Travel in Vietnam is guaranteed 7% safer since the war ended.

Ham and pineapple pizza.

This is the most popular topping in Australia. So, I ate an Australian pizza, while listening to an Australian band (Powderfinger) and surrounded by Australians.

I could have almost been in Bali.

The ones in the hotels were okay.

Considering I saw a kid take a dump in the main street, I shudder to think what they must be like in the average home.

The great thing about changing money in Vietnam is that, at 15,000 dong to one US dollar, it becomes a game of instant millionaire. I changed $200 US in the airport, and by the time I got outside, it had undergone gravitational collapse and formed a small black hole.

Vietnam is, of course, one of the last bastions of communism. Fortunately, no one seems to have told the Vietnamese this, and everyone you meet in a mini entrepreneur. Whether it’s selling motorbike rides, selling fruit, selling drugs or selling themselves, everyone here has a way of parting you with your hard earned Dong.

The catch cry of the Vietnamese is “do you want motorbike?” Unfortunately, they’re not inviting you to run off with their prized scooter. Rather they want to charge you for a ride to somewhere else in town. If you’re lucky, it’s where you asked to go.

For those of you with sporting injuries, I highly recommend a Vietnamese massage. After an hour lying on a small bed and being pounded by a surprisingly strong Vietnamese girl, you’ll realize just how painless your previous injuries were in comparison.

And if you visit Hoi An, why not take advantage of slavish working conditions and near poverty, to buy a tailor made suit for the price of a couple of beers? I know I did.

Sitting on our hotel balcony, overlooking the main street of Pham Nu Lao in Saigon , my friend and I witnessed a curious sight.

A middle aged man and his 10 year old son emerged from a dark alley. They proceeded to walk to the curb of the busy main street, where the child dropped his pants and took a dump. They then walked back into the dark alley.

Now, correct me if I’m wrong, but doesn’t that seem like the wrong order for these events to happen? Surely a dark alley is a better place to lay a cable than a brightly lit, busy street.

Who knows, maybe they lived in the alley. To quote Gareth from the office, “That would be shitting on your own doorstep”.
 
Grafitti is popular in Vietnam, however the artists have a tendency to Fucsk up occasionally
The ideal Vietnamese family gaze happily into the future, unaware that the reactor behind them is about to explode
Going to market, oh you'd better believe that's a paddlin'
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

83,535,576 (2005)
Hanoi

The Vietnamese Dong

A$1 = 17 Squillion Dong (A modest 30 bedroom palace)

2004 / 2005
Ho Chi Minh City, Hoi An, Denang
6 Especially high around the markets.

4 Especially high around the markets. Oh, and I saw a 750ml bottle of imitation Smirnov vodka for around US .80 cents. Not sure whether you keep your eyesight after drinking it though.