Vietnam to Laos.
6 months in and we’re still having an amazing adventure. The time is flying by and each day brings a new experience. It’s not always easy and we don’t always like what we see or experience but we wouldn’t miss it for the world, it definitely beats getting up for work each day.
Our lasting memories of Northern Vietnam will be:
food – is fresh, often picked from the garden, or killed locally and really does include dog, snake and turtles
Countryside – beautiful rolling hills, stunning mountains, lakes and agricultural fields
People – are friendly more so in rural areas, the children are really excited to see us, running to meet us as we pass.
Lifestyles – most people in North Vietnam are farmers, shop keepers or restauranteurs, it seems like a simple life if not hard as many still use very old farming techniques and the kitchens are basic. People live and work in their premises and everything is done on a small scale.
Animals – we’ve seen lots of beautiful butterflies but we think they Vietnamese have eaten all the other wild animals. We do see a lot of wild livestock including chickens, goats, pigs, cows and water buffalo, not penned in although some are tied up.
Accommodation – we’ve not had to camp as accommodation can be really cheap and is easy to find. We’ve stayed in luxurious hotels and cheap B & B’s most with one inch thick hard mattresses.
Gary has enjoyed Vietnam more than I have because our expectations were different I had hoped to experience a Communist Country but it has felt pretty much like any other South East Asia Country, which is not a bad thing just not what I expected.
We crossed the border into Laos this morning, new country, different language and currency so hopefully we will have lots more to share with you next week.
Problem loading the photos so our apologies some have no comments attached
love and kisses
Ginette and Gary
- anyone for a swim?
- old fashioned farming
- wet day – but still smiling
- low laying barge
- Bakery – yum yum
- hats, masks and coats on – temp 37c
- locals in the sea the majority with bright orange life jackets
- fishing boats – some liked very old and not seaworthy but were clearly still in use
- kissing the dragon for luck
- inside the caves Binh Nimh
- Gary touching base with his feminine side again!
- how many birds can you see?
- sweaty, smiley Netty
- long gravelly road – beautiful day
- very rickety bridge – toll on the other side we didn’t pay
- these boats are paddled by using your feet
- snakes and god only knows what – yuk
- landscape is breath taking
- we see lots of very distressed chickens – poor things
- One Buffalo boy goes around the outside
- Loading the dry crop, plus the usual cyclist with umbrella to keep off the Sun
- Bong for your lunchtime break sir?
- One of many Water Buffalo drawn carts
- Grubs up
- Look whats for dinner?
- Photo award for the cloud reflections?
- Turning the drying crop on the road
- Farmers dry the crop along the roads during harvest
- We name this river the “Yukky Brown”
- fun photos with the homestay kids
- Crowd gathered as we left homestay for photos
- House on stilts Mai Chau