Phú Quốc II

The rest of our time on Phú Quốc involved touring around the island.  First we rented a motor bike (sorry mom) and rode around to various spots on the island.

We visited Suối Tranh Waterfalls where we hiked through the jungle and took a dip in a little pool at the base of a waterfall.

Next we got lunch in a little village on a river in the middle of the island where no one spoke English and we seriously felt like we were on display.  It was like one of those western movies where someone walks into the saloon and everyone stops what they are doing and looks at them.  We were definitely a novelty there.  Little kids wanted to do nothing but wave and say hello at us.

Next we rode to a beach on the lee side of the island and spent some time on Sao beach.  A beautiful white-sand, pristine beach where there were tons of resorts with beach-side bars and hammocks.  I sipped on a virgin pina colada and played with a cute little puppy at the bar. Adam rode around on a jet ski.

Next we stopped in the most picturesque fishing village on the southern tip of Phú Quốc, An Thoi.  Again people were fascinated to see westerners.  These two girls on a bicycle followed us around while I took pictures of the multicolored boats in the harbor.  A bunch of village boys played soccer on the pier where all the fishing boats were unloading.  Women in cone hats sat together in a huddle repairing fishing nets.  It was one of the more spectacular scenes thus far.

The following day we went fishing and snorkeling at some of the small islands south of Phú Quốc.  The visability kinda sucked, but it was pretty fun to get in the water.  We also were prepared an amazing meal on the boat with the fish we had just caught, noodles, fried rice, soup, fresh fruit and greens.  It was a great spread.  But my absolute favorite part of the day was when we stopped at a shop on the way out to the harbor and I met these little guys.  They were pets of the Australian guy who ran the shop, and they were super sweet.  One even groomed my hair a bit:

 The awkward climb up.

 Some grooming.

However, one got a little too comfortable with me, and decided it was ok to borrow my sunglasses:

 Here she comes....

 My glasses!

 She proceeded to try and eat them for the next ten minutes:

Now I have a lovely memory of my little friends, my sunglasses have a bunch of scratch marks and bites all over them. :)

They liked Adam and my shoe too:

Sorry for all the pictures, but this might have been the best moment of our trip so far.  I just keep smiling every time I think about it.  They were so friggin cute.

The boat trip and snorkeling was pretty fun too.  Although it's hard to compete with the diving and snorkeling we did in Belize and Australia.  Mostly it was just fun to be on the water and swim a bit.

Ahoy!

 Coral

 Yummy, freshly caught lunch

More colorful boats:

Overall our time on Phú Quốc was awesome.  It's a little piece of paradise, and I'm so glad I got to see it before it becomes even more touristy.

Ho Chi Minh City

After close to 24 hours of travel we made it to Vietnam.  Despite warnings about taxi scams at the airport, we made it to our hotel with no problems.  We are staying at the Vy Khanh Guesthouse in the tourist section, Pham Ngu Lao, of Ho Chi Minh City.  Ms Vy has been a lovely host.  She welcomed us with cold drinks and showers even though we arrived quite early in the morning.  She gave us a very detailed map of the city with recommendations of where to go for pho, massages, shopping, and sightseeing.  Even as I type this she has brought me Vietnamese coffee to sip while I wait for Adam to wake up.

The first thing you'll notice about Ho Chi Minh is the wild driving patterns of the motorbikers and cars.  There really aren't very many rules here, although the locals have seemed to work out a way to do things without killing each other.  If you want to cross the street, no one is going to stop for you, you simply have to just walk and the cars and bikes will drive around you.

After dropping off our bags and showering at our guest house, we headed into town for some food and sights.  First we went to a little corner stand for pho.  It was delicious.  Adam ate two bowls.

The food here is so yummy and inexpensive.  A meal for two, even in the "expensive tourist area" will run us around $5.00.

Next we got massages at the Vietnamese Traditional Massage Institute.  Here blind masseurs rub you down with peppermint oil, in a cool air-conditioned room for a mere $2.50 an hour.  It was very relaxing.

Then we wandered around the Chợ Bến Thành market where all out senses were accosted.  The crowded market is piled to the ceiling with everything you can imagine from nail polish to spices.  Everywhere we turned people were asking us to touch or try various goods.  Apparently as a foreigner at this market the prices they quote you are inflated by 300% thus we didn't end up buying anything there and decided to hold off until we were at the less touristy markets.

I barely made it to 8pm before crashing and I slept until 8am the next morning.  I'm writing this while sipping Vietnamese coffee and chatting with my lovely host Ms Vy.  She has owned and managed this guest house for the past 4 years.  Today she is complaining about her cat-lady neighbors who make it impossible for her to do renovations/improvements.  She thinks it is because they are bored that they put up such a fuss.

The plan for today is to check out more markets and some of the museums in the city.  I think I'll enjoy today a lot more after having a such a good night sleep.  Oh and a positive note, I woke up to an email from the third member of my committee saying he'll sign off on my thesis.  Now only my adviser is left!