Back before October Shelley put a great deal of effort into planning a special trip to celebrate her 50th birthday. Unfortunately the accident changed all those plans. Most of the places she had booked allowed her to cancel, however, a number, mostly airlines, would only let her change the dates. Throughout this blog post I have added links to the places we went with more information about that specific place.
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Proudly wearing our NEW Blowin' Bubbles T Shirts
HUGE THANK YOU to Shelley's Brother, Bob
and the company he works for, FINPRINT in Guelph, Ontario |
On February 22 our brother in law, Denis came to visit us on Blowin' Bubbles. He brought with him a much needed part for the boat and some great expertise and willingness to help us get some things done on the boat. Not the least of which was to replace our windlass which has been failing over the last few years. Now with my broken ribs, helping the winch pull up the anchor is now impossible. Denis and I spent a day and removed all the old bits and we installed the new shiny one which easily pulls up the anchor! We also repaired a small leak in our dinghy.
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| Thank you for great years of service.... |
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| Welcome home! |
The second week Denis was with us we all went to
Singapore to do some fun tourist stuff. We visited the
bird sanctuary, Chinatown, some light shows and checked out the city.
Chinatown... where Denis tried to find souveniers.... lol...
Then together we flew to
Ho Chi Minh City (AKA Saigon) which is a city in southern Vietnam famous for the pivotal role it played in the Vietnam War. It's also known for its French colonial landmarks, including Notre-Dame Cathedral, made entirely of materials imported from France, and the 19th-century Central Post Office. Food stalls line the city’s streets, especially around bustling Bến Thành Market. We had some awesome adventures as we visited war exhibits and historic places.
We decided after a few days that regardless of where you come from, and how you feel about the Vietnam conflict, folks (from both sides) went through a terrible ordeal.
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| Notre Dame Cathedral |
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| Post Office |
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| McDonalds! |
Our tour of
Cu Chi Tunnels was fancinating. These are actual tunnel systems where people lived and fought during the Vietnam War. Less than a meter high in places these narrow dark tunnels were the home to thousands of fighters for days, weeks, months and sometimes years. I have to admit, what the North Vietnamese soldiers lacked in technology, they sure made up with tenacity. Working with what most people throw away, they found a way to use and fight with.
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| So many ways to get maimed or killed! |
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| Our Guide, Sam and our new German friends, Maurice & Melanie |
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| All the Viet Cong's footwear was made from TIRES! |
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| Viet Cong "Uniform" These folks were Guerrilla fighters |
After leaving the tunnels we were driven to
Mekong Delta. The Mekong Delta is a vast maze of rivers, swamps and islands, home to floating markets, Khmer pagodas and villages surrounded by rice paddies. Boats are the main means of transportation.
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| Etntertained with local talent... |
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| Denis and his new friend... |
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| Making Candy By Hand |
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| These ladies paddle us tourists down the river, then start a hidden motor to go back up the river and pick up the next group. LOL! |
We spent some time at the zoo here in Ho Chi Mihn. It was a little tired, but we enjoyed what we saw... We have discovered hat almost everywhere we go, visiting a local zoo always turns out to be a fun inexpensive day... Ho Chi Mihn City was no different.
One of the highlights of our week in Ho Chi Minh City was our trip up the
Bitexco Tower to visit the
Heineken Experience. Up on the 57-60th floors we looked out over the city and were treated to a great tour ending in BEER! Life is good!
Cheers!
Part 2 coming soon.....
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