Spending my birthday and 3 days on a tropical island is just as good as it sounds. After waiting months to go to Koh Rong it certainly did not disappoint! We had our own beach front bungalow which was only a few metres from the sea.
On our first full day on the island, which we are told is roughly the size of Hong Kong, we decided to trek across to the other side to what was apparently an almost deserted beach. Asking for directions at the bar we were told it was about 45 mins and to follow the white marks on the trees. Easy. Turns out it was a bit more difficult than we thought. Flip flops weren't the best choice of footwear and made the journey a bit harder. To get to the beach we had to climb down a steep, stoney path, it was that steep that at some points there were ropes to help us hold on.
It was all worth it though when we got to the beach...
We spent the morning swimming, relaxing and walking on the beach. It was probably the best beach we have ever been on, it stretched for miles, was almost deserted, beautiful white sand and clear turquoise waters. Paradise. On the way back along the beach we met 4 girls who we met in the bar the previous evening. We all decided that rather than hike back up we would wait for sunset and then get a boat back. The evening turned cloudy and we didn't see much of a sunset but that didn't matter after the day we had.
Leanne's Birthday - We spent most of the day lazing in hammocks, lying on the beach and eating Wie's food(the head chef at the restaurant, this is possibly the best place we have eaten at so far on our trip).
In the evening we had more food and a few drinks with the girls. They all bought Leanne a bottle of Champagne and sang Happy Birthday to celebrate. Also one of the staff was a fire thrower so he treated us to a show on the beach in front of the Christmas tree.
As we were about to leave some of the bar staff at Monkey Island called us over and gave us a birthday shot, Absinthe and Sambuca Needless to say we had to then buy another drink to wash away the taste so we ended up staying for a couple of hours chatting to the bar staff who were all really friendly.
We left Koh Rong feeling disappointed to be leaving such a beautiful place but we soon forgot all about it as we had to focus on staying alive during a boat ride from hell. The boat was pretty small and the waves were huge. Luckily we put our bags in their waterproof covers, we did not have such a luxury for ourselves. Unfortunately we do not have pictures of this event, firstly because we don't want to remember the experience and secondly because we were too scared to take our cameras out!
We then spent a night back in Phnom Penh before heading to Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). This is where things took a turn for the worse. We arrived on Christmas eve and Leanne didn't feel well on the bus journey. She got worse as the night went on and apart from a quick venture out for food we spent the whole afternoon and night in bed. Unfortunately the big guy didn't bring Leanne what she wanted - to feel better. Luckily we had cable TV in our room so watched Miracle on 34th Street and The Santa Claus which made us a bit more festive. Other than that and a few random Christmas decorations you would have no idea it was Christmas day. Leanne managed to get enough energy to go to an internet cafe where we skyped our parents before accompanying me to my Christmas dinner which was beef noodles. How festive!
Anyway the next morning I felt much better, regrettably it was Rob's turn to be ill! Instead of wasting another day in bed, I decided to leave Rob ill in bed (even though he stayed with me the day before) and explore the city. I was a little scared to go out by myself especially as I wasn't 100% but I am 23 and a big girl now! I went to see the Independence Palace and the War Remnants Museum, both very interesting and an insight into Vietnam war.
The traffic in Saigon is unbelievable, there are so many scooters. I captured this as I was walking back to check on the patient.
The next day we were both feeling well enough to get up so we booked a tour to go to the Mekong river delta (the ricebowl of Vietnam). To sum it up in one word: Disappointing. We were expecting a busy, colourful floating market instead we were faced with this:
Despite the tour guides insisting that it was a busy beautiful day and that the water was very clean, there were hardly any boats, the weather was cloudy and the water was filthy. We may be being a bit harsh and some parts were interesting to see, but as we were with a tour most of the day was filled with touristy money making opportunities. It was just annoying that after 3 days of us being stuck in bed this was our first outing.
Having had a few wasted days in Ho Chi Minh it meant that we would either have to extend our stay there by a few more days than planned or move on without seeing much of the city or doing a few other things we would have liked such as the Cu Chi tunnels. We decided that there was lots more to see in Vietnam and we had seen some of Ho Chi Minh so we would leave today, the 28th as planned and travel to Mui Ne.
We got the bus this morning and we arrived in Mui Ne early afternoon. It is a seaside town, well more of a long strip than a town. It has many more upmarket beach resorts than we were expecting, in the end we found a place for pretty cheap, it is just a room with a bed though literally nothing else almost reminiscent of a prison cell. It is weird that this is the same price we paid in HCMC but there we had an en suite, hot water, fridge and cable TV. Anyway we left our room sharpish and went to Fairy Spring (sounds like a manly place).
At first we were a little unimpressed with walking up a dirty stream but as we followed the meandering river it revealed a vivid landscape of red sand and chalky, craggy rocks. It was very peaceful and relaxing to walk in the stream up to a waterfall at the end. At some points it was only a few metres wide with rocks jutting up either side.
Tomorrow we plan to go to some sand dunes where you can slide down them. We are only spending one more night in Mui Ne before heading further north up the coast. The weather is likely to turn a bit colder something we won't be used to, having been in sweltering heat for 4 weeks now (we left 4 weeks ago today).
If we don't post another blog before the new year then we wish you all a Happy New Year!!!
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| Our bungalow |
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| The descent |
It was all worth it though when we got to the beach...
We spent the morning swimming, relaxing and walking on the beach. It was probably the best beach we have ever been on, it stretched for miles, was almost deserted, beautiful white sand and clear turquoise waters. Paradise. On the way back along the beach we met 4 girls who we met in the bar the previous evening. We all decided that rather than hike back up we would wait for sunset and then get a boat back. The evening turned cloudy and we didn't see much of a sunset but that didn't matter after the day we had.
Leanne's Birthday - We spent most of the day lazing in hammocks, lying on the beach and eating Wie's food(the head chef at the restaurant, this is possibly the best place we have eaten at so far on our trip).
Leanne enjoying the hammock - I attempt to sit in my hammock half way through but miss it and fall on the sand
In the evening we had more food and a few drinks with the girls. They all bought Leanne a bottle of Champagne and sang Happy Birthday to celebrate. Also one of the staff was a fire thrower so he treated us to a show on the beach in front of the Christmas tree.
 |
| 'T' fire throwing |
As we were about to leave some of the bar staff at Monkey Island called us over and gave us a birthday shot, Absinthe and Sambuca Needless to say we had to then buy another drink to wash away the taste so we ended up staying for a couple of hours chatting to the bar staff who were all really friendly.
We left Koh Rong feeling disappointed to be leaving such a beautiful place but we soon forgot all about it as we had to focus on staying alive during a boat ride from hell. The boat was pretty small and the waves were huge. Luckily we put our bags in their waterproof covers, we did not have such a luxury for ourselves. Unfortunately we do not have pictures of this event, firstly because we don't want to remember the experience and secondly because we were too scared to take our cameras out!
We then spent a night back in Phnom Penh before heading to Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). This is where things took a turn for the worse. We arrived on Christmas eve and Leanne didn't feel well on the bus journey. She got worse as the night went on and apart from a quick venture out for food we spent the whole afternoon and night in bed. Unfortunately the big guy didn't bring Leanne what she wanted - to feel better. Luckily we had cable TV in our room so watched Miracle on 34th Street and The Santa Claus which made us a bit more festive. Other than that and a few random Christmas decorations you would have no idea it was Christmas day. Leanne managed to get enough energy to go to an internet cafe where we skyped our parents before accompanying me to my Christmas dinner which was beef noodles. How festive!
Anyway the next morning I felt much better, regrettably it was Rob's turn to be ill! Instead of wasting another day in bed, I decided to leave Rob ill in bed (even though he stayed with me the day before) and explore the city. I was a little scared to go out by myself especially as I wasn't 100% but I am 23 and a big girl now! I went to see the Independence Palace and the War Remnants Museum, both very interesting and an insight into Vietnam war.
 |
| Outside the War Remnants museum |
The next day we were both feeling well enough to get up so we booked a tour to go to the Mekong river delta (the ricebowl of Vietnam). To sum it up in one word: Disappointing. We were expecting a busy, colourful floating market instead we were faced with this:
 |
| Meh |
Despite the tour guides insisting that it was a busy beautiful day and that the water was very clean, there were hardly any boats, the weather was cloudy and the water was filthy. We may be being a bit harsh and some parts were interesting to see, but as we were with a tour most of the day was filled with touristy money making opportunities. It was just annoying that after 3 days of us being stuck in bed this was our first outing.
Having had a few wasted days in Ho Chi Minh it meant that we would either have to extend our stay there by a few more days than planned or move on without seeing much of the city or doing a few other things we would have liked such as the Cu Chi tunnels. We decided that there was lots more to see in Vietnam and we had seen some of Ho Chi Minh so we would leave today, the 28th as planned and travel to Mui Ne.
We got the bus this morning and we arrived in Mui Ne early afternoon. It is a seaside town, well more of a long strip than a town. It has many more upmarket beach resorts than we were expecting, in the end we found a place for pretty cheap, it is just a room with a bed though literally nothing else almost reminiscent of a prison cell. It is weird that this is the same price we paid in HCMC but there we had an en suite, hot water, fridge and cable TV. Anyway we left our room sharpish and went to Fairy Spring (sounds like a manly place).
 |
| Seriously if anyone know how to rotate these let us know |
At first we were a little unimpressed with walking up a dirty stream but as we followed the meandering river it revealed a vivid landscape of red sand and chalky, craggy rocks. It was very peaceful and relaxing to walk in the stream up to a waterfall at the end. At some points it was only a few metres wide with rocks jutting up either side.
Tomorrow we plan to go to some sand dunes where you can slide down them. We are only spending one more night in Mui Ne before heading further north up the coast. The weather is likely to turn a bit colder something we won't be used to, having been in sweltering heat for 4 weeks now (we left 4 weeks ago today).
If we don't post another blog before the new year then we wish you all a Happy New Year!!!
feels like you left months ago!
ReplyDeleteglad to hear the illnesses are gone
please tell me the boat journey was similar to when me, you and elise went snorkelling in bali...
also, you're looking tanned and that's just unfair
miss you xxxxxxxxxxx
OMG cannot believe its already been 4 weeks since you left!
ReplyDeletelovinggg the pics of the beach, am so jeal! glad you had a good bday leanne, you deserve it :-) that vid of the hammock made me feel a bit queasy though :-S
dont worry about xmas, youve already had and will have so many more amazing memories, a normal xmas would be rubbish in comparison!
miss youuuuuu xx
Alaina it was worse than the Bali trip, I had to cling on for dear life!
ReplyDeleteNits I hope you are having a good time in Agra!
Love to you both xxx