for both of us. Harry would be proud of his daughter coming to this land and feeling what he felt.

All in all, this has been a fantastic journey for us.... one that will be with us for our life times. As I think back on all that we've seen and done, the most precious thoughts are of the people in Vietnam. There are no nicer people anywhere on this earth and to feel such love and welcome from them after what we did to this country will fill your heart. We will come back again... if only to bring our golf clubs with us next time.

Tan Biet....

Bill & Sonja

Mekong Delta (Floating Market)

The floating market outside of Can Tho is simply a trip back in time. When you come upon it the first impression is how massive in size it is. There must be 200-300 boats all doing business together. You see fruit and vegetables being tossed two-at-a-time from boat to boat. The sounds of the transactions and the smell of the diesel engines is Saigon street chaos on water.

But there's a beauty to it as well. If there was music put to it, you'd have a symphony. We thrilled at the kids coming up to us trying to sell us bananas and pineapple and even hopped onto one of the boats to watch up close as the old women carved the outer shell from the pineapples. It may all be in my head, but the fruit in Vietnam is the sweetest and juiciest I've ever tasted.

Great experience! One we'll remember forever.

Mekong Delta (The Village)

During the course of this trip, we have literally taken over a thousand photos plus a couple of dozen videos. Our trip through this village could have resulted in me posting dozens of pics. It is extremely hard to pick just the best ones for you.

From the rice fields, to the hard working people, to the children.... ahh, the children. They captivated me. So adorable, so animated, as fascinated with us as we were with them. Sonja handed out sticks of gum and became an immediate favorite.

I asked one of the crew from the boat if they minded us walking through their village and he said that the villagers really didn't understand why we were doing so. He said that they didn't understand the concept of "tourists" and they kept referring to us as "My" (pronounced moy)... or Americans. Even though most of our party was German, everyone was "My".

Enjoy the pics. This village will remain with us forever.

I'll continue our Mekong River trip in the next post. The floating market and another village where Sonja got to make rice noodles!

Mekong Delta (Day 1)

This may have been the highlight of the trip. The cruise down the Mekong River, spending the night on a cruise boat that was originally a traditional rice barge. And the side trips.... fabulous!!!

We were picked up at our hotel in Saigon for a 3 hour drive to Can Be where we boarded the Mekong Eyes. This cruise was different from our Halong Bay cruise which was much more catered to tourists. There was no cooking classes, Tai Chi or massages on this boat. This cruise was about seeing how life was on the Mekong Delta River.

As we left Can Be, you could feel that you were being transported into a world that is completely alien to Americans. The lives of these people who live on this river, and in many cases, live on their boats and rarely set foot on dry land, was fascinating. As we crawled down the river about 100 yards from the shore, children would step out of their houses and yell "hello, hello". Sitting on the deck, you couldn't help but be fascinated with a slight feeling of voyeurism as you watched them go about their daily lives. The fisherman worked the water, the children played on the shore, the women washed dishes in plastic pails tossing the water back into the river.

Passing giant structures of brick that were fed rice to burn and kiln more bricks. There were coconut stations waiting for barges to come and pick up their cargo to take to market.

After cruising for several hours, we hopped onto very small canoe size boats to travel to shore where we were able to spend some time in a tiny village. At first, I assumed that it would be like some of the tours we took in China where we were hounded by vendors selling their trinkets, but this was the real deal.

I'll post the photos of this part of the journey in the next installment of the blog.

Like A Local...

Saigon (I have a hard time calling it Ho Chi Minh City), is a major metropolis. Not as 21st century as Shanghai, but as bustling and vibrate as any city in the world.

We began our day with breakfast at the Ben Thanh Market about a block from our hotel. This is on the list of 1000 things to see before you die and it doesn't take long before you understand why. You are immediately immersed in the smells, the sounds, the constant tugging at your sleeve to the calls of "Sir, Sir.... Madame, Madame, please come into my shop. I have your size!"

Speaking of size.... I know I've put on a pound or two, but I've been called "Buddha" since we've been here and women have pointed to my belly and giggled "baby" or "two babies". It's all in fun and I've laughed right along with them but my new favorite haunt when we get home will be Gold's Gym. :-)

After breakfast we returned to the hotel and I made sure Sonja was wearing shoes. She had no idea what was in store for today until we got downstairs and our guides from Back of The Bike Tours put a motorcycle helmet in her hands! We were off on a city tour on the back of a scooter.

Until you've been here, it is hard to conceive the masses in the streets on these scooters. At first glance you cannot conceive of how they do it without massive amounts of accidents and traffic jams. On the back of the bike, you feel the flow and see the orchestration that allows this chaos to work. It is exhilarating and exciting and was a highlight of our trip so far.

I really need to give a shout out to Back of The Bike Tours. If you ever come to Saigon, you really need to do this. This small company owned by Chad & Thuy is absolutely wonderful. They took us into the heart of Saigon, through back alleys, onto dusty roads, into the markets where we ate at vegetarian restaurants that most westerners would never see. Chad is American from Pennsylvania and his wife, Thuy, is from Vietnam. Together they are a fantastic pair.

We'll be leaving Saigon for a couple of days on the Mekong River, sleeping on another boat.

Oh, and I'd be remiss to not mention that we saw where it had snowed back home. We feel for you. It's in the 90's here!

See y'all.... got to get my shorts and flip flops on!

Bill & Sonja

Goodbye Hoi An, Hello Saigon

Our last day in Hoi An was spent with a leisurely walk through the town sampling the street foods and picking up some souvenirs for back home. We stopped to pick up the coat Sonja had made and, of course, we were talked into having a second one made that could be sewn in two hours. Aside from the fact that these are beautiful wool coats, custom made to fit, was the art of bargaining with the tailors. For both of these gorgeous coats we paid less than $100 total.

We stopped at one outdoor restaurant for a cold beer and a snack and had the only negative incident of the entire trip. The waitress was a lovely young girl (we later found out her name was My) who had a beautiful smile and was as nice as she could possibly be. But a few tables away were a couple, Aussies from their accents, that called her over and read her the riot act because they only had 6 shrimp in their dish and they felt they should have had more. You could see how upset My was at the criticism and we couldn't understand how someone could treat a person this way. Especially when you consider that for a meal that would cost $20-$30 in the states, they were paying less than $4. My's manager came out to the table and she went and stood by the kitchen. We called her over, just to tell her that we thought her service and the food was fantastic. As we spoke, she broke into tears and the hurt that this couple had imposed on her was heartbreaking. She told us that she had finished her studies at the university and wanted to work in the restaurant before starting her career in environmental technology so she could improve her English skills but that she thought maybe she had made a mistake and would have to quit her job. We told her how wonderful the meal was for us and how special her service was. Calling her manager over, we wanted him to understand that this one incident was an aberration and that My was very good at her job. He thanked us profusely and her tears were now one of happiness.

The Vietnamese have been so very kind to us. It is beyond my grasp how someone could be so petty as to berate a young girl over the number of shrimp in a $4 dish.

Coats and souvenirs in hand, we packed a box and shipped it home (to arrive in 3 months via ship) and then headed to the airport to Saigon. Sonja's next surprise awaits her.

--B

Hello Hoi An

A quick one hour flight south from Hanoi to Danang and we were in a different world from the last few days. Our driver picked us up and we headed south along the coast to Hoi An. The ride showed how fast tourism is becoming *the*industry in this country. Resorts pepper the coast line with luxury accommodations and golf courses.

The Vietnamese people are so amazingly friendly and go out of their way to please you. As we pulled up to our hotel, we were greeted by Liong who sat us at a coffee table and served us cold carrot juice while she took care of our registration. Our luggage was then carried up the 3 flights of stairs to our room where welcoming gifts awaited us.

A short walk from our hotel and we entered the ancient city of Hoi An. Tourism is BIG in Hoi An. Souvenir shops are everywhere and you can buy anything and everything. At one point we stopped for a cold drink and a young boy came up to me selling his trinkets. He offered me a small vial of liquid for what I think is headaches. All he would do to describe the item was to have me smell it and then he would point to his temples. Then the fun began. I pulled out my phone with the currency converter on it and he would type in a number, I would counter, he would come back again and so forth for 8-9 minutes. For a 6 year old he was quite the bargainer. I finally ended up settling for around $3 and he had made his sale. I still have no idea what is in the little bottle, but it was worth every penny for this encounter.

We spent the entire day walking around the town shopping. We bought bootleg dvd's of movies that are in theaters now. 11 dvd's for $10. Sonja had a wool coat made for herself. They took the measurements, she picked out the fabric and colors and we'll have the coat in the morning. We also spent some time at a school for disabled children where they learn to embroider and create ceramics. Fascinating to watch these challenged kids who obviously loved what they were doing as evidenced by the smiles and the laughter. I couldn't wait to break out the credit card and buy their wares.

One of the highlights of the day was my first ever pedicure. I liked it so much I got an old fashioned straight razor shave.

Our dinner of Pho, Spring Rolls and fried rice was the best we've had since we got to Vietnam. Sitting at an outdoor table along the river side watching the people and the world go by.... I really like Vietnam! We'll do it all again tomorrow before heading back to the airport for Saigon.