Bye Bus (reprise)

1/27/16

   
    
    
    
    
 It is always awkward when you have to share a tight space with strangers; or as someone overly friendly once claimed: friends you just have not met yet. I am relatively sure that speaker who proclaimed that love for all mankind have never been on a tightly packed bus for 6 hours. After traveling for the past few months, I have come to appreciate the terms “privacy”, “personal space”, and most of all “leg room”. I know I was seriously spoilt by the South American bus system, and have been unfairly comparing south East Asian bus system with it. (And if you want to know, it is like comparing high school students with university students. No, I am not saying some people like the younger generation. Where was I?) If you have never been on a long bus ride, it is definitely something to do when you are still spry, flexible,  and generally in good health. Afterall, you never know what a “short” and “simple” bus journey can lead to. 

Today is a day of traveling: I am heading to Ho Chi Minh City (or as everyone else call it: Saigon). It is a short 5 hours bus ride from Mui Ne to Saigon, and for some weird reason they gave me a seat in the “sleeper” bus: they have seats that automatically reclines so you have no choice but to lie down for the duration of the ride. As with the other sleeper bus I took, it is also an acrobatic challenge to go up and down the 2nd level seats. Add to that the challenge of taking your shoes on and off everytime you step on and off the bus, you have a full exercise routine mapped out. Knowing this was coming, I spent the morning running on the beach; enjoying the sunrise and the sight and smell of fishermen fishing (by smell I mean the smell of seafood roasting somewhere for breakfast); packing my bags; watching some tv; lounging around by the pool before the inevitable time of departure. It was one of the most relaxing morning I spent in south east Asia thus far.

The bus picked us all up at 1:25pm. I was assigned the first seat on the second stack, so I happily climbed up and deposited myself onto the reclined seat. As the passengers got on, i noticed a trend: they are mainly Koreans, Chineseand Russians; mostly of upper middle age. My guess is that Sinh tourist (the bus company I have been taking), it slightly more expensive (but more reliable and is generally safer and known to be less thieving) and draws the slightly more well off but not too rich tourists. (The rich one flies, the poor ones will do backpacker buses?) While this is interesting to ponder over, it also presented a problem: some of the tourists are just not flexible or have the body strength to climb onto seats. This, coupled with taking shoes on and off and the awkward seating pattern, really makes it tough for them. I seen many struggling to get into their seats, and had a lot of difficulties getting in and out. I tried to help, but the tight space made it difficult to provide any asistance. The bus ride itself was pretty decent: we stopped once for bathroom and food break, and arrived in Saigon at 6pm. The scenery was still amazing as always, and I enjoyed a nice sunset over the Mekong River. 

After getting disoriented (lost) a few times, I eventually  found my hostel and checked it. As I was eating dinner in a nearby restaurant (I needed the air conditioning), I realized: this is the last city I am visiting in Vietnam. I will be leaving this country soon, and on my way to Singapore. For a minute, I was actually a little sad: I have come o like the weirdness of everything and starting to appreciate erg mentality of  taking everything as a challenge. Afterall, even though a well executed trip is great and relaxjng, one filled with unexpected events and challenges actually promote personal growth (and anger management). Maybe I was thinking the wrong way: the elders may actually be enjoying the difficulties, embracing them and overcoming them, giving them lots to talk about to their friends m  when they get home. It is true: age is not a determining factor in anything these days (well, maybe except R and X rated movies). Embracing challenges maybe exactly what the tourists were trying to do on their vacation. 

(Hmm…I sense a paradox in my last paragraph…)

Tour guides vs. Tourists

1/26/16

   
    
    
    
   
   
     
    
    
    
   
    
 People often say: independent traveling is empowering; it relaxes the mind, open up new horizons and deplete your money. However, as an independent traveler, I have to say: I often feel helpless and scared. Think of it this way: you are in a foreign land, where you know no one, have no support network, depend entirely on the goodwill of locals to provide directions, and desperately hope you don’t accidentally end up with some legal problem. Of course, there is always the embassy, but it is probably also far away in the capital city. When I first landed in Vietnam, I was shocked when most of the hostels and hotels want to hold onto my passport. According to them, it is to keep it safe and so they can tell the government who is living at the property. It was only after Dalat that I realize: what I have been told is not exactly true. They do need to know who, but can also scan or copy the information down. 

Since I only have a short time in Mui Ne, I opted to do a tour of the fairy stream, sand dunes and the fishing village. The tour was supposed to start at 2 pm and end at 6pm, allowing time for sunset viewing at the famous red dunes. After having a really awesome canyoning tour with Highland Sports Travel and a great hostel stay at Wolfpack, I was hoping this streak of good tour would continue. I was pleasantly surprised when a Ford Explorer came to pick me up. With 3 other tourists, we left to visit the streams which ended at a small waterfall. The walk was interesting and the scenery pretty, but we were only given 30 minutes to visit the site. I was sweating when I came back to the car and found: 4 more tourists had joined the group. I immediately realized the reason: they put 2 tour groups together because there were only 4 person in each group (the max is 6). It was a really tight fit, and we crammed ourselves in the car until we arrived at the fishing village. Sadly, that is just a overlook from the highway. The view, however, is still stunning: tens of fishing boats anchored in the harbor,with sunshine in the background. 

Just when we were about to get into the car, the 4 new tourist (a family from Italy), decided not to get back to the car because it was too crammed (we did look like clowns tying to get into and out of the car…). Of course,the driver tried to change their mind. And chaos ensured. The other original tourists (all ladies: 2 from Thailand and 1 Russian) , started to complained. Apparently they paid for a luxury tour that should comply have 4 people in a suv (most other tours I saw were in jeep wranglers). They wanted the tour guide to continue the tour, instead of sitting around getting more passengers. There were a lot of raised voices, and they asked for an extra car for the additional 4 people. The driver, seeing that he was outnumbered, called over other drivers who all tried to tell the tourist we could all fit into the car. After a few more minutes if stand off, one of the more aggressive driver actually grabbed people’s arms and propelled them bavk into the car. Eventually. We all packed back into the car and left for the dunes. Of course, we spent much less time at both dunes since we were behind schedule, and the driver was h willing to spend extra time on this trip.

So, even though I saw some pretty amazing views throughout the day, it was mired by the way locals treated tourists. It also represent a huge problem when traveling: unless you are willing to throw away the tour, call it quits and not look back, there is not much tourists can do about bad tours. You basically have to stick through whole tour, withstand the bad and hope that you can complain or talk to the management afterwards. Often times (at least in Vietnam), everyone blame everyone else and no one is willing to take up responsibility. Maybe this is part of learning how to be relaxed and take punches as they come, knowing that you are screwed no matter what. 

Broken Bus

1/25/16

   
    
    
    
    
 Well, some days you have the best of ideas and intentions, then nothing works out and it all came apart. Today is one of those. I booked a bus traveling from Dalat to Mui Ne, after hearing great stories about how the drive is very scenic. Then after hearing how mui ne has great beach, I booked a place right in the edge of the beach, hoping to get a long run on the beach (aww…romantic right?). Then of course, facts intervene and this all goes away like sand on a beach at high tide. 

I woke up feeling pretty terrible: muscle cramps everywhere, stomach cramps and even felt like throwing up. Pretty sure I am not pregnant, I had no idea what was going on. It was not food poisoning, and I did not do that much physical activity yesterday, only walking around town. In he end, I guessed the family meal I had must have had very high sodium content, and I actually exhibited signs of dehydration. I tried very hard to drink more water, not also realize I could not drink too much wager because I have a 5 hour bus trip. (Talk about between dehydration or the need to pee…) 

At 12:45pm, the bus picked me up and I immediately realized a big issue: even though I requested window seat, the window of next to me was covered up woth cardboard: I guess their window broke and they never got around to fixed it. So unfortunately, I spent the whole ride staring out of the front window, and was never a led to take a decent photo. This, combined with one pretty ride Chinese lady (who pushed me out of the way so she could get onto the bus), made the whole trip pretty depressing. The scenery is, indeed, pretty amazing: it varied between forest, mountains, beach and lots of lakes. The road, on the other hand, was windy and bumpy. It was like a roller coaster ride on a wood frame, minus the loops.When I get to Mui Ne, it was already 5:15pm. I checked into the hotel and ran to the beach: only to be told that the erosion has caused the beach to be totally underwater: the good beaches are a few miles away. The tour agency I was talking to for a sand dunes tour did day if I were lucky, I may get to see the beach at low tide….sometime. 

So I guess you have it: a little entry about trials of life and how things did not go as planned. Still, I am very excited to be here, and hope the dunes tour would be awesome. Hope, the only thing left in Pandora’s  (the Greek mythology, not the music stream) box (hmm…sounds dirty), will hopefully always remain, especially on bad days.

Hanging on by a cable

1/24/16

   
    
    
   
   
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
   
(Uh oh, my trip is rapidly drawing to a close. My schedule has changed: I will be visiting Singapore and then Taiwan. Back to US on 2/9. Sigh…)

There is this common phrase: a bird’s eye view. Actually, that’s quite a general statement, since not all birds can fly, and who knows what they actually see. Are they color blind? Do they appreciate shapes? Of course, that phrase means an elevated view of objects from above, usually use in making blueprints, maps, etc. It is also frequently used in management classes, especially when we talk about looking at the “big picture” (IMAX!). As we grind along in our daily lives, it is tough to ignore the minor fustrating and appreciate the overall grand scheme of things (if there is one). Surprisingly, I am never good with details (probably die to bad eye sight), so I try very hard to understand the “big picture”. 

After all the exciting activities yesterday, I am actually a little tired. I woke up not quite wanting to exert myself, and since u failed to book a city tour, I decided to do 3 sites myself: the cable car to Truc Lam monastery, the crazy house and the Bo Dai summer palace. With a cloudy sky and stein wind, it is actually cold in Dalat: a lowly 15 Celsius. Failing to rent a bicycle, I opted to walk 5 km over hilly terrain to the cable car. It was actually a nice walk: I ventured into the non-tourist neighborhoods and was greeted by friendly locals, who were all going about their businesses. It was a change from other cities: these neighborhood were quiet, with children playing in the streets. I walked up and down hills, getting temporarily disoriented a few time, but eventually managed to find the cable car station. The cable car ride was pleasant, overlooking pine forest, ponds and rice fields. As we got off the cable car, the feeling of peacefulness and calmness was immediately noticeable, though occasionally punctured by some loud tourist takin photos. This temple encompassed the principal of  zen into its architecture, and allowed visitors to feel the tranquility while appreciating Buddhist principles. I spent an hour or so wandering the premise, even managed to read a few chapters on my kindle while relaxing in the bamboo garden. Taking the cable car bavk was, however, a little more nerve wrecking. With strong wind and smoke from a burning field (farmers getting ready for planting season), the cable car swung from side to side. The surrounding also turned into a white smoky screen, and it was like riding on a pendulum while not being able to see your surroundings. Since I was alone in the car, I wondered briefly what is the best way to survive a fall in a cable car: should I hold on? Free all? Jump? Thankfully, the car went back to the station without any problem, allowing me to see the next place: crazy house.

The crazy house is a house designed by a Vietnamese lady who studied architecture in Moscow. She decided to build this fairy tales inspired house with ladders and stairs that crosses and branches to different paths. On some written exhibits, she ezpines that this house is a symbol for her creativity, and she left it unfinished to represent the neverending aspect of creativity. I took  lots of photos, climbed staircases that lead everywhere, and eventually sat in the garden and drank a mango smoothie. After that, it was a quick run to the Bo Dai summer palace: which turned out to be just a mansion the last emperor used as his summer house. I did not spend the money to get in, and opted to get back to the hostel to recharge my phone. 

As I was sitting in the hostel common room waiting for the family dinner, I wondered if having a bird’s eye view mentality also apply to life. Since I am not great with details, I actually appreciate people who are mertoculous and map their life out. Sad to say, I always only have a vague idea of what I am doing, and am still searching for what I really want in life (well, lots of money). Then again, I am glad I am not that great with details, since it allowed me to focus more on the greater focus of my being. While I may not know what I am doing in the next few days (the woe of a traveler), i do know generally where I should be and where I would end up. Maybe that’s enough for the present, while I seek out the future.

(Or that I am just too lazy to plan in detail…)