17 minute read
Vietnam by rail
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Going on a historic train journey (clockwise from top left) The North-South train leaves from Hanoi in the north and travels all the way to Ho Chi Minh city in the south, passing almost all of Vietnam’s UNESCO World Heritage Sites along the way; Ho Chi Minh’s vast mausoleum in central Hanoi, close to where he made his famous declaration of Vietnamese Independence from the French in 1945. He lies enshrined and embalmed inside; the entrance to the vast Hang Roc (Ruc Mon) cave in Phong Nha Ke National Park, central Vietnam, which boasts one of the largest natural cave systems in the world
This is the most famous of all Vietnam’s World Heritage Sites. You can get there more quickly, but that’s why I was taking the train. For six hours, locals snoozed and snored opposite me until light pinked over the mountains and we drew into the station in Halong. From there, a pre-booked converted junk, which would be my berth for one night, together with 20-or-so fellow-travellers, slowly chugged us out into the bay.
The East China Sea was serene. It was so flat that you felt like you could roll a marble across and bounce it off one of the myriad islands. The air was sub-tropical-warm – a gentle, cooling breeze. That afternoon some of us kayaked through lake-calm water busy with sergeant major fish passing under rock arches cut by the sea into the pinnacle islands. We climbed to the peak of tiny Ti Top island for a view of the sun, sinking orange over a spread of limestone mountains – dripping with forest and pocked with caves.
Back in Hanoi, I decided to lose myself in the backstreets of the old city, just walk where my camera took me, past market traders sitting behind rows of pak choi and mangoes, chayote and Malabar spinach. On a street corner, old men with wispy beards sat on tiny plastic stools, laughed with friends and puffed smoke from huge bamboo hookahs. I took some pictures and one called me over. He was wearing a faded khaki jacket and had cataracts in his eyes.
“England,” I said.
“Lando?”
“Ho Chi Minh, he live there. He work there...”
He grinned and offered me a drag of his hookah. The tobacco was bonfire-strong.
I spluttered. The old man laughed.
“You visit his tomb?” I hadn’t and the old man flagged down a cab for me and sent me to the mausoleum: a monumental grey building in a huge grey square – a kind of Soviet-brutalist Parthenon with imposing, sombre neo-classical concrete pilasters. I processed inside to where Ho Chi Minh himself lay embalmed like a Catholic saint in a glass case, as if he’d fallen asleep and would rise again when his nation needed him. I wandered east to the relics of the
“Ho Chi Minh himself Hanoi’s Imperial Citadel, another World Heritage site. It was a husk of lay embalmed in a glass splendour – almost all of it destroyed case, as if he’d fallen by French guns. The imagination has to fill-in the gaps in the walls. asleep and would rise I pictured emissar ies from Ming again when his nation China walking down long corridors, needed him” to those splendid pavilions embossed with ceramic mosaic, where mandarins sat around the throne of the great Emperor Lê Thánh Tông. I imagined French troops cowering before Japanese guards, in tiny cells inside the egg-yolk-yellow fortified gate. Japan’s annexing of Vietnam and subsequent loss to the Allies left a power gap into which, in August 1945, Ho Chi Minh stepped into, later proclaiming Vietnamese independence in the adjacent square, using words from France’s Declaration of the Rights of Man. DEEPER INTO VIETNAM The next day I was back on the train for a long journey south to Dong Hoi, gateway to the Phong Nha caves and my third World Heritage Site. I’d booked a sleeper cabin – and after sunset, guards came around to collapse the couchettes and cover them with sheets. Supper was a bowl of soup and a stir-fry, and I slept easily, to the meditative clack-clunk of the bogeys, waking only when the train horn sounded and we jarred to a stop in Ninh Bình. Morning came with coffee ⊲
and cold omelette, brought by railway staff just before we reached Dong Hoi. Duy, my guide and future typhoon driver was waiting for me on the platform and we were soon winding up from the coast into the hills where the caves lie.
Duy asked me if I wanted to try light adventure caving, or a proper adventure. I should have realised then that for the Vietnamese, ‘proper adventure’ means Jour ney to the Centre of the Earth. But I was bleary eyed, which is how I found myself in the pitch dark inside Hang Roc. The cave was aptly named. It was the largest I’ve ever seen.
With me was a tough-as-nails, 60-something opal miner from Coober Pedy called Jake, three Vietnamese cavers and a guide – five-foot tall Tua. With a neat, office-ready haircut, a pink watch and crocs on her feet, she wasn’t exactly Lara Croft. She looked like she’d blow away in the wind.
“Are you sure that you’re OK with adventure?” she asked, grinning mischievously.
“Great!” she said, “Follow me.” And like a cat she clambered up the cave wall, which looked as steep as a church steeple in the beams of our head torches.
Even Jake was shaken. But somehow, the Vietnamese cajoled us up the slope that was easier than it had looked, using undignified buttock-shoves and indications for where we should put our big feet. As we climbed, the sound of the river faded underneath me. My heart pounded in my chest. I was glad that I couldn’t see how far it was below.
Then we reached a ledge that led into a cavern and were glad we’d faced our fear. Pools of calcite ran across the floor like steps. Inside them, were marblesized balls of glittering aragonite – cave pearls. Towering stalagmites stood around us like cathedral columns, and the walls sparkled with jewel-like flowstones. Towards the caves’ exit, Tua had prepared a little picnic for us; coffee, a sandwich. Someone had some whisky.
Later that afternoon, back in the hotel – exhausted but with that calm that comes after hard exercise and adrenaline – I was sipping a beer and looking out over the balcony. Dark clouds were gathering over the horizon. And Duy approached me.
“I think we need to leave early tomorrow, Mr Alex,” he said unemotionally.
“Oh yes? What time is the train to Hue?”
“No train. We’ll dr ive. Maybe leave about 4am…? A typhoon is coming.” EXPLORING IMPERIAL HUE The next morning, we were rushing to escape it. And the night was gradually thinning into turbid grey. Outside the car window, the wind bent the Palmyra palms and tore at their fronds. In the wind the going was painfully slow, but we were heading steadily south. And the storm was whizzing north. Duy assured me we would miss it.
Half an hour later it didn’t seem so, and the coffee had worked its way through to my bladder. When I stepped outside the car, the wind was literally swirling – hitting me from the front, whirling around my side, lashing me with rain. And I was struggling to answer nature’s call. Then through the murk of flying water and leaves a cyclist wandered past, head down, calm as a walker in a London park, pushing his bike against the wind. Two hours later we safely reached Hue. The rain was merely drizzle far to the south and the clouds were thinning. I thanked Duy with a large tip. From now on, I determined that my Vietnam journey would be sedate. But I hadn’t met Cong – a constantly laughing barrel of energy with Ray Bans and closely cropped hair, who picked me up by Jeep the next morning for my tour of Imperial Hue. Showing off my knowledge I asked him if the reason so many people in Vietnam were called Nguyen was after the Emperors who had founded the city. “No!” he roared, as we whizzed along the river. “It’s not ‘Ner-Goo-Yen’! No! No! No!. ‘Gnu-When’! Say it – a bit like ‘No When’!” We pulled-up in front of the Ancient Forbidden Purple City, next to a massive, fortified gate topped with terracotta roofs. And Cong led me through – along brick paths, past ruins of buildings razed to the ground by the American invasion, telling me about how the city would have functioned in Imperial times; about the Nguyen emperors. We walked along a cherry-red corridor topped with a procession of decorated gables open only to the close courtiers. A young woman in a beautiful, swirl-
“My guide took me ing Ao Dai dress was having her photo taken in the doorway. around the tombs that “People come here to do pre-weddot Hue’s countryside, ding pictures,” Cong told me, “She’s wearing the official colour of Hue – guffawing at my dark purple.” attempts to pronounce We r e a c h e d t h e h e a r t o f t h e
Vietnamese” old palace, where pavilions with plunging roofs topped with swirli n g d r a g o n s l o o k e d o u t o v e r a courtyard dotted with huge copper cauldrons. They were covered with Chinese script. “Not Chinese,” explained Cong, “Vietnamese. It used to be written like this before the French introduced the European alphabet.” Then Cong took me through the Imperial tombs that dot the palm-tree and cecropia-filled countryside around Hue – mosaic pagodas, sitting over artificial ponds filled with lotus flowers and lilies; dark temples where statues of long-dead emperors peered from plinths, through air smoky with incense. And along the way Cong guffawed at my cackhanded attempts to pronounce Vietnamese. “Try this one,” he’d say, tripping out a few words. I’d repeat them and then he’d bellow with laughter. “Don’t say that in front of the waitress! She will throw the Pho soup over you!” Then the next day at the train station, Cong too left me, but with a parcel. “Open it before you reach Danang!” he said through the window as the train shunted off. “And come back soon!” Inside was a Vietnamese-English phrase book and a packet of fragrant Hue royal tea. FINAL STOP: HOI AN The departing train chugged through the centre of the Hue, past street markets where women in conical hats sold ⊲
Lighting up Hoi An Old Town Tran Phu street gets lively at night. Declared a UNESCO World Heritage site in December 1999, Hoi An’s Old Town was recognised for being an “exceptionally well-preserved example of a South-East Asian trading port dating from the 15th to the 19th century”
I visited the tiny Cham Islands a twenty-minute boat-ride offshore, spending a long lazy morning snorkelling over coral reefs and lazing with a paperback on a pearl-white beach, shaded by coconut palms.
But I loved the Hoi An evenings best, when I’d find a table in a quay-side restaurant overlooking the Thu Bon River and order sizzling prawns and spicy Mi Quang turmeric noodles, as the sun sank low and butter-yellow over the terracotta roofs. Gondolas drifted languidly by, and in the thickening twilight, courting couples set lambent paper lanterns on a drift downstream to the South China Sea.
On my final morning, I took an early taxi ride out of Hoi An – past vendors in conical hats laying out their wares for morning market, through the rice-paddy landscapes that clustered around the sluggish river as it wound inland, and into thick jungle. I was going to My Son, the last World Heritage Site of my journey. Like an Angkor Wat in miniature, this 1,500-year old ruined city – of crumbling brick temples and statues encrusted with vines lies strewn in dense rainforest at the feet of rolling mountains.
Leaving early, as my hotel had recommended, ensured I would share it only with green magpies and crimson sunbirds, who flitted through the trees and played in the gentle sunlight. A ancient treasure, lost in nature. It was the perfect, tranquil end to a Vietnam trip that, as ever, had been filled with surprises. ⊲
THE TRIP
Audley Travel (01993 838140, www.audleytravel. com/Vietnam) has a 15-night tailor-made trip using the railway and visiting Hanoi, Halong Bay, Phong Nha (with a cave trek), Hoi An beach and Ho Chi Minh City, from £3,885 per person with all flights, transfers and excursions. Vital statistics
Capital: Hanoi Population: 97,000,000 Languages: Vietnamese, French, plus assorted minority group dialects, including Muong, Cham and Khmer Time: GMT +7 International dialling code: +84 Visas: Before COVID-19, UK & Irish nationals travelling by air could fill in the visa on arrival (VOA); electronic visas must be arranged beforehand if arriving overland. Money: Dong - currently £1 to VND31,000. ATMs are found throughout the country and credit cards widely accepted. When to go
Vietnam has a tropical monsoon climate with weather patterns differing north to south and a marked temperature range, which drops to an average low of 15°C in Hanoi (Dec-Feb) and 22°C in Ho Chi Minh City. April is the warmest month, with an average maximum temperature of around 30°C. The North – May-Sept are the driest months with Dec-Feb receiving the least rain of all and July and August the most rain. The South – Oct-May are the driest months, with January-March the driest of all.
Typhoons can strike coastal Vietnam at any time. In the south they generally hit AprilSeptember; in the centre, August-November; and in the north, October-March. They range in strength enormously. Some bring little more than heavy rains and strong winds; others are devastating – causing intense flooding and severe damage to houses and crops.
Health & safety
At time of press, Vietnam had planned to fully reopen to international tourists by June 2022. For the latest information on travel and entry requirements see: https://vietnam. travel or the UK FCDO guidelines (gov.uk).
There is a risk of diphtheria. Some rural areas of lowland Vietnam have malaria. See www.travelhealth.co.uk or fitfortravel.nhs.uk for further information.
While there is petty theft, violent crime is rare. Be aware of motorcycle snatch thieves and street scammers in the larger cities. Be wary of using your passport as a rental guarantee. Adventure travel in Vietnam can involve unexpected risks, be sure to check precisely what is involved with your on-the-ground operator.
Getting there
Vietnam Airlines (vietnamairlines. com) fly to Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City from £630 return, leaving from London Heathrow and taking 11.5 hours.
Getting around
The railway is run by Vietnam Railways. Their website (http:// vietnam-railway.com) has timetables and prices online in English. Sleeper fares between Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) cost £65 for the entire 38 hour, 1,700km-long journey. The author travelled to Halong City railway station, before taking the Hanoi-Ho Chi Minh City line south, breaking the journey in Dong Hoi (for the Phong Nha caves), Hue and Danang (for Hoi An). Booking can be made in advance at railway stations, local agencies and through tour operators in the UK. ⊲
Cost of travel
Vietnam is good value even by South-East Asia standards. Backpacker travel can be as little as £15. Luxury is available from £120 a day, including a room in a five-star hotel. A meal for two in a cheap restaurant is around £5 and a plush one around £15; tipping of 15% is expected. The taxi start rate is around £0.40 and then a further £0.50 per km.
Accommodation
The Metropole (all.accor.com) In Hanoi oozes French colonial sophistication, with rattan ceiling fans, art nouveau wrought iron and staff wearing elegant white silk Ao Dai dresses. It’s in a great location in the heart of the old French Quarter. Doubles for £115 B&B.
Little Charm Hanoi Hostel (littlecharmhanoihostel.com.vn) is a bijou hostel in a choice Hanoi Old Quarter location. It has modern dorms and doubles with wooden bunks, art on the walls and a great-value restaurant serving big breakfasts and local standards. Dorms from £5.
Phong Nha Lakehouse (phongnhalakehouse.com) overlooks a lake and rugged hills swathed with forest, yet it’s a stroll from the shops of Phong Nha village while the caves in Phong Nha-Ke Bang NP are a five-minute drive. There’s a good range of accommodation – from swish lakeshore cabins to backpacker dorms. Service is excellent. Doubles from £30 B&B.
Azerai La Residence (https://azerai.com/ resorts/azerai-la-residence-hue) in Hue is the former palace of the province’s French governor. The hotel sits in extensive lawned gardens right across the Perfume River from the Forbidden City. Opt for a room in the original building. Doubles from £45 B&B.
The Nam Hai (www.fourseasons.com/ hoian), 15-minutes’ drive from Hoi An’s pretty centre, is about as luxurious as beach hotels get in Vietnam. Huge villas with silk drapes, dark marbles and four posters cluster next to a long, white-sand beach. Doubles from £300 B&B with excursions.
Food & drink
Vietnamese cooking mixes strong flavours (salty fish sauce, abundant herbs), fresh vegetables and lots of meat. The cuisine is strongly regional, borrowing from China in the north, spicy and aromatic in the centre and Khmer-influenced – with sweet palm sugar and coconut – in the south. Alongside pan-Vietnamese pho meat-andnoodle soups and banh mi stuffed baguettes, try local specialities: cha ca (fish cooked with dill and turmeric) in Hanoi; spicy bún bò Hue pork, beef and banana flower broth in Hue; and banh cuon dumplings stuffed with mushroom and bean sprouts in the south.
Further reading & info
The Sorrow of War (1987) by Bao Ninh, written by a soldier who served in the Vietnamese Army Youth Brigade. Vietnam: Rising Dragon (2010) by Bill Hayton. One of the best accounts of the China-like ambitions of contemporary Vietnam. vietnam.travel - Official Website.
On the move (clockwise from this) Houseboats on Halong Bay; Hoi An; the train tracks through the narrow centre of Hanoi
HIGHLIGHTS
1HANOI Built around a series of lakes and the snaking Red River, the buildings in Vietnam’s capital are a mix of Confucian China, Soviet monumentalist and French colonial.
2NINH BÌNH This landscape of lilycovered rivers winding through karst mountains and green paddy fields is UNESCO World Heritage listed.
3HALONG BAY Northern Vietnam’s vast bay of forest-covered islets lies in easy reach of Hanoi and is best visited on an overnight cruise.
4PHONG NHA-KE BANG NP
Caves honeycomb the mountains of this UNESCO-listed national park; including Hang Son Doong, the world’s largest, and glittering Phong Nha Cave.
5HUE The imperial capital of the Nguyen emperors, with a crumbling forbidden city and a hinterland dotted with beautiful temples and tombs.
6HOI AN Pearl-white beaches, ochre and egg-yolk-yellow balconyfronted shop houses and a lantern-lit river, make this little village a great beachside stop.
7HO CHI MINH CITY Vietnam’s most vibrant city, bristling with skyscrapers, cut with little alleys lined with coffee shops, gin bars and noodle shops and buzzing with a energy.
WANDERLUST
RECOMMENDS
Vietnam: Wanderlust Travel Guide – www.wanderlust.co.uk/destinations/ vietnam/ ‘Overnight Train: Hanoi to Saigon/ Ho Chi Minh City on the Reunification Express’ on YouTube – youtube.com You can find a number of ‘Traditional Vietnam’ playlists – spotify.com
