Two Sore Backs

We had heard so many positive reviews of Hoi An and the weather forecast is terrific so it makes sense to settle in for a long stay. We do not regret it. We book into Hoi An Coco Village home stay (bed and breakfast). Our host ‘Moon’ sends a driver. This is how we meet…

Today we are tourists. We lengthen our stay in Hoi An; so shorten our time in the Imperial City of Hue (UNESCO designated) to a day trip from Hoi An; a three hour drive. Our driver Tham acts as a tour guide of sorts. We ask lots of questions and look out the car window.…

The weather in South Vietnam was warming up and looking a bit daunting. 37 Celsius plus humidity is no picnic. Da Nang, which is in central Vietnam, was a good transition from the cold of Hanoi. Our hotel was solidly in the tourist area, so our exploring on the first evening and following morning focused…

We like to think that we are travellers, not tourists. The thought of all day bus tours to jam-packed locations with shopping stops along the way is pretty cringey. The thing is, they really help when you want to see a place but don’t want to waste time travelling and changing hotels. Plus the tour…

Our Vietnam evisas come through. We take a tuk tuk to the Luang Prabang airport. Oddly, our driver heads in the opposite direction to the airport; mistakenly heading to the train station. We get his attention and he turns around. Whew! On the tarmac (it is 35C) the Laos Airlines ground staff line up and…

On the advice of an Australian ex-pat who we met at a Vientiane coffee shop, we arranged accommodations in Nong Khiaw through the folks at the Mandala Ou resort. Unfortunately, they didn’t have rooms available when we were to arrive, so they suggested we stay at the Nong Kiau Riverside and then switch over to…

We had hoped to take the new modern train from Vientiane to Luang Prabang but it wasn’t to be. The train was sold out. So we flew. Roads are not wonderful in Laos and the bus trip is 6ish hours (train 2 hrs; air 1 hr). We land and catch a tuk tuk to our…

I think it’s OK for this to be the first post for our southeast Asia trip. Caffeine is important when you’re recovering from jet lag. And the 16 hour flight from YVR to Bangkok, followed by a 6 hour layover in the airport, and then another flight to Vientiane, was pretty rough. We honestly thought…

This trip we are traveling in South East Asia and then on to Greece, Albania and Italy if time allows. We will be in Ko Chang, Thailand for a family wedding in late March. So thanks to Carlee and Chris for planning a destination wedding that is inspiring our journey. For the next six weeks…

The final leg of this adventure will be on VIA Rail. And we are really looking forward to 4 days and nights on the train; and a firm arrival date into Vancouver of 8:00am October 29th. (No more logistics and looking at the weather forecast!) We are on The Canadian. We are heading home! Train…