Vietnam Nov 2013 - Sa Pa

Whilst I was very keen to visit Vietnam and experience the different people and culture, I was not wanting to spend all my time in the cities. Predominantly I wanted the out of the way places... which seems to be what I mostly yearn. Less tourists = more real experiences.

We took the overnight train, north west, out of Hanoi to Lao Cai, which is on the Chinese border. It was tricky to find which of the 7 odd trains was ours. The correct platform was tricky to spot as we had to drag our cases over train tracks and for the most the lighting wasn't great. The station was far from the ones we have experienced in other Asian cities or Europe!. Fortunately our hotel sent a porter with us. Even with his help there was a hiccup that had us standing outside the carriage for nearly half an hr while the porter ran off and validated our tickets at another hotel. We were encouraged to book a whole cabin to ourselves. A little indulgent but meant we had some privacy and more chance of sleeping. Though the beds were short and narrow and we were dubious as to whether the sheets were clean, we managed to get some sleep arriving into Lao Cai about 6am. We were met by a driver who then took us the 1 hr drive to Sa Pa, our next port of call.

We stayed at Cha pa Gardens. Its just off the main street and is an old French Colonial house that is now a 4 room hotel. Big rooms and very comfortable. Sa Pa is often in clouds in photos and we found this as well. At times you could not see across the square and then the wisps of clouds would pass for a few moments of clear view.

Sa Pa is quite touristy and the main ethnic minority group of the area are the Black H'mong. There are alot of women on the streets hawking their wares. Mostly jewelry and embroidery. This lovely young woman (who seemed only about 16 yrs old) stopped to chat and was more than happy for me to take a picture of her and her baby.

A mistly street. It is perched on the side of a mountain so lots of stairs between streets.

This lady was Mau (as in Maureen she told me)! She was very cheeky. 26 yrs old with 3 children. She certainly stood out among a group of quieter women. I bought a bracelet from her that her husband had made from old coins.

Tina doing some shopping and haggling.

This fabulous town square suddenly cleared enough for me to get this shot. The morning we left there were dozens of kids there practicing marching and dancing for an upcoming festival.

Vietnam Nov 2013 - Hanoi

Well I got to see Mark for 5 days after his Route 66 trip, before I left for Vietnam with my sister Tina.

We arrived in the afternoon to our hotel. It was in the old quarter which is narrow roads with much traffic. All lined with shops on the ground floor and homes above them. During checkin they sat us down and went through a few things. The main point was how to cross a road in Vietnam. Their tip of never stopping, go slowly, keep moving forward, NEVER step back - proved invaluable and we were soon experts... well nervous experts.

It was incredibly humid and we soon needed to stop for a beer. The bar had the beer on ice. This woman was making a delivery of ice!

Both the stools for sitting on and the table for our beers were only about 40cm high. We also were perched outside on the edge of the road.

There were many happy faces coming along on their bikes trying to sell us their wares.

The cars and motorbikes were whizzing close to my toes.

Before I left Australia I booked a guide for a day through Hanoi Kids. Lovely Ngoc met us at our hotel and took us out and about for the day. In particular we requested to visit the Museum of Ethnology.

It was very interesting and showed how much the Vietnamese acknowledge and appreciate the diversity their minority groups provide.

In the middle of Hanoi sits Hoan Kiem Lake. From early morning to late at night the locals are walking around or relaxing with friends by the lake.

This bridge linked a small island where there was a small temple. Ngoc took us to out of the way places for food. We had Bun Cha for lunch. Noodles, herbs and pork (done 2 ways and bbq'd) with dipping sauce and fresh herbs.

Afternoon was egg coffee. This was black coffee topped with a mix of egg yolk and sugar (possibly condensed milk). Whipped until thick and spooned on top. It was delicious!

The guides are volunteers and will not take payment. We were very happy to provide a manicure in return whilst we had foot massages to ease our weary feet.

Our favourite meal in Vietnam. Vietnamese pancake with a small amount of pork and shrimps inside. super crispy edges. Each piece we wrapped in rice paper with herbs. Dip and munch.... divine!

Cold noodle salad for lunch.

Tina earning her keep on the street! It was surprisingly heavy!

The closest thing to a Melbourne coffee shop we found. Good coffee and the only seating these tiny stools on the footpath. Good thing they were strong! It was across from the lake so a good spot to sit a while and people watch.

A couple of cocktails were consumed in this bar overlooking a main intersection. People young and old would cross the road as would push bikes, motor bikes, cars, buses and trucks. At times it was mayhem.

A typical 'restaurant' on the street. Anyone seems to be able to set up like this. They bring noodles and hot water and a few things for flavour.

Our last night in Hanoi we ate at a lovely restaurant. Inside and on BIG grown up chairs!! This beef had been cooked in the bamboo. It gave a terrific flavour to the meat. The sauce had clams in it which was a different combination.

Route 66 - October 2013

In October 2013 the boys and I headed off to the USA to drive Route 66. I had been keen to do this trip for some time and had spent much time thinking about it. I finally got serious after watching the Billy Connolly Route 66 series on a flight home from New Zealand.

With the seed planted in my head I started to talk to mates about doing this trip….well it wasn’t hard to find the guys who were only too keen to sign on…. So keen were they that we couldn’t just travel in any car…they had to be American “muscle cars” and had to be old and eye catching. So John found them through Black Top Candy's ….We booked a sky blue and white ’55 Chevy Bel Air and a burgundy ’67 Chevy Camaro with black racing strips.

So there we were in Chicago - Stephano, John, Tim and I… out sight-seeing for a few days, before the cars arrived and we started the 3,427Km trip across eight American states. (Neil would later join us in Oklahoma City…)

It was a drizzly start but we found the official start of Route 66 sign, on the streets of Chicago.

The cars arrived and we couldn’t contain our excitement any longer. They looked amazing! They were loud V8’s…very loud…!! Not the most comfortable and certainly not the easiest to drive….We had our challenges in front of us, but that was soon to be a small issue….

The cars were very popular on the road, people would wave at us as they drove by or toot their horns and when we stopped at the gas stations people would walk up to us and ask about the cars. Soon the conversations would flow about where did you get these old cars from, where did you buy them, where are you all from and we love your accents…

We stopped at an Amish town of Arthur, the guys bought quilts for their homes, watched furniture being made and were amazed at the horse and buggies on the streets and the dress standards of the locals. We even went harvesting corn!!!!! And that is another whole story

The original route 66 road can still be seen a lot of the time but it is rarely used and has been replaced by major interstate freeways that are all very new.

One very delusional young lady even took a liking to John…we were a bit lost on that one , but good ol' John just took it in his stride…business as usual as far as he was concerned….a few days later he asked why some of these people that liked him so much didn’t live back in Brisbane as he would like all these reassurances on how good he was.

The original route 66 road can still be seen a lot of the time but it is rarely used and has been replaced by major interstate freeways that are all very new.

We all drove the cars, our trip covered over 3,500 Km, the same as driving distance as Melbourne to Perth.

We stayed at this iconic & retro hotel...

The trip took us through Illinois, Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and California.

It was amazing how many well preserved old signs etc there were along the way.

We went standing on a corner in Winslow Arizona such a fine sight to see.... a girl my lord in a flat bed ford slowing down to take a look at me....!!

Endless miles of Cotton fields...

Oklahoma City Memorial & Museum. This photo is in remembrance of the victims of the Oklahoma city bombing. Neil joined us here touring towards Grand Canyon.

Cadillac ranch... an iconic stop along the way. This could be the closest John gets to having his own Caddy!

We took a bike ride along the rim of Grand Canyon.

Stephano was committed to finding Hooters for us to eat at each night. The reality is - on Route 66 there aren't any. Just lots of old little towns and Denny restaurants. We eventually got to a Hooters in Vegas.

I pre purchased tickets to the World Bull-riding Championships in Vegas. We all agreed it was the best night of the trip. We all drank and laughed so much.

Went to visit Elvis in Memphis and headed across to Santa Fe, Grand Canyon, Las Vegas and dropped the old cars back at the official end of Route 66 in Santa Monica Los Angles before heading up the coast to San Francisco for our final few days of R&R before heading home.

We all enjoyed the trip and while I was thinking we had a good time the others were saying that the three week’s away were like six….we did so much and had such a good trip that the seed has been planted to do it again in a few years’ time…….maybe Miami to New York….we will wait and see what unfolds.

Queenstown August 2013 - in Retrospect

After a crazy first 6 months of the year for us.... We snuck off to Queenstown, NZ for a week of R&R in August 2013. We loved it so much the year before when we were there in summer so we thought we would give it a go in winter. It was fantastic! “The Remarkables” really lived up to its name…this time they were topped in snow. We looked forward to the cold and quiet.

We stayed in an apartment on the lake front - less than 5 minutes walk from town. The view was breathtaking.

A French café for our first breakfast. Mark is a lover of Eggs benedict. To have them come as a Mille Feuille ... Wow!!

Delicious, warm and spicy mulled wine in a glass rimmed with cinnamon...sitting at a bar under the heat lamps with views to The Remarkables. The International Winter Extreme Games were on and it was interesting seeing all the nationalities represented and hearing their accents around town. Off course we ate and drank too much of that lovely NZ cuisine and one night we actually did a restaurant crawl to get home…that was a lot of fun.

A visit to Wanaka is a must for us when we are in this region. We just love this place and dream of a long stay in a fabulous house with views of the lake, one day with friends. Who wants to come??

I just loved how Marks jumper matched the flowers of the Jacaranda trees I could see from the lakes shore.

A drive around the west side of the lake took us to more amazing scenery and a visit to this winery. There were no shabby views anywhere!

Driving through the valley on the way back from Wanaka to Queenstown we stopped by this renowned winery. The wine cave was dug decades ago... I think by an Irish guy who moved to NZ.

Some of the barrels in the cave. We did a few tastings here.

A few evenings ended up like this!

Beautiful Queenstown lake and docks.

We love it here :-)

We took a drive to the Glenorchy which is at the far end of the lake. This place is just so picturesque and pristine...

Mark looking relaxed.

We don't do 'selfies' well !!!

One day... I say! One day.... I will go para-sailing. But not this trip.... Yep it was way too cold!!!

Queenstown from the air as we headed home. The week went very quickly, but we did rest and take it easy which is exactly what we set out to do…..Mark even started and finished a book in the week…..now that was amazing in itself!!!!!