Vietnam !

Hello from a very hot ( high 30's) Vietnam!

Wow, what an amazing country! We had a blast traveling down  the coast with our friends Jackie and Will. It was so good to see them !

We started up in Hanoi , only to visit Halong Bay, one of the 7 wonders of the world. A tiny boat took us on a two day, one night cruise that included, swimming , kayaking , squid fishing, touring a water village and fantastic, fresh food!

In Hanoi we had some unforgettable culinary experiences. One  was lunch; we sat on a sidewalk with a group of locals eating.......well I'm not too sure what is was but it was delicious . It was served in tiny bowls and you were to add it to a warmth broth spoonful by spoonful. The locals saw our hesitation so they helped us out. I think they added a bit too much chilli in mine, my mouth was on fire!

From Hanoi we took a night bus down to Hoi An. Hoi An is a small coastal town known for it's custom tailors. The boys got gorgeous custom suits and winter jackets and the girls got blazers, dresses and winter pea coats designed. Really great prices, now we are trying to think of an event where we can wear our new duds.

From Hoi An we took an overnight bus down to Nha Trang. Nha Trang is best known for it's beaches, scuba diving and mud spa. We had a lazy day when we arrived, a lot of sleep to catch up on. We had an amazing slow cooked, clay pot, seafood dinner. And for dessert.... foot and back massages.
We had an amazing, worth every penny, snorkeling trip on our second day in Nha Trang. We tanned, snorkeled , relaxed on tubes and were welcomed to an extravagant feast for lunch. There was so much food! Between the two of us we shared 8 dishes plus fruit.

From Nha Trang we took another night bus down to Hoi Chi Min. Night buses are nice because you don't waste any days traveling but they do tire you out. You don't get much sleep and they aren't the most comfortable.We arrived bright and early and in just enough time to book a trip to the  war tunnels. Wow, it was an eye opening experience. We learnt about the strategies in digging underground tunnels and even got to go through a 30 meter tunnel. After 1 minute underground both Jackie and I were completely exhausted, closterphobic and extremely hot, I don't know how they did it. They had sewing rooms, kitchens, meeting areas and bunks all underground. On the tour we were brought to a shooting range where we  had an opportunity to shoot an M 16, it was insane , us girls were at a loss for words, very thrilling.

We said our goodbyes to our friends last night. We are sure going to miss them. It was really nice to share these experiences with them. We will see Jackie when she comes back to Canada in December.

We left Vietnam early this morning and are on our last 10 days of our trip. We are looking to spend most of the time in Cambodia and the last remaining days in Thailand ( hopefully on the beach).
We will update soon.

Cheers,
Carmen and Carlo
*pictures to come