Saigon, me love you long time!

Hello there!
Its been a good while since we updated our blog. Now I know some of you are thinking that we have forgotten our avid followers, but that couldn't be further from the truth, well I guess it could stand be be a little further! The reason is that while in Vietnam we had some trouble logging into our blog and posting. We had the same trouble with Facebook, perhaps the red eye of Communism was keeping watch. It was probably something else but I like the sound of my theory! So here is a post detailing what we've been up to for the last while.



Mekong Delta

After a few hours on a hot bus, getting on the boat at the delta was, literally, a breath of fresh air! Our good friend Lonely Planet advised us to use one of the many arranged trips from Saigon to the Delta so we went with their advice. One of the first stops was at a small restaurant to enjoy a local speciality - elephant ear fish. Scary stuff but we decided to just go for it, and it wasn't half bad!

Smile!

After lunch we went cruising for a bit on the river before walking through the jungle and meeting up with with some horse drawn carts that drove us to another souvenir shop where we could ¨enjoy¨, or endure if you will, local music along with some honey tea. Then we entered a small rowing boat which took us down one of the numerous small canals that criss crossed the area. After a stop at a coconut candy factory the boat brought us back to the bus.

Cu Chi Tunnels

Now you see me....

Now you don't!

During the Vietnam war these tunnels were dug in order to live underground and survive American attacks. The tour took us around the jungle and showed us different areas of the tunnel network. In total there were around 200km of tunnels. Underground they had everything they needed to survive, such as kitchen, a hospital and a school. Then we got to crawl through one of the tunnels. It was only about 15 meters but felt very claustrophobic and hot. Lucky for us the tourism board had widened the tunnel a little, paved it with concrete, and added lights. It was hard to imagine what it must have been like to have lived in that subterranean world, while the bombs were falling overhead.
They also showed us a number of nasty traps and other contraptions.
The whole tour was then summed up by an incredibly old, 7 minute long film, imagine the "duck and cover" style information reels from the cold war, about how much America sucks and how many "Bravery for killing an American"-medals were handed out to the Vietnamese after the war. We then got to see a model of the tunnel network, showing its 3 levels, and the skinny section of tunnel way, where the tunnel became vary narrow so the that the "fat Americans" couldn't make it through!

Apart from this we have just been enjoying the city. The other night we wandered into a local karaoke bar for a laugh. It was quite a bizarre experience. We were served very suspect cocktails, one of which looked like it somebody had already been drinking it.

Every time we ordered a drink the barman disappeared for ages, we couldn't see a bar either. It's still a mystery where these drinks were coming from! We eventually played our part and sang a karaoke version of Oh Carol. The lyrics were typed into a computer, so knowing where to start and stop was tough going, especially while under the influence! Later I was talked into singing The House of the Rising Sun, and was promptly joined on stage by some guy that was in the bar! As I said earlier we didn't know when to start or stop so the song went on for about six minutes! There is a clip of this below, best watched with mute!
But alas everything must come to an end, Saigon, me love you long time, but it's time to head off. Next stop Phnom Penh!

I think there's a problem with my line!