I'll try to stop in from time to time while I am traveling. I have been here for 5 days now already and have been getting lots of photos. I was in the Mekong Delta for a couple of days, mostly on boats, and got back to Saigon last night. I just added a new post to my blog last night:

http://bakubo.blogspot.com

Tilapia/pangasius/river cobbler for dinner? Highest levels of contaminants in any farmed fish from anywhere in the world. We stopped buying them! Enjoy!

David

Hi Henry,

So glad that you were not harmed in any way and are doing good in Vietnam stil! I'll always keep the misguiding guides in my mind.

Your past experience in other parts of the World helped resolve this one encounter with trouble though not without some frustration. The same type of people are increasing as you say but with more like you, bracing themselves bravey in the face of mean cheators, there's still hope for the future.

Looking forward to the photo series! : )

Yildiz

No, I have avoided any seafood so far. The water doesn't look that great so any fish caught in it I decided to give a pass to. Later when up the coast I'll probably have some seafood though.

Well, I don't know that I was brave. A few more minutes and I may have been proven to be very foolish. He was not a kind man. I do regret writing nice things about him in his notebook. Undoubtedly the other nice comments written by other people were written just before he turned into a monster. Of course, there are mostly good people everywhere, but when you travel you tend to run into the unsavory ones.



I probably won't be posting any photos until I get back to Hawaii since all I have is this little netbook with me. I will be sure to post here though when I have the photos ready -- about 5-6 weeks from now, I guess.

Well Henry I think it was brave too stare down a scammer in his own country, there probably wouldn't be much help and support forthcoming from anyone around nearby either.
Even though 170000 dong is about $9 US and the 450000 dong is still only around $24 US the price was agreed on before the service was rendered so you were right to stand on your digs.
Isn't it nearly time you did a review of your travel practises? travelling alone in this day and age is tempting fate a little I think, and you aint' getting any younger my friend. I think I'm safer camping on a river bank with crocodiles potentially anywhere than doing what you do.
I was wondering how much it would cost to hire a security type person for company in such places, for a few hours or even a day if necessary, if you intended getting off the beaten path very far that is. (meh...they're probably scammers as well ha ha)
Anyway Henry take care.
Greg

Hi Henry - glad to hear the tour is going (mostly!) safely and you're getting some interesting pictures. At least your Saigon "guide" may think twice about his approach to boosting his income in the future since you stood up to him. It was a brave act and I'm sure it will benefit other visitors in the future. I can well imagine that in your situation I would have given him the extra just to avoid the hassle, and I guess this attitude is what he has come to rely on.

Stay safe - and keep those picture back-ups safe as well .

Greg, the guy wasn't a violent criminal, I am quite sure, but just hoping to carry out another one of his scams and pick up a bunch of extra money from an unsuspecting tourist. It rarely works well with me though. That doesn't mean that he may not have turned violent out of anger and frustration though. I was very firm, unwavering, and with no hesitation when I told him no so that he wouldn't feel like he had an opening to maybe get the money. It certainly made him very angry and even if there was no intention to outright rob me by force, sometimes things can escalate in ways that neither one of us intend. He sure was on the verge of using violence, but fortunately he backed down. All is fine!

I am 15 days into the travels and still have the same time left, so in the middle of the trip now. I arrived in Hoi An yesterday and will be here a few days. I remember Hoi An as one of my favorite places when I was in Vietnam some years ago. Much is still the same, but the old, historic part has become a UNESCO World Heritage site and the old houses have become clothing shops, art galleries, and restaurants. It is also much cleaner now. That is all great for the Vietnamese because obviously they are prospering, but it gives that part of town the feel of many of the old parts of Europe. Before, that part of town had just a few shops, mostly for local people, and the occupants and friends sitting out in front cooking, eating, selling vegetables, etc. Fortunately, there is still plenty of that too, just not in that section of town.

I got up at 5:00 AM and then outside at 6:00 to get down to the river and market early this morning and spent 4 hours walking around and shooting. Got many good shots. Actually, I think I have gotten a lot of good shots throughout the trip. We'll see when it comes time to download them all and review them though.

Hi Bakubo!

I was wondering about your well-being last night and even wanted to drop a line here. : ) Good to hear that you're on a smooth walk around since the undesirable encounter with the scammer.

Looking forward to browsing your gallery once you are back and the selected photos are online!

Enjoy the second half of your trip....


Yildiz

I am looking forward to sorting through the photos when I get home and selecting some for the website. It usually takes me 2-3 weeks though so maybe sometime in early November.

I'll have several days at the end in Hanoi so it will be nice to stay in one place for a week to relax and just wonder the city. I remember that Hanoi is good for photos. Here is a photo of Hoan Kiem Lake in Hanoi early in the morning when I was here almost 11 years ago:

These are very beautiful places, Bakubo. : )

I'm glad at least some of the 'old style life' is still surviving after all the touristic 'touches' of the global city planners. It's really sad that the old towns and cities are facing the danger of being ripped off of their innate qualities of real life. Thinking more on the local merits and qualities should be the leading act of the urban planners instead of 'cleaning' unnecessarily.


That's a great composition of a great landscape; a taste of what we'll see from your newest shots!

Take good care and let us always know that what strange or good things are crossing your way. : )


Yildiz

Hi Henry, glad to hear the trip is still going well and no more worrying incidents. I'm also looking forward to the photographic tour once you have sifted, processed and uploaded .

Good to see everything's ok there Henry. Any problems with voltage, memory, batteries etc.?
Greg

I've heard the Hanoi Hilton is not the best place to stay.

Dusty