Greetings one and all!

Well Vietnam is still totally awesome and amazing and everyone is telling me I'll be disappointed in Thailand after here...they liken it to Thailand years ago, less developed, more relaxed, less scams etc...it is just sooo beautiful.....

Lianne, Lucy and I took a three day boat trip to HaLong Bay in NE Vietnam last week and it was just joyous to see the sea again, (marginal confession about slightly missing Guernland!). The area is made up of over 3000 tiny islands and as I think I mentioned it is an UNESCO World Heritage site...

We spent the first day cruising from Ha Long city to the Bay area on an old wooden boat sunbathing on deck and taking in the beautiful views. The boat stopped off at various points along the way during the trip and you just jump from the side of the boat into the beautiful green waters of the bay and swim around....all part and parcel of another busy day at the office!!!! We stayed one night on board the boat and the second night was spent on dry land on Cat Ba Island...I went on a day trip for a trek to the top of a hill and it has to be the most sweaty experience of my entire existence to date....not so much "perspiration" more a "slick" pouring off us all!!! Hiking up a near vertical hill under jungle canopy in the damp muddy ground, heat and humidity of the day to stand on top of a 5 metre square blown up radio tower was not the highlight I have to say but the view was.. erm.. nice I suppose! Coming down was hilarious and everyone went tits up sliding down the muddy hillside... Lianne and Lucy bailed on the trek thing and took off on bikes around Cat Ba island. However the trek redeemed itself by us stopping off in a village and having some amazing food....We also visited some caves on one of the islands and that was good fun and also a welcome respite from the heat....The last day we boarded the boat and sailed back to Ha Long city and back to Hanoi....

We spent a day shopping like lunatics in Hanoi and then caught the train to Hué...Hué is just south of the DMZ (Demilitarised Zone) and the site of some of the major fighting and battles that took place during the American War. There is very little left to see as far as buildings etc go, as after the war the Vietnamese took everything to pieces to recycle the materials for other things.. We visited the Rockpile and other strategic points along the infamous Highways 1 and 9 ..and drove down Ho Chi Mihn Trail to an abandoned American base which was the nerve centre of the fighting. Only remnants of the runway are still visible and sadly there was a guy there selling the dog tags of soldiers which I found a bit disturbing.....The Ho Chi Minh trail is not a trail at all, more a road, that is now being turned into a major highway!!! The best part has to be the tunnels at Vinh Moc.. Here 300 people lived underground, sheltering the other villagers, VC and their supplies from the American bombings for 6 years. The women never went outside in that time, 12 babies were born in there, they developed a smokeless way of cooking and even the relentless bombing campaigns couldn't destroy them!! And they only had one loo!!!! They are very dimly lit and at one point the lights actually failed so we were between 15 and 23 metres underground with no lights...thankfully I had a torch. You had to crouch the whole way through (the Vietnamese certainly aren't the tallest people in the world) How they managed to remain sane for 6 years down there is beyond me!! It is incredible to see these places and learn about the terrible bloody battles that took place and there are still many areas that are mined and impassable.. It was worth stopping off in Hue just to visit this area and see some of the places that you've read or heard about.

We left Hue on Wednesday and are now residing in Hoi An and it is just wonderful here.. really friendly by the riverside, a very flat and pleasant 5km cycle ride to the beach.... All of us have had clothes made and it is soooo cheap! The shoes and the handbags are to die for, really jazzy colours and unusual and they are CHEAP!!!! Hoi An is quite small and really quaint and relaxed, plenty of great places to eat and a place you can saunter around and chill out in away from the bustle of the cities....The buildings are really oldy worldy in a kind of Chinese style, lots of old dark wooden beamed buildings. We've been on a tour today to My Son the site of an ancient Champa city and it was a bit of a let down really... It is also really hot around 40 degrees so walking around in the sun is probably not the best plan for a day like today. Anyway we caught the boat back which was relaxing with lunch on board driven by a Vietnamese bloke with one arm.

We've caught up with Harry and David here too, and a couple of girls Chloe and Selina from Hanoi so we're all out on the town tonight which will be good fun.. I think we will stay here until Sunday and then we are heading to Nha Trang which is also a "beach paradise" and somewhere else to get "stuck" for a few days and try and sort out some of these terrible tan marks!!!! It is Lianne's 30th on 6th August and there is a bit of a booze and cruise all day thing that goes on down there so we're hopping on that to ensure that Lianne has a birthday she'll never remember....

Talking of Birthdays, Baggage and Jimmie you have great times at your respective birthdays I shall raise a glass to you!

I have to say though I really do feel like a complete tourist in Vietnam as all the tours are laid on by the hotels and you can't do them cheaper and for less hassle yourself and if you want to visit these places it's the only way to do it. You get picked up and dropped off from your hotel and they are so cheap! So there's no hassle with bargaining for tickets and all that...it's all kind of really TOO easy in fact. But the downside is it's where everyone else is going too. You can certainly tell that there are plenty of people around who are here for their summer vacation. I guess it's a way to keep tourists in certain areas....however life is a breeze and nothing is too much hassle so I really do feel like I'm on holiday!!!! We've also got open tickets from Hue to Saigon basically the remaining half of the country and all we have to do is phone the day before, say where we want to go and then the bus comes and picks you up and takes you to your new destination!!! So my ticket to Saigon via Hue, Hoi An, Nha Trang, Dalat and on to Saigon cost me $20!!! It's probably around 1000km!

Anyway time for me to trot off, people to meet, clothes to buy and beer to be drunk! It's the birthday of a girl we met on the boat today so needless to say a few local beers to be had tonight!!!

Take care y'all.....What you all been up to? I hear Blighty's had a bit of sunshine?????

Loadsa love

Lisa / Lillie

xxxxxx