Category: Travelling

A bicycle tour on one of the days, through the countryside, first made a pitstop at a beautiful couple’s vegetable garden. Cycling through rice field and water buffaloes. I also had a peek at a local house in a small village how the family make their own rice wine and taste some too. The evening followed by a Vietnamese cooking class and admiring lanterns by the river.

In 1999, the old town in Hội An was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO as a well-preserved example of a Southeast Asian trading port of the 15th to 19th centuries. These buildings in the old town show the local and foreign influences. I really enjoyed going to a noodle making class at Oodles of Noodles. I first got to make my own rice noodle and was then served a really delicious noodle dish. From the bridge over the sông Thu Bôn, there is an opportunity to get a lantern with a candle, let it go/float on the river and make a wish.

Being the imperial capital of Vietnam, visiting the walled fortress and former palace, the Imperial Citadel. Driving a bit to the outskirts of the city, next visiting the Tien Mu Pagoda, one of the tallest and, perhaps, most elegant pagodas in Vietnam. At seven storeys high, it was built more than 400 years ago along the north shore of the Perfume River.

Enjoy some time in the buzzing capital of Hanoi, before getting on an overnight train to Huế. Crossing the Sông Hõng river over a bridge, I also visited Ngoc Son temple.

Anchored between limestone karst mountains in the junk boat, the smaller boat went out on an excursion to visit a cave in one of these mountains. This island also had a lookout point with a breathtaking view. Just before sunset the afternoon ended on a high note rowing a kayak to an island that is open in the middle. This secluded middle area is also home to monkeys.

After my first (last) visit to Thailand 2011/2012, it was good to be back in Bangkok, a city sprinkled with tuk-tuks and temples. This time around I experienced a cruise on the river and through canals with a traditional Thai boat, running from the main river, Chao Phraya River, into smaller branches through a local neighbourhood on water. I also visited Wat Pho Temple (the Temple of the Reclining Buddha), one of the largest temple complexes in the city, famous for its giant reclining Buddha that measures 46 metres long and is covered in gold leaf.