Ninh Bihn & Hue, Vietnam 2020.

Edited by: E.Gray Editing

After exploring Hanoi and Ha Long Bay, we decided it was time to go south with the hope it would give us better weather. We bought bus tickets to Ninh Binh, which is further south than Sa Pa, and was on our way to meet friends. We were dreaming about nicer weather, but unfortunately it was the same in Ninh Binh as Ha Long Bay;overcast, on and off showers and still sweater weather.

Ninh Bihn was the first time we had an argument with a bus driver. Our ticket said they would drop us off at our AirBnB, which was located 10 minutes outside of town. The driver decided to unload our bags at the town centre and requested we get off the bus (which was actually a minivan). We got out and spoke with him, after a short and confusing discussion he agreed to take us to our AirBnB.

We rented bicycles to go out and explore the area and town. Our ride into town started on a paved road, which quickly turned to dirt and then into roads that were more like goat paths. The GPS on our phones seemed to think this was the best route…I’m not so sure it was.

We rode through Ninh Bihn. We covered a ridiculous amount of ground on the bikes for two people who do not own bikes. We also rode through rice fields and walked through several pagodas (a Hindu or Buddhist religious temple or tower).

Photo Credit: Ryan C.

One of my favourite sites we visited was Tuyet Tinh Coc, it's a bit smaller pagoda but worth the trip. You start by walking through an overpass between two mountains, entering into the valley to see Ao Giai Lake, Am Tien Cave and pagoda, and Am Tien Pagoda. We took our time walking upstairs to the pagoda. We stopped on each of the landings to look out over the lake, and take in the beauty of the area. As we walked through into the cave we came face to face with the buddha shrine, a small pond a bit further into the cave.

The next day we were a bit sore, so we rented a scooter to travel to attractions that were further away. We went to Bich Dong Pagoda, and spent close to two hours walking around the Pagado, the pond and through the cave. As you walk the stairs up to the cave, you can look out and over the pond, seeing a stunning view of the pagoda and entire valley.

We rode further and found Bai Dinh Pagoda, this pagoda shocked me. It was the largest one I had seen. It has a large Buddha statue outside, a bronze Buddha statue of Sykamuni, Bao Thap Tower and so much more. We spent most of our morning walking around and taking in as much of this Pagoda as we could. Photo Credit: V.Gray

It was also a great hiding place when the rain got too heavy.

Even the inside was beautiful. There were lots of buildings with status and gorgeous views, we could have easily spent the entire day there.

Photo Credit: V.Gray

After spending the morning dodging the rain, it finally let up enough that we could do the Mua Cave hike. This was the first time I ran into having to pay to use the toilet, toilet paper AND to wash my hands. We alway carry a backpack (with water, sunscreen etc), we had Kleenex and hand sanitizer, so I only paid to use the toilet. That did not stop the lady from following us around and saying I owed money for toilet paper and washing my hands.

The cave itself was not what drew us to this spot, it was small and underwhelming. We were interested in the hike to the top of the mountain to see the view of the rice fields, the Ngo Dong river and Dragon Peak.

Nothing could have prepared us for the amount of uneven, steep and slippery stairs. There is a chain rope beside the dragon at the top of the mountain, but everyone goes around it anyway.

Photo Credit: Ryan

The view from the top made all those stairs worth it. The rice fields are stunning even in overcast conditions. The top is still questionable though; there are no railings, safety barriers or anything to keep you from falling. It was a bit nerve-wracking.

Photo Credit: V.Gray

Since Tete/Lunar New Year was coming up in Vietnam, our AirBnB owner offered to take us into Tam Co to see the floral displays at the night market. The displays were absolutely breathtaking. He took us through all the stands , translated and helped us negotiate prices on a few souvenirs.

We stopped for dinner on the way back, the AirBnB owner had recommended a spot to us that specialised in goat. We had seen goats on spits several times since we had arrived and assumed that was what we would get, but that was our first mistake. I do not think either of us will ever forget our first goat experience. Photo Credit: V.Gray

It was chewy, the fat and skin was still attached

to the little meat there was, it smelt off and it was stewed, not roasted. This put us off goat for the rest of our time in Vietnam, we did not eat it again until we were in Bali.

We spent 4 great days in Ninh Binh, some time in Da Nang and then in Hue. Both Ninh Binh and Hue are in Northern Vietnam. We went to Hue with the intention of going to some really well persevered war tunnels just outside of the city.

We took the night train from Da Nang to Hue. I wish I had taken a picture because no one will believe this description. We had booked seats, however we ended up sitting somewhere else and here's why. There are two trains that run to Hue, the scenic one which is a little bit more expensive that goes up the coast line and the local train. We had booked the local train (miscommunication on our end), so we had to make the best of a hilarious situation.

So here is what we saw when we got on the local train with all our backpacks. This train was FULL. People sleeping under seats, two or three people in one seat, sleeping people laying across people sitting in the seats, people sitting on milk crates in the aisle, people sleeping in the aisles, small kids sleeping with the luggage on the racks. It was basically a-free-for-all and people, animals and luggage were EVERYWHERE. All we could do was find seats, make it work and laugh.

We crammed in the back of a car, with our bags on our laps and under our feet. We had to listen very carefully to the intercom because some of the stops were on the side of the tracks in the middle of nowhere. The attendant (who was trying to help us) almost let us off at the wrong stop, in the middle of nowhere. When we did finally get to Hue, our AirBnB hosts had offered to pick us up from the train station (at no additional cost) not on the side of the tracks.

We got to our AirBnB, settled in for the night with plans of finding a scooter to go to the war tunnels the next day. The next day we got up, walked into the town centre, rented a scooter from a guy on the side of the road (I know that sounds sketchy, however this is completely normal) and we were off to the tunnels. Our scooter however had other plans, it was not reliable at all. The scooter backfired and struggled to get to speed on a straight away. Needless to say we had to come up with something else to do to fill our 3 days in Hue.

So the first day we wandered local shops, looked around and went to see the Imperial Palace. We wandered around the outside, but decided we were not interested in going inside.

Our friends, Marc and Alanae, had mentioned an abandoned water park just outside of Hue. We figured if we took our time we could make it, so we chanced it. It is called Thuy Tien Lake Abandoned Water Park. The water park has a really cool, eerie, creepy, horror movie vibe. Like somewhere you don’t want to get caught in after dark. Photo Credit: V.Gray

We arrived knowing you had to either bribe or dodge the security guard. We walked the trail and thought we were doing really good at hiding from the security guard, we were wrong. He caught us, so we ended up bribing him instead (50 Dong total) and he let us in, it was worth it. We started with the dragon in the middle of the lake. You can walk up and view the lake from the mouth of the dragon, and the old aquariums in the dome below.

Photo Credit: V.Gray

We explored the remainder of the abandoned water park, the stadiums, the water slides, etc. we walked all the way around the lake and never saw anyone else, not even the security guard, which added to the creepiness.

Photo Credit: V.Gray

We stopped for lunch at a local restaurant just down the road and asked about the water park. The lady said it was built in 2004, and opened prior to completion. After a little girl drowned, in 2006, all the aquariums were emptied and the park was shut down. However there is a crocodile that still remains there. He is said to be a

Photo Credit: V.Gray man-eating crocodile; we did not run into him thankfully.. She went on to tell us that it is cursed, she did not specify if it is the land or the park.

We found on TripAdvisor there were lots of tombs around the Hue area, so we made a stop on our way back.

We stopped at Mausoleum of Emperor Khai Dinh (Ứng Lăng Khải Định), it is beautiful. If you stay outside of the tomb you can wear shorts and t-shirt, but to enter the tomb you have to cover your shoulders and legs.They have sarongs for people to wear for free at the entrance.

Photo Credit: V.Gray

As we wrapped up our time in Hue, we booked our train ticket to Da Nang during the day- on the scenic train this time. The train ride down the coast to Da Nang is beautiful and does not stop at random points on the tracks. We made it to Da Nang around lunch time, and got some well earned catch up time with friends. Marc and Alanae had been doing an overnight boat tour in Ha Long Bay, Paul and Rhonda relaxing in Da Nang and we got to explain our great train mishap! After a few beverages, we then started talking about where to head off to next.

Cheers!

Photo Credit: V.Gray

Map of Vietnam and places we travelled

**Please note that all opinions and views expressed in this post are my own, from my own experiences. If you would like to see more pictures follow me on Instagram vikki.gray

This post is edited and proofed by E.Gray Editing. (https://www.egrayediting.com )**