Another early day starting out at 7am breakfast with Pho at the hotel.
Continue reading “Vietnam 2013 Day 6 – Van Lung and Phat Diem and return to Hanoi”
Vietnam 2013 Day 6 – Van Lung and Phat Diem and return to Hanoi
Vietnam 2013 Day 5 – Outskirts of Ninh Binh
It’s only Day 5 out of 18 and yet I feel like I’ve been on a great adventure already.
Today started out with breakfast at the hotel. Again, another wonderful baguette. With a simple omlette and salt and pepper and butter. I had some Vietnamese green tea with it and I was also given a plate of cut fruit of banana and pineapple.
Continue reading “Vietnam 2013 Day 5 – Outskirts of Ninh Binh”
Vietnam 2013 Day 4 – Halong Bay to Ninh Binh
The morning agenda planned by the tour company is 0630 of tai chi with the sunrise. I was out of my room with no intention of tai chi-ing. Instead, I wanted to take photos. There was no sunrise to speak of.
Still, I enjoyed the quietness of the place and heard the birds awaken and start singing, I noticed the tai chi leader nodding off in her chair as she waited for no one to appear.
Continue reading “Vietnam 2013 Day 4 – Halong Bay to Ninh Binh”
Vietnam 2013 Day 3 – Hanoi to Halong Bay
Day 3 and I was picked up by a guide who took me to a waiting bus to get to Halong City and then transfer to a boat.
The bus ride takes 3.5 hours and 0.5 hours are spent at a miserable gift shop which has toilet facilities with very short doors. I felt like I was in kindergarden again.
Vietnam 2013 Day 2 – Hanoi, the Old Quarter
Today, I spent quite an inefficient day exploring the old quarter. According to my GPS track, I walked 28km. I returned to the hotel three times in between, so had many repeated routes.
Continue reading “Vietnam 2013 Day 2 – Hanoi, the Old Quarter”
Vietnam 2013 Day 1 – Singapore – Hanoi
Nothing in life is truly free. So when I cashed in my almost-expiring frequent flyer miles for a ticket to Vietnam via Cathay Pacific, I knew I would be paying with my time.
Scotland #18 – A wrong turn – Rogie Falls – Lochcarron – Eilean Donan – Isle of Skye
Note: The day described here really happened on the 23rd of August 2012.
I had a very restful night, thanks to ear plugs that I now bring on trips with fellow travellers who snore loudly. It’s their problem if I’m the one snoring and they don’t have ear plugs right? So other than the tea coloured water at Aultguish Inn, I thought nothing of the stay until it was time to load the car.
When I got to the car, I found the front passenger’s window wound down completely. That was curious. It was raining when we arrived and it was cold and the heater in the car was on. I loaded up the car anyway. Then I walked to the driver’s side and discovered that window too, wound completely down.
I started thinking – could the windows have dropped into the door? Because that was what happened to one of our Nissan’s? But it’d be a huge coincidence if BOTH windows did that at the same time.
And then I noticed something else. The locks were also up… And I was sure I double checked locking the doors the night before.
I wondered if there were some people in the middle of nowhere who had taken the car out for a joyride.
What I haven’t mentioned is this: The room had three double beds. And my parents ended up in the same bed in the morning. This again is odd, as they can sleep on their own quite happily when necessary.
But it turned out my mother felt a bony man enter her bed in the middle of the night, and so clambered into my father’s bed after the bony man had left.
And so… that is how an ordinary stay at an inn along the highway made it’s impression on us.
Aultguish Inn. I may never forget the name.
Scotland #17 – Smoo Caves – Durness – North West Highlands Geopark – Elphin – Aultguish Inn
Note: This happened on the 22nd of August 2012.
Just before the town of Durness, if you are coming from the direction of Tongue, is Smoo Caves. I had read about Smoo Caves and was looking forward to the visit.
Scotland #16 – Lairg – Brora – John O’ Groats – Castle of Mey – Dunnet Head – Thurso – Tongue
Note: This all happened 21st of August 2012.
From the little town of Lairg, we headed back out to the coast. From here on, it was an easy drive.
Our first stop is an unplanned one at Brora just for the toilet at the public car park.
There was a sign board there on the history of the town, and a path you could walk. It was not very long, so we decided to walk it. They used to harvest salt here and this town was the first in North Scotland to get electricity.
Scotland #15 – Whitebridge – Inverness Dolphins – Bonar Bridge – Falls of Shin – Lairg
Note: Events described here occurred on the 20th August 2012.
I am only on Day 15 of a 25-day holiday. This is truly taking forever as I try to recall the details of my holiday.
So we leave Whitebridge early to get to Inverness where we planned to take a boat trip out to see if we could catch some Dolphins.