The world's worst example of taxidermy - bad enough to give you nightmares
The poor little horse just after all four hooves were returned to the ground. it does not look at lot healthier than the stuffed one
Our Hoa Binh hotel
A view of the flooding in Hoa Binh from the hotel balcony
Da Nang International Airport - fortunately I only had to spend a couple of hours there this time
Hoa Binh, Hanoi then Home 31st October – 2nd November
After our trip to Sapa Nick and I decided to go to Hoa Binh and Mai Chau. The plan was that I would leave from Mai Chau to return to work and Nick would stay on in the area for a few extra days before she returned to New Zealand. This was the only part of our holiday that was unsuccessful.
Hoa Binh is a hole. There is nothing to see and do in Hoa Binh on a wet day. After arriving back in Hanoi from Sapa we called in at the hotel to tell them that we had changed our plans and to make sure that they would continue to look after some belongings we had left behind. We then caught two local buses to get to Hoa Binh. On the way we passed through some interesting countryside but it was difficult to see in the rain. We did not have a map of Hoa Binh so when we arrived we got advice from some motorbike drivers about a hotel and ended up in one a couple of kilometers from town. It was raining heavily so we stayed there even though it was faux ethnic house and quite expensive. We were keen to see some of the countryside and possibly to take a trip on the lake and traipsed around the town, in the rain, trying to find out about our choices. We had absolutely no luck finding any information or anyone who was the slightest interested in helping us.
Nick and I are both easily amused by small things and events but it was hard to find anything of interest in this boring little town. Our only amusements were two horses. One was a particularly appallingly example of taxidermy and the other was a poor benighted animal that was harnessed to a cart. When a heavy load was added to the back of the cart the weight lifted the horse right up into the air. Unfortunately I was not quick enough with my camera to get a picture.
Even our meals in Hoa Binh were miserable. We had a scrappy lunch in a little restaurant. The food was not improved by watching a group of pigeons eating from the dishes that were waiting on the ground to be washed in a bowl of grimy cold water. Dinner was even worse. The only restaurant near our hotel was set up to cater for tour groups. We arrived early and were met by a sulky waitress who got annoyed with our request for a menu. We were told that we could have “soup, chicken, fish”. Every attempt to discover more was met with the same reply “soup, chicken, fish”. It turned out to be an overpriced set menu consisting mostly of the Vietnamese equivalent of chicken nuggets. To add insult to injury we then had to watch a tour group who arrived later being served much more variety. Disgruntled by an unsatisfactory day we had an early night after devising a plan A and a plan B for the following day.
Waking to even heavier rain meant that plan B was enacted. It did not seem worth continuing on to Mai Chau where the main interests were outside activities so we caught a bus back to Hanoi. It was quite an adventurous trip. We had by this time become more skilled at negotiating bus prices but were surprised that this time the reason that we should pay more was because of the rain. Assertive negotiations resulted in only paying 30% more than the locals but as it turned out we were lucky to get a seat at all. The bus had seating for 25 people but the tootling around looking for customers was particularly successful on this day and before long there were 50 people aboard. After about 40 it seemed impossible that they could fit anyone else aboard but repeatedly they stopped and managed to cram a few more in. It was amusing for me but very uncomfortable for Nick who was awkwardly crammed into a corner. The heavy rain had resulted in extensive flooding necessitating a long detour to get to the bus station in southern Hanoi. The next trip, within Hanoi city, took an hour to travel 10 kilometers because the flooding was so bad. Hanoi was experiencing the worst floods that they have had for 35 years.
During the next couple of days we amused ourselves around the city, dodging the worst of the rain and negotiating flooded streets. It was very difficult for the locals who had flooded homes and businesses. All over the city there were stranded motorbikes. Apparently some people resorted to using boats and hastily assembled rafts to get around but we got everywhere we wanted to go by foot and bus.
It was with sadness that I said goodbye to Nick late on Saturday night. We had a lovely holiday together and thankfully were still good friends after spending almost three weeks in each others company. I got up early to catch a taxi to the airport at 4:00 am, and after a bit of a delay in Da Nang, which is possibly one of the world’s drabbest international airports, arrived back home in Quy Nhon in the early afternoon. I was feeling a bit lonely so it was really nice to be warmly welcomed back by some of the other volunteers.
It was great to get away for such a wonderful holiday but it was also great to be back home.
After our trip to Sapa Nick and I decided to go to Hoa Binh and Mai Chau. The plan was that I would leave from Mai Chau to return to work and Nick would stay on in the area for a few extra days before she returned to New Zealand. This was the only part of our holiday that was unsuccessful.
Hoa Binh is a hole. There is nothing to see and do in Hoa Binh on a wet day. After arriving back in Hanoi from Sapa we called in at the hotel to tell them that we had changed our plans and to make sure that they would continue to look after some belongings we had left behind. We then caught two local buses to get to Hoa Binh. On the way we passed through some interesting countryside but it was difficult to see in the rain. We did not have a map of Hoa Binh so when we arrived we got advice from some motorbike drivers about a hotel and ended up in one a couple of kilometers from town. It was raining heavily so we stayed there even though it was faux ethnic house and quite expensive. We were keen to see some of the countryside and possibly to take a trip on the lake and traipsed around the town, in the rain, trying to find out about our choices. We had absolutely no luck finding any information or anyone who was the slightest interested in helping us.
Nick and I are both easily amused by small things and events but it was hard to find anything of interest in this boring little town. Our only amusements were two horses. One was a particularly appallingly example of taxidermy and the other was a poor benighted animal that was harnessed to a cart. When a heavy load was added to the back of the cart the weight lifted the horse right up into the air. Unfortunately I was not quick enough with my camera to get a picture.
Even our meals in Hoa Binh were miserable. We had a scrappy lunch in a little restaurant. The food was not improved by watching a group of pigeons eating from the dishes that were waiting on the ground to be washed in a bowl of grimy cold water. Dinner was even worse. The only restaurant near our hotel was set up to cater for tour groups. We arrived early and were met by a sulky waitress who got annoyed with our request for a menu. We were told that we could have “soup, chicken, fish”. Every attempt to discover more was met with the same reply “soup, chicken, fish”. It turned out to be an overpriced set menu consisting mostly of the Vietnamese equivalent of chicken nuggets. To add insult to injury we then had to watch a tour group who arrived later being served much more variety. Disgruntled by an unsatisfactory day we had an early night after devising a plan A and a plan B for the following day.
Waking to even heavier rain meant that plan B was enacted. It did not seem worth continuing on to Mai Chau where the main interests were outside activities so we caught a bus back to Hanoi. It was quite an adventurous trip. We had by this time become more skilled at negotiating bus prices but were surprised that this time the reason that we should pay more was because of the rain. Assertive negotiations resulted in only paying 30% more than the locals but as it turned out we were lucky to get a seat at all. The bus had seating for 25 people but the tootling around looking for customers was particularly successful on this day and before long there were 50 people aboard. After about 40 it seemed impossible that they could fit anyone else aboard but repeatedly they stopped and managed to cram a few more in. It was amusing for me but very uncomfortable for Nick who was awkwardly crammed into a corner. The heavy rain had resulted in extensive flooding necessitating a long detour to get to the bus station in southern Hanoi. The next trip, within Hanoi city, took an hour to travel 10 kilometers because the flooding was so bad. Hanoi was experiencing the worst floods that they have had for 35 years.
During the next couple of days we amused ourselves around the city, dodging the worst of the rain and negotiating flooded streets. It was very difficult for the locals who had flooded homes and businesses. All over the city there were stranded motorbikes. Apparently some people resorted to using boats and hastily assembled rafts to get around but we got everywhere we wanted to go by foot and bus.
It was with sadness that I said goodbye to Nick late on Saturday night. We had a lovely holiday together and thankfully were still good friends after spending almost three weeks in each others company. I got up early to catch a taxi to the airport at 4:00 am, and after a bit of a delay in Da Nang, which is possibly one of the world’s drabbest international airports, arrived back home in Quy Nhon in the early afternoon. I was feeling a bit lonely so it was really nice to be warmly welcomed back by some of the other volunteers.
It was great to get away for such a wonderful holiday but it was also great to be back home.
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