Merry Christmas from Viet Nam

Hi Folks and a very Merry Christmas,

Man, this place is one absolutely mind blowing experience! Currently we are in Lao Cai awaiting the overnight train back to Hanoi. To kill time.. we walked to CHINA!!!

Let's start at the beginning... After an overnight inSingapore, we arrived in Hanoi four days ago. We were met by our guides at the airport and changed ourAussie money into Dong... $100 Aus = $1,196,000.00 Dong.. WAHOOOOO A MILLONAIRE in the first 60 minutes of being in Viet Nam!

The ride to the hotel scared the living SH*T out of me.. Let me give you an overview of driving in VietNam..

1. Never use your breaks
2. You may pass on the inside or the outside
3. Don't drive in your lane, drive in the center
4. Toot your horn constantly if overtaking
5. Toot your horn if going around a corner
6. Toot your horn if you are bored
7. Toot, toot, bloody toot
8. If all lanes on your side of the road are full, feel free to cross the double yellow lines into oncoming traffic (tooting loudly)

Our hotel was in the old Ministry of Defence buildings, behind the Hanoi Hilton! For all you history buffs.. that might mean something.. for the rest of you.. google it!.. Hanoi is an interesting city build around a lake which legend says contains a large turtle to which the king returned a magic sword after winning an important battle (just like the legend of King Arthur!). First night there we saw the most beautiful 'Water Puppet' show.. Just how you control puppets in water is something to be seen! The colours and laquerware were beautiful.

One important thing to mention is crossing the road.. the motor bike, bikes, buses, cars come at you thick and fast.. You close your eyes, take a deep breath,tell your mother your love her, and then walk slowly into the traffic! Amazingly you feel like Moses parting the red sea!

There is so much to tell, but the highlights wereUncle Ho (he had just come back from a touchup inRussia and is looking pretty good for 120 years old), Ho's Humble little cottage, Ho's museum, the Temple of Literature (note I need to spend more time there!), and the Women's Museum.

We caught the overnight train up to Lao Cai, and thena 2 hr bus ride up to Sapa Village.. Note, the road rules above still apply on one lane dirt roads on thesides of very steep mountains.

Sapa is a village in and above the clouds. Our accommodation was up 172 stairs to a room which had the most amazing views across the valley filled with rice paddies and to the mountains.

Christmas Eve the hotel put on a wee celebration with home made apple rice wine (aka rocket fuel, or "Happy Water"), and the traditional roasting marinated pork on bamboo skewers over an open fire. They tried to get us to sing christmas carols, but we only knew the chorus to a few.

Christmas Morning we awoke to a total white out.. We had gotten the white christmas we were asking for!! We had breakfast and met our H'moung guides for a 6 hour hike into the villages. The beauty of the place was astounding.. we will bore you all with the photos when we get back. Each village we passed through the ladies were trying to sell us blankets, or pillowcases (all hand made, blankets taking up to a year tocross-stitch)... The hills were alive with "Buy from Meeee"... "Buy from Meeeee"... We were taught the word Gu-chi-si-yo (pronounced "Gucci Sale") meaning we weren't buying...

The poverty of the place is heartbreaking, but we see so many happy children, and people living just has they have for thousands of years. It is amazing the effect tourism is having, and the change it is making to the people and what they want.. most villages have a TV.. but it is powered by water.. forced down a bamboo pipe and into a wooden bucket type hydro-generator!

If you are contemplating a visit to Viet nam come now, before the simplicity of life is lost. The ride back to Sapa was in an old russian jeep, over roads which were just dynamited hours before we got there. I can honestly say, old russian jeeps have great shock absorbers.

Today we drove 3 hours (40km) to the markets in M'oung Hum.. This is where many different hill tribe meet to trade.. Because it was so far out (and high up), not many tourist go there.. and we were the people on show! Ladies wearing the most colourful traditional costumes would happily pose for a photo, and giggle with amazement when you showed them it on the digital screen. The mix of traditional dresses, vegetables ,meats, all in a small wooden, dusty village really touched the senses.

And that leaves us now in Lao Cai, waiting to go backt o Hanoi to continue our adventure on down the rest of the length of Viet Nam!! We are both well and extremely happy (don't worry Mum!!)..

Hope that you all had a great Christmas, ate a lot, and drank more!..

Send our love to everyone.

Love Mich and Mel