It's amazing!!!!! Everyone needs to come and experience it. At this point I think it beats New Zealand after this 1st day.
We are staying in the old quarter of the city and its very chaotic with people selling and walking everywhere as well as scooters and cars driving all directions, at the same time. But the city is fantastic and people are really friendly. Emma says it reminds her of the Montmartre area of Paris. Yesterday we hungout in Old Quarter, visiting a temple on Hoan Kiem Lake and going to the Water Puppet Theatre. We found an excellent modern/traditional properganda poster shop called Dogma and I got a cool T-Shirt.
We went to a great restaurant for lunch, Highway 4, where Emma had soft shell crab. In the UK we get them imported and usually found in chinese supermarkets. Here they were freshwater crabs and looking like mini versions of our brown crabs. They had been boiled and stir fried in chilli and garlic. A very strange experience putting them into your mouth. You can feel their legs and crawls when you bite down. They also had dog, turtle, horse and sparrow on the menu but one step at a time. No adverse stomach problems yet!!!
Today we did Highway 4's traditional cookery course - soft shell crab soup, special fried rice and catfish spring rolls-mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm!!!!!!! It also involved a market visit to buy the ingredients to cook with which is located just outside of our hotel. We then took a cyclo to one of their restaurants where the head chief demostrated what we were going to do before we got on and cooked the dishes which we then ate. mmmmmmmmmmmmm
http://www.highway4.com/
It was great. Afterwards we had their Son Tinh liquor, straight its not great but in cocktails quite nice [so Emma says].
We are exploring the city for the rest of today and tomorrow and then we are off to Ha Long bay and Cat Ba island. I think tonight will be beers and street entertainment.
Friday, November 7, 2008
Thursday, November 6, 2008
Oh, things I liked about Christchurch
Christchurch is dull. Not enough people and not enough going on, although it does have a beautiful botanical garden and the art gallery isn't bad either.
However, there were 2 highlights for me. The first being the terrier that lived at our backpackers in Sumner. He had Lassie like qualities in that he liked to run away and have adventures in the big city. He is quite famous for this and given that Sumner is a 20 minute bus journey from Christchurch I think he's a plucky little fellow. Apparently whenever he is spotted by the backpacker guests his owners receive a call and the little adventurer is dragged kicking and barking back to normality. This amused me lots.
The second highlight (a bit of a weird one) was the bus exchange in the centre of town. It reminded me of so many American movies where transient and sinister goings on happen night and day........although probably not in Christchurch!
However, there were 2 highlights for me. The first being the terrier that lived at our backpackers in Sumner. He had Lassie like qualities in that he liked to run away and have adventures in the big city. He is quite famous for this and given that Sumner is a 20 minute bus journey from Christchurch I think he's a plucky little fellow. Apparently whenever he is spotted by the backpacker guests his owners receive a call and the little adventurer is dragged kicking and barking back to normality. This amused me lots.
The second highlight (a bit of a weird one) was the bus exchange in the centre of town. It reminded me of so many American movies where transient and sinister goings on happen night and day........although probably not in Christchurch!
Vietnam Crazy
The arrival here was somewhat stressful. After a white knuckle ride in the taxi along the highway surrounded by scooters literally coming in all directions we had arranged to stay at a hotel found on the internet, however, when we got there the rooms were not as depicted on the internet..........sparking electrics, smoking a/c and damp walls. My backpack has never moved so fast!!!!!!!!!!!
Anyway, found a more suitable place to stay around the corner in The Old Quarter.
We hit the Bai Hoi's (drinking dens) for some Vietnamese beers, which cost around 10p per glass! At this point Andrew's jet lag kicked in and after 2 beers his eyes were spinning and began waffling absolute nonsense so time for bed.
This morning we woke early and took a walk around the food market at the bottom of the street. A myriad of weird and wonderful things were for sale.....live frogs (tied together in bunches), rabbits, snails, fish, fish heads oozing with blood and still moving, usual farmyard stuff and something that I was not entirely sure about..... a big tail that was still having the dark fur scraped off. Dog is a speciality here but Andrew thinks it was cow. I'm still pondering that one.
Anyway, found a more suitable place to stay around the corner in The Old Quarter.
We hit the Bai Hoi's (drinking dens) for some Vietnamese beers, which cost around 10p per glass! At this point Andrew's jet lag kicked in and after 2 beers his eyes were spinning and began waffling absolute nonsense so time for bed.
This morning we woke early and took a walk around the food market at the bottom of the street. A myriad of weird and wonderful things were for sale.....live frogs (tied together in bunches), rabbits, snails, fish, fish heads oozing with blood and still moving, usual farmyard stuff and something that I was not entirely sure about..... a big tail that was still having the dark fur scraped off. Dog is a speciality here but Andrew thinks it was cow. I'm still pondering that one.
Singapore briefly
Well it really was brief but enough to give us a taste of the city. We checked into a great homestay and essentially managed to sample some of the local cuisine, see the locals go about their daily chores and fit in a Singapore Sling in the Long Bar at Raffles Hotel. It's a very modern, affluent city and it's blooming humid!
Great to see but other places to be..........................................
Great to see but other places to be..........................................
Monday, November 3, 2008
The End of New Zealand
Well we have finally arrived in Christchurch. It's grey and cool and on first glance of the city centre I do not think anyway as nice as the other parts of the east coast of the south island.
We gave up the Wickered camper-car which was a blessed relief, 3.5 weeks in it, after doing over 1000km and only 4 nights in m/hotels to escape the rain and claustrophobia of it every night [photos to come].
We fly to Singapore tomorrow and then onto Vietnam. We are expecting a massive culture shock because New Zealand has so many references to the UK, from loads of TV programmes to 70's style tea shops/hotels/ to the music on the radio/in the shops. Everyone speaks English and its easy to get around and experience the islands. Its definitely worth visiting New Zealand as its a beautiful island with some breath taking landscapes. That said, I have found that it is full either old people, who are either tourists or whom live here, or working visa kids. That means the majority of the activities are aimed that them so you are always on it or go so slow you might fall asleep. If any one is thinking about visiting then you definately should but try and give yourselves as much time as possible and possibly concerntrate oneither the north or south island.
Anyway, I went cycling around Queenstown, a 50K ride to Arrowtown and nearly crippled myself. I was riding a new saddle, had new cycle shoes on and didn't have padded shorts on, ouch!!! really ouch!!!!! Afterwards I found it hard to sit down and I walked like John Wayne.
I will try and uploads some more photos before I leave - tandom wine tasting, glacier walking, absailing down100m!!!!
We gave up the Wickered camper-car which was a blessed relief, 3.5 weeks in it, after doing over 1000km and only 4 nights in m/hotels to escape the rain and claustrophobia of it every night [photos to come].
We fly to Singapore tomorrow and then onto Vietnam. We are expecting a massive culture shock because New Zealand has so many references to the UK, from loads of TV programmes to 70's style tea shops/hotels/ to the music on the radio/in the shops. Everyone speaks English and its easy to get around and experience the islands. Its definitely worth visiting New Zealand as its a beautiful island with some breath taking landscapes. That said, I have found that it is full either old people, who are either tourists or whom live here, or working visa kids. That means the majority of the activities are aimed that them so you are always on it or go so slow you might fall asleep. If any one is thinking about visiting then you definately should but try and give yourselves as much time as possible and possibly concerntrate oneither the north or south island.
Anyway, I went cycling around Queenstown, a 50K ride to Arrowtown and nearly crippled myself. I was riding a new saddle, had new cycle shoes on and didn't have padded shorts on, ouch!!! really ouch!!!!! Afterwards I found it hard to sit down and I walked like John Wayne.
I will try and uploads some more photos before I leave - tandom wine tasting, glacier walking, absailing down100m!!!!
Saturday, November 1, 2008
1 Month
1st November was our 1 month away mark. We ended up staying in Queenstown for Halloween but it turned out to be very disappointing because the hundreds of working visa 'teenagers' take over and get drunk. It made us feel old!!
We left there and headed across to the east coast and for ended up in a beautiful fishing village called Moeraki.
http://www.moerakivillageholidaypark.co.nz/
The weather is beautiful and best of all it has a great restaurant called Fleurs.
http://www.fleursplace.com/
Fleur is a famous restaurateur in NZ and we had great food and wine there last night. I tried a local speciality - a Muttonbird, basically a seabird. Well its an acquired taste. Its meat it like puffin but it has a layer of fat just below the skin which is not nice, yak!!!! But I ate it and had juice all over the place as you have to eat it with your hands.
We have decided to stay for here tonight because the weather is so nice and go to see the penguins and Moeraki Boulders.
We left there and headed across to the east coast and for ended up in a beautiful fishing village called Moeraki.
http://www.moerakivillageholidaypark.co.nz/
The weather is beautiful and best of all it has a great restaurant called Fleurs.
http://www.fleursplace.com/
Fleur is a famous restaurateur in NZ and we had great food and wine there last night. I tried a local speciality - a Muttonbird, basically a seabird. Well its an acquired taste. Its meat it like puffin but it has a layer of fat just below the skin which is not nice, yak!!!! But I ate it and had juice all over the place as you have to eat it with your hands.
We have decided to stay for here tonight because the weather is so nice and go to see the penguins and Moeraki Boulders.
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