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Jan 2018 – Sep 2025

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  • Brian MooreHomeTraveler
    Anne admiring the viewStork billed kingfisherKingfisherKingfisher

    Langkawi island

    March 3, 2018 in Malaysia ⋅ ⛅ 34 °C

    We were picked up from our lodge and went by speed boat again to Sandakar to connect with our flight to Kota Kanabuli . An overnight here at the same hotel we used before ( fortunately the Chinese New Year had passed, so it was much less frenetic) and then we were off to Langkawi island via KL. Langkawi is a group of islands off the west coast of Malaysia.

    We arrived in Langkawi minus one suitcase which happily rejoined us six hours later. We have five nights here staying at a nice hotel right on the beach. A very beautiful and relaxing location.

    We have spent most of our time here sitting by the pool admiring the view from the infinity pool overlooking the beach and ocean. It’s been a steady 30+ degrees and the pool is almost the same temperature - very pleasant in the morning, but more like bath water by the afternoon. We were able to ‘enjoy’ the excitement of Kinsale’s heavy snowfall vicariously via updates from Patrick and Paula who had left Calgary specifically to avoid the snow!

    We did make one expedition to go bird watching one morning. Our main focus was to spot a Giant Hornbill, but it was not to be. This hornbill is 1.4 metres long! We did see a Crested Serpent Eagle and two varieties of Kingfisher. It was a very pleasant morning spent with a very knowledgeable guide.

    After a very lazy and relaxing few days it was time to tackle the journey home. Amazingly our suitcases arrived on the same plane as we did after changing planes three times in the journey. The return trip was very smooth and we were soon back in Kinsale just in time to see the last of the snow gently melting away.

    Overall we enjoyed our trip and saw many interesting sights. It was however a lot of travelling and in future we will be finding a base somewhere for an extended period then travel from there to visit nearby locations of interest.

    We will spend the next while recovering and reflecting on all the interesting places and sights that we have experienced.    Read more

  • Brian MooreHomeTraveler
    Rhinoceros hornbillProbocis monkeysOur speedboat

    Sakau

    February 25, 2018 in Malaysia ⋅ ⛅ 32 °C

    We were picked up at our nature lodge by our new guide and taken to the Sandakan harbour where we boarded a speedboat with about ten other people. The trip took about three hours of pretty fast sailing. We did experience a couple of heavy showers along the way, so we all got a bit damp - the boat had a roof, but was open at the sides.

    Along the way the guides got very excited as we saw their version of the ‘ big five’ - Pygmy elephants ( which max out at 2.3 mtrs tall) , a wild orangutan sitting in a fig tree having a great feast on the fruit. Once it started raining heavily again, we watched him cover himself with branches and even break off a branch that had a good leaf cover and use it as an umbrella. We also saw proboscis monkeys, a crocodile and a rhinoceros hornbill. The boat ride was great as we really felt we were in the deep jungle - mangroves and lots of thick bush.

    We arrived at our new lodge which is one of the National Geographic Unique Lodges of the World. The accommodation is great - we have our own chalet with a deck that faces the jungle. After settling in, we joined our guide for an evening boat cruise - this time we came prepared for the sudden showers as Brian quickly purchased ponchos for us. We saw more probiscis monkeys but little else except the jungle scenery.

    We got back just in time for a mediocre dinner with our guide and discussed our plan for the next day that was to include a visit to a cave to see the bats leaving in the evening ( high on Anne’s list of things to do). However, he went on to explain that the area is covered with cock roaches - apparently all the handrails are covered with them. In addition there are also long legged centipedes, but the final icing on the cake was that you are provide with masks due to bat guano dust, and a helmet to stop stuff falling on your head! One look at Anne’s face, I realised that my life long ambition to watch millions of bats fly out of a cave had to be shelved! Anne did offer for me to go on my own, but I wouldn’t want to do that would I!!

    The next morning we set off for our early morning boat cruise at 6:30 and discovered why it’s called the rain forest. It had rained hard all night and at 6:30, it was still bucketing down. However, being hardy Brits, we donned our newly purchased ponchos and set off regardless. Not sure the effort was worth it, but we did see a crocodile, a stork-billed kingfisher, Black Hornbills and a number of monkeys. Our guide is such a keener that we stayed out much longer than the other people only to find, when we got back to the lodge, that they had scoffed most of the breakfast!

    Later in the morning we did a short walk on a covered walkway around the lodge, but as it was still raining hard, the birds and animals were wisely keeping a low profile, so we only saw a few monkeys but had some interesting information from our guide about the trees and plants that we saw.

    Later in the afternoon, we ventured out with our guide once more for our last boat cruise. It had rained solidly all day, so donned in our ponchos, off we set to see if we could spot any wildlife. As you can imagine, there wasn’t a lot of action, but we did spot more Black Hornbills, a White Bellied Sea Eagle, a Brahmin Kite. We also spotted some Silver Langur (Silver Leafed Monkey), some pig-tailed Macaque and a flock of night herons. Not a bad haul considering the weather.

    We leave tomorrow to go back to Kota Kinabalu for a night and then on to
    Langlowi Island for our last five days before returning to Ireland.    Read more

  • Brian MooreHomeTraveler
    Its such a hard lifeThe winner!Macaques

    Sandkan

    February 24, 2018 in Malaysia ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C

    Aftera 50 minute ride in a small prop plane we arrived in Sandakan - BA and Aer Lingus could learn a lot from the Asian Airlines - impeccable service AND we were served a meal! We were met by our guide and taken to the MY Nature Lodge which is set in one of the oldest rain forests in the world. It’s very clean, but quite basic and very environmentally aware, I.e. biodegradable hair products, body soap etc. plus solar panels on each chalet that provided hot water. There are only 12 guests at the moment, mostly Brits with a couple of Germans thrown into the mix Everyone is very chatty and there are lots of stories about their travels to date.

    This morning we were taken to the Orangutan sanctuary in time to see the young ones being fed. We spent a fascinating hour watching them play and eat. Some of them orphaned while others had been taken as pets and then released into the wild when they got too big. Of course, they couldn’t provide for themselves so the people at the sanctuary are rearing them with the hopes that they can be rehabilitated. There are no fences to stop the animals leaving and mixing with the wild ones who live in this area. They generally lead a solitary existence rather than living in a group. One young male has been taken to the jungle several times when it was deemed he was ready to go, but he just keeps coming back. He’s known as the naughty one and obviously is quite lazy as he has decided it’s a much easier life to get three squares a day without having to do any work for it! They were each given a coconut and it was interesting to see firstly their strength as they tore the outer husk off the fruit then banging them on the ground to crack them enough to drink the juice then finally to split them apart to get to the coconut flesh.

    Afterwards we went to a feeding station that is out in Jungle. A couple of Macaques monkeys had got there first and are so aggressive that the oranutangs were afraid to go to the platform for the food so they had to wait until the monkeys left before getting the leftovers.

    Our final stop before lunch was at a Sun Bear sanctuary. Again the keepers are working towards rehabilitation for the bears - some were there because again they had been taken as pets and released when they grew too big, some were orphaned and some had been rescued from bear farms.

    By now, it was really steamy, so we retreated back to the lodge for lunch and a cool down.

    After lunch we set off to visit the proboscis monkeys and watch them have their lunch. No one would ever think of them as good looking, but they are interesting. We watched a hareem at the feeding station with the one alpha male. There was one female whose baby had died but she was still carrying it around with her, apparently they will do this for a couple of days before accepting that it is dead and let it go - quite sad. When the food arrived they all sat together and had the food. Clearly sitting with all the ladies gave the male ideas, so he promptly mounted a couple of them much to the consternation of some of the more naive elder human lady observers, who did not understand what was going on.

    That concluded our exertions for the day and we returned to the lodge for a rest and cool shower. We must say that the food here has been uncompromisingly local, no western dishes at all, strictly rice and some local veg, fish and chicken. The staff are delightful and keen to help but are not very proactive about giving out information - our room was not serviced because we hadn’t given them the key - who knew!    Read more

  • Brian MooreHomeTraveler

    Shangri La Kota Kinabalu

    February 22, 2018 in Malaysia ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C

    We are now on the N coast of Borneo having arrived here via KL airport. The trip had two legs each of about two hours and we were informed by Malaysian Airways that for flights under three hours, there is no booze on board. Guess we are now in a serious Muslim country!

    As we arrived at our hotel after dark we did not appreciate the size of the hotel until the next day, although we did consider dropping breadcrumbs along the way when the porter was showing us to our room! It’s huge some 500rooms and it caters for families. This being Chinese New Year it means that it’s full of Chinese families in particular. Unfortunately Chinese children seem to be extremely poorly behaved. There are multiple bars and places to eat - it’s a bit like Butlins Holiday Camp of old.

    The good news is that It’s located in a great spot, just opposite several offshore islands, that have good snorkelling and diving sites. The other good news is that there are several pools on the property, one being strictly reserved for adults and I am very happy to say that the lifeguards strictly enforce this rule. If a child as much as dared dip a toe in the adult pool, a shrill whistle was heard and the children were ushered away.

    We did suffer a bit of culture shock after all the more sedate hotels we haven staying in. As we descended a flight of steps to the morning breakfast buffet room, we were greeted first by someone dressed up as a tiger, wearing big red Ronald MacDonald type shoes, (possibly a dog as it is the year of the Golden Dog), whose role it was to get all the kids excited. The buffet was huge, catering for western foods, Chinese foods, Malaysian food and Korean food. It was surrounded by hordes of adults and children grabbing their food. There were many signs saying don’t take too much food as it will be wasted, but it was “kid heaven” - one little boy had fried rice, dim sum, fried egg and a chocolate coated donut in the middle of his plate - yum! The next day we learned that this particular area is referred to ‘the war zone’ by the hotel staff - the next day we ate outside in relative peace and quiet.

    The hotel fulfilled its purpose of giving us a day to relax before journeying deeper into the rain forest. We made the most of this by enjoying a pleasant day by the pool.

    We are now off to the rain forests to see the orangutans, sun bears and various monkeys and do some bird watching. The highlight for Brian will be to see Anne cringing when we go at dusk to watch millions of bats and raptors fly out of a cave!    Read more

  • Brian MooreHomeTraveler
    It stayed afloat!
    Rice paddiesThe backpacker special!

    Tonle Sap

    February 20, 2018 in Malaysia ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C

    It was a bit of a struggle getting moving today as we were both a bit stiff after the unaccustomed exercise of yesterday. Once we moving we went off to visit Tonle Sap. This is one of the largest lakes in the region and quadruples in size during the wet season as the large amounts of water in the Mekong River cause the Tonle River, which normally drains water from the lake, to reverse its flow and fill the lake instead of draining it. The inhabitants on the lake live in floating villages and they merely move their houses from one location to another, depending on the level of the water.

    We had our own tour boat, but there were lots of craft of different sizes and seaworthiness around. Some were making a six hour journey to Phnom Phenh - these seemed popular with back packers, many of whom were sitting on the roof of the boat along with their luggage. Another boat filled with a group of Boy Scouts had such a severe list to port that we were surprised that it did not capsize! We had a nice cruise along the river and out onto the lake where we visited the local village complete with its school, police station, church and temple. We stopped at an crocodile farm, shop and cafe that offered a view over the village. Quite interesting trip.

    The afternoon was spent relaxing by the pool and keeping cool.    Read more

  • Brian MooreHomeTraveler
    Angkor Wat
    Sort of sunriseOne of several librariesWakie wakie!Bas relief

    Ankor Wat

    February 19, 2018 in Cambodia ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C

    After a four hour ride in a very comfortable coach we arrived in Siem Reap for one of the big highlights of the trip see Angkor Wat.

    We stayed in one of the Raffles Hotels - very colonial. The service level was outstanding throughout the hotel and we even had a butler to perform tasks such as drawing the perfect bath for us to our personal specifications, bringing us tea or coffee if we requested a wake up call and packing for us before we leave! Never took advantage of this perk, but it was nice to know we could have!

    We got up at 4am the next day, in order to get to Angkor Wat to see the sunrise. (Some grumbling from Anne that it better be worth it!) we arrived by Tuk Tuk in complete darkness, and then walked quite a ways onto the site. There was us and about 2,000 other people, all there awaiting the moment when the sun would rise behind the famous temple. Unfortunately there was quite a heavy haze that morning, so by the time the sun appeared, it was well up in the sky. However we were still able to get lots of pics as it got lighter and the temple appeared out of the darkness. Angkor Wat is the best known of the temples in this area of which there are many. We did a full tour around the temple and admired the bas relief carvings that covered many of the walls, quite fine and detailed work depicting life and activities at that time.

    Photography was challenging for the whole day, as every scenic spot was usually spoiled by some young lady who was posing in front of it in a pseudo- model way - very irritating! Did I mention that there were many Chinese there as it was their new year and they are on holiday?

    After having a good tour round Angkor Wat, we retired to a local cafe to eat the very nice breakfast that our hotel had packed for us. Thus refreshed, we went through the Victory Gate to the Bayon Temple in Angkor Thom, which had once been in the centre of a large town. Apparently they built for their temples for their Gods in stone, but built for man in wood, so nothing remains of their towns. This temple is noted for the faces that are carved into many of the towers of the temple - quite atmospheric apart from the aforesaid posers!

    On we went to Preah Khan, a temple that is a little overgrown by the jungle. As a UNESCO site, different countries have elected to renovate or restore different temples. We think this one may have been worked on by the Japanese. Each temple we visited was surrounded by a moat around the four sides.
    Our final visit was to Ta Prohm maybe one of the most famous temples as it features many large trees growing out of the stone work and gradually reclaiming the site. Very interesting to see the extent and size of the roots of these large trees.

    While the whole site is very interesting it is in a flat area so it does not really compare to the great sites of the world such as Machu Picchu, Petra or the Valley of the Kings in Egypt.

    During our visit we had the services of a Tuk Tuk which moved us around the large site and certainly beat trying to walk around it, despite this, we still managed to clock about 7 kms of walking plus lots of flights of steps - quite a feat in the heat of the day.

    After lunch we took a Tuk Tuk to the downtown area where there are many cafes, guesthouses and hotels, catering for tourists and backpackers. We sampled some of the local beer and visited a craft workshop which produced quite interesting work.

    Finally a pleasant swim in the hotel pool to recover from the exertions of the day - it was like getting into tepid bath water - brilliant!    Read more

  • Brian MooreHomeTraveler
    Cow washing day!
    Granny cooking dinnerFishermans floating villageAt restHas to be a sunsetSan pan home

    Cruise on the Lower Mekong 10th-17th Feb

    February 19, 2018 in Cambodia ⋅ ⛅ 29 °C

    Today we joined up with the rest of the passengers who are going on the Pandaw cruise on the Mekong. Some of them have been part of a tour group visiting Vietnam and some, like ourselves, have been doing their own thing. Our fellow passengers are a mixed bunch of nationalities- a few Canadians, quite a few Brits, a few Aussies and a European or two. About 42 in total with the max capacity of the boat being 48. Apparently some are doing the seven day cruise like us, while some are doing five days and some just three days.

    We all met up in Saigon at a central hotel and then took a ninety minute coach ride to the boat on the Mekong Delta. By the time we had done the intro briefing and had lunch we were well underway. The cabins are compact but adequate for our needs, each with an en-suite bathroom.

    We had a relaxing afternoon on the sun deck then sampled some of the local beverages in the complimentary happy hour. A performance by a local group of musicians and singers completed the pre-dinner activities.

    One thing the boat did not have was any kind of reliable wi fi, so what follows is a summary of our seven days gently cruising around the Mekong Delta and lower Mekong River.

    Our general pattern( after having a substantial breakfast) was to visit a location in the morning then return to the boat and have lunch while the boat cruised to the next point of interest. After that expedition, we returned to the boat to sit on the sun deck and snooze, read, drink etc while watching the world go by as we sailed along. After dinner each evening there was a movie presentation but we never managed to stay awake long enough to attend any of them.

    Among the trips we made from the boat were ...

    Visit to a floating wholesale fruit market where the local retailers in small boats were buying from larger boats

    Visit to see local products being made including rice wine, snake wine (rice wine where snakes are put into the wine and the whole thing left to ferment for a year or two- we declined to sample this one), rice paper and pop rice.

    A San-pan ride through the canals of a village each rowed by a local fisherman
    or woman. That was very interesting as the canals were really narrow, so we were really close to the bush and houses which made us feel like we were really experiencing the real Cambodia.

    Visits to various markets along the river that would certainly not encourage you to eat the local meat or fish!

    The major city that we visited along the way was Phnom Penh (the capital of Cambodia) where we visited the king’s palace and the national museum.There was also a visit to the killing fields offered but we declined in favour of further exploration of the city.

    As we sailed, passing from Vietnam to Cambodia, it was easy to spot that we had passed from a relatively wealthy, vibrant country to one that is struggling to catch up. One thing in particular in Cambodia is the attitude to garbage. They just throw anything on the floor be it a bottle, a wrapper a piece of paper and no one seems to make any attempt to clean it up, whether it’s in their shop, garden or house. Consequently the whole countryside is covered with garbage. I suspect that when the rains come and much of this area floods it all gets washed down to the ocean.

    So a pleasant easy week of relaxation and sightseeing without too much effort on our part.    Read more

  • Brian MooreHomeTraveler
    Lunch anyone?
    City hallRoom in the palaceNotre damePost office 1880Year of the dog window display

    Saigon

    February 9, 2018 in Vietnam ⋅ ⛅ 25 °C

    After a smooth flight from Da Nang, we arrived in the hot hustle and bustle of Saigon. While we felt that Hanoi was busy, it felt somewhat restrained but Saigon is just full on. There are more motor bikes and scooters than cars here (10 million people live in Saigon and 8 million of them have motorbikes/scooters) and they just ride them in any direction; whether it’s on the road or the sidewalk. In terms of crossing the road, there is no point in waiting till the road is clear because it never is clear. You just have to step off the curb and proceed across the road at a steady pace. No-one will stop for you, but they will drive around you. If you rush or you stop, then chaos ensues. It takes nerve to do it the first time but after that you believe that you will get to the other side unscathed and it works.

    We are on a VIP floor at the Caravelle hotel for some reason and they indicated that canapés were available in the late afternoon. When we showed up there was a full feast available complete with free wine! There was lots of Sushi, rice dishes, French fries, baguettes and cheese, etc etc. Unfortunately we had made dinner reservations so we were not able to take full advantage. Tonight we expect to eat our dinner there! In our hotel there is a famous rooftop bar where all the generals and war correspondents used to drink. It’s very nice and open to the breezes. From there we can see across to another famous rooftop bar at the Rex hotel, where the American press briefings were held during the war.

    For dinner we went to an Italian restaurant close to the hotel that was highly recommended. We both had pasta and I thought that my ravioli was the best pasta I have ever eaten- outstanding!

    Today we did a walking tour of the city. We started in the downtown area, visiting the city hall and the Notre Dame church. We also passed the spot where the famous photo of the helicopters evacuating the last of the Americans was taken. We then drove to the old national palace which is now a museum but shows the old meeting rooms etc as they were. Our next stop was rather depressing. It was a museum called the war remnants museum. It used to be called the American war crimes museum and that is still the major thrust of the place. The Americans certainly have a lot to answer for including their use of Agent Orange to defoliate the country. However, it was of course one sided ( the victors always get to write the history) with the communists apparently blameless. Nice collection of American planes, helicopters, tanks and guns which they left behind. Anyway rather depressing all told.

    We next visited a pagoda that was built in the early 1800’s to honour Buddha, before being dropped off at the local market. The market was enormous and sold everything from meat, fish, fruit, vegetables to clothes and souvenirs. The very first clothing stall we came to, Brian was captured ( physically) and was persuaded to buy some golf shirts etc. Very aggressive stall holders but fun bargaining anyway. We then wandered back to our hotel and on the way visited an indoor plaza that was full of very high-end shops; Coach, Prada, Chanel etc etc. Clearly someone has money to spare in this city. As it’s very close to the lunar new year, there are signs and preparations everywhere. This year it’s the year of the dog and there are many statues of dogs of different colours and sizes on display and also lots of yellow(chrysanthemums ) and red flowers being placed into arrangements. This is the biggest festival of the year, so most people take a week off to celebrate the event - somewhat like Thanksgiving, when people try to go home for the holiday to be with family.    Read more

  • Brian MooreHomeTraveler

    Hoi An 2

    February 8, 2018 in Vietnam ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C

    At last ...... sunshine! Finally, the weather took a turn for the better and after a cloudy start, the sky cleared and we had a beautiful sunny day. It was still a little cool in the breeze, but we gratefully made use of the loungers around the three pools and enjoyed the sunshine.

    We did our constitutional along the beach, so felt that we had done at least some exercise. Anne dipped her toes in the sea and quickly retreated - too cold to swim in and today, a yellow flag was flying on the beach, that apparently indicates “sea pests” whatever they may be!

    The pool staff were very attentive and came around several times offering pieces of fruit, water, small ice creams, or offering to clean our sunglasses etc- very civilised. Had a nice pizza and beer served on our loungers for lunch, also very civilised. Have attached some pics showing the pool areas in the sunshine.

    Off to Ho Chi Minh city tomorrow where it is reported to be 30 degrees so that will be quite a change.    Read more

  • Brian MooreHomeTraveler

    Hoi An

    February 6, 2018 in Vietnam ⋅ ⛅ 17 °C

    Hoi An was our next stop. It’s on the coast near Da Nang and about an hour’s plane ride from Hanoi. The drive from the airport to the hotel showed us a very long sandy beach with an enormous amount of building going on for resort hotels and apartments. Some efforts seem to be proceeding well, but others have clearly run out of money, as the half-built structures attest.

    It is still quite cool here, about 15 degrees with a fairly stiff breeze. We have our own villa again that looks out onto the beach. It would be idyllic if the weather was warmer - since we have been here, a red flag has been flying on the beach showing that it is unsafe to swim. There are three pools in the complex - two are unheated, but one feels like bath water - the thought of undressing in the frigid air, does put you off wanting to take a dip! Our villa is quite large with two seating areas and a bed placed in the centre of the room. There is also a large soaking tub by one of the seating areas! We also have a his and her’s dressing area, two sinks and a separate shower, plus an outdoor shower in a private courtyard - not too shabby at all!

    We went into the town of Hoi An today which is a world heritage site. It’s a nice little tourist town beside a river. There are some old parts such as a Japanese bridge which dates from 1780, a house that has been in the same family for about 300 years. The ladies of the house do amazing embroidery and we were persuaded to buy a tablecloth and napkins - such pushovers! Otherwise there are lots of tourist shops, some nice restaurants, a big market and a number of places where you can get a suit made in 24 hours. Along the river there are lots of boats offering cruises along the waterfront.

    The New Year here falls on Feb 16 this year, so we have seen lots of preparations taking place - lanterns being hung, street lights and flags etc. Beside the roads we have seen lots of places selling peach blossom trees, yellow chrysanthemums, kumquat trees and trees bearing very large grapefruit. We think these are all to do with the festival in some way.    Read more

  • Brian MooreHomeTraveler

    Hanoi 2

    February 6, 2018 in Vietnam ⋅ ⛅ 17 °C

    We returned to Hanoi from Halong Bay for an overnight before catching our plane to Da Nang the next day.

    It happened to be a Sunday when the road around the lake near our hotel is closed to traffic and turned over to pedestrians. The locals really take advantage of the opportunity. Lots of younger people but also many families. There were a number of places offering mini electric cars and tanks etc for the kids to ride on. There were groups playing hacky sacky, playing badminton, groups all in costume, videoing themselves dancing to rock music. There were groups of graduating students in formal wear etc. There were areas where kids were building towers with wooden blocks; areas where they were playing some game that required moving white stones around boards chalked on the street. All mixed in with street vendors, roller skaters and a few wedding groups. Everyone seemed very happy and relaxed and interestingly very few were on their cell phones. After the hustle bustle of our visit a few days earlier, it was nice to see a softer side to Hanoi.

    We had a late lunch among the partygoers before returning to our hotel for another early night.    Read more

  • Brian MooreHomeTraveler
    Floating village
    Birds carved from carrots etc

    Halong bay

    February 4, 2018 in Vietnam ⋅ 🌙 13 °C

    We were picked up early from our hotel in Hanoi for the four hour drive to Halong Bay. Our driver did not speak English, so from time to time he spoke into his phone and asked Google to translate for him. He then held up the phone for us to read. His first message was, ‘am I driving too fast?’ A later message was, ‘I am driving to scare you’. Finally ‘ the train is late would you like to see my son who is learning to make jade’ that was approps to visiting a pearl selling operation!

    We duly arrived in Halong Bay to board our Junk which turned out to be a large three deck, steel boat with 24 cabins - not quite as expected, but very comfortable, especially as it was only half full for this trip. We could not get over the sheer number of cruise boats, as we set sail into the bay. We were in a stream of 30+ boats all setting out. Fortunately they spread out into different areas, and we hardly saw another boat for the two days we sailed. The food on the boat is fantastic - full 5 course lunch and dinner every day - beautifully presented, but more than we can eat. The crew is also very polite and attentive. As it was still very cold we were thankful that the heating system in our cabin was blasting out hot air for all it was worth.

    In the afternoon we visited a floating fisherman village where we had the option of using a kayak or being rowed by a villager in a bamboo boat. There were about 20 houses in the village, each with its fishing boat and set of holding nets containing any larger fish that they caught.

    Halong Bay is filled with islands both large and small all made of limestone rising vertically from the sea, quite an impressive sight.

    Our second day saw us on a 10k walk on one island to visit a village that is run by the shipping company. The villagers are basically fishermen, but the company has helped them to set up co-operative farming to grow vegetables that the shipping company use on their boats. The people work the fields for a couple of hours or so a day, then they are able to go fishing for the balance of the day. The village looks quite prosperous with all the houses being made of concrete or brick. There is a school and a clinic in the village, so the people have a much better standard of living than most. As we wandered around, we saw how they used rice to make various products and could watch them in the fields planting rice and tending the vegetables. In the afternoon there was a visit to a local beach with the option of swimming. As it was barely 15 degrees with a very cool wind, and the water temp was similar, there were no takers. The same cannot be said of happy hour which saw us wrapped in blankets, sitting under heat lamps, determinedly drinking our G and Ts.    Read more

  • Brian MooreHomeTraveler
    The wide islesMushroomsPeach blossomConfucius

    Hanoi

    February 1, 2018 in Vietnam ⋅ ⛅ 14 °C

    What a difference from Vientiane to Hanoi. Firstly the temperature dropped by
    10C and there was a very cold wind. We did not come equipped with any cold weather clothes so it was quite challenging. The traffic has to be seen to be believed . There is no sense of lane discipline. If the road is marked for three lanes, then there will be five or six lanes of cars, scooter, motor bikes and bicycles! If there is any space greater than six inches between the cars, then it is instantly filled by motor scooters or motorbikes. At any traffic light that is at red, there is a solid mass of 20 scooters across by 30 bikes deep all waiting to rush forward. As the traffic moves the cars fight their way forward with liberal use of horns and flashing lights and the scooters zip in between. No one gives way but amazingly there seem to be few accidents. Crossing the road for pedestrians is very challenging. The recommended way is to walk across at a steady pace and the cars and bikes will drive around without stopping. One way streets are generally ignored as motor bikes come towards you and weave in and out of the traffic. No-one gives way, they all just surge forwards and hope no-one gets hit!

    Our hotel was in the centre of town, so was very conveniently placed for us to walk around and explore Hanoi. We were picked up by our guide the next morning and taken on a city tour, stopping off at Hanoi Hilton where the U.S. airmen were imprisoned. It’s now a museum and much of it is dedicated to the history of Vietnam under the French regime. We also visited the first university in Vietnam that is now the centre for Confucius teachings along with a temple dedicated to Confucius. All very interesting. Next we were to go to the Mausoleum and museum dedicated to Ho Chi Minh . However the line up was more than an hour’s wait and we were so cold by now, we declined to do that part of the guided tour, much to our guides consternation. He couldn’t quite grasp that we didn’t want to freeze ourselves to death just so we could view the tomb of Ho Chi Minh . Instead he took us through the old part of Hanoi which was more interesting. We went down narrow passageways that had no lighting where families live in rooms just off the passageway - very basic living. We were then taken to a wholesale market. In one area there were tall bags of dried mushrooms of all different kinds, others had bags of dried vegetables in some places the isles were so narrow that you had to turn sideways to pass through. Lots of other items of indeterminate nature.

    We spent the afternoon wandering round on our own, taking our lives in our hands every time we ventured across a road - crosswalks have no meaning there! We braved eating lunch out and were rewarded by a delicious meal - main course, drink and dessert for the same price as two cups of coffee had cost us at our hotel!    Read more

  • Brian MooreHomeTraveler

    Thoughts on Laos

    January 31, 2018 in Laos ⋅ ⛅ 25 °C

    As we leave Laos a few thoughts. It’s a great country to visit, the people are friendly even though they are one of the poorest countries. Luang Prabang stands out especially - I guess Thailand was a bit like that 20yrs ago.
    It’s hard not to feel sorry for Laos. They are landlocked and surrounded by aggressive neighbours. Over the years their older buildings and their heritage have been sacked and destroyed by invaders. Even in more modern times they didn’t too well. In the late 1800s They ‘ invited ‘ the French in to help against the Chinese. They promptly stayed until the 1950s abusing the locals until being kicked out.( at least they left behind the concept of a French Bakery and baguettes ).The Americans promptly showed up around 1960 to help protect them from the yellow peril only to stay around through the 70s using Laos as their private battle ground and favourite bombing location, not to mention spraying Agent Orange all over the place.

    Their situation now is still difficult, but the new prime minister seems to be doing a good job. Laos has limited resources. Much of the population still works on the land, but being landlocked they don’t get enough rain to be very productive in that area. The Mekong, as an energy source, and forests of nice hardwood trees, are the only other resources. Unfortunately the last government was corrupt so lots of the prime trees were cut and exported without any replacement .

    Laos has no money so the new major hydro dam on the Mekong is being built by the Chinese with Thai money. Laos will get peanuts from the sale of electricity to Thailand until the dam reverts to them in 30yrs time. The Chinese are also building a high speed rail link to Vientiane from China. Eventually the rails will go all the way to Singapore. All the building is done by the Chinese so not much benefit to Laos. Chinese businessmen are now buying up property here in anticipation of the new traffic. I can see this place just disappearing under a tide of Chinese. Depressing thought.    Read more

  • Brian MooreHomeTraveler

    Well that's different

    January 31, 2018 in Laos ⋅ ⛅ 24 °C

    We were amused to see this sticker on the window of a 9 person people mover that we were using. The larger prohibition is quite graphic and I don’t think they were objecting to Whoopie cushions! The smaller sign above seems to indicate that fornication is also frowned upon, makes you wonder why they would need that one in the first place!Read more

  • Brian MooreHomeTraveler
    Our table awaits!The monks' dining hallView from the ArchThe Peace Arch

    Vientiane

    January 30, 2018 in Laos ⋅ ⛅ 24 °C

    Vientiane is the capital of Laos and our final stop in this country. There are about 800,000 people, so is quite a large busy city. All the government offices are in the city and are housed in very substantial, colonial looking buildings that are set along broad avenues - very attractive.

    Our tour today started at a compound containing a Stupa surrounded by several other religious buildings. The chief Abbot of Laos has his office and residence in a very fancy building in these grounds (somewhat like a mini. Vatican City). We then visited the Peace Arch, built originally to celebrate victory over the French and is very reminiscent of the Arc de Triumph in Paris, but with an Asian twist. It is set in very nice gardens - Brian elected to climb the Arch to take some pictures, while Anne remained below entertaining the guide. We visited a couple of small museums containing various artefacts, but most things have been destroyed, as Laos has been attacked many times over the years by it seems, just about everyone who borders the country.

    The final stop was at COPE where they try to help with the Loas people who have been injured by cluster bombs, land mines etc etc. Quite a moving experience. I must admit that we were not aware just how heavily the US bombed Laos and of course without ever declaring war or anything. Apparently if the planes could not find their targets in Vietnam, then they just dumped their bombs on Laos because it was too dangerous to land the planes with a full bomb load. Considering the billions the US spent on the bombs the amount they have contributed to the clean up is minimal and quite frankly, shameful.

    After a little lunch at a French style bakery/cafe, we retired to the very pleasant pool at the hotel for more R and R.

    We discovered on arrival at the hotel that our rate included a special Laos dinner. We were offered to have it poolside or inside,and elected the first option, so this evening we were sat in solitary splendour beside the pool for our dinner. The food consisted of cooked and uncooked spring rolls ( excellent) Laos sausage- very spicy, fish and chicken each cooked and served in banana leaf. Steamed veg and sticky rice. An interesting meal! Dessert was fresh Mango served with coconut ice cream, sweetened coconut milk and of course sticky rice, generally quite nice, although Loas cuisine isn’t high on our list of must have food!    Read more

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