Day 9 - Hoi An to Nha Trang

 

Before checking out of the hotel in Hoi An, we went to a see a modern multi faith temple which was almost opposite the hotel. 


Multi Faith Temple

Inside the temple

Temple Windows


We then left Hoi An and were driven back to Da Nang Railway Station.

 

How to transport a 6'x4' panel

On the way we visited Marble Mountain which is a set of 5 small mountains on the outskirts of Da Nang. Each mountain is named after one of the elements and marble is mined here. Before going to the mountain we went to a Marble factory and saw specialists carving intricate designs in the marble to make large ornamental pieces. There were many large and small pieces inside and out that were for sale. While admiring a very large urn that would look good in a hotel foyer, a sales assistant helpfully told us that if we wanted to buy it they would arrange to deliver it to our home address. I cant imagine what the freight charge would be. We politely declined. Most of the smaller pieces were labelled with the weight, designed to let tourists decide if they have enough luggage allowance. 


Marble Factory

Sea Horse plus sculpture of elephant with broken trunk -
all that work to make and it gets broken....

Very ornate garden furniture

Marble Rabbits

After the factory we visited Water Mountain which has a lift to take visitors about two thirds of the way up. There were many pagodas and traditional buildings up there. We had the choice of going to a cave or climbing to the top of the mountain. Just myself and another guy (Andy) chose to go to the top but had not been told what to expect. We both thought it would be up and back. When we thought we were reaching the top there were more tourist souvenir stalls, so not the lovely views we had expected. There were 5 different paths to take and we took the one that seemed to continue uphill but we were very soon going down steep steps. We decided that this must lead back to where we had left the rest of the group so continued but eventually found ourselves back at the road but quite a long way from the lift. We walked very fast and at the lift there was no sign of the group so we assumed they must be waiting for us. We needed a ticket to retake the lift but I managed to explain that our guide was waiting for us at the top and we had come down another path by mistake. I don’t know if he understood or not but he let me go up and Andy waited at the bottom. I soon found the group, close to where we had left them and they had been waiting a long time and were wondering where we were. Paul went to the cave with the others and said there were bats flying around which I would have enjoyed seeing. 

Pagoda on Water Mountain

View to other mountains in the Marble Mountain Range

Old houses on Water Mountain

Small cave at top of mountain

Steps up to opening in the rock

One of the many big butterflies we have seen - they never seem to land 
so I was lucky to catch this one with its wings open

Our last visit before getting the train was to My An beach in Da Nang. The waves were very high and red flags were flying all along the beach but still people were in the sea, some quite a long way out. It was a lovely clean, long sandy beach and uncrowded. 


My An beach looking north to Monkey Island

My An beach looking south

Pearl display on promenade

After that we were taken to the Railway Station where we said goodbye to our guide and met our new guide who will be with us for the rest of our time in Vietnam. He speaks excellent English and made a real effort to get to know us while on the train. It was a 9 hour journey and we left Da Nang just after 2 pm. While we had daylight we just looked out of the window and watched the countryside and small towns go by. People were tending to crops, mainly rice but also sweetcorn and sweet potatoes. We saw thousands of egrets including our familiar Little Egrets which we get in our garden. Here are some photos taken of rural Vietnam from the train. 


Group of people working the rice fields and egret at edge of field

Rice and sweetcorn grow side by side

Wide river crossing

Farmer with water buffalo

Small village

Egrets in flight

Cemetery in the rice fields.  We saw many 
cemeteries and graves within the rice fields..
It is because the Vietnamese believe you enter the 
world with rice so must leave with rice

Water Buffalo alongside railway

One of the more attractive rural houses.

We arrived at Nha Trang around 11.15 and were taken to our hotel.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Day 13 - Cu Chi Tunnels

Image
We were out early for the 2 hour drive to the Cu Chi Tunnels.  It was only about 40 miles away but the Saigon traffic makes it very slow going.   These are a network of underground tunnels created by the Viet Cong when fighting against the US forces during the Vietnam War.  We did a walking tour above ground and saw how the tunnel entrances were camoflaged, how the Viet Cong soldiers hid underground and were able to surprise the US soldiers by apparently appearing from nowhere, the booby traps that they laid to capture and kill US soldiers and how the underground bunkers were used to recycle the captured weapons, ammunition and militiary vehicles.  Some of their tactics were barbaric to say the least but very clever.  We were able to go through one short section of the tunnel but it involved almost crawling through.  I also had a go at hiding in an underground hole.  The tour finished with a film showing some actual scenes taken by the Viet Cong. ...
Read more

Day 23 - Luang Prabang to Vientiane

Image
We went out at 5.30 am to take part in the daily giving of alms where food is given by the local people to the monks.   As tourists we could buy pots of rice for £1.  We had to sit on small chairs and were given a scarf and plastic glove.   We were told to put a small amount of rice into the bowls that the monks carried as they passed by.  Some others were giving fruit, biscuits or money.  This is how they get their daily food. Anything left over is given to the poorest families.     Us giving alms to the Monks We then visited the nearby temple of Wat Sene before going back to the hotel for breakfast and checkout.   Wat Sene   Vintage Citroen owned by a hotel.  1 of 2 remaining Citroens in Laos  from the French Colonisation After breakfast we were taken back to the town centre to climb the 300 steps to the top of Mount Phusi where there is a stupa created in 1804. Legend says that the mountain was moved from Sri Lank...
Read more

Day 18 - Phnom Penh to Siem Reap

Image
This morning we learned about the Khmer Rouge regime of genocide from 1975 - 79.  We first visited the Genocide Museum which was the prison in Phnom Pehn where the overthrown government officials were sent at the start of the regime.  Later educated people and those from minority backgrounds were also sent here. Most would be killed here or sent to the Killing Fields for execution.   Entrance   Cells where men were kept   Cells where women were kept   Monument to those who died here  Later we visited the killing fields which is a peaceful area today but was the scene of some very macabre times in the 1970s.  It is the Asian version of Auschwitz. People were brought here, executed and buried in mass graves. Over time some bones have become visible after the rains and have been left on display. It was extremely gruesome and the atrocities were largely hidden from the rest of the world.   Remembrance building containing hundreds of skulls...
Read more