Dear Parents/Guardians of Students in Laos and Cambodia
We are very much looking forward to seeing the Year 9’s and hearing more about their incredible experiences.
Just a reminder that the expected return time is
Wednesday 26 November at 11.30 am at St Leonards
We will keep you updated re arrival times via this blog on Wednesday morning
This morning we departed on our bike ride to the countryside of Hue. We stopped at an incense shop where we took turns in constructing our own incense stick.
After a quick break we headed off to where the fourth Emperor Tu Duc went to admire the view of the Perfume River with his wife. The views were spectacular. Emperor Tu Duc was king of Vietnam from 1847 to 1883. On the way we saw a bunker used to protect the area from the Americans during the Vietnam War.
Another short bike ride and we ended up at King Tu Duc’s tomb where we saw the burial site of him and his Queen. Although he had only one queen, the Emperor had 136 wives! The king ordered the construction of his tomb and surrounds, an area of 12 hectares, in preparation for his death and it was constructed from 1864 to 1867. We all had some free time to walk around and take in the history and beautiful sites. We were all starting to feel hungry and luckily a vegetarian lunch at a local Buddhist pagoda had been arranged. Most people were a bit ‘iffy’ about the food at first but ended up thoroughly enjoying it. After a fifteen minute ride back to the hotel, we had some free time to get snacks for the train ride to Hanoi.
We hopped on the bus for a short journey to the train station. Our 15 hour train trip left at 3.30pm.
When we got on the train, I think we all agreed that the rooms were a lot smaller than we expected for them to be. After an hour on the train, we passed the Demilitarised Zone (DMZ) which was the border between North and South Vietnam during the war. We were split into rooms of four people and we spent some time mingling and went to bed at 8:30 ready for the 4:30 am wake up.
Sophie B and Darcy N
Today we woke up at 6:30am to have breakfast and pack in preparation for the journey back to Ho Chi Minh City. After breakfast we gave some of our gifts to the owners of the house we stayed in. We then got on a boat which took us along the Mekong River. On the way we passed the floating markets where villagers come to sell their produce from their farms. We stopped at a nearby village where we gave gifts to some of the children and watched the process of making rice paper, coconut candy and popped rice. To make the coconut candy, the husk is separated and the coconut is split open. The coconut is poured out; the coconut flesh is then shredded and compressed in order to get the milk. The coconut candy is a combination of the coconut water and milk which is then heated and left to set. The coconut candy is then wrapped in rice paper to stop it from sticking to the wrapper. Things such as cocoa, peanut and banana are added to create different flavoured candy. While we were there, some people got to hold a large python around their neck including Mrs Tattersall who was very scared!
After our stop at the village we hopped back on the boat to meet the bus further along the river. We drove for about 2 hours before we stopped for lunch. We had lunch at the Mekong Rest Stop which included a variety of different seafood dishes as well as Pho. We then returned to the bus and continued the journey back to Ho Chi Minh City.
Once we arrived at Ho Chi Minh city we checked back into our hotel and had a few hours to shower and get ready for dinner. At 6:00pm we all made our way to the shopping mall and had 30 minutes to look around. The mall was like a maze, it was very large and cramped. After the shopping mall we walked to the night markets where we were able to wander around and purchase dinner. The night markets were chaotic and we were encouraged to bargain hard as the starting price was very expensive. There were many different shops selling things such as bags, shoes, hand-made gifts, jewellery and clothes. After a night full of shopping we returned to the hotel for a good night sleep.
By Ellie and Imogen
Day 15 in Vietnam was mainly a travel day (Mekong Delta to Ho Chi Minh City) but with a few highlights along the way. After a warm sleep in the fan-cooled rooms of our home stay in the Mekong Delta we had breakfast which consisted of an egg made in to a pancake and some exotic fruit. We then took a tour of the gardens of the village we were staying at and had a look at some of the fruit and veggies we had eaten the night before.
Next we jumped on the boat and cruised down the beautiful Mekong Delta. We stopped at a small building where the locals were making fish sauce, the popular and famous Vietnamese sauce. The place stank terribly of fish but after a few painful deep breaths, we managed to stay there long enough to listen to Hai (Hai is our tour guide) explain the production process. We made another stop on our boat trip and this was to a Vietnamese candy making shop. They made coconut candy (which was delicious and a favorite of the group. I wouldn’t be surprised if some of us go on to try and make it at home) and pop rice, which is basically popcorn made with rice.
After the delicious treats we made way on the bus to our lunch stop, an Oasis style truck stop that served very good food and that was popular for a reason. We were served a lot of the common Vietnamese cuisine line up with the addition of strange foods such as a prawn, chicken and vegetable pancakes.
After lunch we made a further two hour ride back to our hotel in Ho Chi Minh City. We then relaxed in the hotel for the remainder of the afternoon as it was pouring horrendously with rain.
At 6pm we left the hotel and made haste to a group of shops selling cheap DVDs.
We bought a plethora of popular tv shows and movies. Hai gave us a tour of the night market where we ate dinner and searched for some uncommon goods. Shopping complete we staggered slowly back to our lavish hotel for a shower and a good well deserved sleep.
Blogged by Tom Inglis & Damian Moisidis
Tally-ho and yippedy-doo-da-dee to all the relations back home!
Today, our first full day in Yangshuo, we took a small expedition to the local markets where we were fascinated by all the weird vegetables, fruits, and live animals, all things that would not be easily discovered in an Australian market. Live eels, turtles, roots of lotus, fish of every hue, pickled garlic stems and bamboo shoots were among the many things we saw here. This was the first time we had really had a chance to see the downtown of Yangshuo, and it was clear to us that this was quite unlike any other place we had been on this trip. We were all flabbergasted to hear that the population of Yangshuo was just about 300,000, yet last year alone it received circa 21 million tourists.
After this quick introduction to Chinese ingredients, we travelled to a small, rural area just outside of the bustling centre of Yangshuo to learn how to cook an authentic Chinese lunch. Arguably the nonpareil of all the food we’ve had the pleasure of eating thus far, we cooked a lunch of eggplant simmered in a sauce with black bean and chilli, stir-fried cauliflower, steamed chicken with berries and dates, and a spectacular stir-fry of pork and vegetables. We all thought it a fantastic experience to learn Chinese cooking techniques and recipes. The food itself was actually nothing like what we had eaten at local restaurants, as this genuine food would have been entirely traditional, and perhaps not tourist-oriented at all. The variety, quantity and nature of the spices and their flavours used could almost relate this slightly to South Asian cooking, and it was a joy to be able to work with such fresh ingredients. We all enjoyed the warm, traditional meals we produced very much.
We were all fascinated by this unique cuisine, certainly unlike Chinese food served in Australia, and as we said earlier, even from all the other food that we have been served in China itself. Some unique experiences that we enjoyed during this time were the odd techniques, such as smashing garlic, chopping, scooping and essentially cooking all with a meat-cleaver. This reminded us that the local people have had to make do with very little for a very long time, and thus, have developed a very efficient way of life.
After this spectacular experience, we went on a relaxing bamboo-raft cruise on the Dragon River. Vastly different compared to the crowded, littered streets, the water lay calm and clear like a green crystal sheet over the rocks. Once again, our breath was taken away by the immense mountains that covered the landscape around Guilin. It was a spectacular backdrop to sit back and admire as our local boatmen punted our rafts leisurely down the cool running waters of the Dragon River. A huge amount of photographers lined the river, incessantly photographing us all, along with innumerable newly married or to-be wed couples. We were even treated to a cormorant fishing demonstration courtesy of a traditional fisherman, whose well-trained birds penetrated the river’s shimmering surface to retrieved their scaly prize.
Our day ended with another dinner at a local restaurant, followed by another evening meandering down the bustling and crowded market stalls of Yangshou’s famous West Street, providing yet another opportunity to soak up the local life and flavour. Overall a fantastic day! Cheerio from Ashok, Ben and Daniel!
By Ashok Chandar, Ben Merganovski and Daniel Tesfai.
We all arose early to jump on the bus by 7am and begin the five and a half hour journey to the Mekong Delta. After around two hours, we stopped at the Cu Chi Tunnels. These tunnels were created initially to hide documents from the French, but were then further developed during the Vietnam War to hide from the Americans. Upon arriving at the site we found ourselves looking at deadly traps that were used inside the tunnels to kill enemy soldiers that found their way in. One of the traps was a plank of wood that acted as a see saw, so that once stepped upon, it would rotate and the soldier would then fall into a hole filled with shards of metal sticking up. Often the shards of metal were recycled from the bomb shells that were fired upon the Vietnamese. We then walked down into a section of the tunnels and found ourselves doubling over in a narrow, dark and dirt filled hole that was very challenging to get through! We were all very glad to come out at the end and breath the fresh air again!
After experiencing the Cu Chi Tunnels, we went for lunch which was upon a floating platform on the Mekong River. As we ate our delicious meal we saw many parts of plants that had become detached from the land flowing rapidly down the river. It was interesting to see how fast the river flowed and the sheer amount of plant material that was in the river! Shortly after lunch, we proceeded back to the bus to continue the long ride.
Once we arrived at the Mekong Delta we had a boat ride to a place that made pottery. It was fantastic to see the enormous kilns that the clay made bricks and pottery were baked in. The people who were making the pots were very talented and clearly had a lot of experience. We then hopped back on the the boat to continue down the Mekong. We found ourselves admiring the beautiful sky and pondering how the river had become so murky. We soon docked at the homestead that we would be staying in for the night and were very excited to find that there were showers! But before our showers, we all went on a hot and humid bike ride! We went over small bridges and passed many villagers and gave our greetings.
Lastly, we had a lovely dinner that we shared with the many insects buzzing around! Today was a great day and we look forward to the last few days of our trip.
Blogged by Anna Rabinov and Christiana Visek-Johnson
