Although we had travelled in Asia before (Singapore, Japan, Bali), this was the first time we saw the 'real' Asia. We were initially shocked by the population density, the traffic frenzy, the noise and the pollution. As we got accustomed to the Vietnamese life, we appreciated the kindness and the hospitality of the locals, and at the same time we made new friends by meeting other travellers and sharing our experiences over a cup of Vietnamese coffee. We strolled around the small roads of Hoi An or the Imperial Citadel of Hue and perceived the smart outcome of the combination of Chinese, Japanese and French influence. We tried every delicious dish of Vietnamese cuisine, from high-end restaurants and alternative fusion cooking, to basic street food, and we just fell in love with it.
We adored Saigon, a city with a long history, claiming now its new modern identity. We would easily come back to spend some time here.
However, we left with a bitter taste due to the pollution and over-exploitation of natural beauties that seem to decline without any legislation to protect them. If nothing is done, in the next few years many of the highlights of Vietnam will be completed destroyed, as we saw happening in Halong Bay.
By far the best part of our tip was trying the Vietnamese cuisine. We fell in love with the fresh ingredients and their combinations, and our guides suggested us some excellent restaurants, from expensive candlelight dinners to almost for-free street food.
The picturesque little historical city of Hoi An and the Imperial Citadel of Hue were oases in the busy Vietnamese life.
The workshops of lantern and kite-making, as well as the water puppet show and the traditional music concerts were the highlights of the trip for our 7-year old son.
We fell in love with Saigon.
Our guide in Hoi An and Hue and the guide we had for the lantern-workshop. They were not only professional and knowledgeable, but also friendly, motivated, funny and made us feel at home. They will stay in our hearts forever.
In the general planning, we think that the program was too intense at times. For example, the during the last 3 days of the trip, we spend 1,5 days in the car plus one hotel change, to experience one 2-hour and one 1.5-hour excursions in the Mekong delta. It is true that we had approved this program and we could check how much time is needed to cover this distance with the roads of Vietnam, but it would be better to have been informed for the length of the travel. In that case, we would have decided to spend the last days in Saigon, so as to relax the last days before getting back to the frenzy work schedule.
A couple of specific problems:
- Our guide for the last third of the trip had inadequate knowledge of English, while the few information he bothered to provide was often wrong. His attitude was rude at times and was pressing us constantly to buy products. We communicated this to our local agent at the end of this part of the trip, who informed us that our initially attributed guide had been changed last minute, and he reimbursed us for the relevant expenses. So, despite for our dissatisfaction for the choice of the guide, rendering the experience of the last third of the trip frustrating at times, the local agent did his best to make it up for us. Should we had contacted him the first day in Saigon, maybe we could have another guide for the rest of the trip.
- The 1-night cruise to Halong Bay was also a disappointment. In part due to the fact that the area is spoiled by pollution and over-exploited touristically, and in part because of the choice of the cruising company. The boat was dirty and smelly and the cabin so tiny, that the two of us should be on the bed to leave space for the third to go to the bathroom or to dress up.