vietnam recap

We made it to Krabi, Thailand last night, after a plane, a train and a minivan. I think that we were both a little shocked at how wealthy thailand seems now. It is strange to look back and think that once Thailand seemed so poor only to realize that now it seems so rich compared to some of the places that we have been to on this trip and to know that those places probably dont even compare to some in this world.
It seems silly to go back and tell you everything about Vietnam but i feel like i would be cheating you all if i didnt give you some of the highlights.
Saigon was our first stop, we arrived happy at the prospects of Vietnam. You can buy any book you want on the street, photocopied of course and if you were lucky maybe buy some brown stuff they call weed (of course why would you). Crossing the street wasn't as bad as I had envisioned, you just keep walking while the motorbikes, cars, buses keep driving by you. We went to a history museum, art gallery, walked by the river, went to the big market, and geeked out at an office supply store. We then made our way up to Mui Ne, a small fishing village. The hospitality lacked, but it was quiet and next to the beach. The water was warm and full of trash, parts of the beach were filled with dead sea creatures and more trash. Mainly just leftovers from the net fishing. Mui Ne is supposed to be known for its fish sauce:) We visited the beautiful red sand dunes and drove along the coast a little ways on a motorbike. It reminded us of the coast in California.
Our next bus stop was Nha Thrang, another beach town with a gorgeous white buddha that sat upon a hill. We went on a tour of the islands around the area, where we tried to go snorkeling but the goggles leaked salt water into my eyes. We had a "friut party" on the boat and had the best boy band ever play some tunes for us. It was a quirky trip. We left that evening for an overnight bus ride to Hoi An.
Hoi An reminded us a little of Luang Prabang, cute town with sweet people. We did have some motivation to shop a little, but didnt buy as many handmade clothes as i would have liked to. We went on a tour to My Son, parts of which were destroyed by bombing that the US did during the American/Vietnam war. The temples were built in the 4th century and were similar to Angkor Wat, but its hard to compare with such a gigantic place.
We then headed to Hue, where we spent a day walking around, visiting the Citadel and chillin out since we felt a little worn out. And then took a lovely overnight train to HaNoi, which leads you up untill my last blog:)
(as a side note, i wasnt able to post this blog for a couple days, so, as an update: we are currently on the coast of thailand, that is only accessible by boat and only has electricity from 5pm till 6am. It is amazingly warm water and beautiful.....so so beautiful! But it isnt good snorkeling water, so we will be moving on soon:))
crossing my fingers that the election went well......
xoxoxo
caz