IndiaVietnam
I spent 5 weeks in Vietnam in early 2004 as part of a 3.5 month trip around South-East Asia. I rate Vietnam as
possibly the most photogenic country I've visited - especially the people.
The highlight for me was the time I spent in and around Sapa - a small town in the far north of Vietnam not all that
far fromthe Chinese border. The hills around Sapa are home to many ethnic minorities like the Hmong and the
Z'ea, each with their own distinctive language, cultural dress and physical characteristics that separates them from
the majority Vietnamese. I found it especially interesting that the languages of different minority peoples were quite
different from one another, and the language of one minority would be unintelligible to another minority who just
lived in the next valley over.
Other highlights of Vietnam:
Ho Chi Minh City (or Saigon): Plenty to do in and around here, and probably the prettiest and cleanest of the
larger cities in all of South-East Asia.
Dalat: Small town in the Central Highlands with good walks and waterfalls nearby.
Nha Trang: A bit touristic, but sometimes touristic can be fun! Vietnam's premier beachside party town, diving can
be arranged fromhere too. Be sure to join in the evening antics at the Nha Trang Sailing Club - just don't have too
much planned the next day!!
Hoi An: Cute little town, good for mega-cheap imitation clothes tailor-made to your personal measurements (think
Cashmere silk suit for US$30). Getting a motorbike from here and riding a couple of hours into the countryside to
some old temple ruins was an interesting ride through Vietnamese rural life which I thought was even more interesting
than the temple ruins we ended up at!
Oh, and if you're into photography be sure to visit Long Thanh's gallery in Nha Trang . Although you can see a small
selection of his worksat the Nha Trang Sailing club, his gallery is amazing. Vietnamese life like you never saw it.
| An Elderly Woman and Her Hats in Nha Trang | |
| Vietnam |
| The ruins of an American tank that took a hit just outside Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) |
| French Fries, Sapa-style. The old dude was 96 - 4 generations of one Sapa family all lived under the one roof. I stayed with them for a night as part of trek around the wider area. |
| An old Chinese temple somewhere in Saigon. I actually didn't know I was coming here, I went to go the Museum of the Vietnam War but it was closed for lunch, so my motorbike taxi driver took me here instead - well worth the accidental detour! |
| This chap was performing in a small village somewhere in the Mekong Delta |
| Halong Bay is to the east of the capital Hanoi, and has hundreds of limestone islands jutting out the sea |
| In the muddy backstreets of Nha Trang, Vietnam. |
| One of 3 photos of the same colourful old dude I came across in the muddy backstreets of Nha Trang |
| One of 3 photos of an old dude I came across in the muddy backstreets of Nha Trang |
| One of 3 photos of an old dude I came across in the muddy backstreets of Nha Trang |
| 11 Aug 2007 |
| 13 Aug 2007 |