Nha Trang

Day 1, we arrived at the crack of dawn, 6am. And already there were tons of Vietnamese people in the sea which seemed a bit odd. We couldn't check in our room so we headed to breakfast and then walked along the beach. And this is certainly a holiday destination.

After we had checked in our room and had breakfast (at Lonely Planet's recommendation, Veranda) we decided to head to the Spa, which contained Mud Baths and Mineral Water Jacuzzis and Swimming Pools.

The mud went everywhere but our skin felt very smooth, so I think it did the job especially to our feet. 

We returned and headed to another Lonely Planet recommendation for dinner, Lac Canh. We had to get there by taxi and it was right on the other side of town and at first glance it didn't really appeal to me. 

However, you should never judge a book by its cover because it was amazing. We were the only Westerners there. It was really smoky and there didn't seem to be any orderly system in how to get a table. Finally, we took a seat and straight away a waitress came over and gave us a beer even though we didn't even ask for one. We then picked what we wanted and then a guy came over with our table bbq! 

The food was delicious and exceeded all expectations, so anyone visiting Nha Trang please please please go to this restaurant!

Day 2. Melissa and co arrived from Hoi An and as soon as they were sorted with a room we headed over to Vinpearl. 

We had to get a cable car over to the island and the views were insane.

Vinpearl is basically an island of fun. There is a small theme park, a Waterpark, an Aquarium, a whiter than white beach, shops and lots of little shows to see.

The aquarium was amazing and we got there just in time to watch 'feeding time'. My pictures aren't great but they'll give you the general idea. I've never done scuba diving, but it definitely makes me want to, maybe in Koh Tao towards the end of my trip.

When it became dark, the pictures got even better and we even got to go on one of those aerobungys for free.

And then just before we left, we headed to the outdoor theatre and watched a musical light water Fountain show.

It was amazing!

We got back late from Vinpearl and decided to try our final restaurant that Lonely Planet had recommended, Louisianne Brewhouse. We definitely didn't know how posh it was going to be so we didn't go back to the hostel to shower and change. And we 100% looked out of place. It is a microbrewery with a mix of Vietnamese and Western food and the tables surround a pool. 

I had a Passionfruit beer and Nath had a citrus fruit ale. I'm not the biggest fan of beer but it was really good. And the food was excellent too. I finally managed to have some mussels, Thai style. 

Day 3 was our final day in Nha Trang and we spent the day lazing on the beach eating mango and drinking coconut milk. All in all, a great day.

Our bus left at 9.30pm so we had time for our last meal with the girls before we left. 

Next stop Ho Chi Minh City, A.K.A Saigon..

Hoi An

After a sweaty 4 hour bus journey we arrived in Hoi An and much to our relief (Phoebe (Mel's oldest friend) and Vanessa (Phoebe's friend from uni) who arrived a day earlier) a shuttle bus courtesy of the hotel we were staying in picked us up. We stayed at Sunflower Hotel, which is again is another popular accommodation choice for backpackers and it even has a pool and breakfast is included, what a choice! 

Hoi An is beautiful especially in the old town area has a very Italian feel to it. It is an area also renowned for tailor making anything you should so choose. 

On day 1, we rented some bikes for the day for the equivalent of 65p, which I'm sure you'd agree is pretty cheap and we headed to the beach. It was yet again beautiful, however I did not manage to get a photo. For dinner that evening we went to 'Shree Ganeesh', which is a suggested choice in my Lonely Planet Guide. The food was Indian, but not quite like the Indian restaurants at home. The food was ridiculously delicious and so fresh. I was also able to have a glass of red wine (finally), from the Dalat region of Vietnam. After dinner we decided to call it a night as we were so tired and we crashed by 10.30pm.

Day 2 took us to the tailoring shops and much to Nath and my (sort of) dismay sort of we spent HOURS there. I was planning on getting my graduation dress made but on visiting the shops I came to the decision it was far too stressful and hot, but this did not stop Mel!! Eventually we managed to pull her away and we headed to explore the old town, were we sampled some mangos in the market.

From here we headed straight to the other beach, which was even more perfect. I mean seriously, can they get anymore perfect. 

As the sun began to set, we noticed that some Vietnamese people were setting up wind barriers and little kitchens, so we went to explore. We tried a soup-like rice dish, with clams and chilli and it was rather delicious. 

But hungry still, we headed into the old town for dinner. Unfortunately I will disappoint in letting you know I did have a pizza, but it didn't disappoint me. We also all had, what Nath read as recommended, beer by the glass which came to 18p a pint, pretty impressive. 

Day 3, in pictures.

Tomorrow evening, Nath and I will leave Hoi An by the night bus to Nha Trang! 

Hue

We arrived in Hue early morning with the plan to get on the 1pm bus to Hoi An as we had booked into it, however the company had made a mistake and double booked us on it. So we had to stay the night in Hue which coincidently worked out well in the end, as a friend of mine from my university tennis team happened to be there also.

We decided to go to the beach for the rest of the day, so Nath, Mel and I all hopped into a taxi and we were on our way.

The beach was incredible, virtually untouched. However we were the only people in swimming costumes and not only that, we were also the only Westerners. So the whole situation was a little odd, but nonetheless worth the visit.

Once back at the hostel (Hue Backpackers) we met up with Some girls who were studying at Edinburgh University and went for dinner at a place called 'Why Not?' And as it says in the name why not. Their Mango Daiquiris were amazing !

We then headed back to the hostel and had some Passionfruit punch before meeting Joe (from university) and heading to the popular backpacker's destination of Brown Eyes (along with several people we have met in Vietnam) to dance the night away and Nath certainly did! 

The next morning we had an early bus ride, so having a late night the night before wasn't the best idea, however as they say 'you only live once'! 

Hanoi and Halong Bay (Castaway Tour)

Finally we arrived in Hanoi around 11pm after a 28 hour bus journey.

*If travelling around Asia has taught me one thing, it is that I need to appreciate the short distances that we travel place to place in the UK. So I have told myself that as soon as I get home I'm going to make a executive decision to visit more places. 

Anyway on the bus we had actual beds, slightly strange experience as if you are on the top bunk and the road is dodgy, you often feel as though you will fall out but then when you strap yourself in you feel like you are been sectioned! All rather weird.

Hanoi itself is pretty similar to Bangkok, a busy, smelly city! However there is something I quite like about city life. We stayed in Hanoi Backpackers (downtown) which I would 100% recommend for anyone travelling around Vietnam especially those travelling alone. There are so many backpackers from all over the world and the hostel offers things to do every night and tours to go on! 

During the day, we visited the Hoa Lo Prison. French colonialists built the prison in 1896. Lots of prisoners died there due to the food that was eaten for example popular rice was crushed and mixed with white rice from the south which was out of date with parasites. And at one point over 40 prisoners died in a month. Anyway it was all rather interesting. 

The first night, we went on an organised bar crawl but clubbing in Vietnam is totally different to the UK because you sweat obscene amounts. So unless you are positioned in a close proximity to a fan you end up looking rather disgusting. 

Whilst staying at the Backpackers we booked onto the 3 day, 2 night castaway tour. Which consisted of travelling aby bus to Halong Bay and then getting a small boat to a large (party) boat where we stayed for one night and had many drinks and jumped off the boat. 

After a relatively late night we headed back to sleep in our cabins. The next morning we were woken up at 7am, which is a struggle at the best of times. We had breakfast as the boat made its way to our own private island, Castaway Island. It rained during the journey but soon the rain cleared and we arrived at the Island.

Definitely one of the most amazing beaches I've ever visited and the water was bath water temperature. Which was at times rather frustrating when all you wanted to do was cool down. 

Whilst at the island, we played volleyball, kayaked through caves and to an area where there are normally many jellyfish (however the water was too warm, so they were hidden from near the surface), swam to a platoon, sunbathed, went high speed tubing and played cards. All in a day's work!! 

Our bedrooms were dorms of 12 and all that protected us from the outside was a roof.

And this was our view, I'm not sure you get much better than that.

In the evening, we played games and drank some more and then midnight was upon us and we all went swimming in the Bioluminescent waters, where when you made movements there were many tiny lights it was pretty amazing. Finally, it was time for bed and we all out like a light.  

Next morning we headed back to Hanoi and it poured with rain, so were really lucky with the weather. As soon as we arrived back we quickly ate then straight away had to get an overnight bus to Hue.