So many places to see, so little time...

A dam on the river Da beat Sapa and Fansipan.

It's been hard to find time to update the blog, as we've had some very long days in the road - up to 14-15 hours. We're now at the top of Fansipan, the tallest mountain in Vietnam - just next to Sapa, having some tea while waiting for the fog to clear. Very modern and effective tourist machine the Japanese have set up here!

Enjoying some heat from the fireplace on a foggy and cold morning, O Quy Ho pass at 2035 meters altitude.

I will keep posting chronologically until I've covered the whole trip, there's so many more photos I want to share!

Hoi An

Coming from the intensity and grittiness of Saigon to beautiful Hoi An with its well polished Ancient Town filled to the brim with souvenir shops, tailors and tourists took some getting used to. At first I was a little put off by the very crowded streets of the old district and the amount of shops, but there is something very pleasant about the place and it looks stunning. One soon learns where to go outside the main drags as well, which really helps.

Photo shoot on Tran Phu street in Ancient Town, grabbing the attention of a couple of tourists in the background.

Hoi An was founded as a trading port around 1595, and remained important and wealthy well into the 18th century when it was a powerful trading conduct between Europe and all major parts of Asia. At the end of that century, nearby Da Nang took over when the French got exclusive trade rights there. Because it lost much of its business around this time, very little changed in Hoi An for the following 200 years, effectively it was preserved almost untouched.

Just a couple of blocks away from Ancient Town things are a lot more down to earth and typically Vietnamese.

Sidewalk cafe with a view to the tennis court, just outside the old district.

Newlyweds on the river after lighting and placing floating lanterns.

Lamp shops are everywhere in the old district.

The streets of Ancient Town are charmingly lit. Lanterns wherever possible.

The main bridge in the Ancient Town with the large fish-themed lights is a very popular photography spot.

Having a look at the touris while mom checks her phone. The face masks are ubiquitous in Vietnam, and are mostly for protection against the sun, people try to keep their skin as light as possible.

Decoration in gold and red dominate the temples.

A little update

Spent some very nice days in Hoi An, and travelled to Hue with a night in Da Nang on the way - as well as day trips to My Son and Marble Mountains from Hoi An. Have been too busy to get together a proper post from these places, but here are some teasers from Hoi An, the Marble Mountains of Da Nang and Hue. Hopefully a proper update will come soon.

Tomorrow morning it's off to Phong Nha and the caves, via the DMZ and Khe Sanh.

Da Nang: Inside the Mountain of Water, Marble Mountains.

Cho Lon residential buildings

This residential area in Cholon was burnt down and rebuilt in the 60s, during the war. Unlike much of HCMC which is a mix of modern and ancient buildings, this area is uniformly quite modern concrete housing, yet also very worn down.

It seems people here live very hard lives, with demanding physical work being the norm. Most of the people I met were motorcycle or cyclo drivers.

A motorcycle driver who lost his eye sight in an accident. His neighbours look out for him and help him get by.

A xe ôm (motorcycle taxi) driver with his two dogs in his tiny room, his bed is above the white plastic chair. His wife passed away eight months ago.

A cyclo driver enjoying a break and a cold beer.

Cholon backstreets and alleyways

Around Binh Tay Market in District 6 lies Cho Lon or Cholon - HCMCs Chinatown. It is very densely populated and the area has a myriad of narrow passageways and streets with all sorts of production, construction work and recycling of used goods going on as well.

It's easy to spend hours exploring the area, and without the help of French photographer Arnaud I would most likely have gotten lost. He has been living in the city for fifteen years, speaks Vietnamese and shows photography enthusiasts like me around for a living. Arnaud is a great photographer and knows the city well, and I would recommend anyone with an interest in photography to get in touch with him - have a look at his website for more info.

Cutting bamboo strips for basket production.

A little shrine by a corner, and a girl keeping a watchful eye on the tourist.

If there's room to walk, there's room to drive a scooter.