Here's to a New Year of Infinite Possibilities

So a New Year dawns in a new decade... and on a BLUE MOON... as we traditionally say goodbye to past mistakes and difficulties, resolving to make our life better in some way.

Well, anything can happen on a blue moon, so as I'm far from home, I'm sending out an invitation to anyone out there who could do with a little help and emotional support at this time.

Go to www.who2.co.uk to see details on the 'merchandise and offers' page. Or send a message to pat@who2.co.uk with the tagline JUSTASK PAT and I'll get back to you ASAP. This is a F*R*EE OFFER for two months only.

Although this Blog started out as a way of keeping family and friends informed of my adventures, I like to think I'm connecting in some small way to others who think that growing old is a great opportunity to reach for those elusive dreams that always seemed to slip through our fingers.

My travels are even now fulfilling a desire that started when I used to read adventure books as a child. I always wanted to be a writer and now I'm feeling very happy with whatever I write.

I used to like telling people what they ought to do and how they should do it... but now I hope to inspire in some way without preaching; to see infinite possibilities and reach for any opportunities that present themselves.

What are your dreams and how could I help you find a way to get there? I'd love to hear from you... Talk to me!

INSPIRATIONS

Since I got back I've been glued to the computer catching up with emails and facebook messages, doing this blog and reading some really inspirational stuff that comes through newsletters. One thread led me to a documentary on the life and work of an American woman who gave up her normal life to walk back and forth across the States with nothing but a comb, toothbrush and ballpoint pen in her pocket. No money... no bags... just a tunic emblazened: PEACE PILGRIM on the front and WALKING 10,000 MILES FOR WORLD PEACE on the back, which later became 25,000 miles. She'd vowed to "remain a wanderer until mankind has learned the way of peace, walking until given shelter and fasting until given food."

She walked "as a prayer" and as a chance to inspire others to pray and work for peace and she continued walking for 28 years until she died in 1981 at about my age.

What an inspiration! And how come I never heard of this amazing woman? Well here is where you can find out about her... www.peacepilgrim.com ... Maybe if you're American you'll know about her.

The end of Xmas day and home again

Our day long excursion on Christmas Day didn't end until after sunset as we were delayed on the way back, because Police were stopping bikes to check registration and driving licences. Although the girls had their driving licenses, Helen was riding her mother's bike while Emma was on her brother's, so they didn't have the registration papers with them. Although they'd done nothing wrong and their father could vouch for their validity by phone, the girls were being threatened with having the bikes impounded until they could produce the papers.

I was trying to take pics of this unexpected turn of events although the police officer didn't know that both my camera and phone had run out of power! I walked up, looked the officer straight in the eye and asked what was the problem. As the girls explained, I expressed amazement that we might be expected to travel the 60 kms back by bus... if there was one! When I asked what the solution could be, this was translated back and the young man sheepishly waved us on, much to everyone's relief. The girls were convinced that it was because of my presence, as the usual solution involves parting with money.
We expected to relax at Helen's home before returning on Saturday, but she got a message to say that our bus was cancelled due to lack of customers, so we had to decide what to do! Emma was already booked on the overnight bus so Helen phoned and managed to get us the last two seats on the same bus, which meant that after a shower and change of clothes we made a hasty departure. Well, when I say hasty, we went by bike to the main Ho Chi Minh Road and boarded the bus, which then waited for everyone else to turn up before departing at around 10.00 pm.

When I explain that in my country buses run on time and that if you don't turn up in time you simply lose your fare, they are amazed! There is a morning bus and an evening bus, but no-one can say what time it's due to leave. Nothing here seems to run to a real timetable, except perhaps the trains, although they are inevitably late in my experience.

A view of the the Ho Chi Minh Road, which is a major link through the Highlands between North and South Vietnam.

This bus was more comfortable than the last one as each 'bunk' had a softer mattress than before and I soon fell asleep. We arrived back at HCMC soon after 5.00am and stayed in our beds until 6.00am, (something we could never do at home) when the girls said we could get the bus back to Bien Hoa. However, the prospect of waiting for a bus that would probably take a couple of hours to go around the houses before getting home, was just too much, so I insisted on getting a taxi, which took the long way round and cost nearly £15, which is very expensive for here.

It was a real privelege to be invited to the home of such a lovely family who made me so welcome and I send them my thanks if they're reading this, which Helen might do if she can wade through all this English.

Surprisingly, I'd slept quite well and didn't have a nap all day. It was Mark's Cinema Club at school in the afternoon and we watched The Moulin Rouge, which was even better with English subtitles.

Christmas Day

It was a cold, misty morning and the girls dressed in warm clothes, with long socks, woollen gloves and face protectors for a trip further north. Even at 9.00am I was glad of a jacket, but the sun soon broke through to show the beauty of the Highlands.


We rode some 60 kilometers to a waterfall where we had a picnic lunch. Actually we could only glimpse the waterfall from a distance because of the black basalt rocks, but there were tiled areas for picnics, which made it more comfortable.

The girls then decided to continue to another waterfall that's more accessible. As we arrived I was surprised to recognise Draysap as one of places I visited with Mr Wing last year, with Fiona and Marie! However, there's been quite a reduction in the volume of water since then as you can see in the last pictures, taken now and one year ago.


This is very popular for a day out and crowds of young people and families were there for a picnic, carrying crates of beer with them. There was a time I could scramble and leap from rock to rock but now it isn't so easy and I needed a little help from An to get to the water's edge and refresh my feet in the cool waters.















This is Draysap in December 2009 compared to the same place in December 2008 and yes... I know I'm wearing the same shirt!

Christmas Eve Nativity; The Musical

Helen with my mascot Patricia.

In a town that's 100% Catholic and most houses and shops have their own version of the nativity scene, everyone turns out for the church's Xmas Eve Nativity play. We walked from the house a few hundred yards to the church, which was thronged by families, hawkers, peddlers and beggars, so thick we had to hold hands to stay together. There were tableau around the church grounds depicting the life of Christ and on the distant steps of the large church, the traditional play was being acted out to a pre-recorded musical extravaganza, complete with choirs of angels! Quite a performance. Apparently, this would be going on all evening until midnight mass, but we didn't stay.

These pictures cannot convey the crowds that milled around: like Blackpool on a Bank Holiday!

Helen's home in the Highlands

I have no idea what this flower is, but it's growing in the garden of Helen's family home together with these flowering cactus with the early morning dew still on them.



Last night I boarded a bus in HCMC with Helen and her sisters, Emma and Ann, (their 'English' names) for the overnight trip to their home in Dak Nong Province, in the Central Highlands. This bus was furnished with reclining seat units for sleeping. I can only describe them as something like you might get in the business class air travel, I think, (never having travelled business class myself.) So although one can't lie flat, at least one can stretch out under the thin blanket, with a pillow provided, and relax.




I soon realised that my western dimensions might make sleeping a little cramped because as soon as my body relaxed it started a slow slide so that I ended up with my legs bent up and had to continually shift myself upwards. Mark wouldn't stand a chance of fitting into the limited space! From the lurching and bouncing of the bus, I can only presume that the Ho Chi Minh Road is in a bad state of repair, even though much money has, apparently, been spent on improvements!!! Anyway, I did, surprisingly, sleep solidly (almost) from about 2.00am to 6.00am when the girls woke me as we were arriving. It was a cold, grey morning... well the girls felt cold, but I was glad of the unaccustomed coolness!

The girls had been teaching me a few choice phrases, so I was able to greet their parents in Vietnamese and was complimented on my accent, which makes me happy! Helen's father is most interesting and we had a long discussion on religion and spirituality, which gave the girls a great opportunity to practise their English skills. He's self educated, throufgh books and the internet, with an inquiring mind, and is quite a philosopher, teaching his lovely family to think for themselves.

After breakfast of fried eggs with bread and the pastries and cakes they brought with them, (so different to any we have in the UK... they look good, but... must be the flour,) they insisted I join them in an hour or so of Karaoke (everyone here loves Karaoke!) and dusted off a few old favourites; Imagine, Que Sera... that's going back a bit.



Right now, after a nap and good lunch of fish caught yesterday in the local stream with vegetables and rice, I'm sitting in the parents' bedroom, which they insist on giving to me for my stay, with use of his computer. What more could I ask for ? I didn't realise that her father would be online here, or I'd have brought my camera lead to download some of the many pics we've been taking! However, now I'm home again, here are some of them.

This house is quite spacious, built of planks of wood with ill-fitting doors, windows with plain wooden shutters (no glass) and polished concrete floors; very rudimentary by western standards but perfectly adequate for this climate. It was built by the father when he married over 30 years ago next to his family home and so they have a small community here of extended family, which seems to be the normal way here. This is one Uncle's home with coffee beans drying all over the front yard

Only mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the midday sun, so everyone else is relaxing, talking or watching TV. Helen will take me out later to show me the village.

This is Emma picking Cacao, which they grow in their garden. Below is an impressive Xmas grotto, which abound here in the predominately Catholic town.

Another short trip

This time, one of Mark's former students, Roni, took me on her bike to a country park with waterfalls, only a few kilometers from here। Although Mark was too busy to join us, it was very pleasant and he can go another time. However, I should have followed Roni's advice to set off early in the morning, but these days its not easy to jump out of bed before I've done some exercise to loosen up, even if I wake early, which doesn't happen if I've been reading till midnight!

It was a hot day, with a cloudless sky and most of the journey was on busy roads, but when we reached the park it was quite shaded and cooled by a light breeze. The waterfalls are not what you'd call spectacular, but are attractively presented with walkways, bamboo bridges, bars for drinks and icecream and shaded picnic spots. The pools around the falls were bright with children wearing orange life jackets and crossing the river above on stepping stones. Because it's Xmas, school parties from HCMC were having a great time.

Apparently this area used to be natural and FREE, but now it's being transformed into a moneymaking investment and I can see why. The extensive grounds have been landscaped with 'grass' (the tropical variety)and young trees, which will eventually give very good shade. There's not so much wild life now, such as snakes etc! and the paved roads and paths are easy for driving, walking and cycling । (We hired bikes to find our way around!)

With very nice, if expensive, camping arrangements, new chalets and Restaurants, this is another Tourist trap, er... attraction. But I know why its such an attraction... it's easy and comfortable, (with loos) which I do appreciate at my age!

Day 5 with more pics... and home

I awoke bright and early after a very comfortable night in our Nha Nghi above the beach. (See first pic.) We each had a room, so didn't disturb each other in the night. As Mark showered I went out to watch the night's catch being brought onto the beach by everyone.

Women and children carried heavy sacks up the steep concrete slope and when they'd decided on a good spot in the sun, emptied out heaps of tiny fish, which they spread out to dry, raking over continuously. A motorbike made a steep descent to the beach where men and women were dividing the spoils, and a huge block of ice arrived on another motorbike.

I was charmed by a little girl of 9 called Hoa, meaning flower, who exercised her selling techniques to persuade me to buy a bracelet at a very inflated price. It seems that the children do whatever work they can in the mornings; she sells her trinkets and shells, going to school at midday. She was very bright and I could see that she was used to charming tourists with her excellent English, so took her photo. Finally Mark's pics are downloaded and here she is.

We'd decided the previous day that I'd return by train so that Mark can get back quicker on his own. We had half a day to relax as my train wouldn't be leaving till 1.45pm so found a little pho shop for breakfast, which was different to the usual pho we get.

Everything's different here; its so much quieter and fresher than Saigon and Bien Hoa, which are after all, the equivalent of Manchester and Salford. Then into the town for our hot, sweet coffee in the beach cafe and a paddle in the warm surf.

Crossing the river into Phan Thiet, then the Cafe on the beach and the idyllic coastline.

The train journey back was slow but comfortable. As it's mostly single track line between Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi, there were long stops, I presume to allow the fast train to go through, but I had a book to read and dozed off, arriving back home at 6.30pm. ready for a good night's sleep.

Day 4... updated with added pics

As we travel through the different provinces, we notice how the local food varies. Last night we were served this meal in the tiny cafe next to our Nha Nghi; a bowl of some kind of sausage meat in broth and hard boiled egg with bean sprouts and the same little pancakes that we had previously, which kept on coming as fast as we could eat them.

Then a walk around the local market with all the usual fruits, vegetables, fish and every kind of meat you might, or not, want to buy. A favourite here is pig's knuckle and feet; much like in Lancashire in the old days, but not to my taste.

We left La Gi this morning on the next leg of our drive up the south-east coast of Vietnam but didn't get very far.
This is the Rickety-rackety bridge where the bike broke down...

Mark had to turn around in the morning rush -hour...

and get it repaired before we resumed the journey.

The road moved away from the sea for some way, but we reached the coast again by 9.00am and stopped for a welcome coffee at a small fishing village on the beach. I asked to use the loo with trepidation (usually a squat with no loo paper) but they unlocked an outhouse and to my surprise, it was a proper toilet!

These are pics from Mark's camera, which we finally managed to download.

The locals were busy landing their catch and consequently the beach and shoreline were littered with detritus including a dead dog, which wasn't exactly us inviting us into the surf.

We walked some way along the beach before reaching a rocky headland, with a lighthouse on a small island just offshore and we enjoyed a warm paddle where the sea was cleaner. This was Ke Ga at a beautiful part of the coast.

We were making good time and soon reached the town of Phan Thiet. After a relaxing coffee in a beach cafe, (we do drink a lot of coffee) we discovered a Co-op Mart like our supermarket back here, where we had a cheap lunch. Naturally, Mark found someone who speaks English (women are especially keen to practice speaking as soon as they spot him,) and asked about English schools. We visited two that were within walkingdistance, just to make contacts for possible future work opportunities. That's a nice thing about this town; it's still almost small enough to walk around.

However, we were making for Mui Ne, that everyone says is the most beautiful place to visit and were keen to find somewhere to stay for the night before it got dark. A few kilometers further up the coast we rode through an area of plush hotels and restaurants set by the palm-fringed sea. Nice if you can get it, but not what appeals to us, even if we could afford it. The real Mui Ne is a typical crowded fishing village and we found our Nha Nghi perched on a cliff overlooking the beach, which turned out to be very reasonable. As the sun set, we walked along the beach, picking up fantastic shells, till we came upon a nice restaurant, where we sat back and ordered seafood for our late dinner with cold beer. Lovely!

I realise I haven't said much about the people we meet, who are, without exception, so friendly and helpful. Even with the difference in languages there is no barrier to communication and we always keep them amused!