Japan & Vietnam 2K15: Part 6, Hoi An & Ho Chi Minh

Well folks this is it! The final installment of the epic Japan & Vietnam 2K15 trip. I can't believe this is the last post of the trip. Apologies for how long it's taken me to get this up, but I guess I prolonged it because it means that the trip is really over. I don't believe in coincidences, so it doesn't surprise me that I just so happened to "find the time" to post this on the first official day of the online class I registered for haha.

Anyway on to the trip.

As previously mentioned, I decided to lump the last two cities together because we had such a short amount of time in each and we had no major tours or trips planned. Also, it being the end of the trip we put a lot of emphasis on resting so there wasn't quite as much activity as in the previous cities (this was planned purposefully).

Hoi An
We arrived in Danang in the early afternoon after a very interesting (and short) flight on VietJet airlines. We quickly found a taxi and negotiated a price with the driver and headed to our hotel. Similar to Hanoi, the streets near the airport were buzzing with activity and tons of people on mopeds/scooters, but as we drove into Hoi An and neared our hotel it definitely quieted down a bit.

Lunch by the pool

The Victoria Hoi An is absolutely breathtaking and although it was a bit cloudy out this didn't discourage us from enjoying some relaxation time and a delicious meal by the pool. The hotel offered a complimentary shuttle to the center of town where there was tons of opportunity for shopping and eating. Hoi An is home to many, MANY shops offering tailor-made clothing, which can be ordered on the spot and are ready within 24 hours. The shops display samples of their work outside, and most have books and books filled with catalogs showing other options. They can also make an outfit based on a picture or sketch brought in. After selecting fabric and discussing price and details of the outfit you desire, the shopkeeper takes your measurements and tells you what time to report back the next day for your first fitting (usually some time in the late morning/early afternoon). Final adjustments are made, if necessary, after this initial fitting at which time you are asked to return one more time later that afternoon/early evening for the final fitting. It's all such a quick process and prices are much more reasonable than ANY department store. Additionally, most stores hold on  to your measurements and have some sort of online program/web site through which you can make future orders. My parents and brother all participated in the process and walked away with beautiful suits and dresses (unfortunately no pictures were taken, but my mother plans to wear her dresses in the near future and I will update this post at that time).

The rest of our time in Hoi An was spent purchasing gifts for friends and co-workers and simply enjoying the time together as a family. It was our last two days with Brandon so we really wanted to enjoy it.



Ho Chi Minh
 Our final stop of the trip was Ho Chi Minh City, formerly known as Saigon, which many in the country still refer to it as today. Brandon took the flight into Ho Chi Minh but left early the next morning to meet up with friends in London. After he left, the three of us set off to see as much of the city as we could in one day. Our biggest stop was the Vietnamese War (American War to the Vietnamese) Remnant Museum. The visit was extremely intense as the museum was filled with graphic imagery and descriptions of the war itself so I have chosen not to post much from our visit. I will say that it is a very powerful experience and one that should not be missed if you ever find yourself in Ho Chi Minh.

*Note: Mother Rose's bonus clip was too large to put into the blog so you can find it on the brand new Ivy Rose Facebook page!

Coconut candy making process

Our final tour of the trip was to the Mekong Delta. Similar to the Ha Long Bay tour, we got on a bus with about 10 other tourists and traveled a few hours to the Delta where we were led by a guide through various sights. The trip began with some fresh fruit and live music, after which we hopped into 4-person canoes and traveled a short distance down a portion of the delta. We stopped briefly to learn about and watch the production of coconut candy. a major export of this area. I'm not a fan of coconut but I did try it and found that it had more of a caramel taste than anything. Of course there were many other coconut products, the most exciting of which was the pure coconut oil, which my mother and I bought two bottles of. Finally, we all got into a bigger boat and traveled down a larger portion of the delta ending at a house where we were served the greatest feast. The day ended with a peaceful visit to a nearby Buddhist temple featuring three very large Buddhas.

I couldn't think of a better way to end this epic trip. This was such an amazing adventure, and the travel bug has definitely bitten me once again. I don't think I'll ever take this long of a hiatus from traveling again. I hope you've all found the videos and posts both entertaining and inspiring.

Take a peek at the final video below (it's a bit longer than the other videos but also includes some footage of my solo journey back home).

Questions, comments, suggestions, corrections, etc. are welcome of course. Thanks for following along and as always...

Enjoy the journey...

Ivy Rose Travels: Japan & Vietnam, Part 3, Hakone

Welcome back to the journey everyone! Views are up on all of the videos and blog posts and I really hope everyone is finding them both entertaining and informative.  Remember, I’m fairly new to the blogging world and BRAND new to the vlogging world so please ANY advice/feedback/tips/strategies/suggestions are more than welcome (I JUST realized I should have been filming in landscape mode on my phone. Sorry for the annoying portrait view in previous videos…).

Anyway, back to the trip…

Our second city in Japan was Hakone. When planning the trip, my mother purposefully placed this city between Kyoto and Tokyo to build in a bit of a rest period. The atmosphere of this city is much more relaxed and was a very welcome change of pace after the busy (but fun) three days traveling to and exploring Kyoto.

Day 1
Arrival: We arrived in Hakone in the afternoon, after riding the Shinkansen (Japanese bullet train) in from Kyoto station. The trip was about 3.5 hours and took us to a neighboring city, Odawara. Once we arrived there we purchased a 3-day unlimited pass which not only afforded us unlimited access to buses and trains but also discounts on entrance fees to various sights within Hakone and the surrounding areas. From Odawara it was about a 30-40 minute bus ride to our BEAUTIFUL hotel, The Fujiya, which is one of the first resort in Japan and has hosted the likes of John Lennon and Yoko Ono as well as political leaders from various countries.

Many of the sights and activities we wanted to engage in were closing once shortly after we arrived so our first day we spent most of our time in and around the hotel.

The Fujiya has a beautiful garden that takes about 25 minutes to walk through and the sunny weather provided a perfect opportunity for us to grab our cameras and work on our photography skills. Here are a few of my favorite shots:

We then walked to Naraya Cafe (about 10 minutes from the hotel) where we enjoyed ice cream and beverages while soaking our feet in a hot spring bath! Our feet were a little swollen and tired from the previous three days of travel and the hot soak felt SO GOOD! Finally, it was time to head back to the hotel for tea in the Fujiya’s famous Orchid Lounge for…well..tea and of course some sweet treats. During the tea my mother convinced me to join her in taking a Japanese bath or onsen. The process was initially very intimidating and overwhelming to me (click the 'onsen' link for details) and I actually walked out twice before trying it, but I'm so glad I did. Soaking in the hot spring water left my skin feeling cleaner and softer than its ever felt and I've never had better sleep. I loved it so much that I ended up doing it again at our hotel in Tokyo...but more on that later.

Day 2: To make up for not being able to hit any of the sights on our list the day before, we got up pretty early and covered nearly everything before closing time!

Stop 1: Hakone Open Air Museum
Easily my favorite part of the trip so far! I love art museums, especially when the work is uniquely displayed or presented. I was literally rendered speechless by the sheer size of some of the work presented and the combination of art and nature was perfect. Ultimately, I ended up putting on my headphones and wandering around the museum by myself for most of the 2-3 hours we were there, and of course took a TON of pictures. I could make a whole post just devoted to this place (and probably will), but for now click the link and enjoy the few pics I've included here and in the video below.

We were also able to enjoy another foot bath here, which for some reason included oranges. Here is a clip of my mom sharing HER thoughts on the matter:

Stop 2:  Gora

Our next stop was to a cute little area called Gora. This is where you can catch the Hakone Tozan Railway, which is the first step in getting to Lake Ashinoko (sight 3). Since we were starving we sat down and had a delicious soba noodle lunch (Gora is filled with soba noodle spots) and then hopped on the train. There isn't much shopping or other activities to do in this area, although there is a park in the area that has wonderful gardens and views. 

Stop 3: Lake Ashinoko

Hakone is one of the cities from which you can get a clear view of Mt. Fuji. Lake Ashinoko, or Lake Ashi for short, is the perfect place to do this and is usually done by taking the ropeway or a boat cruise. Unfortunately for us due to increased volcanic activity in the area the ropeway was shut down (something I was actually not too upset about since the thought of dangling above a mountain didn't seem very appealing to me). Seeing as our only option was the boat tour we hopped on a bus that took us down to the dock and we got on a beautiful boat that took us on a ride across Lake Ashi and dropped us off on the other side where we could shop and eat if we wanted to before catching a city bus back to the train station. While the boat ride was very peaceful with beautiful views, it did get a little crowded with tour groups and we had a bit of a cloudy day and could not get a clear view of Mt. Fuji. However, the shopping on the other side of the lake was pretty decent (mostly touristy souvenir types of shops) and we were able to finally get some delicious bean-filled buns! 

At this point a lot of things in Hakone were beginning to close and we needed to head back to the hotel and figure out what we were going to do for dinner. I will say that if you visit Hakone during the week, plan on eating an early dinner as most of the restaurants don't stay open very late. We ended up eating in our hotel's bar, which was actually really delicious, but there were a ton of places nearby that we wanted to try. As you can tell, Hakone has a very different vibe from Kyoto, but it was just as enjoyable. As I said before my mother planned this portion of the trip to give us a chance to rest before taking on Toky, and as you'll see in the next post we definitely needed it. 

As always I've gone ahead and made a vlog of our short time in Hakone. Make sure to check it out and leave a comment to let me know what you think:

Before I close out I'd like to take a second and say that I almost didn't write this post because of all that is going on in the world in the past week, particularly around the lives of Black people throughout the diaspora. However, as I was looking for guidance and inspiration in my own processing of emotions around these events I came across the following quotes and offer them to you merely as food for thought:

"In every community, there is work to be done. In every nation, there are wounds to heal. In every heart, there is the power to do it."  -  Marianne Williamson

"Perhaps travel cannot prevent bigotry, but by demonstrating that all peoples cry, laugh, eat, worry, and die, it can introduce the idea that if we try and understand each other, we may even become friends." - Maya Angelou

 

Next post will again require at least one or two days for me to get ready, but it is one you defnitely don't want to miss!

Enjoy the journey...

I'm 30!!! Oh and I Vlog Now.

So I guess you all noticed that this blog bit the dust pretty quickly after I started it. My research took off, I started TAing for one of my professors and I was president of a rapidly growing student organization. Basically, my schedule went from 0 to 100 (cue Drake) and some things got pushed to the side...sadly this blog was one of them. Things are much calmer now and with the end of the school year, I have decided to revive the blog and add a little extra feature..videos! I won't say much more because this first vlog speaks for itself (it's pretty long...sorry), but I hope you all enjoy it. Check out the video, subscribe to the channel and keep checking in over the summer! It should be an exciting ride. Enjoy the journey!!