Vietnamese Music

There is a special type of music in Vietnam you can hear in many Coffee bars or Cafe's sometimes also live. It's something I never heard before and it went straight to my heart. I don't know how to describe it other than a bit melancholy or sad. Normally the instrument is only a single guitar and sometimes a saxophone. I think if you heard this music you would never guess it came from Vietnam and the language is not easily regognizable in songs. You might maybe rather think it came from South or Latin America and it must be a mix of cultures because it doesn't sound particularily Asian at all.
I have one name and maybe you can check it out; Khanh Ly.

Mui Ne to Saigon

It's only about 200km to Saigon but it takes 5 hours to get there by bus so it doesn't go very fast even the roads are not too bad. It's because of all the things that are going on alongside and on the road. The road is like an endless street with shops, businesses, farms and houses on both sides so obviously it's like driving through a densly populated area all the time. Going by bus is cheap in Vietnam, this trip costs $5. Most buses don't have toilets but they will stop if you are in big need. They also have breaks usually after 3-4 hours.
After Mui Ne we passed through the town Phan Thiet. This side of Mui Ne is green and fertile again and we passed many, many Dragon fruit plantations which seemed to be the main crop in this area. The fruit trees are in all stages of development, some fields are ready for harvesting and some are in flower. They are using extra light to make the day longer to open the flowers in order to produce fruits all year round.
Closer to Saigon it was more Bananas, Maize etc and also some tree plantations only for making wood/lumber.
We arrived in Saigon after dark without having booked hotel but it didn't take us very long to find one.
My stay in Vietnam for this time is coming to an end but I still have some more topics to cover on this blog so keep on visiting!

A Sidenote on Coffee II

Here in Vietnam is the only place I've been able to drink black coffee without any problems. When I get black coffee home it almost turns my stomach inside out and it doesn't taste good at all. Here the taste is round and good and not as acid as most other places...so today I bought some packets of coffeebeans and I also got this coffeefilter I talked about in an earlier post on top.

Mui Ne

It was a 5 hours busdrive from Nha Trang to Mui Ne, half the way to Saigon. This area is completely different from Nha Trang which was green and fertile right to the mountain tops. First we came to an area with "stoney" mountains and hills and no much people living there and almost no vegetation, only bushes and stones. Later it became even dryer with cactuses and sand and scattered wide Ficus trees. The soil was dry and lack of water made this area not very usefull for any agriculture so it seemed the biggest business here was graveyards that covered very big areas. It was Buddhist cemeteries with graves like small houses and also Catholic cemeteries not very unlike the other.
When we approached the seaside there were big sanddunes like small mountains and along the seaside it was kilomtere after kilometer with beaches and almost no people except for some fishermen.
Mui Ne is only a road/street by the seaside with a lot of small Hotels and restaurants. The beach is not so broad as in Nha Trang and the Coconut trees are just some few meters from the sea. It's just like I imagined it with a few coconuts floating on the waves. To make it perfect we bought a coconut and drank the juice trough a straw.
We lived in a Bungalow less than 10 m from the sea but maybe 2.5 m higher. It was quite windy and the Coconut palms were swaying in the wind and the big waves constantly hammering against the shore. I like the sound of the waves and the wind in the Coconut trees but my friend was a little bit afraid talking about Tsunamis....of course we would be in trouble if a Tsunami came but I tried to tell her that it was not very likely even though it was an earthquake with fear of Tsunami in Indonesia just a few days ago and not very far away.
I was sitting outside the bungalow in the dark; a big Coconut tree above me and I could see the white tops of the waves as they hit the shore....looking up I saw the crown of the Coconut tree with nuts and the stars around. Listening to the "eternal" sound of the waves makes your mind and soul to relax. Even the wind is strong and the night is late, it's warm and I don't need more clothes than necessary to be decent.
Now I understand why some writers and painters found places like this to do their work; it gives peace of mind and new inspiration.
For a frozen soul from the Arctic region this is like Paradise...if you close your eyes for other problems because nothing and nowhere is perfect in this world, but it's close to it. There is always a backside and that's maybe a consolation for you frozen inhabitants of the north that have to stay there.

Island Trip

We took a boat trip out to three different islands north of Nha Trang. First we came to a small island where the biggest attraction was an Ostrich farm and a Deer farm where we could feed the animals. It was ok but my biggest moment was when i discovered a Dragon fruit Plantation and a lot of Mango trees. It was no fruits now but it was the first time I saw a Dragon tree....even I'm a Horticulturist I didn't know it was a cactus/succulent plant, so that was great.
The next island was big with high mountains. It was also a nice beach. This beach was on the inside and therefore no big waves as at Nha Trang beach so it was easier to bath and swim.
We followed a path upwards and came to a waterfall but no much water at this time of year (dry season). For me it was nice anyway because we walked through the jungle with so dense forests and bushes that it was almost impossible to walk outside the path. The main vegetation was small leafed Ficus trees, like Ficus Benjamina.
It was quite a few small islands around and most of them uninhabited with some nice beaches with absolutely no people.
The last isalnd we visited was Monkey Island with a lot of small monkeys everywhere which we could feed. They were quite naughty as monkeys are so it was best to look after your things. They also had a performance with dogs and monkeys which was quite funny.
It was nice to be out on the sea for a whole day with a lot of fresh air and feeling the scent of salty water again.

NHA TRANG

A nice small city on the beach...or the beach in the city...You can step right down from the street to the beach. From most hotels it's only a few minutes walk.
The beach is not crowded at all and every time we've been there we have several hundred meters of beach for ourselves. Today it was Sunday and only some local people sitting on the beach fishing, some tourist lay sunbathing on hired chaires and the tourists from Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh preferred the shade under the Palm Huts.
It's a beach without the normal tourist things like Water Scooters and all kind of thing like that...just one place to buy some drink and small food otherwise nothing...not even anybody looking after or keeping watch like on other beaches I've been.
The waves here are spectacular and flows 10-15 meters in over the beach. They are nearly 1 meter when they hit the beach and the power in a wave is tremendous...it almost knocks you over. It's nice to play in the waves and beeing pushed up on the beach or only standing there and getting your feei washed and sometimes your whole body.
When the sun goes down the locals are coming to the beach. They are walking along or sitting there under the Coconut trees and watching and listening to the waves that hits the shore. It's strange, you'll never get tired of watching the waves or the sound, it's something magic.
It's a great place if you are tired of crowded and "overtouristified" places. Maybe the restaurants in this town aren't so great and the nightlife and things like that, but it's real and a lot of things to do. You can take boat trips to islands, trips up the river and even trekking through the jungle and up to mountains.
Tomorrow we are going to Monkey Island.

From Da Lat to Nha Trang

We left DaLat in the early morning in bright sunshine. The road was narrow, steep, bended and bumpy. Unlike the road to Ho Chi Minh that was a bit better this road took us through a kind of different landscape and scenery as it immediately started to go downwards through small villages that clinged to the mountainside. The vegetation was mainly Pine trees. Small scale farming where almost the only crops that are possible to grow in the hillsides are coffee and tea with some scattered Banana trees and red Poinsettias in between.
After 1.5 hours continous descent we came to a town on a small plain and a little while after it started downwards again, the road twisted down the mountainside and it was a magnificent view.
Coming all the way down it was big aresa with Coconut Trees and rice paddies. When the wind is blowing through a rice field you can see all the green colours you can imagine. We passed through a rice fields and Coconut Palms for a few hours through small villages and towns. The bus had to slow down all the time for motorbikes or goats or cows crossing the road. It was Saturday and we also noticed several weddings that were underway. Schoolchildren to and from school in their uniforms, The boys in blue trousers and white shirts and the girls in the traditional Ao Dai of white silk. When they were cycling they had to hold the "front panel/piece" of the dress with one hand.
Approaching the seaside the road suddenly turned in to a new motorway which took as along the coast for a while to the seaside city of Nha Trang. We stepped off the bus and straight into a hotel for $8 a night. The Hotel is ok, the room was nice and clean and the people nice.

Costumes

The Triangular hat made of Palm leaves is used in many countries in South East Asia but not many countries are so much associated with it as Vietnam. It’s very much used mostly by women and especially outside the big cities. The “non bai tho” gives an excellent protection against the strong sun.
It is fastened under the chin with a broad cloth which also can be drawn up to cover your mouth and nose.
The mouth cover’s main function is to protect your skin against the sun but nowadays it is also a way of protection against dust and pollution when riding motorbikes.
It seems a strong habit many places and often even nighttime after dark you can meet young girls and women wearing the cover and I wonder why…no sunshine and no pollution but still they wear it.
The traditional silk dress Ao Dai, trousers and a skirt outside with split all the way up is said to cover everything but at the same time reveal everything. Two long slits along the side allows the gown to have two free floating panels in front and at the back of the dress. It’s elegant and at the same time cool in the warm weather. Some places I’ve seen it used as school uniforms completely white but also restaurant personnel, flight crews etc are using it but mostly then with white trousers and another coloured skirt like blue or red.

A Side Note on Coffee

I think the Vietnamese knows what to do when it comes to making coffee. Vietnam is the biggest Coffee producer in the world after Brazil!

To Ho Chi Minh City

I'm on my way to Ho Chi Minh City from Da Lat by bus. It's a beautifull early morning leaving Da Lat. Just outside the city, it's a breathtaking scenery with Pine forests, Agave plants deep walleys and mountains. Except from the Agave plants and some other tropical trees the place reminds me of my homeplace in Norway.
Here are small farms along the road and people live scattered around and not so much in villages. The small farms are growing all kinds of vegetables, some Bananas and other fruits but also some flower production like Orchids, Anthurium and flower bulbs. Some things I can't recognise from my bus window although it doesn't go too fast...the road is not very good and also always a lot of motorbikes to consider. I think the average speed is closer to 40km/hour than 60km/hour.
The houses are special and quite nice, long and narrow, 2-3 floors and in bright pink, violet, blue or green colours.
It's almost unbelievable that a terrible war could go on for such a long time in this beautifull country with such nice friendly people. But it wasn't so much the Vietnamese people's war. The country became a victim between the two superpowers the USA, the Sovietunion and also China.
One of my best friends here was a child during the war and he remember it very well...the bombs and the fear. His uncle's whole family were wiped out and killed in a bomb attack.
After one hour drive we are still on a plateau around 1000 m above sea-level, but it's starting to go slightly more downwards. The vegatation changes a bit and more and bigger coconut palms appears, more bananas and the Pine forest diminishes. Now the Coffee plantations starts to dominate the landscape and this time the black/red/green coffeebeans are spread out on canvases along the road and outside the houses to dry in the sunshine. Some house entrances and surroundings are completely covered by coffeebeans so in order to enter the house they have to walk over the beans...but don't worry..it's being processed and burned before you drink
it.
We are passing through some villages and towns with busy markets. Only the main road is tarmac, other roads are dirt roads.
Vietnam is a predominantly Buddhist country but also more than 8% christians, mainly Catholics. Along the way I can see quite a few completely newbuilded churches, passing some Christian graveyards and some houses have a Maria/Jesus statue on the open third floor.
After 2.5 hours it suddenly starts to go steep downwards again and the road is twisting down the mountainside. The vegetation changes again and now it's more big tropical trees, more jungle like. Coming down it's a lot of Ficus trees, still bananas and coco nut palms, some Durian palms and Papaya trees with big, fat nice tempting fruits.
As we are approaching Ho Chi Minh City the roads are getting better and the bus speeds up a bit but still it's not a road you would call anything like a Motorway.
Ho Chi Minh City is busy and noisy with all the motorbikes and the few cars which tries to get through...using their horns all the time.
Stepping out of the bus, it's like a heatwave hitting you, narly 30 degrees and sunshine. Men on Motorbikes are offering you a ride but I go for a Taxi this time.
Later that night I had a ride on a Motorbike for one hour around the city, sightseeing. It's refreshing because of the high temperature although some pollution from thousands of bikes....also not being used to riding Motorbike your bottom starts to hurt after some time.

Bikes and Scooters

Motorbikes and Motorbikes and Scooters and Scooters and just a few bicycles and cars. That’s the traffic picture. It’s difficult to get used to and at first it feels like a bl…y mess, but after some time I must admit that it’s better than cars. Even it’s a lot of them swarming around everywhere it’s quite easy to cross a street, easier than if it was cars and this is a city with no traffic lights at all.
Already my first day here I had a ride on the back of a Motorbike and later it has became many…at first I was scared but now it's ok. There are a lot of small accidents though, but most minor injuries because they don’t go very fast. Dalat City and surroundings is also a place with elevation; hills and slopes and sharp bends so you have to be carefull. That’s why most bikes here have manual gear because in these conditions they say that automtic wouldn’t work properly.
So you think you can drive a Motorbike, right? Yes, I'm sure you can but it's not just to dive into the streets here. You must learn how to navigate between hundreds of others and they are so close to you that you could tell which aftershave they use..if they use....
My Housemaid told me she had an accident a few months ago, somebody drove into her Motorbike and she got a fracture in her skull and had to spend more than a week at Hospital and for a long time she lost her sense of smelling. Now she has started to wear helmet when driving, but it’s very few doing that.
Everybody rides Motorbikes both young and old, women and men. Some have a basket mounted in front, not so much for putting groceries but for smaller children. A lot of times they also go three on a bike and parents taking their children to school, the smallest in front of you and the biggest sitting behind clutching desperately to father or mother.
I live about 20 min walk from the center and most times I like to walk, but it’s no problem to get a ride if you want. All the time bikes are slowing down beside you and they ask if you want a lift and a ride to the center cost 10000 Dong and that’s about 4-5 NOK or half a dollar.
It’s also incredible how much goods and things they can transport on a bike. All the time you can see bikes loaded with all kinds of vegetables or so much bananas hanging around everywhere that you hardly see the one who is driving.

Fish and Coffee

Ok, ok...My idea today was to tell you about Motorbikes and Scooters but because of a request, I'll go for the fish and the coffee.
Every lunchtime it's fish. All other dishes like meat and vegetables changes from day to day but the fish is always there. The fish is dried and I mean really DRY. Its redish colour comes mainly from the Chilisauce which softens it up so it's easier to eat and also more easily breaks into pieces.
The fish is 10-15 cm long and is whole with head, skin and bones. Everything is eaten and I have never seen anything like bones or things being spitted out.
I like to try all kinds of strange food but I must admit that fish is not my favourite food and therefore I haven't eaten it yet, but I promise I will before I leave. It shouldn't be any problem because I have eaten quite a lot of strange seafood before such as Sea Cucumber...if you don't know what it is; look it up and you will understand what I mean.
Another thing that's always on the lunchtable as well is Tofu. That's a Soybean product and is eaten almost everywhere in South-East Asia. It's nutritious and good food if you like it or are used to it. Tofu is also not among my most loved dishes to put it that way.
After lunch we always have some fresh fruits like banana,small tropical apples, oranges or watermelon. That's normal but what I haven't seen before is that they dip some of the fruit in a mixture of chili and salt and that makes an interesting clash of tastes...personally I found it crashed a bit too much.

Now, you'll probably expect that the coffee is terrible, but it's not...it's only strange. I mean the coffee is good but it's made in a special way. The first time I ordered coffe I didn't know what to do with the things they put in front of me.
I ordered white/black coffe...and it was.
The coffee cup is small and on top of it they put a metal filter in 4-parts. It takes quite long time before the filtering is done and you can remove the filter. I said my coffee was white and black...on the bottom of the cup or glass is a layer of thick milk and the coffee doesn't mix into the milk when it's filtered down so you'll have two layers, one white and one black..looks nice and then you mix it. Alternatively you can have white/black coffee with ice. Then you'll get a glass with ice and after the filtering and mixing is done, you pour the warm coffee over the ice. Really Good!
Here are Coffebars and Cafes for almost every 10 meters in some streets and probably hundreds in this small city, but still no Starbucks, Blendz or Cafe Nero with their Espresso, Cappucino, Cafe Mocha etc.
When I think about it; it's no McDonalds, no KFC, no Subway and no 7Eleven either. It's incredible that I was so lucky I came here before one of those.
I think CocaCola is the only one that's impossible to beat!

Winter in the Tropics

I have never lived in a tropical area before and I must admit that I had never expected it to be so cold.
It's a bit special here though because we are 1500 m(4921 feet)above sea level and the last 2-3 days it has been only 16-17 degrees C and very strong winds. In Ho Chi Minh(Saigon)300km from here its 22-30 degrees so quite a big difference.
December and January are the coldest months here but nice days it's still around 25 degrees.
So when the temperature drops to 16 you feel cold and especially inside the house because it's no heating. It's sometimes better to go out and if you feel too cold the only sensible thing to do, is to go to bed. Some people dress more like it's 16 below zero than +16, with big winter jackets and gloves or mittens.

It's 10 o'clock night now and every night this time there is a man passing along the houses in our street shouting something like "waimiai, waimiai...aimi" I don't know what it means and I don't know what he is selling and it doesn't seem the business is very good, not in this street at least. There are also other street sellers during day with different ways of telling that they are here, like children's toys that makes a noise when you squeeze them.

I have been ill during the weekend with stom pain and feeling sick. I have probably eated something I shouldn't or something that wasn't clean. At work I'm eating together with the workers and I think it is not always the things are clean enough. Breakfast I have in my office but at lunch we are sitting 10 people around each table in a big dining hall. One person are handing out the chopsticks and the strange thing is that for one or the other reason while doing this they are always holding the chopsticks....yes, right..in the end they shouldn't. Well, as I have said before; it's incredible what we can get used to.
I should have told you about the fish they eat every day...that's one of the things I stay clear off....and the coffee, but I think another time.