Voyager - Singapore-Hong Kong, 2/20-3/7/17 - Wes, Rachel & Rumor, LIVE!

[Mr Rumor]

On display at the Cu Chi Tunnels are recreations of the Cong's wicked array of traps. The names alone are chilling: Sticking Trap, Clipping Armpit Trap, Rolling Trap, Windows Trap, Folding Chair Trap, Swinging Up Trap, Fish Trap and See Saw Trap.

 

 

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[RachelG]

February 23, 2017--Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam After a quiet night in port, we were up early for our excursion to the Cu Chi tunnels. Ginny and Rich were in our group as well.

 

Our bus was modern, comfortable, and well air conditioned, with the added bonus of wifi. Our guide, Hua, was a fountain of information, with a cute sense of humor as well. We set off amid the crazy dense traffic of Saigon. The tour was supposed to take 1 1/2 hours driving each way, but with the awful traffic, it ended up being 2 1/2 hours each way. Very disappointing as that meant we had little time to spend at the sites. Had it been correctly advertised, I would not have chosen this excursion.

 

After driving on and on. And on... we finally arrived at a farm where we were able to use the bathroom. We were supposed to have a tour, but no time for that. We did see their very nice looking pigs and chickens, and we had a snack of fresh fruit (watermelon, jackfruit, papaya, and the little finger bananas) before heading on to the tunnels.

 

The Cu Chi tunnels were a vast network of underground tunnels and traps used by the Viet Kong. The government has turned this into a sort of military park with recreations of a lot of the things found there and some excavation of the original tunnels. Our guide showed us all sorts of clever details, like how they hide the cooking smoke coming out, how they made sandals from tires, the brutal traps that were set, and the camouflaged entrances. We could have had the opportunity to shoot Vietnam war vintage firearms, but no time for that. Anyone who wanted could crawl through one of the tunnels, which has been enlarged to accommodate the size of Americans. Had I not had a broken arm, I would have done it. Rich was brave and took the challenge.

 

We then went to a restaurant for a lunch of local specialties that was quite good--spring rolls, fried fish, noodles and soup with veggies and tofu, pork and rice.

 

The ride back to the ship was equally long with very dense traffic. Someone asked about how my arm is holding up to all this, and the answer is that the plate is very stable. When on excursions, I wear my immobilizing brace. Otherwise I can wear just a sling.

 

Back on board, we came in 3rd in trivia. I then did a good walk outside as we sailed away down the river to the sea. There was a steady breeze, so it was very tolerable.

 

We were tired so decided on a quick dinner in sette mare, the evening version of La Veranda. As usual, I ate way too much and now feel like a stuffed turkey. But it was very delicious.

 

Tonight is the cruise director Margaret's one woman show, She-Haw. I have seen it before, and while it is very entertaining, I am ready to call it a day.

 

 

 

 

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Edited February 23, 2017 by RachelG
spelling

[RachelG]

Saigon street scenes

 

 

 

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[RachelG]

Our fish for lunch

 

Cobra in a bottle

 

Local casket company

 

 

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[WesW]

Thanks Rachel and Rich for the wonderful Mekong River and Cu Chi tunnel pictures, Ida and I can imagine ourselves back there again.

 

Tonite we had an outstanding dinner with Rich and Ginny in Prime 7, besides the delicious cuisine the best surprise is that we all have booked the Mariner Shanghai to Tokyo for March 2019.

 

Note in the photo below Ida, Rich and Ginny enjoyed the 42 layer chocolate layer cake famous as the P7 go to desert (well they each had 14 layers, I had the strawberry frozen yogurt)

Please enjoy some photos:

 

 

 

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[Mr Rumor]

What a wonderful day spent in the company of Rachel & George ("Cu Chi Tunnels and Fruit Gardens") and Wes & Ida (dinner in Prime 7)!

 

I want to add to Rachel's first-rate account of Cu Chi that we only got to spend an hour at this uniquely special attraction instead of the customary hour and 45 minutes, due to our 4 p.m. departure. The pressure was on our guide Hoa, who managed to shepherd the 24 of us to every one of the Cu Chi tour stops--shooting range excepted, as Rachel noted--while maintaining his sense of humor. Roughly a handful of us managed the tunnel crawl. I had second thoughts about this subterranean adventure because of my recent back issue, but I emerged unscathed (just a little dusty).

 

The success of a tour like this, encompassing approximately five hours to and fro, rests on the talent and preparedness of our guide. We lucked out with Hoa, who spoke animatedly for most of the drive to Cu Chi. I found myself most interested in his take on Vietnam pre- and post-1986.

 

From the end of the Vietnam War in 1975 until 1986 Hoa described a country that had "closed the door" on the outside world: "It was very communist, like a Cuba or North Korea. Everything was the State--no private ownership of land. We all worked for the government. We all received the same share, no matter how hard hard we worked. We had a stamp for meat, a stamp for rice.

"But we didn't get enough--we even had to import our rice from Thailand--and people were starving. At night I dreamed about food."

Life began to change, he said, when in 1986 the government decided to "open the door" to the world and welcome outside investment. At the same time, "they gave us our land back." In short, Vietnam, decided to pursue on its own what the U.S. fought the Vietnam War for: a turn way from communism, if not in name, at least in practice.

"The government won't say it, but we are 100% capitalist today. Today I am not rich, but I'm not poor. I have enough money to eat at any restaurant, to buy an apartment. I pay taxes on my earnings like you do in America.

"Our economy continues to grow very fast, 7% to 8% a year. And today, instead of importing one million tons of rice a year from Thailand, like we once did, we are the second biggest rice exporter in the world, after Thailand."

Hoa's upbeat picture of life in Vietnam today jives with the Vietnam Ginny and I observed on our two all-day tours. The people seem happy, even those living in poverty on the Mekong in some of the most dilapidated structures I've ever laid my eyes on (we got some of the best waves from residents there).

But the age group we were most taken by were the young ones, the ones we saw piling on some of the 5,000,000 (!) motorbikes in Saigon. Rachel and George captured their joy in a couple of wonderful photos Rachel posted. They are, of course, Vietnam's future.

 

Rich

Edited February 23, 2017 by Mr Rumor

[FlyerTalker]

One of the great ironies is found across the street from the Rex Hotel. There is a statue of Ho Chi Minh in the park. If you look from the front over Ho's left shoulder, you'll see a building with an HSBC sign on the top. And from the back, you can note that Ho is looking towards a tall building with a large illuminated Citibank logo on the top.

 

 

Hmmm.

[Emperor Norton]

...

We're relaxing at Gate B3 of the Sunport after the unpleasant surprise of having to fork over $100 for our two bags (each under 50 pounds, by the way) to the American Airlines agent. "That's the way it's going to be from now on if American isn't handling your international," she explained. Well, phooey! ...

Rich

 

 

I wonder if that has to do with the rollout of the new "you get a seat, seatbelt and thats it" fares by American.

[liptastic]

Enjoying all your threads and photographs from today. Looks like a good meal in Prime 7, the cake looks fab. Thanks, Jean.

[Travelcat2]

What wonderful photos of the sights in Vietnam. A lot of what I see from the photographs reminds me of what we have seen in other places in Southeast Asia (Thailand, Malaysia, etc.) The tunnels are quite amazing - I admire Rich for going in but it is not something I would be comfortable doing.

 

I do have one question and hope that it isn't getting too political...... will give it a try. Do you get the sense that "some" people still blame the U.S. for what happened during the "conflict"? The reason I ask is that a few years ago (maybe 10), a few visitors to the area were put off by some comments made by tour guides.

 

Another question or two....... is Vietnamese food there similar in any way to Thai, Chinese or ??? It is spicy? While there are Vietnamese restaurants in the U.S., I always assume that having the same dishes in Vietnam would be an entirely different experience.

 

Thanks again for taking the time to post and to answer questions:)

[FlyerTalker]

I wonder if that has to do with the rollout of the new "you get a seat, seatbelt and thats it" fares by American.

Not at all.

 

Has to do with the decisions of AA and oneWorld regarding interlined luggage and associated fees.

[Zqueeze1]

Jackie:

 

I think your first question is an interesting one. To take it one step further, how did the Three Blogateers feel about what they saw regarding the war displays and memorials? I'm sincerely interested in your comments and by no means am I seeking to stir the pot.

 

Z and TB

[Mr Rumor]

Jean, that 14-layer chocolate cake is the reason that, despite our giving back the hour we gained the other day, I set my alarm for 5:15 this morning so that I could pay penance in the gym.

 

Flyer/Talker, I have another sign for you, actually a set of five large Heineken billboards we spotted in Saigon, on the other side of a river. Each featured the company's logo, an icy bottle of beer--and the Vietnamese Red Star! Another metaphor for the Communist government's embrace of capitalism.

Jackie, thanks for asking about Vietnamese attitudes today regarding Americans and whether or not resentment/anger persists. According to Hoa, absolutely not: "There is no anger towards Americans. Many, we know, opposed the war. Today American tourists enjoy it here very much. We treat them very well."

I think I will continue to absorb and reflect upon for some time all that I took in from our two very special days in Vietnam. I am already mulling the message between the lines of Hoa's Vietnam history lesson. He spoke of the handful of times, dating back more than 2,000 years that China tried, and ultimately failed, to subjugate the Vietnamese. Same story with the French in the 1800s, the Japanese during WW II, and the French again after WW II. He seemed to be asking, without asking, why did the American government think there be a different result when it commenced bombing in 1964. "The Americans never controlled anything more than the cities and towns only."

But lest he give the impression that Vietnam won the war, Hoa was quick to add, "58,000 Americans died, but we lost one million soldiers and two million civilians. So, sorry, both sides lost the war."

Rich

[RachelG]

What wonderful photos of the sights in Vietnam. A lot of what I see from the photographs reminds me of what we have seen in other places in Southeast Asia (Thailand, Malaysia, etc.) The tunnels are quite amazing - I admire Rich for going in but it is not something I would be comfortable doing.

 

I do have one question and hope that it isn't getting too political...... will give it a try. Do you get the sense that "some" people still blame the U.S. for what happened during the "conflict"? The reason I ask is that a few years ago (maybe 10), a few visitors to the area were put off by some comments made by tour guides.

 

Another question or two....... is Vietnamese food there similar in any way to Thai, Chinese or ??? It is spicy? While there are Vietnamese restaurants in the U.S., I always assume that having the same dishes in Vietnam would be an entirely different experience.

 

Thanks again for taking the time to post and to answer questions:)

 

 

Will answer the 2 nd question first--is Vietnamese food spicey? Not at all where we were. It is very light and fresh. Ginger and basil are common spices, but no hot peppers. Our guide told us food in the north is salty. In the central part, it can be spicey. In the south, where we were, it is mild. But very delicious.

 

As to whether the people blame the US, it probably depends who you talk to and where you are. Keep in mind that most of the population is younger and did not experience the war directly.

 

Our guide yesterday was in his forties. He remembers how terrible things were under communism. His statement was "we do not blame America for the war. The past is the past. We understand that the US was trying to stop the spread of communism. The war was really between the US and the Soviet Union, just in Vietnam. We like Americans and want America to be our best friend."

 

That is probably a more educated view than a lot of people would have, but I think that most we encountered would agree about wanting to be friends.

Edited February 23, 2017 by RachelG
spelling

[FlyerTalker]

Flyer/Talker, I have another sign for you, actually a set of five large Heineken billboards we spotted in Saigon, on the other side of a river. Each featured the company's logo, an icy bottle of beer--and the Vietnamese Red Star! Another metaphor for the Communist government's embrace of capitalism.

 

 

Sorry to disappoint you but the "red star" has been a part of the Heineken logo and labels for years. Just look at any label on the ship (if they carry Heineken) or ashore and you'll see the star in the middle of the label, just above the name. Also on the neck band, bottle cap, and every bit of advertising around the world.

[WesW]

Our experience was like yours seven years ago in HCM city Jackie, however this week our guide was similar to how Rachel describes their guide--he loves America and describes with pride how one of his cousins now lives in San Jose, California.

 

As post Vietnam Veterans Ida and I still have a yearning to learn about Vietnam. However, our close friend Doug, was shot down over Hanoi and spent nearly seven years in the Hanoi Hilton. He refuses to step foot again in Vietnam.

 

As an aside, the Vietnam landing card that cost each of us $69pp was in my view a total waste of time and our money tho good for Vietnam. We were not asked once to show this card.

 

Guess I had too much of the delish Syrah last nite as I turned our clock back instead of forward, so when I thought it was a 4:45 am at the coffee connection this morning Franck told me it was 6:45 but this was our last time change.

 

This morning we are enjoying a seaday enroute to our next port, Brunei. Accordingly our Smithsonian lecturer Lew Simons is discussing "Allah and Oil." We are having lunch with George, Rachel, Rich and Ginny at La Verand at noon. Tonite we have the famous Regent Block party.

 

 

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[Travelcat2]

Wes, thank you so much for that explanation. My heart goes out to your friend Doug. While I was against the Vietnam "conflict", I 100% supported our troops. In fact, I spent many days at the Westwood, CA Veterans Center mingling and chatting with returning vets (as a volunteer). This was a special time of my life and one that will stay will me as long as I live. It is heartwarming to see the love that is being sent to vets of more recent wars/conflicts. Thankfully, we have learned from our past mistakes.

[Eager2Travel]

These posts are bringing back vivid memories of our visit to the tunnels some 10 years ago. We spent a great deal of time inside them. The various traps were still in place. The guide went through lengthy descriptions with some amount of pride of how effective they were. We were troubled for days after the visit. Back then one felt blame. The cruise line had asked that a particular video not be shown but it was.

 

Am very glad to hear that the young people are open to forgiveness and acceptance. It is a beautiful country and we loved our two visits there. Our vets deserve our gratitude and appreciation.

Edited February 24, 2017 by Eager2Travel
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[alainciao]

What I heard was the capitalist economy is strong and the communist corruption matches it. People on the street like all tourists. A very interesting port and many good values in Vietnamese products.

[Mr Rumor]

Sorry to disappoint you but the "red star" has been a part of the Heineken logo and labels for years. Just look at any label on the ship (if they carry Heineken) or ashore and you'll see the star in the middle of the label, just above the name. Also on the neck band, bottle cap, and every bit of advertising around the world.

 

Flyer/Talker, I'm familiar with the star being a part of the Heineken logo. On the billboards, the star was by far the dominant element, and, to me at least, a clear reference to the Vietnamese star. I wished I had had my camera handy at the moment, as I would have loved a shot of the billboards.

 

As Wes mentioned this is a sea day, our second of five. This is our kind of cruise, pacing wise, with a first day at sea followed by four sets of two port days followed by a sea day.

 

Rich

[purpleally]

 

Since we have been to Saigon before and Ida needed medical treatment (allergy treatments x2 @ Med car--glad we have travel insurance as her med bills are now over $1K) only went on Panoramic Saigon tour. Today Ida is going on the "Art of Vegetable Garnish" so hope to share some photos later.

 

 

 

 

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1k? I was pushing 3k on my January cruise. Travel insurance paid every penny! Hope she feels better

[Mr Rumor]

About this time in the blog I like to dispense some numbers. We're cruising full with 686 passengers, of whom 355 are female. On only one of our previous cruises (Explorer, Rome-Miami, last November) have male passengers outnumbered female.

Here is the nationality breakdown:

United States, 402

United Kingdom, 108

Canada, 53

Australia, 20

Switzerland, 20

Germany, 16

France, 10

Belgium, 9

Norway, 8

Netherlands, 6

Sweden, 6

New Zealand, 5

Brazil, 4

Austria, 3

Mexico, 3

Argentina, 2

Denmark, 2

South Africa, 2

Croatia, 1

India, 1

Lithuania, 1

Malaysia, 1

Romania, 1

Thailand, 1

Venezuela, 1

[WesW]

Thanks purpleally, Ida is doing much better and back to competing in all activities where she can earn points.

 

And thanks Rich for sharing the interesting cruise demographics.

 

Just met with Bruce (Cruise Consultant) to transfer our Navigator Norway cruise next year to Mariner, Shanghai to Tokyo in March 2019. This new cruise includes The Great Wall pre cruise which Ida is keen on. Moreover we will get to sail again with the Rumors (Rich and Ginny). Props go to Bruce--the best cruise consultant we have experience on any Silversea or Regent ship.

 

 

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[Travelcat2]

Rich - love when you do this breakout of countries! As usual, quite a few passengers from North America! Lots of "onesies" on board -- could be some interesting match-ups!:D

[Ms Understood]

We cruised to Vietnam about 10 years ago and I will never forget the sail-in to the harbor in Saigon. The raw emotion of the handful of Vietnam Vets who were on the deck with me that early morning was very hard to process. I get teary even now thinking of those men and their palpable grief and sense of loss. Are there any returning Vets onboard?

----------------------

Helen