Tag Archives: travel

Hong Kong

 

Thursday, 17 March – When we awoke this morning we were in Hong Kong – we knew this because the fog was so thick we could hardly see a thing and we had heard the ship’s horn sounding through the night.  Customs came on board and we were held up for over an hour, but by the time we were allowed to leave the ship, the fog had lifted somewhat.

We set off on our coach, which took us from the new cruise terminal (way out of town) to Victoria Harbour, where we boarded a cruiser for a trip around the harbour and stepped aboard the famous Jumbo Floating Restaurant for a delicious Dim Sum lunch.

Jumbo Rest HK

We then taken in sampans to see the Aberdeen fishing village, home to all the fishermen who live on their boats.

On the bus again, we were taken to a jewellery and watch warehouse and Stanley Market.  We didn’t get there on our last visit and we thought it was a very nice market; the prices were reasonable and the quality very good.  Nothing junky here!

Lastly, we made our way to the summit of Victoria Peak.  Unfortunately, too foggy to see a thing.  We could only take a photo of the photo of what we should have seen!  Better luck next time.  However, we did enjoy the tram ride down the mountain.  You face backwards and the tram is on a very steep angle.  That was fun.

Peak HK (2)Peak HKHK (3)

Day 2 was even more foggy, so we just took the free shuttle bus to Diamond Hill shopping centre, and were pleased to find Marks & Spencer, one of our favourite stores.

HK (4)

Bike in Hong Kong

Look what happens when you chain up your bike in Hong Kong!

We like Hong Kong very much and there is always something new to do and interesting little shops to explore.  This was the first of our overnight stopovers.

Koh Samui, Thailand

 Ko Samui

Saturday, March 12 – This island was a tender port and once again, the weather was hot and humid.  We decided to explore it on our own and after arriving in the town, we did the walk through all the cab drivers waving maps in our faces, which is of course to be expected.

Seasoned travellers that we are, I have found the best way to get through is not to make eye contact and just keep walking!

So we grabbed a map and walked through town so we could buy some souvenirs and get our bearings and do a bit of bargaining before deciding where to venture to.  Once out of the melee, we found a lone cab driver and began bargaining for what we wanted to see.  It worked well.  Pen and paper is good to write down the price you agree on, making sure it covers two people and very importantly, is a 2-way fare!  The driver’s wife was there too, as her English was not too bad and she and their little daughter came along for the ride.

I thought the town a bit shabby but then we drove through beautiful scenery – this island is 90 percent virgin rainforest, surrounded by great granite mountains and lovely stretches of white sandy beaches.  Very popular with backpackers, Kho Samui (or Samui to the locals) also has many resorts, restaurants and shops.

Our aim was to visit the Na Muang waterfall, very pretty with water cascading down a natural rock staircase, Big Buddha (Wat Phrayai), a massive 39-foot sitting Buddha and Wat Plain Laem which is home to a superb statue of Kwan Yin, the 18-armed Buddhist avatar of Mercy.  Along the way, we stopped at a market and our very friendly cab driver bought us a cold drink each (it was pink, no idea what it was) and a bag of a crunchy fried treats – some were banana and others were sweet potato.  Delicious!

Considering that we had never heard of this island before, we had a memorable day and great value for money!  The islanders also enjoyed it, as our sister ship, the “Sun Princess” came in at the same time, so the island was inundated with tourists.

Ko Samui (3)Ko Samui (2)Ko Samui (5)Ko Samui (7)Ko Samui (6)Ko Samui (4)Ko Samui (8)

Good Morning, Vietnam

Ho Chi Minh City

We arrived at the port of Phu My which is the gateway to Ho Chin Minh city on Monday, 14 March.

Hot conditions prevailed as we made our way to the coach at 7.30am for our first excursion – Best of Ho Chi Minh City.   We drove through the Mekong Delta, the “rice basket” of Vietnam.  It took about 1-1/2 hours, following the Saigon River where we had a very enjoyable full day’s tour.

 

Droves of bicycles and motorbikes are everywhere and you cross the road at your peril!  The air is filled with the sounds of honking horns.  When you cross in the pedestrian crossing, they swarm all around you, so you raise your arm and don’t stop walking!

The first stop was at the Minh Phuong Lacquer Factory where we saw the art of the lacquering process, one of the country’s most popular exports.  We watched a man using tiny pieces of duck shell to make a pattern.  Amazing!  Of course we had to buy a piece to take home.   We then watched a performance of Vietnamese water puppets and visited various other historic sights.  We enjoyed some time spent in Cholon (Chinatown) historically filled with opium dens and brothels.  Today it is filled with restaurants, temples, jade stores and medicine shops.  Lunch was a delicious buffet at one of the city’s top hotels.

Lunch HCMWater Puppets HCMLacquer factory HCMLacquer factory 2 HCMHCM5HCM6

By the time we got back at 5.15pm, we grabbed a quick pizza and had an early night!

 

Nha Tran

Tuesday, 15 March and we are now in the south central coast of Vietnam, 256 miles north of Ho Chi Minh City.

Just a half day excursion today, the highlight of which was a visit to see the artisans at work at a Silk Embroidery workshop.  The girls begin their apprenticeship at 13 years of age and after 7 years they are qualified.  But they spend the next 5 years with an experienced sewer before they are on their own.  Each one sits under a strong light (most wear spectacles) and work a 10-hour day in silence.  Their work is exquisite; after copies of original drawings are made they start with an outline and each person designs their own work.  If an error is made, they start again.

We purchased a framed embroidery at what we thought was a very reasonable price of $US49, but the larger works cost thousands of dollars.

Nha Trang (11)Nha TrangNha Trang (7)Nha Trang (8)Nha Trang (10)

Apart from the workshop, we were a bit disappointed with this tour.  The tour guide did not speak good English and we lost a lot of time at the first stop which involved a 70 step climb to the Cham Tower.  We also did not realise that there would be 90 more steps to see the Long Son Pagoda.  We probably need to read the fine print a bit closer on future tours!  Anyway, to make up time we were a bit rushed towards the end and we were nearly trotting to keep up to get to the Cho Dam Market.

Alex found a shirt, so we had some fun doing some bargaining, but other than that, there was not anything else worth buying.  Lots of cheap trinkets and just more of the same!

Vietnam is a good holiday destination, as long as you don’t mind the high humidity.  Great value for money.  Very friendly people.