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