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My Tour of Duty in Vietnam [Archive] - ZGeek

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btwong
20-10-2005, 12:17 PM
Ladies and gentlemen and all freak-a-zoids...

i am about to embark on a 5 week backpacking adventure in Vietnam. That’s right, Nam you Mofo’s. Earning my stripes, shooting those yellow commie bastards of the north! Fighting so you can go down the road in your own country free of the "communist" danger, eat a junior whopper burger whenever you want, and get diseased free puntang when you feel like it. All the while I am sweating my arse off in some god-forsaken jungle, getting DDT sprayed on me, smelling napalm in the morning, and popping caps :gun: in the arse of that ugly nigga, named Ho Chi Minh. (Sorry had to get a bit of that Vietnam vet talk out of my system).

Its my first time in the country, as well as my girlfriend, who is actually vietnamese. Her parents lived in the south of vietnam until the yanks decided to runaway like a big girl's blouse at the end of the vietnam war, cause they where getting their arse spanked! (Thats right nodfuckbugger, you septics lost the war!). The parents went though all sorts of shit (concentration camps, beatings, etc) until australia gave them refugee status, in which they hoped on one of those small over crowded boats, floated to the philippines, where they were flown to australia. They were amoung the first Vietnamese refugees in australia, and my girlie was one of the first vietnamese born in their new country. The parents have been back once, but her sisters (who where 5 and 2 at the time) have not been back. (a fuller picture of perils they endured are for another time...)

Anyway, i am really looking forward to going, and i was wondering if any other zgeekers have been, and what they can recommend. We are starting in Hanoi (the north) then to Cat Bai and Haiphong, then travelling down the coast to Hue and Nha Trang, then onto Saigon (Ho Chi Minh for the Communists). In Saigon, we will be staying in the house in which her parents owned before the war, but has now been turned into a hotel, so it will be surreal. Then from Saigon to Cambodia and Angkor Wat for a few days, then back to Saigon. Then on the way home we are flying to Hong Kong (so i can spend up big on electonics... video ipod, here i come!).

So if anyone has good suggestions (apart from, don't get the H1N5 virus (bird flu for those not in the know)), please lay'em on me.

take it easy peeps!

Grumblefish
20-10-2005, 12:22 PM
I have been, but I was only in Ho Chi Minh. It was during the SARS crisis, but I did pick up one of those lamp-shade ninja hats.

lostreality
20-10-2005, 12:25 PM
smack ya bitch up.

Vardsy
20-10-2005, 12:29 PM
Make sure you have Sum Young Guy while you are there

berserk
20-10-2005, 12:39 PM
I've been to Laos, does that count?

matty
20-10-2005, 12:51 PM
dont eat anything off the side of the streets in hong kong, its all dirty

mjolnir
21-10-2005, 09:48 AM
sure, but its damn good!!!

tomsyman
21-10-2005, 10:03 AM
I spent 4 weeks in Nam with my GF back in February, had a great time. Will post some details later today - got to do a bit of work first!

Buffy
21-10-2005, 10:06 AM
I haven't been myself, but I know Pirate's parents go practically every year to Vietnam and neighbouring countries. If you're into collecting art or plan to buy paintings, there are artists there who can do some really amazing things, you can commission works based on a photograph or anything. A tip if you are, take off any frames, roll up the canvas and post it back, apparently its much cheaper and you skip some customs thing because they aren't framed. :) Btw angkor wat looks so beautiful, I'm jealous and want to go too! hehe

btwong
21-10-2005, 10:19 AM
I spent 4 weeks in Nam with my GF back in February, had a great time. Will post some details later today - got to do a bit of work first!

i look forward to it....

is there anything that i should definitely see or do?

Enos
21-10-2005, 10:53 AM
Cu Chi(sp?) tunnels are a must outside Saigon. (although not if you're claustrophobic)

Dalat is a great place to cool off, high in the mountains and quite pleasant when the rest of the country is stinking hot.

Personally I thought Nha Trang sucked. Only good thing there was Mama Han's Boat Tour but pretty sure is no Mama Han anymore :(

More as I remember (it was 6 years ago!)