A very short walk around Cimetiere de Montparnesse in Paris.
Tag: photography
“Cheeseburger”
Day 190, Thursday 12 July 2012 – Paris
I have been having a minor financial crisis for the past few day, well less of a crisis – more of a financial niggle in the back of mind.
I am stuck in that weird place where my money is in one country and I am in another and I have limited access to cash. I have not replaced the NZ ATM card I lost in Laos – not through lack of desire to replace, but through lack of desire to jump through hoops to get it, so do not have direct access to my bank account.
I have been relying on foreign currency travel cards to get by, but my UK pound card ran out of funds while I was on the Coast Path Run which came as a real surprise, I transferred some money over (thank God for Internet banking), but have forgotten the travel card web site log in so cannot check as to why I ran out of funds so soon. I have also set up an English bank account but have not been able to transfer funds into it as I need to ring the bank in NZ to set up an overseas transfer account as it cannot be done on line. So very soon I am going to run out of easily accessible cash, it is time to ring the bank in NZ. Pity I cannot find my NZ sim card…
In the end I borrowed my friend Emily’s recently acquired French pre-pay mobile to call the bank in NZ. I started with the travel card company and got as far as being asked my secure code before the phone ran out of credit – Merde ! But it did poke some brain cells into life and I remembered my login for the travel card site. I did discover that I have been screwed on bank fees which I will take u with the bank, but I had bought less pounds than I thought so, whew, nothing untoward had happened to my cash.
The plan for the day was an ambitious one that involved one heck of a lot of walking and some rides on the Metro, Paris’ version of the London Underground. The Metro is way more complex than London, with a lot more lines to choose from. We chose to take the Metro to the furthest point for the day and meander some of the way on foot, as this really is the best way to see a city.
Well, we ended up just taking the Metro to Gare de Nord and walking to Sacre Coure (SC) from there as it was not too far and Gare de Nord is the most confusing station in the whole world (that I have been too anyway!) SC is one of the older churches in Paris and sits on a hill above the River Seine, I am not clear on the history of it as I frustratingly do not seem to have internet access at the moment. SC is split into three viewing areas, the main chapel, which is free – but no photography and the dome and crypt, both of which are charged for but you can take photos. We visited all three, awesome !
Peace out !
If I was thinking of buying a hand bag, an old church would definitely be my first stop…
The chapel was very cool, some great statuary and frescoes a wonderfully lit space, but the highlight was definitely the dome. There are three hundred steps to the top, which obviously keeps the worst of the tourist hoards out, the steps are up a winding narrow spiral staircase, and the wear marks in the stone show how many people have been this way.
The views from the top are magnafique !
The crypt was pretty cool as well, but quite dim (of course), it wasn’t as crypty as I expected, and a lot of the memorials were to soldiers fallen in the wars of the last century. I did love this statue though.
From SC it is a short hop to Montmartre, I wasn’t quite so thrilled with the place, it is very cute, lovely cobble stone streets, but packed with tourists and very much catered to the tour bus crowd.
We did visit the Abbey St Pierre de Montmarte a Benedictine abbey started in 1147. There was also quite an interesting photo exhibition next door from a Japanese photographer whose name alludes me now, but they did have a Panasonic GX1 which I drooled on for a bit…
We scarpered from Montmarte fairly smartish and headed down hill towards the Montmarte Cemetry, one of the two ‘big name’ cemeteries in Paris. I loved this bit of art on the way down the hill.
The streets here are just lovely and if I had to live in Paris (and had loads of money) this is where I would live.
We had a wander around looking for Edgar Dega’s grave but couldn’t find it. It is incredibly complex mass of tombs and crypts, some immensely complex and detailed and others plain. It was very interesting to say the least and I am really looking forward to visiting the Montparnasse Cemetery in a few days time.
Yo !
After the cemetery we walked on down past the Moulin Rouge and caught the Metro to the shopping district and Gallerie Lafayette.
Metro station.
After some faffing we stopped for a hot chocolate at Angeline’s in the Gallerie Lafayette, the cafe has been around for over a hundred years and the hot chocolate is a must have item, it was delicious, unlike my photo of it which was out of focus…
We dropped in to see one of Emily’s Parisian friends at his office on Avenue De Opera – with an awesome view !
And then took a slow walk down some more back streets, I just love how deserted Paris is when you got away from where the tour guides suggest, these streets are one back from the hell of the main roads. The buildings are fantastic, and of course I just love the bicycles !
to Place Vendome where we drooled over the (beyond) big name shops, drooled some more on the two Lambos parked outside the Paris Ritz – where Princess Di spent her last evening.
We visited the Madelleine which did allow some photography inside, again, like SC earlier in the day, stunning examples of statuary and frescoes.
And then wandered back up to the Printemps department store in the shopping district to admire the fantastic domed roof of the restaurant.
and from there caught the Metro back to St Michel. It had been drizzling all afternoon and was raining quite hard when we got out of the station so we stopped for a vin at a cafe and then dinner at Tabac de la Sorbonne. Emily ordered her meal, a bottle of wine and a bottle of water in rapid fire French, when the waiter looked at me all I could manage was “Cheeseburger”, not even please- complete brain freeze. Fortunately this was seen as quite amusing by all, at least the waiter had a sense of humour!
The cheeseburger was very nice, the service excellent and the wine great – a rare tip was left.
I tried ringing the bank in New Zealand again tonight, this time to activate transfering moneey overseas – ie to where I am. The recorded message said a wait of four to five minutes, at three Euro a minute for the call – I hung up…
Deux soupe d’oignon s’il vous plait
Day 189, Wednesday 11 July 2012 – Paris
Earlier start to breakfast today, coffee wasn’t any better, damnit ! had a bit of a planning session morning and a visit to the local laundromat. While the washing was on we went to a cafe round the corner and had a great espresso and I spent an hour preparing yesterdays blog post. The internet in the hotel is sporadic and even when it is working it hopelessly slow – at least it is free I guess.
We headed off for a late lunch up Boulevard St Germain where I had a great onion soup and a Stella Artois, while people watching near the Seine. I loved how some of the buildings are sagging in the middle – a bit like me.
Notre Dame from the Seine
After lunch we checked out the Bastille.
And then Place de Vosges
With its homage to Victor Hugo.
We then wandered the streets back towards Notre Dame.
How is this for a location for a basketball court !
The queue for Notre Dame was ridiculous..
So we headed off from there to the smaller queues at La Conciergerie and Sainte Chappelle. Both part of the historic Palais de la Cite, now the Palace of Justice.
La Conciergerie started off in the 6th century but most of what can be seen is from the 14th when King Charles V left for a more secure location and left the palace in charge of a concierge who was given power to run the palace and the nearby prison. Numerous prisoners of state were kept there until the revolutionary period of the 1700’s when it used by the various revolutionary council factions to house their opponents during trial and up to execution day. The most famous being Queen Marie-Antoinette and Robespierrie himself who was part committee that set up law of suspects which led to the “reign of terror” that swept Paris in the 1750’s.
I loved the vaulted ceilings in the Hall of men at arms, originally started in 1302.
After the dubious charms of La Conciergerie we joined another short queue for Sainte Chapelle. A chapel built under the wishes of King Louis IX (later Saint Louis) between 1242 and 1248 to house the relics of the passion of Christ.
The entry is via the lower chapel.
The upper chapel, houses the great shrine, which contains the relics of the passion of Christ, including the crown of thorns.
Even the floor was ornate.
The interior of the building is stunning, it is constantly under minor renovation but the stained glass is all original and amazing to look at, a bit too far to photograph under low light, but I highly recommend a visit to the chapel.
Dinner was bread, ham cheese and wine – oh and another bottle of my new favourite beer, Punk IPA.
A walk to Porlock Weir
Day 163, Friday 15 June 2012, Porlock
After those wines last night and what has to be the softest and most enveloping bed ever I slept like a dead person until 6:30. I really seem to have sleep dialled at the moment, I hope I have not hexed it !
I had arranged a skype with a friend for the morning and had a few vacant moments trying to work out time zones (I have now set up dual clocks on my computer !) before realising I was not really late. I went down to the hotel restaurant and ate my body weight in fried food for breakfast, plus they added baked beans to the fired breakie as I have not had a good sausage, egg and bean breakfast yet !
Once everything was sorted I went for a walk to Porlock Weir, a smaller village about two miles away. I walked through some of England’s fabled bridal paths, which are tracks for horses and walkers and in many cases mountain bikers and are all over England linking country towns and villages. The path took me up some of Porlock hill and I really enjoyed being back in the countryside again.
I constantly struggle with choosing between urban and rural when deciding where I should live when I next have to live somewhere for a longer period. I really enjoyed my time in Bristol, I liked the street art, the easy access to anything you need as malls are close and convenience stores are almost 24/7, the constant hum of people, access to public transport and gigs. And then I get out into the country and into the trees, and just relish the slower pace, the peace and quiet and the access to hill trails and mud. I love to take photos in both environments. Thank goodness I do not have to decide just yet !
Porlock Weir is a small fishing village on a minute harbour on the coast of the Bristol Channel.
I was there for about twenty minutes before the rain started to come down. I took a few photos and today was one day I really regretted not having a tripod with me. Of course, yesterday when I was carrying my gear around I was very pleased to not be humping a tripod !
I just loved this old break water.
Summer on the English coast !
I huddled in a coffee shop for a while and then took a long walk back to the hotel in the drizzle, naturally I was wearing one pair of jeans and the others were being washed, so it was shorts for the rest of the day.
I didn’t go out much till 5:30 when I went to the pub and had a pub fish and chips, a couple of pints of Atlantic IPA (very nice) and watched the football, France v Ukraine and England v Sweden..
Bristol – one cool city
Day 159/160/161, Monday/Tuesday/Wednesday 11/12/13 June 2012, Bristol
I spent three full days staying with Mel in Bristol, Mel worked on the Tuesday and left for a festival late afternoon on Wednesday, but we had a day and a half together which was great. The weather was average for most of my time there, a touch of sun on Wednesday morning mean we got out to have a big breakie in a cafe in the sun, but most of the time it was cloudy and drizzly.
Everyone in Mels flat works so it was another big lie in for me as Mel is not exactly known for early starts. Mel’s Spanish flat mate Jess made us a great Spanish omelette for breakfast, and then Mel and I went walkies. I wanted to get a couple of clothing items and a hydration pack in case I decided to get in a longish run while Mal and Tom are out on the trail.
I must say, even though the weather was less than average – it was raining, that Bristol is still a nice city, even in the more run down sections like St Pauls where Mel lives. There is a good mix of new and old buildings and really old buildings, parts of the cathedral have been there since the 1100s ! But what I really liked about Bristol was the street art, the council have allowed artists to paint a number of walls and some of the work is massive and a lot of it is beautiful – I took loads of pictures over a couple of days. There is also some quite good graffiti and slogans as well, especially around the Stokes Croft area where the riots were last year – outside Mels old flat, in the BBC footage of the riots you can see Mel and her friends sitting on the roof of their house. I have posted seperately about the stree art, but here ar my two favourites. This one is massive, two-three stories high !
Mel showed me all around the main parts of Bristol including the markets at St Nicholas’s I was tempted to buy a hoodie there, expensive and quite cool, but want something basic while I am in Cornwall anyway. There was an awesome record shop in the market – all it sold was punk and metal! And the coming gigs, awesome – and I am not going to be there for any of them. Next time I come to Bristol I will tie it in with a good show.
We visited St Mary RedCliffe church, a sign inside the door said daily services had been held here for over 800 years. (I so LOVE this old stuff)
An effigy of Sir Robert Berkely from the early 1200’s.
For lunch on Monday we went to the Hatchet Inn, open since 1606 – wowsers. I had half a pint of Doom Bar ale – not bad…
Bristol Alms houses, founded in 1483.
We wandered back to Mels and then took a marathon walk up to the Sportsman Bar so I could watch England play France in the football, we got there just after kick off so there was no seating free. At half time we decided to go another of Mels old flats that was quite close by and watch the second half there with some of friends. We grabbed four assorted polish beers – the cheapest in Bristol and watched footie, ate curry and talked crap for a few hours. I met a load more of Mels friends, most of the DJ’s in the Jungle Syndicate – they are all into dance music here and Bristol has a big scene. It was a good night, a nice bunch of people, Mel has always made really good friends and they welcomed me into the group which was most cool.
Mel worked Tuesday so I got up late and just went on more walkabouts in Bristol, I took a lot more street art photos and walked up to the museum for lunch. I got a bit lost a couple of times and then remembered Google maps on my phone !!
I had a walk around Bristol Cathedral, this chapel was built in 1220!
The grave of Abbot William Hunt from 1441.
Richard was making one his famous curries for dinner, so there was a very full flat at dinner time, another fun time with Mel and her friends. The large shared dinner seems to be the in thing here, which is great for an active social life, but I would not cope with all those late nights!
Wednesday Mel and Richard were off to work at a festival a few hours away so were leaving town mid afternoon. I was staying one more night which was cool. Mel and I were up and out the door for 9.00 and went for a walk in some glorious – though sporadic sun shine, we stopped up the Gloucester Rd for an expensive big breakie in the sun then shopped a bit before heading back to hers she could pack.
It was sad to see Mel and Richard leave, but I am so pleased to have been able to see her a few days and have some fun. Once they had gone I walked up to the Clifton Suspension Bridge about an hours walk away. The bridge is over the River Avon and was most impressive !
This old uni building was for sale, I was quite tempted : ) If only, it is next to the bridge and would have a monster view over Bristol city.
I was very fortunate to get invited to one of Mel’s friends place for dinner with some other people, which was incredibly nice of them and again I had a good time, and couple of drinks : ) a couple of her friends worked in Chamonix in the French alps, (where in my fantasy world I will get a job doing something completely unrelated to computers.) they have given some contacts there, and one of their friends has said I can possibly stay at their place as well and I have his number – how cool is that !!! very cool I think.
My baby girl and I
Gallery – Bristol street art
The street art in Bristol is just awesome, I have spent a good few hours walking around town looking around. I could easily do hours more.
A visit to London
Day 156, Friday 8 June 2012, Brentwood
I had a pretty good sleep last night, I think I am pretty much adjusted to English time now.
Today was my first day of adventuring into the big smoke and I bought myself a ticket that allowed me to get to Liverpool St station in London, use the underground all day and then return to Shenfield station near where I am living. I was pretty stunned to find that even the off-peak fare was almost twenty pounds, things have gone up since the eighties !
I seemed to have picked up a blister on the back of my foot from my new sneakers, so stopped at a chemist on the way to the station and picked up some blister plasters, these worked for a bit but four days later it is still pretty bad and giving my grief in all sorts of shoes. I had to buy a new packet during my walks in London as it got pretty painful.
I met my old friend Trudi and her niece Kate at Liverpool St station at 10:00 and from there we took the underground towards the NZ Embassy.
It was very cool walking down Regent St, seeing all the double decker buses and black cabs and the flags from the queens jubilee last weekend. Even though it was a wee bit rainy I was still very happy to walking out there.
The advertising material in London phone boxes hasnt changed though.
I wanted to get someone to certify a copy of my NZ passport as I need to replace my drivers licence which was in the wallet I lost in Laos. Apparently you have to make an appointment to see someone and it costs 20 quid ! Bollocks. I got soaked walking down Haymarket in the pouring rain for that.
We then took the underground over to Borough Market, though there was a bit of construction work going on around there, as there is all over as London prepares for the Olympic games next month. The market specialises in food and there was some awesome stuff around, not cheap either, I loved these big wheels of parmesan, yummy…
We stopped for a pub lunch and I had my first English pint, Brakspear’s Oxford Gold ale – not bad ! The first of a million different types of beer to try, I aim to not repeat a pint, though I am sure I will forget, there are so many options.
Trudi and I went for a walk around the borough station area for a couple of hour, past the almost complete Shard.
Love this – Auckland could do with some…
Finally ending up at the Tate Modern gallery.
Entry was free which was pretty cool, though the Damian Hurst exhibition was fifteen pounds – so we flagged it. We did get to see the diamond encrusted skull though, no photos but still cool to see it.
I mostly enjoyed the gallery, a lot of modern art is beyond me, for instance, the three white panels on the wall behind me… Though I did like a few pieces. crazy eyes !
The outdoor eating area where the only guests are pigeons
From the Tate we wandered across the millennium bridge over the Thames and up to St Pauls.
St Pauls and Borough, were both areas I worked in when I was a van driver for DHL back in 1987, i recognised the odd part, but a lot of London has changed since then, not so much in that area, but the skyline has certainly changed, with the Shard and the Gerkin dominating.
I am using the 16-35mm lens, to get the shots I want without too many poles and trees, shooting at 16mm is probably not the best for buildings ! I am loving the lens though 🙂 The front of St Pauls.
We met up with Kate and her partner David at St Pauls and then nipped down to a local pub to watch the opening game of the Euro 2012 football competition. (One all draw between Poland and Greece)
After a couple of drinks it was off to a local Asian restaurant for some dinner and then I caught the tube back to Liverpool St and the train back home just before dark.
The train stops at Stratford where the Olympic games venues are, there is still a bit of work going on around there, but the site looks pretty good !
It was very enjoyable to beout on the streets of London with a camera, I will be back, by myself so I am not so annoying to those who do not want to stop every ten feet while I take another picture. Thanks Trudi, Kate and David – I had another great day.
Not long to CoastPath Run !
Diving, photography, beer – almost a perfect day
Day 149, Friday 1 June 2012, Perhentian Kecil
Wow, the year is disappearing so quickly, its June already. A good day today, one average dive, one awesome dive and I am going to catch up with some of the divers I met today for a drink tonight. Not too much as one more diving day tomorrow – and the last dives of the trip. On the way back from the dive today I was wondering how I could extend for one more day, but not possible, I should have come here sooner I think. If you are planning diving in SE Asia, you have to put the Perhentians on your list!
Not as good a sleep as the night before, but still woke at 7.00 and was feeling OK, I think once I get to the UK I will take a couple of days of doing nothing much – if I can, oh apart from getting some running in every day to drop a couple of KG’s before I have to join Mal in Cornwall on the 15th. Heck that is only two weeks away now !
Lessons were learnt from yesterday so did a bit of washing, caught up on FB and some email and then meandered down to breakfast for 8.30, and things were open. There is a lot of mess on the beach this morning, there was a big party last night – which I of course did not go to, so lots of cans and fag ends all over the place. At least an effort is made to clean it early and it will be spotless again soon I imagine.
The first dive of the day was another wreck – Vietnamese – named as the vessel was sunk during the war, it is a deeper dive so only advanced divers can do it, this meant a smaller group which was good.
What was surprising was there was already four other dive boats when we got to the site !
We were hoping for clear calm waters but the ride out was a bit choppy and we found from one of the divers who were surfacing when we arrived that there was a strong current and visibility was down to four or five metres at the wreck, bugger !
The descent to the top of the wreck at eighteen metres was awesome though, a warm warm, crystal clear sea. However it all turned to crap at eighteen, I was not wearing a wetsuit and the water was quite cold (not NZ cold of course – Malaysia cold !) and visibility was terrible. Could barely see the wreck even up close, seeing fish was next to impossible. We did do a very cool swim through, the entrance was tight and pitch black, and as I was last diver through there was a lot of sediment in the water, It was quite scary going in and then it is totally dark until you look up a bit to see the torch light, and then suddenly you are in the hull and you could easily stand up. Definitely the high point of that dive. After the swim through we ascended up the mooring line, did the safety stop in the stunning crystal blue and then jumped back into the boat. It was a bummer about the conditions, but at least my mask was good and I could see clearly – just not much to see !
I hung around the dive shop over lunch chatting to some of the other divers as we waited for the second dive of the day to Temple.
I had been told by Richard and Blathnaid, who I have kept in contact with since we met at Inle Lake in Myanmar, that Temple was AWESOME, one of their two favourite dives. So I was looking forward to this one.
The ride out in the full dive boat was “choppy”.
And the site had a small swell going but not too bad.
What can I say about Temple: my gear was good – I could see everything, the visibility down to about 14 metres was awesome, the water was warm, I saw bamboo sharks, eels, porcupine fish plus all the usual suspects. A fantastic site, and a great dive – I loved it, best dive for weeks – way better than anything at Koh Tao or Nha Trang. The only thing wrong with it, was it was too short ! The bamboo sharks are tiny and bottom dwell in small caves, in one tiny opening we saw a school of about five or six sharks, all under a metre long. We also got to swim in, through and with a huge school of trevaly and I got up close and personal with a nice sized snapper as well. Great dive !
The ride back was fun, bouncing around the swells, luckily no one on the boat had any dry gear as it would not have been that way by the time we got to shore. I booked myself in for two more dives tomorrow and the guys will get me to a site called T3 which R and B also highly recommended – as did everyone who has dived there. These will be last two dives for a while, though I have completed thirty since I left New Zealand, so will not complain a bit ! The day after I leave Perhentians and soon after that SE Asia.
[edit] The rest of the post is written two days later : ) [/edit]
After the dive, a shower, a lie down and some internet time I wandered over the hill to Coral Bay on the other side of the island for the sunset. The path to Coral Bay was a good snap shot of the negative side of island Malaysia, though of course there are some beautiful bits too !
Unfinished construction
Rubber trees in place of natives,
and trash.
When I arrived I could see the storm clouds gathering so raced out to the jetty to grab a few shots before heading back to find the nearest cafe where I had dinner and waited out the downpour.
Luckily the rain finished and the sky cleared before the sunset so I headed back to the wharf to snap a few shots (quite a few in fact).
And then down to the beach for some final photos.
When it was too dark to take photos I headed back over to Long Beach and had a couple of beers with Jimmy who I was diving with today, and then hooked up with some English guys from the first day and had a few more. I wobbled back to my room at 12.30, a bit late considering I was diving the next day. The Tiger beer here is not as good on the head as other places…
A damn good day though ! diving, photography, companionship and beer !
Monk walks and on to Pakse
Day 126, Wednesday 9 May 2012, Luang Prabang to Pakse
Weird night, I heard voices on the street outside and thought – cool, it must be time to get up and go see the monk walk. I staggered out of bed, checked my watch and realised it was only 1:30 and not 5:30, back to bed. But I never really slept soundly again damnit.
I did get up at 5:45 when the alarm went off and was out the door soon after to catch the monk walk, though disappointingly I really only got the end of it. Luckily I did not listen to the advice of the guest house and go at 6.30 as I would have missed it all.
At dawn the monks from the local monasteries walk the two main parallel streets in Luang Prabang and collected alms, mainly from the local people, though some tourists also buy food and give to the monks. This is of course, a major tourist attraction in LP, and I was amazed at how many westerners are actually here – they obviously wheel out all the gentle folk on package tours for this ‘attraction’ – the tourists I hardly ever see when travelling more cheaply. I had a similar experience at Bagan in Myanmar, very few people around until sunset when all these tour buses magically appear and discharge a flood of tour groupers, who rapidly consume all there is to see and then disappear back on to the air conditioned buses to return to the sanctuary of their resorts.
There are numerous signs around LP advising people to respect the monks, don’t fire flashes in to their faces, keep out of the way and don’t crowd them. As you would expect, this seemed to be largely ignored. I kept my distance and took what photos I could without flash.
It was an interesting experience.
I cannot say this enough, I really liked LP, it is quiet and considered, a little cooler than Hanoi was – though still 33 degrees ! it is off season so things are a little cheaper than peak. My guesthouse is comfy and close to where I want to be, I have met some good people to hang with, and apart from being sick again I am pretty chilled. It is also very clean and tidy!
After breakfast and a wee break I grabbed a tuk tuk to the airport, check in was an hour and half before the flight time so I was there very early, unbelievably I actually went to sleep in the departure lounge on the most uncomfortable seats ever, I only woke when a boarding announcement was made. We all got on the plane and it left almost forty minutes early : ) so cool…
A re-enactment of actual events…
It was an ok flight, i regret not having my camera for the landing approach as there was some great shots to be had. The Mekong is so much clearer in the south of Laos compare to the north and the land is significantly flatter as well as far more arid.
I shared a ride into town with some other travellers and found my way to the Sabady 2 hostel, the guide book recommended place. I have a cheap room, fan only and share bathroom, but half the price of Luang Prabang, the advantage being there are other travellers here.
I checked in and then dumped myself on an outside table with a group of other people, all a lot younger than me, but got myself involved in the conversation and end up having lunch, and then dinner with the group, as well as a wee wander around Pakse.
We had dinner at a Mekong side restaurant, of the four things we ordered, only one person got what they expected, it wasn’t me. My veges turned into a chicken dish that was the hottest thing I have had in asia, I couldn’t eat it ! The good news is my stomach seems OK now – yes !
Tam Coc
Day 119 , Wednesday 02 May, 2012, Tam Coc.
I was put in a new room last night, pretty crap really, TV doesn’t work, bed squeaks really badly and internet is painfully slow, if I can connect at all. There is also no window, reasonably common in some places, but first one time in Vietnam.
I awoke with some trepidation as today I am going to do another tour and after the disappointment of Ha Long Bay I am worried it is going to be another long and tiresome day, at least it is only the one day.
I was picked up late, which is never a great start for me, and I will say pretty unusual for Vietnam, in my experience things generally happen on time. I jumped on the mini-bus to find I was the only westerner and my immediate thought was Oh shit, here we go again ! we did pick up an American girl at another hotel, and once full we were off.
The tour goes to Hoa Lu and Tam Coc. Hoa Lu was the first capital of Vietnam under the Dinh dynasty from 968 – 980 and the Li dynasties from 980 – 1009. The capital was then moved to Hanoi. Tam Coc is known as Ha Long Bay on rice paddies. Both sounded interesting.
Level crossing Hanoi styles, spot the odd person out !
First stop, of course, was a cafe/souvenir shop half way along the four hour drive to Hoa Lu. I started talking cameras with the guy next to me in the cafe and he was in a group of three couples from Miri in Malaysian Borneo (and I place I much enoyed !), like many Malay Chinese they all had great English and were interested to know I had been to their home town. I hung with them for the rest of the day, so yay – I had some tour buddies ! This is obviously no fake !
All along the highway outside of Hanoi there are miles of paddy fields, the area between the Red River and the sea is very productive. A lot of communities and families have rice paddies, vegetable gardens and often a large pond full of fish and ducks, they can be quite self sufficient. Many of the rice paddies will have burial sites in the middle, some quite large and others with just a single grave. Unfortunately I really didn’t get a chance to capture one properly from the bus.
The limestone hills are not going to last long !
Hoa Lu has been pretty much destroyed over the years and there are two key sites left which are the temple sites to the two dynasties, we visited King Dinh first.
King Dinh
Number one son
Next stop was King Li’s temple, though my picture of Mr Li sucked, so it is not here.
I was going to do a bike ride from Hoa Lu to Tam Coc, it is only 12km, but I was the only one who had registered for it, and it was 41.5 degrees outside, yep it sure as hell was hot! I decided to take the bus with the others. Later that night I met some Canadians who had done it the day before (it was only 39 then) and they said the first 500 metres was Ok, then it was gruelling – and the last 7kms were through houses and very dull – he also got sun stroke, so I am glad I chose not to do it.
We had a buffet lunch in Tam Coc, this was the best feed I have had a tour – great variety of foods, and eating with the Malaysians I got to experiment a bit, the goat kebabs were charcoaled though and uneatable – or maybe the goat was tough, not sure. The restaurant sold hats – and believe me, you needed one, it was scorching.
Token bicycle shot…
The afternoons activity was a two hour boat ride through the rice paddies on the Ngo Dong river, we were rowed by a local woman.
As “The Guide” says, it turns into a surreal sales experience, sadly they also demand a tip, which is embarrassing for all. However, the trip was great, quiet and gentle for the most part, there are a huge number of boats, and I can assure you the Vietnamese drive these like they ride motorbikes, no one gives way until the yelling is over…
The river gently meanders through rice paddies, surrounded by magnificent limestone bluffs, with the occasional temple and house along the way. On three occasions we passed through low caves in the lime stone bluffs.
A lot of the men and women row with their feet, which is just amazing to watch, their are also a large number of local photographers, who snap your photo, whether you want it or not and then try to flog you an appalling printed image at the end. This woman was rowing and snapping at the same time, awesome !
After the river we were back on the bus for the ride back to Hanoi. As we were dropping off some of the other guests I recognised the street where my favourite cafe was, so I got dropped off. I found Moom on the first night in Hanoi, and have been unable to find it since, and not through a lack of trying either ! I had a couple of beers and a small pizza with a Canadian couple and a young English t guy, and at nine I wandered back to my hotel for some sleep – the bestest sleep ever !!
Where is Phil now? 
You must be logged in to post a comment.