Tâm Cốc

After a good old snooze, on what might as well have been a concrete slab of a bed we were all 60% refreshed and ready for a day trip out. We decided to hire scooters and go to Bài Định Temple and then the Tran An Boat trip in the afternoon. Well that was the plan. To be honest no-one had any expectations of any of the places we were visiting and it was the hotel that recommended we go to them. So we hired scooters from the hotel and started the journey. For once our scooter was OK (well the speedo didn't work, but everything else did), but Brian's was a disaster. We got about 5 mins away and had to turn back as the wheel was so wobbly and the brakes were not ideal. They apologised and gave another one. We set off again and again the wheel was a bit wobbly but he was happy enough to carry on. So off we went.

It was a really nice drive past rice paddies and huge rock face mountains sticking out the ground. Wow, when we got there we did not realise how big the site was. It took a good couple of hours to get around it and we didn't see all of it as we wanted to try and get to the river for 3pm. Even after trying to plan our time we didn't end up leaving till 3:30pm and then arrived at the boat for 4pm. Just as we got to the parking for the scooters Brian's bike decided to conk out! Absolute nightmare and very worrying! Luckily a Vietnamese guy came to the rescue and together with his knowledge and Brian's brute strength they were able to kick start it again. As it was probably too late for a relaxing cruise (it takes about 3 hours) and the bike was being a nightmare we decided to just head back asap. We got home safe and sound. It was definitely beer o'clock for the drivers! It had been a very long day. After a quick freshen up we headed for dinner. Tâm Cốc was famous for its Goat dishes so we had to try it. The owner was so proud of his dishes and so happy to host us in his restaurant. He was absolute sweetie!! Shattered, well fed and did I mention shattered... We went straight to bed. Gosh we are wild in our old age 😂

The next day we decided head out for 8am so that we could be on one of the first boats and miss the mass crowds. We all woke up with a stomach problem, but we didn't want that to stop us, so we jumped on our scooters, Brian got a different one this time and we headed off. We made it 5 mins down the road again and his bike had exactly the same wheel problem. It was just an absolute disaster! Again we turned round and changed the bike. It wasn't as bad but was missing a wing mirror and the fuel gauge wasn't working... He decided to just go for it. So we headed off again, but I really wasn't feeling well and had to pull over half way as I was feeling so sick. I drank some water and we headed off again. Eventually we got to the boats and to be honest it was very busy but we didn't really feel it which was nice. Yes it would have been ideal if we were the only boat but it was such a lovely trip. The boat went through narrow and super low caves, stopped at various temples and even took us to the famous King Kong's Skull Island film set. It was a really lovely trip and it did take our minds off feeling so rotten!

We then headed off for some late lunch... and what a fiasco that was. Firstly it seemed impossible to find something to eat that wasn't over 200,000 Đồng and then when we did the meat served to Elaine was very questionable. And we 100% did question it. Elaine ordered Chicken Pho, it was definitely not chicken and definitely pork... The lady spoke no English so in came our broken Vietnamese to the rescue again. She was very insistent that it was chicken (even though it had pork rind on and looked nothing like Brian's who also ordered chicken). She then put me on the phone to a lady who spoke English and was trying to insist that the chicken in Vietnam is just different to our chicken in England... Well this was when I definitely knew they were lying! Brian whispered in my ear to act like a chef. Well as they were lying I thought I might as well join in the fun. I told the lady I am a chef and that if she would like I'm happy to send a picture of the pork to her to confirm. We stood our ground and got money knocked off the meal. Winning! So finally we were fed and feeling proud of our Vietnamese and able to get on with the rest of the day. Next stop Lying Dragon Mountain aka Hang Mua. And this is where the next adventure for the day began. Will had read reviews which said a lot people will stop you along the way and insist you must park in their parking bays and pay for parking but actually there is a free car park when you get to the very end at the entrance. But... Will also slightly doubted himself and was unsure whether this was for this place or somewhere else. This did not stop him. Brian and Elaine followed us along the way and people were blowing whistles and waiving to stop us. One official looking guy even stood in front of the bike and stopped us. Again we spoke in broken Vietnamese and insisted on powering through (Will literally revved the engine to show he was going to keep going. Luckily he was 100% correct and they were all scammers. We drove straight into the entrance and parked up for free. What we didn't realise is that actually others were watching and following behind. So we saved quite a few people the cost of paying!! It was pretty funny to be honest and I was very glad he was right!

When we entered I was actually shocked, it was really lovely inside! It was was a steep steep hike up over 500 steps to two different peaks but it was truly lovely!

It was getting towards the end of the day so we decided to finish our touring round for the day and headed home via Big C for some snacks. It was touch and go whether Brian had enough petrol but he was super lucky and made it back just with a last drop left!

That evening we had celebratory drinks and dinner and to be honest were too exhausted and so were in bed by about 9:30pm. We really are wild!Read more