HUE

Just returned from my (very)early morning run here in Hue,where we’re situated a few blocks from the Stunning Perfume river.

As in Hanoi,as early as 5:30am,young and old are out there walking,dancing,jogging along the parks and boardwalks lining the river.

Clearly this is a way of life here in the cities of Vietnam, which kind of explains the lack of litter and relative cleanliness compared to other densely populated cities I’ve encountered.

These people appear to be a disciplined bunch who value their environment.

The river seems pretty much free of major pollution compared to a similar scenario in say India.

In fact this morning a local lady was already out there peddling the wares of her fisherman husband comprising eels,small fish and tiny turtles caught this morning from the river and destined for the pot.

I’ve been listening to late night CAPETALK and have just heard they yet another truck driver has been murdered near de doorns when someone hurled a boulder from a bridge and proceeded to loot the contents of his load,namely R2m worth of clothing.

This just a few weeks after a farmer was burnt to death in his truck for making the fatal mistake of stopping to rest en route north with his cargo.

Par for the course nowadays and guaranteed to go unpunished!

As I’ve mentioned,from the outside it’s as if I’m hearing about some other unrelated,unbelievably dangerous country,not my own.

We’re travelling to Mexico soon and I’m pretty certain the irony is that I’m pretty certain to  be asked by locals what the $&@& I’m doing travelling to such a dangerous country?

Go figure!

HUE

We took the night bus from Tam Coc to Hue,.....quite a unique experience!😬

These buses cram in 3 rows of double decker bunk type reclining seats and ,although there’s plenty of legroom,once you’re in there’s not a hell of a lot of space to move around the bus.

I managed a lot more sleep than I would’ve on a train or a conventional luxury bus.

Left Tam Coc at 9pm and reached our destination at 7:30 where we were immediately treated to a free breakfast before checking into our room ,complete with canine.

Hue was the ancient capital of Vietnam for centuries and,like Hanoi, carries a lot of the French colonial architectural (and other) influence .

The French colonists were not the nicest guys at the time.

They ruled with an iron fist for more than a century until just recently (around 1960), and committed many atrocities ,.......however the Vietnamese appear to have put these animosity’s aside and utilized the “good” to their advantage.

Looks like a really nice city, lining either side of the impressive Perfume river and maintaining much of the French influence and cuisine.

This place,.....along with Hanoi,was bombed to smithereens by the Americans right at the tail end of the Vietnam war.

The end of the war was virtually fait accompli when Nixon secretly intervened and convinced the south Vietnam leaders at the time to kaaibosch the peace talks .

An American election was looming 18 months down the line and he wanted the newly elected Republicans to achieve the kudos for brokering peace.

The result,.....2 more years of what was clearly a futile war,....and thousands more American body bags .

These events coincided with his decision to carpet bomb the civilian population in these main north Vietnamese cities, resulting in thousands of civilian deaths, and the virtual obliteration of buildings and infrastructure.

An act of genocide??......I wonder whether he’d have made such a decision if the Vietnamese bombers had been within range of the USA?

The full details of these political manouvres only came to light many years later.

BEN STILLER?

We’ve just had the most amazing North Indian meal at a local restaurant here in Ninh Binh.

Read about it on TRIPADVISOR which has had rave reviews for a while now.

As you can see (see pics) I did a Ben Stiller and got soaked in sweat again.Had a Vindaloo and a chicken masala with a cheese and garlic Naan.

Absolutely brilliant ,......cost more or less double the price of a Vietnam meal but still incredibly cheap at under R200 😓😅😬

Arrived back at our home stay and were sitting on the stoep ( it’s cooled down now after a rain shower) watching a spectacular light show from distant lightning.

Impossible to capture it as all nighttime shots on the iPhone (with flash) seem to be pathetic.

STILL TAM COC

We moved yesterday,just up the road, to a place surrounded by rice paddies and tropical fauna.

It also has a nice private balcony overlooking the scenery.

We’ll be here for two nights and have then booked the night bus to the ancient city of Hue (2 nights) .

I’ve also booked ahead for two places at our next spot(after Hue),......Hoi An,......2 nights in the one and 3 nights in another,taking us up till 7th August.

Had planned to go from there to Nha Trang but I reckon if Hoi An is as nice as they say it is,we might just extend our stay there indefinitely.

It’s close to the beach and we’ll book into places with pools and spend 10 days or so at the beach and riding around on mopeds and the free bicycles available at most hotels there.

Motorcycle hire is a standard R65/day and serves to cool the body somewhat in the heat and humidity.

Instead of doing overnight trains/buses from Dansng we’ll probably fly direct to Saigon towards the end of our trip for the last 4 or 5 nights.

IN GENERAL

Travelling is a sure fire way of giving one a perspective from the outside in.

In SA we tend to hear all types of really bad news and shrug it off with comments like,......”oh man it’s not so bad “,.....happens all over the planet” and ,.....”don’t bother with matters out of your control” (i.e.just ignore them and get on with your life if it’s not affecting you).

Total complacency from the majority of the populace!

It’s $&@&ing hot today and we’re sitting in the a/conned room listening to local radio on my TUNE IN app (CAPE TALK/702).

Here’s a brief synopsis of the latest news in SA today:

-ESCOM BAILED OUT WITH A FURTHER 59 BILLION,.....This over and above the mega billions already thrown down the bottomless pit which can clearly only be addressed via the restructuring and down staffing of this useless and incompetent organization.Which will never occur whilst unions have unbridled power!

-MOODYS DOWNGRADES SA FROM STABLE TO NEGATIVE,......the only thing amazing about this one is that it hasn’t occurrenced till now,....soon to be followed by yet another which will even further devastate our non-existent economy.

-ANOTHER FATAL STABBING ONOUR NATIONAL  HERITAGE TREASURE,....TABLE   MOUNTAIN ,.......apparently described as more a massacre than a simple killing by the chair of the Table mountain assoc.This guy was a businessman who made the fatal mistake of deciding to go for a walk in an environment one would expect to be safe?

How many have been stabbed or injured by assailsmts to date,.....how many more need to be killed before effective action is taken???????

-LOCKDOWN ON JOBURG CBD BY BUS STRIKERS DEMANDING 18 PERCENT,.....a daily occurrence where economic “arteries” such as the N2/N1 and entire cities are virtually rendered totally non functional by these actions on a regular basis resulting in looting ,burning of existing infrastructure and total non-productivity where people who really would like to get to work are prevented from doing so daily and for months at a time.

When are these “shutdowns” going to be stopped and perpetrators held to account????

Workers here have already started when I go for my jog at 6am.Tonight when we walk down for a meal at 6pm they’ll possibly be packing up for the day.

That’s 12 hours and guess what,....they’re all working,...all the time.

In SA a 4 hour work day would be regarded by the unions as slavery😬

-“PUBLIC PROTECTOR” (what a contradiction in a term!) JUDGEMENT ON GORDHAN PENDING THIS MORNING,.....this involves yet another of a myriad decisions tying our judicial system up in knots,...and where the few good guys (Gordhan/Ramaphosa) are constantly being harassed by the bad guys and supported by the very person appointed to do the opposite ,....the so called “ public protector”who has already been found to be incompetent,dishonest,deceptive by myriad court decisions.In a “normal” state she would long ago have been forced to step down .Instead she’s spending all of her limited resources on supporting state capture,....normal??I think not!

All of the above in just one single day in SA,.....and tomorrow will read the same just different issues.

The last mentioned above is just the latest of a total fight- back by a bunch of gangsters who should have been wearing orange overalls years ago.

There are a hundred more “bad news” political events in the pipeline too numerous to mention.

This comment doesn’t even consider the 1000 people murdered in Cape Town during the past 6 months ,where the army had now been called in.In other countries that’s called a state of emergency.In SA its par for the course?

Getting the message?........when I’m away it allows me to see the parlous state of our country from outside and  one realises that it’s not just my imagination.

I’ve travelled a bit in my time,.....through some of the more troubled places outside SA ,......never have I witnessed anywhere near this daily abnormal level of malfunction, indicating what is clearly a failing state!

We live in a totally abnormal society which , if not addressed as a matter of urgency, can have only one outcome.

The pics below show the local produce market at 6:30am.

Im not posing with the guy on the moped with the scrap metal ,......his bike had toppled with the weight of his load and I was assisting him.

This was around 8pm in the evening,....on our way out to eat.

The food pictured represents probably 1/3 of our servings last night ( I’d forgotten to take the pics till half way thru😬)

We had this in a fairly “upmarket” touristy restaurant with a beer,.....cost R65 in total .

THE VIETNAMESE

We’ve been here for a week now and some clear characteristics of the local populace stand out quite clearly:

-they’re a pretty fit bunch,.....lots of walking,cycling,.....not many “fatties”around

-when I do my very early morning “run” (around 6:30) these guys are already out there working on building sites,...sweeping streets,...off to school,.......exercising,......going about their daily tasks.There was a time when we too were out there working st 7:30 rather then the 9/10/11 nowadays!

-there’s virtually no littering to speak of,both in cities and rural areas.The usual excuse that this habit is somehow the result of poverty somehow doesn’t seem to apply here ( these guys are certainly not wealthy).The average person simply respects his environment and surroundings,and realizes that keeping it clean is to his/her benefit.

-everyone turns their hand to something productive in order to make a living.Motorcycles are repaired by backyard mechanics,....sheets and duvets manufactured for hotels in surrounding homes,...families assist in the running of business and restaurants around the tourist industry 

-virtually everyone appears quite happy with their lot and gets on with it.Bear in mind that these guys were bombed into oblivion just 50 years ago by the USA.

At the end of the war more bombs were dropped on this northern Hanoi vicinity than in the entire 2nd world war.Despite this there appears to be no bitterness,....they just get on with it.

-they are clearly a very gender equal society and one where grandparents are totally involved with the kids,creating a close family unit.

-they create the most amazing food from fairly basic ( and cheap) ingredients .

-the main form of transport is the moped,.....extremely affordable,resilient,.....unbelievably economical,...and can fit up to 4 people 🤪 to a trip

-their public transport systems work and are not burned and pillaged daily by the very people they’re designed to serve.

-I’ve never felt even remotely in danger,either in the city nor out here in rural areas,......could that have anything to do with accountability?

-I guess they’re held accountable for misdeeds and crimes?,......can’t imagine these people burning and destroying and looting property without being held accountable 

Perhaps we could learn a thing or two from the Vietnamese if we put aside our bitterness and “got on with it”?

Kinda makes one think!

“GRANDSTAND SEATS FOR BOK/KIWI GAME

When I’m overseas I generally can count on catching the important games on my tune in app on RSG (Radio sonder grense).........Obviously in Afrikaans!

So I tuned in (as usual) at the scheduled time taking account of a 5 hour time difference but was astounded ( not to mention &@$ing disappointed) to find that they no longer cover springbok rugby games.

RSG not covering BOKKE rugby games,......what the $&@$’s going on!!!!!

So I immediately cancelled my membership of the AWB,.....my BURGER subscription (seriously my daily paper of choice nowadays) ,my FF PLUS affiliation (u think I’m kidding ?),......and Whatsapped  Lana and Denton ( I knew they’d be watching 😬) and we quickly set up a Whatsapp viewing of the entire match via WhatsApp for the full 80 minutes.

What an amazing game!

This’s one that’ll go down in history as a match to remember.

Thanks guys🤪🇻🇳

Oh this’s one Denton took that side showing me on my bed in Tam Coc,....Vietnam and the elaborate setup required to watch a bok game half way around the planet 😅

TAM COC

Tam Coc is a quaint village south of Ninh Binh in this spectacular touristic area with its inland water bodies,rice fields and limestone mountains.

I’d booked into a place for two nights in central Tam Coc but we’ll be moving tomorrow ,for a further two nights, to a nicer place just 1km away.

Hired a bike from the new place we’re moving to and rode 90km through the most amazing scenic terrain.

Today was one of the few days during this part of the year ( monsoon period) with totally clear sunny weather.

It’s generally partly cloudy,or cloudy with rain for a half an hour or so somewhere along the way.

So far,in the week we’ve been here,we’ve had just 2 short but pretty “serious” downpours which have occurred whilst we were indoors.

NINH BINH

We took an early morning train to Ninh Binh, located around 2,5 hours south of Hanoi (95km) .

I hadn’t expected the Oriental express but this train was really old and run down ,to the point where the recliners were totally non functional and there has clearly been very little maintenance involved for many years.

We were going to be proceeding south on an overnight train from Ninh Binh to Hue, on our next leg south but have decided to go for an over night bus instead.

The two hours were exactly what I enjoy when travelling,.......seeing locals going about their day to day lives,......but 12 hours,....no thanks!

HANOI

Over the past 3 days we’ve walked the old quarter flat,......came across this beautiful Buddhist temple and some amazing street food en route.

Last night we stopped in at just such a place frequented by mainly locals and clearly a local favourite.

The three of us had the most delicious full on meal comprising mainly deep fried prawns 🍤 in a batter,....perk mince mixed with various herbs 🌿,onion etc.,accompanied by the huge plate of green “leaves” which appears to be a staple when sitting down at any restaurant here (kinda takes the place of the huge plate of bread on every table in europe).

The full meal for 3 ,including 3 beers (John an Aussie we’d met over a beer or 6) came to 137000 Vietnamese dong,......R85🤪

These people appear to be incredibly industrious and disciplined.

Despite the thousands of locals constantly utilizing the lake perimeter,....no litter,no vagrants,no beggars,.....in fact no hassling us as tourists as would be the case virtually anywhere else.

And they’re certainly don’t appear to be unhappy with their lot.

Everyone has a smile on their face and turns their hand to something to make a buck.And everyone manages ,and certainly no one seems to be malnourished.

I wonder if this would be the case if half the country relied on grants as is the case in other places on the planet ( no prizes for guessing where I’m referring to)??

Today we took a stroll along “train street”,a district around 1km long ,lined with residential,commercial,retail occupants literally 3 metres away in either side.

Coffee shops,restaurants,chickens,toddlers operating just metres from a working railway line.

We’re off early tomorrow morning on a train to Ninh Binh, just 3 hours south of here.

Enjoyed Hanoi tremendously but looking forward now to a more rural area where we’ll be doing a bit of biking and exploring,....sounds like an awesome place!

AND DOWN OUR STREET 5:30