How To Save Money Using ATM Machines In Vietnam

Most ATM machines in Vietnam will only let you take out one million Dong per transaction, that's only $50/£30 a time. Each withdrawal will cost you a fee of 20,000 - 40,000 Dong ($1-2), as well as the charges levied by your bank in your home country, so taking money out in Vietnam can get expensive, unless....

BIDV bank is the only ATM we found in Vietnam that let us take out more than one million Dong. We were able to withdraw up to four million at a time. What's even better is that BIDV don't charge you for making withdrawals, so the only fees you have to pay are those from your bank in your own country.

BIDV ATMs are widely available in every town and are easy to spot with their white signs with BIDV written in blue.

Hope this helps!

Eating and Walking in Hanoi

 After falling very much in love with Vietnam's biggest city, Saigon, I didn't expect to be too impressed by the country's smaller capital, Hanoi. But this incredible country surprised me yet again. 

Walking through Hanoi is a real pleasure. One minute you're on a wide, tree-lined boulevard admiring elegant five star hotels and the colonial Opera House, the next you're dodging motorbikes on the cramped, winding streets of the Old Quarter where the sunlight is obscured by a mesh of wires and cables connecting narrow, crumbling houses. A short walk north and you find yourself on the edge of a massive lake, sipping a beer on a plastic stool on the pavement. It's a great and interesting place.

Typical house in the Old Quarter.

Old meets new in Hanoi's Old Quarter.

This brave electrician is sitting on the wires to work, they are supporting his entire weight!

We spent our whole time in Hanoi walking, ignoring the protests of my poor blistered feet. We walked around Hoan Kiem Lake, dodging the enthusiastic students that hang around pestering tourists to practice English with them, and popped into Ngoc Son Temple where old men play Chinese checkers on the pagoda overlooking the lake.

Hoan Kiem Lake with Ngoc Son Temple on the right.

We walked around and around the shop lined streets of the old town, where you can buy everything from tomb stones to dragon masks to hiking gear. 

We wandered around Ho Chi Minh's Mausoleum Complex and visited his house and gardens. The complex is the only part of the city where traffic is prohibited and hence becomes overrun with power walkers and families in the early evening. We would have entered the mausoleum to catch a glance at Uncle Ho himself, who lies there embalmed in a glass box most of the year, but he's away in Russia on his annual holiday, where scientists work to preserve the 45 year old corpse. The area is surrounded by guards who impose a strict and pointless one way system, sending us on long detours for the sole purpose of their own amusement.

Ho Chi Minh's Mausoleum

Hanoi's Presidential Palace. Ho Chi Minh opted to live in a modest wooden stilt house nearby rather than in the opulent palace.

We walked the edges of the citadel, which isn't at all interesting, and visited three museums. The Military Museum, opposite Lenin Park, had a good collection of aircraft, tanks and canons from Vietnam's numerous struggles. The National History and the Revolutionary Museum weren't as interesting; there weren't any boards to offer an explanation of the history and instead visitors are left to piece together information from the endless displays of photographs. I think we left the museum with a more muddled up understanding of the history than when we entered. One thing all the museums had in common was their amusingly biased captions describing the 'puppet government', 'French colonial spies', and 'fascist bandits'.

Military Museum.

For two days during our stay we couchsurfed with a couple who lived in Tay Ho, the West Lake area that seems to be popular with expats. They took us to the Communist Restaurant, a place made to resemble life after the war, when people ate state issued food rations. On the inside the restaurant has an old cozy atmosphere, with rusting bikes and cracks jugs decorating the walls. We piled into a snug booth and our hosts ordered us a feast of different foods that were commonly eaten during the early communist period. We were even given food stamps instead of a receipt. The food was some of the best food we've eaten during our six weeks in Vietnam: fried pumpkin, sweet potato leaves, meaty spring rolls, stewed pork in soy sauce, tomato and chili fried tofu... it was delicious. 

Staying up in Tay Ho gave us the opportunity to explore West Lake and Truc Bach Lake, where we probably wouldn't have ventured had we stayed in the tourist area. We walked the whole length of the lake one evening in search of my friend and former editorial boss Colette, who lives here now. We spent an evening drinking beers and eating delicious local delicacies by the lake and got fully clued up about life teaching in Vietnam, which I must admit sounds very appealing. 

On the subject of food I can confidently say that Hanoi has some of the best food in the country. It helped that we had our couch hosts and Colette to guide us towards the local dishes that we might have otherwise missed, but we were in food heaven for a whole four days. Some of our favourites were:

Pho Chien Phong; sliced beef, onions and greens in a meaty gravy, eaten with fried bread.

Pho Cuon; minced beef and fragrant herbs rolled in glutinous rice paper, dipped into savoury apple soup.

Bun Cha; barbecued pork, rice noodles, mixed greens and the apple soup.

Nem; springrolls. We've had srpingrolls all over Vietnam and none have compared to the ones we've eaten in Hanoi. Stuffed with minced pork and vermicelli noodles, served with rice noodles and, you guessed it, apple soup for dipping.

Mixed herbs (incl. corriander, mint, anise basil, chili leaf, lettuce), white rice noodles, apple soup, bbq pork, springrolls.

We visited Hoa Lo Prison, where the French imprisoned and tortured Vietnamese revolutionaries. It's now a museum. I was again amused by the amount of propaganda in there. A small part of the prison is dedicated to the American War and a video shows American prisoners grinning like fools and having a wonderful time playing chess in the prison, which was by then controlled by the North Vietnamese. The subtitles explain how lucky the soldiers were to be captured by the Vietnamese, such a kind and humane bunch, and even suggests the prisoners were given presents from the guards upon there release. I'm no historian but that seems unlikely.

For a quiet break away from the chaos of the city we visited the Temple of Literature, a Confucianism Center and historic place where scholars would study before being tested by the king. The temple is also the site of Vietnam's first university, which was destroyed in the war. The flower-filled gardens, pond and ornate courtyards provided us with a quiet place to rest our weary feet after a sweaty day walking around the city.

Court yard in the Temple of Literature.

To top it off I managed to get a filling done in Hanoi for just $7.50/£4.50, not a bad saving considering the same dental work would have cost me $100/£60 in the UK!

How To Get To...

The city sights: Walk. Or be sensible and get a cyclo, moto or traditional taxi.

We Stayed At...

We actually stayed at two different hotels and spent two night couchsurfing.

Hanoi Cental Hotel: $15/£9 small but above average room located right in the center of the Old Quarter.

Fantasea Hotel: $12/£8.20 small but decent room located on the west edge of the Old Quarter.

Typhoon Kalmaegi on Cat Ba Island

We'd planned to travel from Ninh Binh straight through to Ha Long City but a conversation with another traveler lead us to add Haiphong to our itinerary; before we even arrived we decided to skip the city and head out to Cat Ba Island for a few days of relaxation. We arrived early evening and watched the sun set over the bay from our waterfront hotel.

Fishing boats in the bay at Cat Ba Town.

We awoke the next morning ready to hit the beach to find the harbour empty of boats and the town deserted. The owner of the hotel was busy boarding up the ground floor doors and windows and bringing in all the tables from outside. He eventually informed us that there was a big typhoon coming and we'd already missed the last boat leaving the island. Typhoon Kalmaegi ('seagull' in Korean) had already hit the Philippines, Hong Kong and southern China. Throughout the day a tannoy announced the imminent danger and warned people to stay indoors.

The winds got stronger and stronger and by 6pm the electricity to the island went out. We were safe and warm in our hotel with a stash of typhoon survival essentials: chocolate biscuits and crisps. By about 9pm there was water flowing down the stairs to our floor like a waterfall, water was running down the walls and coming in through the windows in our room. We pushed our bed as far away from the windows as possible and tried to ignore the ominous creeks and crashes going on around us. 

The next morning the worst was over and we ventured out to survey the damage. There were a few fallen signs and the odd cracked window, branches and leaves covered the street and sea was wild. Fortunately nobody on the island was hurt and the locals seemed to have prepared for it really well. 

The promenade along the bay.

After a couple of days sitting around doing nothing, waiting for the typhoon to pass, we were finally able to get out and explore the island.

The three beaches were strewn with debris and missing a lot of sand following the typhoon, and the sea was too rough to swim in, but the walks around the karst cliffs and up the mountains to Canon Fort were lovely.

Karst scenery of Lan Ha Bay.

Viewpoint overlooking the bay after hiking 177m up to Canon Fort.

From Cat Ba Island we were able to do a boat trip to Ha Long Bay, so we didn't have to go to Ha Long City at all. The day was spent cruising slowly through the magnificent scenery of Lan Ha Bay and Ha Long Bay, on an old junk boat. When we weren't sunning ourselves no sun loungers on the top deck we stopped to kayak through caves and arches that have been carved out of the limestone karsts by the ocean. We jumped off the boat and swam in secluded lagoons and explored isolated sandy beaches. The water was clear turquoise and we saw some interesting wildlife both above and below the water.

Kayaking in Lan Ha Bay.

The typhoon had brought in a lot of litter and debris from the ocean, although I'm told Ha Long Bay is littered even at the best of times, so we did our part and filled our kayak with floating bottles and plastic bags that we'd fished out of the water. Our guide didn't seem to impressed with our conservation efforts however, and I have a feeling that the rubbish might have been thrown back overboard when we weren't looking!

   

We even stopped to explore an ancient grotto that was once used by hunters to shelter from storms. Inside archaeologists found human and animal remains, as well as fossilised sea mollusks. The stalagmites and stalactites inside where amazing.

How To Get To...

Cat Ba Island: There are multiple boats going to and from the island throughout the day from Ben Binh pier in Haiphong. The speed boat and bus combination costs 150,000VND/$7.50 and the hydrofoil that drops you directly in Cat Ba Town costs 220,000VND.$11. Only ever buy tickets from the ticket counter at the pier as agents and touts in Haiphong will rip you off, this happened to us and every other tourist we spoke to!

Ha Long Bay: We booked a trip with Cat Ba Ventures in Cat Ba Town. The day trip cost $31/£18.60 per person. The guide spoke excellent English and was very well informed on the area.

We Stayed At...

My Ngoc Hotel, on the water front. The room was huge, the view was amazing. It cost $10/£6 per night. The restaurant wasn't very good.

The Many Caves of Ninh Binh

I wasn't looking forward to our night train from Hue to Ninh Binh; India has traumatised me and all I could think of were the rats, the cockroaches, the smell of urine, the overcrowding and the dozens of Indian eyes peering at me through the dark above handlebar moustaches.

The Vietnamese train, on the other hand, was lovely: fresh bedding, a six bed berth with a door that closed, a nice table by the window. It was even clean. We'd just settled into a nice game of scrabble when the man sitting opposite us decided he'd use the 10 hour journey to learn English. He rudely interrupted our game and started writing random words on my piece of paper. For the next 30 minutes I was completely ignored whilst the stranger pestered Ric for pronunciation tips. When he gestured to me and asked Ric my name I got so cross I had to go for a walk. Sexist scrabble botherer!! 

To top it off, we were told the train would arrive in Ninh Binh at 5am but it arrived two hours early, leaving me and Ric sitting in the train station in the middle of the night, being bitten by mosquitoes, waiting for the sun to rise. Not the best start to our day.

90km south of Hanoi, Ninh Binh is home to some of the worst hotels and restaurants in the whole of Vietnam. We dragged our tired selves around several river-front hotels that could have passed for derelict buildings, before finally finding a place to rest.

Fortunately, for what it lacks in accommodation and food, Ninh Binh makes up for it in natural geographical wonders. 

First we took a boat ride through caves and around limestone rocks at Tam Coc, where our skillful guide rowed the boat with his feet! 

View down over Tam Coc from Mua Cave.

We were up early the next day to explore the incredible landscape on bicycles. First stop was Bich Dong temple, built into the side of a mountain with pitch black caves full of bats and Buddhist shrines. At the top there was a sign that says "do not climb up". We learned the hard way that the sign was right; the 100m climb was too difficult in our flip flops and we arrived at the rocky summit drenched in sweat, to find the only patch of shade was home to a nest of wasps. 

Outside Bich Dong.

Cave shrine, Bich Dong.

From the temple we continued along a dusty back road lined with rice paddies to Han Mua; another cave temple at the foot of 500 steps. The labourious climb was worth it for the panoramic views down to Tam Coc and out across Ninh Binh, however; I was not impressed with the Japanese tourist sat at the pagoda at the top playing a horribly out of tune Asian wind instrument! Talk about disrupting the peace.

View Ninh Binh from Mua Cave.

To end the day we took a three hour boat trip around Trang An where we traveled through yet more impressive caves. The karst landscape is really beautiful but once again there was somebody to upset my peace and quiet; this time a large, over-excitable Vietnamese family who shrieked and screamed and cheered their way along the river, having raucous boat races. Ric said I was being a killjoy but he soon changed his tune when the father of the family asked Ric to pay his portion of a tip to the boat driver!

Trang An landscape.

Trang An caves.

Ninh Binh has some amazing scenery, well worth a visit but the town itself isn't very pleasant. We left after two nights with a mild case of food poisoning as a souvenir.

How to get to...
All the caves! All the sights in Ninh Binh are within cycling distance, although hired motorbikes are probably preferable as the sights are quite spread out (about a 30km round trip), and the boat trips are long (Tam Coc 2 hours, Trang An 3 hours).
We stayed at...
Queen Mini Hotel. For $8/£4.80 the room was much nicer than anything else we'd seen in Ninh Binh. All the hotels along the waterfront are disgusting. The services in the Queen Mini Hotel were very overpriced compared to other local agents.

Hiking and Camping at Bach Ma National Park

All my research said it was not possible to camp in Vietnam, nor was it possible to hike to the summit of Bach Ma National Park, but being the stubborn fools that we are, and being determined to get some use out of the tent that we’ve carried from England for three months in our backpacks, Ric and I managed to do both.

Bach Ma National Park is located on National Highway 1, 60km north of Da Nang, 40km south of Hue. Home to 300 species of birds and thousands of species of plants, it seemed like the perfect place for us to get off the beaten track for a few days and chill with nature. Unfortunately it didn’t go quite so smoothly.

In Hue we were finding it difficult to get any straightforward information about the park. The problem with being a tourist is that we don’t speak Vietnamese, and the only people who speak English are those working for tour agencies and hotels, who want you to pay to go on their tours, use their buses and line their pockets with a nice commission. Thank Buddha for the Internet.

We arrived at the town of Cau Hai on National Highway 1 and walked 3km through quiet, rural streets to Bach Ma National Park’s entrance and visitor information centre where we were issued a map and warned against hiking up to the summit as it was too hot. We didn’t take the park ranger’s advice (like I said, we are stubborn), and refused the park’s transport up the mountain. The only transport permitted to use the park road is the employees private vehicles and the park’s own tourist car service. The car costs $30/£18 each way for the 17km journey, extortionate by Vietnam standards.

So we set off walking…

What we didn’t realise at the time was that Bach Ma National Park is not designed for hikes to the summit. The only way up is along a winding concrete road with almost no shade from the blistering tropical sun. After 5km climbing steadily at a 10% incline we were gasping, dripping with sweat and kicking ourselves for not listening to the park ranger’s advice.

View of the summit from the road.

We took a trail off the road down to ‘Pheasant Falls’ a stunning natural waterfall with deep, clear pools where we swam, ate lunch and rested in the shade. The only downside to this little patch of heaven was that it took us 1.5km down the mountainside, so we had to climb all the way back up again to resume our route to the summit.

Cooling down in one of the pools at Pheasant Falls.

The 14km from the park entrance to our campsite offered us some stunning views of the coastline and the surrounding mountains, however, it was difficult to enjoy in the 37 degree heat. We stopped and crouched under every tiny inch of shade and tried to catch our breath. During the seven hours it took us the reach the top we saw only five people, all of whom were driving down the mountain on motorbikes. As there are no shops or restaurants along the road we had to climb up trickling waterfalls and fill our water bottles in order to keep hydrated. Not for the faint hearted!

Just as the sun had disappeared behind the mountains we saw the first restaurant and guest house, 14km from the entrance, 1,400m meters above sea level. The staff there were really kind to us, letting us camp for free, use the restaurant bathroom to freshen up, even allowing us to use their kitchen to heat up our packed lunch! As we sat eating dinner the sky all around us flashed with an impressive lightning storm. Fortunately, the storm never reached our altitude and we slept under a star-filled clear sky.

Our well traveled tent.

After a fitful sleep on the cold ground (my roll mat was stolen in Cambodia), we got up at 5am and completed our hike to the summit, a further 3.5km uphill. The panoramic view from the top was certainly beautiful in the early morning haze and there was even a massive bell for me to give a celebratory dong! After a light breakfast of what little food we had left, we hot footed it back down the mountain hoping to get down before the heat of the sun made it slow torture like the previous day.

During our time in the national park we saw some really weird bugs that I can’t begin to identify: the fluorescent green flying thing the size of a sparrow that preceded us down to the waterfall; the enormous praying mantis that slept on the roof of our tent (on the outside, thankfully); the hundreds of tiny spiders with really long legs that made the forest floor seem alive; as well as several types of birds I’ve never seen before.

We made it back to the park entrance too tired and aching to walk the extra three kilometres to the road and so asked the man in the visitor centre to call us a taxi. Clearly spotting an opportunity, he took us on the back of his motorbike, completely ripping us off in the process. After a 40km round trip hike we had very little bargaining power and no energy to argue, and so handed over the cash and made a hasty getaway on the local bus.

The horrid road up mountain in the foreground. Cau Hai Lagoon in the distance and the South China Sea on the horizon.

The hike was certainly an achievement for the both of us; the heat made it so difficult. When even ever-encouraging Ric started to question whether or not we’d make it to the top I began to worry, but once again it was proof of what incredible things we can achieve if we push ourselves beyond our limits. The next day descending in the shadows of the mountain before the sun had fully risen we made it down in just 3.5 hours, half the time it took us to climb up.

Although the views were lovely and insect and plant life was very interesting, it really wasn’t a pleasant walk up the concrete road and the cost of the transport up to the summit isn’t justified. But at least we got to use our tent!

Dawn at the summit.

How to get to…

Bach Ma National Park:

-          Local buses going between Hue and Da Nang will drop you at Cau Hai market for approx 60,000VND ($3/£1.80). Buses depart from Hue at the southern bus terminal at the end of Huong Vong. In Cau Hai there’s no shortage of moto-taxi offering their services to take you to the park entrance for around 20,000VND ($1/£0.60), or you can walk.

-          Tourist buses (Sinh Tourist, Han Café, etc.) will drop you at the end of Duong Bach Ma (road) which leads directly to the park entrance. They depart from the city centre and are well worth paying the extra dollar for the AC and additional comfort compared to the local buses.

-          Private taxis from Hue cost in excess of £40/£24. Moto-taxis cost approx. $30/£18.

We stayed at…

We camped in front of Bo Quyen Villa, the first guest house you arrive at on the road to the summit. We camped for free but rooms there are expensive, starting at $35/£21.

Reconstructing Hue and The DMZ

The stretch of railway from Da Nang to Hue is said to be one of the most beautiful journeys in Vietnam, hugging the cliffs of the national park on the edge of the coast, passing deserted bays of golden sand and turquoise water. You can imagine our disappointment when we boarded the train to find we were seated in the one carriage that had metal grills at the windows. If that wasn't bad enough, we were facing backwards. Great. The journey was undeniably beautiful, even from our cage carriage. 

Our disappointed didn't end there; the main attractions to see in Hue, the citadel and the ancient tombs, were being restored, and hence were covered in scaffolding.

Hue citadel wall.

The Imperial Place is in the center of the walled citadel and is currently being restored - Asian style; let's make this two hundred year old palace look brand-spanking new with lots of concrete, red brick and shiny new paint work. The former capital was bombed heavily during the war and today only half of the original buildings are standing, but these are being restored with the help of Korea's Daejon University. We cycled across the river to visit the palace and weren't impressed, especially as it's crowning glory, the South Gate, was completely obscured from view with scaffolding, boards and tarpaulins. Nonetheless, it was almost deserted in the mid-morning heat and we enjoyed walking around the gardens in sweaty peace.

New, shiny, restored part of the Imperial Palace.

Inside the Imperial Palace.

After a long, up and down, 8km bike ride to Tu Duc's Tomb, south of the city, we were met with yet more builders, tarpaulins and scaffolding. The former king's tomb is more stately park than burial ground, with a lake complete with an island, and separate shires for his hundreds of wives and concubines. For all its grandeur, Tu Duc himself decided not to be buried here, and was enshrined at a secret location somewhere outside of Hue. He sounds like an arrogant fool to me. 

From Hue we took a day trip out to the former DMZ, where Vietnam was divided into two separate countries for over twenty years. After the French were defeated and left Vietnam the country was divided at the 17th parallel, along the Ben Hai River. The North was under communist rule and the South was democratic. Sound familiar? Korea?? After the country was unable to hold democratic elections to decided which half should govern the unified country, war broke out between the North and the South, then America got involved and we all know how that story ends.

The DMZ is 70km north of Hue and the trip was a long one. We stopped at a couple of former military bases, the Ho Chi Min Trail (former supply line for the Viet Cong in the South), and a the Vinh Moc tunnels. Most of the military bases have been dismantled and there wasn't really much to see. Khe Sanh military base had some aircraft, bunkers and artillery, as well as a ridiculously biased museum where the photo captions were so anti-American it would have been funny had it not been in such a somber context (see below). Most disturbing of all were the men walking around the site hassling visitors to buy their 'souvenirs'. Carried on a tray around their necks were artifacts the men had found in the area using metal detectors: bullets, dog tags and medals. It disturbed me beyond words that anyone would sell a dog-tag belonging to a fallen soldier as a souvenir, let alone buy one. Interested to see if they were genuine, I took a closer look, which the tout mistook for interest to purchase one of his gruesome finds. I tried explaining to him that I thought it was sick, and that those things should not be sold as souvenirs, but his English was limited to "big big big many many bunker" which he repeated to me incessantly for fifteen minutes until I ran back onto our tour bus. Our guide told me that some American tourists buy the dog-tags to take back to the states and return to the soldiers' families, which is great, but as for anyone who would want a bullet as a souvenir from a battlefield, that's just twisted.

Caption: "U.S. marines shutting themselves in bunkers for fear of their own shadows"

The Vinh Moc tunnels were probably the highlight of the tedious trip. Unlike the Cu Chi tunnels, which where designed for combat, the Vinh Moc tunnels were dug by the local villagers for civilians to live away from the threat of bombs. The tunnels contained small living compartments for 60 families, each compartment was no bigger than 1mx2m. 17 babies were born in the tunnels. Although most of the day was spent inside a bus, our guide was excellent and provided a very accurate and detailed history of the area and of the war.

That's me, in a tunnel. Vinh Moc.

Marble Mountain, Da Nang

The white sands of Hoi An's An Banh beach continue for 30km up the coast to Da Nang, Vietnam's third biggest city. We caught the local bus to a hotel 4km out of the city center and spent two nights there.

During our time in Da Nang we had a constant battle with the number 1 bus. First we paid 20,000VND each ($1/£0.60) to travel all the way from Hoi An to our hotel (approximately 25km). The next day the same bus tried to charge us 35,000VND each to travel 3km to Marble Mountain (more than the cost of a private taxi), but after some arguing, accepted just 5,000 per pax. The following evening the same bus tried charging us 35,000VND to travel 5km into Da Nang city center. It seems different bus drivers have a different idea of how much the 'tourist tax' should be!

The highlight of our trip to Da Nang was Marble Mountain (Ngũ Hành Sơn), half way between Hoi An and Da Nang. From the road it looks like a giant rock rising out of the ground, adorned with an ugly elevator that is quite at odds with the ornate 6 level pagoda over looking the coastline. As the name suggests, the mountain, along with a scattering of others in the area, is made of marble, and the streets surrounding its base are lined with sculptors carving out huge statues Buddha and Ho Chi Min, the two Gods worshiped in Vietnam. 

Pagoda, Marble Mountain.

After paying the entrance fee of 15,000VND ($0.75/£0.45) we climbed the stone steps up the mountain and were amazed to discover an enchanting maze of caves, grottos and hidden temples. At first glance I would never have guessed that Marble Mountain contained so many hidden wonders. Narrow staircases carved into the rock lead us around tight corners, through hidden passageways to reveal vast caves decorated with beautiful carvings of Buddha. Each cave was different, one lead us up a vertical tunnel onto the top of the mountain for a 365 degrees view of the area, with Da Nang to the North and Hoi An to the South. The final cave was as big as a cathedral, with a huge Buddha statue lit from above with natural light filtering in through a gap in the top of a cave. It was impressive, a great spot to pass a morning exploring.

View West from Marble Mountain.

View North, towards Da Nang.

Spot Ric? Buddha carved into the rock at Marble Mountain.

During our time in Hoi An and Da Nang we've been constantly followed by groups of young boys banging drums and dancing around in dragon costumes. Our hotel receptionist tells us it's part of a festival that lasts for two weeks, terminating on the first full moon in September. The children dressed as dragons are said to bring good luck to the homes, hotels and restaurants that they enter, as long as the proprietor offers them a generous donation. Over the past two weeks the drum banging has escalated from small groups of children making a racket to full on parades displaying some impressive gymnastics. Below is a video taken from a display outside our hotel in Da Nang.

Hoi An

We took a most uncomfortable night bus from Nha Trang to Hoi An (12 hours). The seats on the bus were clearly made to fit tiny Vietnamese people and not six feet tall Mancunians.

Hoi An is an ancient coastal town and UNESCO World Heritage Site. The streets running parallel to the Thu Bon River are lined with 200 year old, wooden-fronted, merchants' houses from the days when Hoi An was a world renown trading port. The low-rise, fading yellow houses are at their most beautiful at night, twinkling with colourful, paper lanterns.

The heat was pretty much unbearable during the day and we only emerged from our air-conditioned sanctuary each day at about 4pm, to drink iced coffee and watch the sun set over the river.

Although super touristy - countless silk and souvenir shops - the town has maintained its charm and we were happy to spend three days walking through the quaint streets and drinking cheap beers on the many restaurant balconies that line the palm fringed river front.

We discovered some amazing food in Hoi An that made us upgrade our rating of Vietnamese from ok to very good. Down a small alley we found a family-run restaurant called Ba Le Well, serving a set meal of Nem nướng: pork kebabs, satay pork skewers, prawn spring rolls, salad, kim chi, rice and bamboo shoot pancakes, all wrapped up in rice paper and dipped into homemade satay and chili sauce. Dessert was chocolate mousse and fresh fruit. It's the best thing we've even here, we ate there two out of three nights! 

Hoi An street food by the river.

We took an organised tour out to My Son, an overgrown temple complex built by the Cham people who settled in Vietnam from India in the fourth century. The site contains temples and tombs of Cham kings. The temples of My Son are all that remain of a vast ancient empire that was razed to the ground by the American bombs during the war.

Tomb at My Son

We went with 'My Son Tours' and were probably the only people in the group that could understand our guide's heavily accented English; the German, Spanish and Korean tourists looked at him bewildered before wandering off to explore on their own.

My Son temple ruins.

To top off a lovely stay in Hoi An we cycled around one of the near-by river islands and then out to An Banh beach, the most idyllic beach I've ever seen. The ocean was crystal clear and the sand squeaky and white. Best of all, we had it almost to ourselves.

How To Get To...

My Son: For $7.50/£4.60  we decided it was cheap enough and easy enough to take an organised tour. The price included: water, guide, hotel pick up (bus), boat trip back to Hoi An, lunch. 

We Stayed At...

Hoi Pho Hotel: Leaky air conditioning, cockroaches and an overbearing, bossy owner - not worth the $13 we paid!