of the border guards who were literally flinging our passports
around, we were glad to leave Cambodia. I don't think I've ever
been so grateful to have one of these in my possession:
and doubly fortunate to have one of these too:
I don't think we realise until we travel further afield and,
especially, to impoverished dictatorship or communist
countries, just how much freedom these passports confer.
And let's face it, these two are the best of the best!
Freedom of speech, freedom of movement, freedom
to be oneself without the fear of always looking over one's
shoulder, never mind all the other plusses these little
books confer on their citizens.
travel in these countries is relatively inexpensive and MUCH
faster than travelling by road.
Da Nang is the largest city in south central Vietnam, located on the
coast and is a major air, road and train hub.
From Da Nang we headed by car to Hoi An,
an ancient town that has now become a major tourist destination.
On arrival we were given the royal treatment - as was everyone else!!
Cooling drinks, cooling cloths and fresh fruit on skewers!!
I can see myself getting used to this treatment!
Love these silk lanterns in the lobby:
and how about how this:
And, the next day we woke up to these views from our window:
Paddy fields to the left:
A Vietnamese home, large by Vietnamese standards:
lovely gardens in the hotel:
with lovely plants.......
crotons and ginger:
and breakfast at this lovely spot:
waaaaaay too much breakfast!
Later in the week, we headed on a tour to the Marble
Mountains. The mountains are situated just south of
Da Nang and are a group of five marble and limestone
hills named after 5 elements: metal, water,wood, fire
and earth.
The area is famous for stone sculpture-making and stone
cutting crafts:
I wish I could have taken this home with me!
Or these:
I'm trying to cultivate a Buddha belly- when in Rome........
Honestly it's all fluid retention in the heat!
But the photo was a wake-up call!
We were headed here:
and we were going up the conventional way:
The Stairway to Heaven!
Now, if 156 steps sounds easy, let me assure you it wasn't!
The day was very hot and humid. The steps were very irregular
with no hand rails and the rise of each step was very steep.
Pausing frequently to cool off and b- r-e-a-t-h-e......... and
getting a bit peeved by comments from Anna, I told her at one
point to kiss my ass in Polish. Who knew? One of the members
of our little group, and from Sweden of all places, understood
exactly what I had said! It really is a small world! She had worked
for a while as a career for a Polish person and had picked up
the rudiments of the language!
Our little group from Sweden and France with our lovely
tour guide on the far right, Ling.
The Stairway to Heaven is home to Buddhist and Hindu grottoes
and Buddhist temples:
The Tower of Pho Dong
And, at the top of the mountain.......
Thuy Son- the largest grotto and home to a VietCong
hospital during the War.
guarded by these Hindu guards on either side:
The American Forces, aware that the VC had a hospital here,
bombed the area heavily, as evidenced by large holes in the
roof of the cavern.
And the view at the top:
In the far distance, the South China Sea and My Khe beach,
the famous China Beach of TV fame.
Trust me, coming down was far easier than going up!
We stopped for lunch at a typical Vietnamese eatery
in Da Nang:
and were able to see a small part of the city.
Da Nang was a major air base during the Vietnam War
and used both by the Americans and the South Vietnamese
Forces. During the war years it was one of the world's busiest airports.
It is also one of the many areas in Vietnam that is heavily contaminated
with dioxins from the use of Agent Orange during the war. This was
used as a defoliant and deforestation agent so the enemy could be
more visible. It was also used to kill off rice crops so there was less
food for the VietCong.
During the Vietnam War, Washington and chemical company
executives, stated Agent Orange " did no harm to humans."
We now know dioxins are one of the most harmful chemicals
ever developed:
showing up in 3rd generation Vietnamese and Vietnam vets.....
It took MANY years for the Vietnam vets to receive some form of
compensation from the US Government for the horrific effects
of Agent Orange that they were exposed to, and which was touted
to be " safe."
Manufactured by Monsanto and Dow Chemicals......
Monsanto is now heavily into genetically modified organisms-
GMO's - which affect our crops and food supplies. They say
GMO's are perfectly safe too. History repeating itself??
Unfortunately they refuse to accept any liability for the
Vietnamese people who have suffered and continue to suffer
with the long term effects of Agent Orange. The only financial
aid they receive is from the Australian Government. Outside
Da Nang, a village where many of these people live.
After lunch, a drive to Monkey Mountain, no monkeys
to be seen today!
And this massive Lady Buddha statue that can be seen
from miles away along the coastal road....
Alongside this Buddhist pagoda......
and this great view from the mountain with Da Nang in the distance
A big thank you to our guide, Ling, for sharing her knowledge
of the land and its history and for making this tour so
memorable.
and also for sharing her own personal history.......
Talk soon
Zoe
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