November 22nd Early breakfast and an early departure as the “limo” is scheduled to arrive at 07:30 and so it does. We say our goodbyes to the staff and the head receptionist gives us each a hug, thanking us for staying at the hotel and reminding us to give them a positive Tripadvisor report. It…Continue Reading “Sapa/Hanoi/Halong Bay….then Bai Tu Long Bay Cruise > Day 1”
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November 20th The day dawns grey and foggy, we pound back breakfast, stow our luggage at the hotel and with our overnight packs head out to the Sapa Sisters Trekking Adventures office …. ….where we meet our guide. Interestingly, this is the only female and Hmong-owned trekking company in Sapa and in their own words…Continue Reading “Sapa ….trek with Sapa Sisters & Overnight at Zoa’s Homestay”
November 18th We are up bright and early for a 07:00 departure to Sapa…The road covers 315 kilometres and at Lao Cai almost touches the China border. The journey will take roughly 5.5 hours and hopefully, the driver will not be too crazy. Everything we have read points to a certain level of insanity on…Continue Reading “Hanoi to Sapa……north to the highlands and “ascent” of Mt. Fanispan”
November 17th After breakfast we decided to complete our walking tour of the Old Quarter, Hoan Kiem Lake is close to our hotel and the famous Ngoc Son Pagoda (Temple of the Jade Mountain) which sits on an island and is reached by a footbridge. It was built in commemoration of the 13th-century military leader…Continue Reading “Hanoi …….Old Quarter walkabout”
November 16th, 2019 We actually slept pretty well and woke up feeling remarkably gung-ho!! The hotel is well located to visit the Old Quarter > a nice though not luxurious room, comfortable bed…with lots of hot water…Cad 55 per nite including a copious breakfast and super pleasant staff Pretty decent breakfast and with the…Continue Reading “Hanoi…..our first steps and a nighttime street food tour”
November 13/15 Our plans for a fall journey were only firmed up in the fall and formal planning started in October ….so it is a shorter trip than other recent travels with a duration of 32 days….the goal is to visit Vietnam visiting the country from north to south, hitting what we hope will be…Continue Reading “Vancouver B.C. to Hanoi, Vietnam”
We are good to go, nice breakfast, taxi guy is 20 minutes early no problem you can never have too much time at an airport. Very chatty driver and hopeful of upcoming elections to get rid of the military rule currently in place ….good luck to him and the country, they could use some decent…Continue Reading “Bangkok >Taipei > Vancouver > Madeira Park….”
December 24th Christmas Eve dawns hot and muggy, after breakfast we are on our way to Bangkok some 250 kilometers and a world away. Rather than the wooden ferry we arrived on we have opted for a speed boat and speed boat we got… We left at 09:00 on the nose and the previous 40…Continue Reading “Koh Samet to Bangkok ……the Chao Phraya River & Chinatown”
December 20th – 24th Just 200 kilometers from Bangkok in the Gulf of Thailand, the T-shaped island of Ko Samet is famed for its white sandy beaches, exotic coral and crystal clear waters. Interestingly, Koh Samet developed as a distinctly Thai destination servicing the nearby population of Bangkok. At first the rough accommodations among the trees…Continue Reading “Koh Samet…….sunny skies, white sand, warm water and cold beer !!!”
Ko Chang, one of the largest Thai islands in the Gulf of Thailand, contains dense, steep jungle. Mu Ko Chang National Park, a preserve with hiking trails and waterfalls such as the tiered Klong Plu and some offshore coral reefs. The coast is dotted with beaches and villages including Bang Bao, built on piers. We…Continue Reading “Koh Chang…..island laxing & transfer to Koh Samet”