8/3/2019 The Plymouth Herald Features Vietnam's Destinations

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PAGE 18 The Herald, Friday DecemberTHX-E01-S2

TRAVEL facts

CROSSING the road in Saigon tests thenerves.

Forget waiting fora clear run;just startwalkingfast and hope the tide of scooters swerves aroundyou.

For Saigon, also known as Ho Chi Min City, isBladerunner withbikes, a neonlabyrinth;a brash,modern metropolis.

Butlinkingthose busystreetsare shoulder-widealleyways, concealing scenes from an older worldwhere string-vested men suck on cigarettes andwomen in conical hats stir steaming pans of noodles.

Echoes of this unchanged way of life are foundthroughout rural Vietnam. It is a country of sublime beauty, where an intoxicating kaleido-scopeof colours ranges frommisty greymountainsn the north to brilliant green rice paddies in the

south, while unspoiled creamy beaches stroke itscurvaceous coastline.

On a cruise into the Mekong Delta, we forewentthe touristy floating markets of My Tho City toexplore the backwaters of LongAn province.Brickhuts and houses on stilts choked the riverbanks,then gave way to mangrove palms. Floating poly-styrene rubbish was usurped by water hyacinths.Westoppedat alocalmarketwhere thefoodwassofresh it had a heartbeat. Fish flapped in bucketsand two-day old chicks waddled around in pens.

Upriver in the opposite direction are the Cu ChiTunnels where, during the war against America,about 16,000 people sheltered from US bombs inthis underground network.

  Americans were the last in a long line of nvaders who failed to conquer this proud nation,

andtheVietnamesesideof thestory istold atsitesacross the country. Saigon’s War RemnantsMuseum, for example, houses a collection of evocative photos illustrating the effects of napalmandphosphorousbombs dropped onto thecountryn the 1960s and 70s.

From Saigon we headed north to the popularresort town of Nha Trang. A short speedboat rideaway on the Hon Heo peninsula is the newly

opened An Lam Ninh Bay Villas, the perfectantidoteto thepaceof thecity– theyinto Saigon’syang.

Luxury villas are surrounded by forested hillsand come complete with private plunge pools andsliding glass doors with sea views. Quirky touchesnclude cushioned swings in the rooms and a

solitary deck with two sun-beds floating off-shore.

Mealtimes showcased Nha Trang’s famous sea-foodwith great aplomb, frompanfriedprawns andsucculent scallops, to garlic lobster served withorganic vegetables from the chef's garden. I alsodeveloped a guilty addiction to the delicioushomebaked breads and pastries.

Thenext majorstopon Vietnam’s centralcoast isHoi An, one of two UNESCO World Heritage sitesn this region. Once a key trading port, Hoi An is

now a living museum whose exhibits includeantern-lit streets and wonderfully preserved

buildings.  Among its art galleries, antique stores and

tailors are many artisan workshops. We saw babysilkworms no bigger than my fingernail waiting to

 V i e t n a m A i r l i n(www.vietnamairlines.com.vn) is laundirectservices betweenthe UKand Vion 9 December 2011. The airline wilflights from London Gatwick to HanSaigon, from £650 (inc tax).

Deluxe rooms at New World (www.saigon.newworldhotels.coSaigon start from US$159 (around £10

  V i l la s a t A n L a m N i n h V a n(www.epikurean.ws) start from U(around £317), including breakfas

t r a n s f e r s . T h e N a m (www.thenamhai.com) has villas from(around £343), including breakfasairport transfers. Rooms at La ResiHotel & Spa (www.la-residence-huestart from US$161 (around £104) incbreakfast. A room at the Hilton Hanoi (hanoi.hilton.com) costs from US(around £83) on B&B basis.*

Cookery classes at The Red BRestaurant and Cooking School in H(www.visithoian.com/redbridge/restastart at $27pp (around £17) includingFor details about Mango Roomswww.mangorooms.com. For trips aloM e k o n g D e l t a a n d b e y o n d www.saigonriverexpress.com. For around Hanoi visit www.hatravel.ca n d f o r H a lo n g B a y C r u is e swww.cruisehalong.com■ All prices are per night and msubject to taxes.

Past and

futurecollide in

VietnamKATH KAY visits Hanoi

and Saigon – and discoversa potent mix of Bladerunner,traditions and sublime beauty

produce some of the finest silk in southeast Asia.The steady stream of visitors passing through

Hoi An has turned it into a gourmet’s delight. Weloved the fusion of Vietnamese and Latin flavoursat Mango Rooms, whose premium river views andfunky interiors provide the perfect backdrop to itsseriously good food.

We even tried our hand at making some localclassicsat theRed Bridge Restaurant andCookingSchool. The lighthearted but instructive approachresultedin somevery edible crispy pancakesand adelicious aubergine hot pot.

Worthy of the short trip out of town is The NamHai, by far the best hotel in Hoi An. Marryingtraditional Vietnamese design with cutting-edgefacilities, there’s everything you’d expect of a five-star resort. We split our time between its three

infinity pools and the spa, which is set around alotus-filled lagoon close to the beach.Further north, the historical city of Hue is the

country’s geographic and spiritual heart. Afterexploring the UNESCO-protected ruins of theImperial City, we chartered a boat to visit thetombs, pagodas and temples along the PerfumeRiver.

  Also located on its banks is the former Frenchgovernor’s residence, now transformed into LaRésidence, an elegant Art Deco hotel. We joinedthe long list of Hollywood actors, queens, andheads of state to grace its stylish suites.

 At the top of Vietnam, its captivating capitalHanoi embodies the paradox of this fast-devel-opingnation.Here,the exoticismof oldAsia meetsdynamic commercialisation. A unique blend of grace and pace, it’s an ancient city functioning athigh speed.

Hanoi is the best place to arrange a trip to theUNESCO-listed Halong Bay, an incredible ar-chipelago of limestone karsts that rise from theemerald waters of the Gulf of Tonkin.

We saw it from the comfort of a cabin on the

Halong Ginger, a red-sailed wooden junk built inthetraditionalVietnamesestyle.Aftermorningtaichi we lounged in the afternoon sun, then sippedcocktailsat duskwhile sailing silently through themaze of narrow channels.

Onourreturn toHanoi,we foundthe best waytoexperience the city’s constant bustle is by cyclo – amodified bicycle with a driver perched behind awide passenger seat. It’s an exhilarating exper-ience to cut through streams of traffic at pedalpace, surrounded by honking horns.

In the Old Quarter, a maze of narrow roads dateback to the 13th century when specialised tradeguilds wereresponsible foreach street. Todayit’s amodernised version of the ancient chaos andthere’s still a lane for pretty much everything –

from kites to cotton reels, and bird cages toBuddhas.

 A tour of the city’s highlights included the VanMieu Temple of Literature, Vietnam’s first uni-versity and a 1,000 year-old national treasure. Wevisited at the start of exam season, and studentswaited patiently to pray for good luck.

Queues also snaked around the Ho Chi MinhMausoleum, wherethe revered leader liesin state. Another taste of history was on display at the HoaLo prison, ironically named the ‘Hanoi Hilton’ byimprisoned Americ an pilots shot down b y Vietnamese fighters. Once the most feared prisonin the region, it’san eerieplacecontaining originalcells, guillotines and escape tunnels.

 Atdusk westrolledaroundHoan KiemLake, thecity’s literal and figurative heart and to wherelocals and visitors gravitate to exercise andsocialise.We pulledup low plastic stools, ordered a Vietnamese desert of fruit with milk and crushedice, and watched the organised chaos unfoldaround us.

Holidays

BLADERUNNERWITHBIKES: Scooters zip around Saigon, also known as Ho Chi Min City

NATURALWONDER:UNESCO-listed Halong Bay, an incredible archipelago of limestone kCHANGEOFPACE: An Lam Ninh Bay