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North Vietnam - Ninh Binh | Day 1

Ninh Binh

Post our cruise, we went on to experience another beauty that is Ninh Binh. It’s a quaint town, but so very beautiful.

We reached there in the evening and went to see the Bai Dinh pagoda.

Bai Dinh Pagoda is Southeast Asia’s largest Buddhist complex. It consists of several temples and over 500 intricately carved statues of Buddha, including one that’s made of bronze and is 10 metres in height. Set within the Gia Sinh Commune, it attracts a huge crowd of local devotees and travellers looking to pay their respects and have their fortunes told by the resident monks.
















It is visually stunning and soul stirring. The sheer beauty of the pagodas, the magnificent views from atop make this place worth visiting. It doesn’t have an entrance fee, but you can take an electric car 2 ways, you might need it if you get tired real soon.

I was a kid at a candy store at Bai dinh, oohing and aahing at every step. We reached past 5:30 p.m and hoped we could make the most of and see most of what the complex had to offer. We first went to the tall structure which was 12 floors high and saw some gorgeous Buddha statues. Food and water offerings were all around the Buddha statue. Don’t forget to check the ceilings, they are in a league of its own.

We then went to a check a tall statue of the laughing Buddha. It was a very steep climb and we ran out of breath, but managed to reach the very top. Proud and happy.









We went around Bai Dinh without a map and just went with our instinct, and saw some magnificent statues, and the place smelled faintly of incense, the eerie silence was cut through by some insects chirping and the faint ruffle of the leaves.









We were the last tourists for the day. Towards the end we were really tired and opted went to get an electric car to get us to the exit and that’s when I realized I lost my wallet. It had my money, my debit card, and my ID card.

I obviously panicked, but tried to calm my nerves (with no avail) I wanted to walk back all the way, but my mom wasn’t one to let me go by myself as it was dark. We did plead with the people at the counter, but they didn’t seem to budge. Then as a miracle, and it truly was. One of the boys gestured us to get into the electric car. For a moment I thought he was going to ask us to leave, but he helped us. We walked back all the way through all the places minus the excitement and found my wallet.

That moment got us all emotional. I could have easily lost my wallet and not have realized till I got back to the Hotel. It was a miracle for that boy to have had the desire to help us. All I can say is that I had angels, and my patron saint, St. Anthony take care of us throughout the trip.

Post all this, we were joined in by two more men. They asked the taxi guy to come and pick us, and they didn’t let us go by ourselves. I was telling my mom, how safe I felt, and was also upset that if this situation had played out in India, I’m not certain how safe women would feel (topic for another day, perhaps).

Our taxi driver was kind too. He waited all that while patiently (there is no waiting charge btw). I was famished post the entire ordeal and asked him to take us to a local place for food. And we went and had the most amazing bowl of pho.

The food although looks so simple, is so tasty and flavorful. I enjoyed every last slurp and was ready to call it a day.

 Read Day 2 here

Vietnam


Vietnam is both exotic and compelling with staggering natural beauty and cultural complexities. It’s gives an overflowing plate of sensory experiences – from the soul filling view over a surreal seascape of limestone mountains in Halong Bay. The breathtaking and inspiring boat ride that gave a glimpse of some beautiful caves in Ninh Binh. The tsunami of motorbikes in Saigon. The simple and visually laid back life of locals in Can Tho.

Vietnamese cuisine just blows your mind and palate away! Every dish looks so simple, but a mouthful is an explosion of flavors. Juicy tender and succulent meat with fresh crunchy herbs and sauce makes you stop and relish every morsel.

The people are extremely nice, warm and very welcoming. Soft spoken and excessively slow to anger and very courteous. It took me 2-3 days to realize that almost the whole of Vietnam is filled with extremely polite people.

Things to note in Vietnam: Download grab aka Vietnam’s own Uber (they have bikes as well). If you are taking Vietnam sim with an option to call, download BE. Sim cards can be taken either at the airport or you can find cheaper options in the city. Money can be exchanged at Jewelry stores, ensure you have new currency, else the value will be low.

In Saigon, go to Ha Tam (everyone knows and will guide you appropriately), I found they give better rates as compared to Jewelry stores. I’m not aware if there are Ha Tam’s elsewhere (do check).

If you can ride a two wheeler, you are in luck. You won’t spend much on cabs. Cabs companies like Ma linh (green color), airport taxi (white with pink lines) all work on meter system. However, you can also bargain on the rate. What I did was check the rate on Grab and bargain.

In Saigon, you can easily travel around using the local bus. I wasn’t able to find local bus elsewhere.

Travel in and around Vietnam via train, and FUTA bus for budget travels. Futa bus is super comfortable. Trains are clean. I got an upgrade to the Laman express, and it was super comfortable and clean.

Be wary of the currency, as they are all of higher denominations and almost look similar. Take your time to count, the locals are very calm about it and won’t rush you.

I’ll list down basic costs of items so you can understand the currency better (it helped me).

1.5 ltr water – 10,000 dongs
(In hue, they tried to sell this at 20k and above, but I stood my ground and bought chilled water for 10k – mentally pats my back)
Aerated drinks – 250ml (I downed so many) will cost you around 6,000 dongs.
Milk in small packets – 7000 dongs

When they say 10, 15 or 20 – they mean 10,000, 20,000 etc.
The lowest currency I saw was 500, and no one wanted it (lol)
The highest was 500,000 dongs.

I was told to be careful of my phone, wallet and chain from Nha Trang to Saigon. But I didn’t have one incident of snatching or an attempt either. But since I was told to be careful by the locals, I was on alert.

Crossing the street might be stressful if you aren’t used to a stampeded of vehicles coming out of nowhere. But since we (me and my mom) were used to the same, back in India, it wasn’t all that scary. Just be observant and most often they will slide past you.

Now let’s move past and head to the places I visited in Vietnam. I went for a total of 14 days and travelled from North to South. I started off with Hanoi, as I wasn’t keen on spending more time there (but that changed once I saw the market, oh well).

Click here for Hanoi, Halong Bay and Ninh Binh

North Vietnam - Hanoi


North Vietnam - I traveled to Hanoi, Halong bay and Ninh Binh


Hanoi
Hanoi was real quick, as soon as we reached our home stay, the first thing we did was to head out and look for jewelry store to exchange money. It was very difficult for me to find Vietnam dongs in UAE, and my mom didn’t have much luck either in India. So we both decided to come to Vietnam and exchange our currency. You get better rates at these stores than at the airport. We checked with quite a few before zeroing in on one store which gave us a good exchange rate, and the two of us walked out as millionaires.

We then headed out for lunch to try out the ‘Bun cha’ (pork with rice noodles) from this famous restaurant where Obama apparently ate at. The dish costed us 100,000 dongs and it was worth every spoonful. It was our first Vietnamese dish that we tried and my mom was already regretting her decision to travel with me (kidding).

Ngoc Son temple


Post a full and happy stomach we visited the old quarter. Hanoi as per my research and understanding is divided into the Old and French quarter.

The old quarter has the Hoan Kiem lake (very average), the Ngoc Son Temple (our very first pagoda) which was connected via a red bridge. Good photo op. The entrance fee was 40,000 dongs (if my memory serves me right).  And the Don Xuang market along with the famous Tran Phu aka railway track area with people living on either sides of the tracks.

This is Hanoi’s ‘train street’, located in the Old Quarter, just a short walk from Hoan Kiem Lake. For the outsider like me, it seems like an extraordinary place to live, but for the few Hanoians that reside on this small stretch of track, it is their home. It’s where kids play, laundry hangs, men shout and moms gossip as they hover over pots of steaming broth. It’s a normal Vietnamese community—well, almost.

Hanoi Train street, as I like to call it, is located between Lê Duẩn and Khâm Thin street in Hanoi’s old quarter. It's very popular and you won't have any difficulty getting there.

Train street 

Train street

Ngoc Son means  'Temple of the Jade Mountain'. The island on which the temple is built is known as Jade Island and is accessible by the iconic Huc Bridge or Rising Sun Bridge which is a charming scarlet-painted wooden bridge of classical Vietnamese design.

The temple is dedicated to General Tran Hung Dao (who defeated the Mongols in the 13th century), La To (patron saint of physicians) and the scholar Van Xuong.

The pagoda is also guarded by two towering posts decorated with Chinese writing. The lake and temple are probably the most famous places in Hanoi city in which to rest and enjoy the view and are a great place to sit back and watch the locals.


Ngoc Son temple

Ngoc Son temple 

Ngoc Son temple

Ngoc Son temple

Ngoc Son temple

Ngoc Son temple

Ngoc Son temple

Ngoc Son temple

Ngoc Son temple

Ngoc Son temple


We then headed to the French quarter to see the St. Joseph Cathedral. The cathedral has an architecture with domes and colorful window glasses following the Neo-Gothic style and design of Paris Cathedral.

Not only was this Cathedral gorgeous in every way, it also had some amazingly beautiful energy that makes you pour your heart out. We sat there for a good time and I cried my heart out and felt so much at ease. Every nook of the church made me ooh and aah. I love places with amazing energy and this one had so much to offer!

St. Joseph Cathedral

St. Joseph Cathedral

St. Joseph Cathedral

St. Joseph Cathedral

St. Joseph Cathedral

St. Joseph Cathedral

Hanoi has a lot of cycle rickshaws, and you can get a good bargain from them. Unfortunately we got one when we were done with the sights. You can get them for an hour or so at 200,000 dongs (bargain if you please – I did) and they would take you around all the ‘touristy spots’.

We got back and visited the local supermarket (my mom’s idea) to but some local produce and came back with chips and soda. I know. We couldn’t comprehend what some things were and were also too chicken to try.

Martvili Canyon | Kutaisi


The Martvili Canyon, used to be a bath place for Georgian Nobles, Dadiani family. It is a natural wonder in the Samegrelo region of Georgia, near the town of Martvili. Also called the Gachedili Canyon, it is about a 45 minute drive from the city of Kutaisi in West Georgia.


The canyon is divided into two parts, Upper and Lower. You can ride a boat along the canyon from the Upper part that leads to a waterfall falling from the height of about 12 meters. Thanks to the climate of the terrain and high humidity, the walls of the canyon are covered with moss, you will also see lianas that grow along the whole length of the canyon, small streams and waterfalls. A truly fabulous picture!












You can also walk along the Dadiani trial. To be honest both the boat ride and the trail was a bit of a disappointment because they were both very short. However, they were beautiful.







In the lower part of the canyon there is a “pool” where you can swim and enjoy the beauty of the surrounding nature. Even on the hottest day the water here is cool, therefore this place is very popular among locals who come to Martvili to run away from the summer heat. In summer days, the canyon is full of tourists and locals. 
GEL 28 for boat trip and trail entrance fee.

While visiting Martivili canyon it is worth to visit the Martvil Monastery (Chkondidi) of the VI century, which is on the way to the canyon. In 735 the monastery was burnt, the paintings on the walls were destroyed. And only a century and a half later it was restored. Today, on the territory of the monastery there is the temple of the Assumption of the Virgin, the church of the 10th century, in the south-west there is a 20-meter-high pillar and chapel, which was built on the site of an old destroyed chapel.
I didn't visit the monastery, but have heard the below about it:
On its highest hill there is a Monastery. The site upon the hill where the monastery stands today was used in ancient times as a pagan cultural center and was a sacred site. There once stood an ancient and enormous oak tree that was worshipped as an idol of fertility and prosperity. Infants were once sacrificed here as well. After the conversion of the native population to Christianity, the ancient tree was cut down so as not to worship it anymore. A church was originally constructed in the late 7th century upon the roots of the old oak tree and was named in honor of Saint Andrew who preached Christianity and converted the pagans across the Samegrelo region. 

The main Martvili-Chkondidi Cathedral (Mingrelian: Chkoni translates to “oak”) was reconstructed in the 10th century after invasions that destroyed the prior church. Preserved in the church are frescoes of the 14th to 17th centuries.





Read about Kutaisi HERE
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