Trip to Europe April to June 2011

Sunday 10th April- Perth to Singapore, Singapore to London

 Journey not off to the best of starts when we are advised at check-in that we have not been granted an upgrade using our Frequent Flyer points. We suspect that it’s merely a case of Qantas punishing us for not using them over the past two years on our overseas trips.

Service and food on board good but flight attendants seem to be getting older ( or is it just Gail and I getting younger?)

As is so often the case it is wet and windy in Singapore and there is soon a deep depression over the Irelands when we are told that our upgrade request for the Singapore-London sector has also been rejected.

Mood made even worse when we realize that D has window seat and G has aisle seat but on the other side of the aisle. A polite request to a large lady, who bore a striking resemblance to an All Black second row forward, to switch seats was met with a decidedly aggressive ‘No’, much to G’s disgust.

I then had to endure 13+ hours with this female who had by this time been named by G the ‘Butch Bitch’.

Bumpy take-off from Singapore in one of the new A380’s but afterwards enjoyed a very good flight with superb service and top quality food.

Monday 11th April- Arrival in London

Arrive in London at 7.00 am on fine, if a little misty morning.

Leave main suitcases at Left Luggage and catch Tube to Westminster for a one night stay at the renovated Mint Hotel which proves to be great value-for-money and very convenient.

Manage to get early check-in and after watching Rory McIroy implode in the last round of the Masters Golf ( losing to South African Charles Schwarzel ) we walk up past St James Park to the Strand where we do some shopping for outdoor clothes. At 6.30 we meet Daniel and Laura, my brother Tony’s grandchildren, for a meal at a pasta bar in Covent Garden. Great to catch up with the young guys who are both faring well in their respective careers of accountancy and law.

Relatively early night as we try to reduce the effects of jetlag.

Tuesday 12th April- London to Stafford

Lovely full English Breakfast, followed by a stroll around the area on another fine morning.

Judging by the huge number of tourists London is really gearing up for the Royal Wedding on which the Brits appear to be relying for an economic turnaround.

Pick up our Ford Mondeo from Hertz and head off over to Slough meet up with an old friend, Gordon , with whom I had shared an office for 10 years at Ladybird Childrenswear during the 1970’s.

Gordon and his friend Judy still appear to be enjoying a life of gourmet food, quality wine and occasional travel, in spite of having suffered a heart attack during the past 12 months.

Great to catch up on old times over lunch at the Marriott Hotel, after which we drive up to Stafford, arriving at Tony’s at about 6.30.

Great to see Tone and Marg looking so well and surprisingly suntanned, apparently courtesy of 2 weeks lovely sunny weather.

Relaxing evening settling in. Late night for D but G off to bed fairly early as the effects of jetlag take over.

Wednesday 13th April- Stafford

Marg and G take a walk over a lovely rural area nearby called Jacob’s Ladder while Tone and I head off to garage for some repairs to the boot lock on his car. ( getting into the boot by crawling behind the back seats was becoming a bit tiresome! )

D uses then uses T’s mountain bike to go for ride around the area to prepare for Croatia bike tour. While out and about I meet a fellow Old Edwardian ( former students of my old grammar school in Stafford ) David Pearsall, who was also school captain. I diplomatically resisted the temptation to remind him of the day when a sixth-former had broken his nose after being pushed around once to often by the highly unpopular Mr Pearsall.

Dinner at T and M’s. G has another night but D sits up with brother to see Tottenham beaten 4-0 by Real Madrid in Champion’s League.

Thursday 14th April- Stafford

D starts the day with brisk walk along nearby canal. Shopping in Stafford centre and then on to Lilleshall in Shropshire where we have a superb lunch at The Red House.

G’s choice of Scampi not the best as D, M and T enjoy a wonderful Seniors’ Special meal from the Carvery. Less than 35 UKp for 4 meals and drinks! Difficult to beat that and another reminder, if such were needed, that an English pub is still a unique institution, which simply cannot be replicated anywhere else.

Stop by in the village of Gnosall ( where I spent most of my younger days ) to put some flowers on Mum and Dad’s grave.

Rest of day spent allowing the huge lunch to go down.

Friday 15th April - Stafford

M and T have appointments in town so after another pleasant walk along the canal D and G also head into Stafford.

Lunch at a familar haunt called The Soup Kitchen then back to T and M’s for a superb chicken dinner during which T regales us with stories of his National Service days. He is in great form and it’s lovely to see everyone so relaxed and enjoying this all-too-rare time together as a family.

Highlight of the day- while going into Marks and Spencer toilet we meet an old fellow struggling to reverse out of a disabled toilet and meeting a second old guy being helped into the same toilet. The first guy takes one look at the second chap and blurts out “ Jesus he’s in a worse state than I am!’ I didn’t stick around long enough to hear the second guys response or to gauge how much the comment had taken off his life expectancy.

Saturday 16th April - Stafford

Another beautiful start to the day weather-wise. G and D take our usual walk across Jacob’s Ladder and we are treated to a picture-postcard scene- deer, pheasants, hot-air balloons, cattle grazing, truly idyllic.

All morning spent enjoying the sun in the back garden and then off to see an old friend Janet Wiseman in my childhood village of Gnosall. Janet doing very well at 81 years of age after losing her long-term companion, Kate who died the previous year at the age of 97.

Enjoy cordon bleu lunch of 2 hot cross buns in the car before calling on Tony’s daughter Di and her husband Terry who live in a heritage cottage in Gnosall.

Very enjoyable couple of hours just chatting about holidays past and planned, football ( Terry is a Milwall supporter but his rehab is going well!). True to form the Milwall fans had recently carried Turkish flags into their ground during a match with Leeds in sensitive reminder that 2 Leeds fans had been stabbed to death in Turkey the previous year. Things obviously haven’t changed a great deal at the aptly named Milwall home ground of Coldblow Lane.

Back to Stafford for very tasty fish dinner followed by an even tastier dessert of City beating United 1-0 in the FA Cup Semi Final. It’s always one of life’s pleasures to see Sir Alex looking depressed!

Sunday 17th April- Stafford/ Church Stretton

G and D take another stroll over Jacob’s Ladder and then along the canal, passing the lovely Milford Hall Cricket Ground, where D had played a number of games in his youth.

It’s an archetypal English ground in a tranquil, secluded setting, complete with superb pavilion where no doubt cucumber sandwiches are scoffed at tea break on match days.

10.00 am sees us set off towards Shropshire and to the attractive town of Church Stretton, situated close to the Welsh border, where Andy, my nephew, and his wife Mo now live.

Both of them looking very well, especially Andy, who has over the past year lost about 20 kgs. This svelte character is a far cry from the ‘ fat bastard’ ( his words ! ) of well over 100 kgs.

Really good to have our annual get-together over a lamb roast from super chef Andy, ably assisted by sous-chef Mo. Food washed down by 2002 La Rioja Shiraz which we had brought with us. Fine array of cheeses  ( one of which smelt like a pair of Andy’s old rugby socks ) rounded off a great meal.

Plans for possible European holiday rendezvous discussed, including even some cycling in France now that they are both into more strenuous exercise.

Ben, their dog as beautiful as ever. ( Craig had once said “ God your’e ugly ,Ben!” when peering into Ben’s character-laden face ). Crufts would probably say that Ben is not classically beautiful but he would no doubt win a prize for ‘ most fascinating canine ‘.

Back at Stafford by 8.00 to hear the news that Stoke had beaten Bolton 5-0 to qualify for FA Cup Final on 14th May against Man City.

Departure from Hanoi 3rd January.

My most expensive bout of nausea ever has cost me my fine dining meal at about 3.00 in the morning so breakfast is one bread roll and jam.
Bags all packed and off to the airport for early afternoon to Kuala Lumpur.
Looking forward to the relative luxury of Kuala Lumpur but 3 hour flight from Hanoi gives us both time to think back on our Vietnam experience.
It has not been a holiday in the conventional sense. Vietnam is in some ways an assault on the senses with frequent reminders along the way that one is travelling through a third-world country. What is undeniable is the incredible energy and industry of the people and it is to be hoped that the inevitable growth in tourism will see their efforts rewarded without sacrificing the essential character of this fascinating country.
 A decidely more emaciated Obese Ferret.

Hanoi 2nd January 2011

Arrive back at The Amazing Hotel at 4.30 am and they kindly allow us to use another room to have a shower while waitng for our own room to be vacated.
Suitably rested, we walk to Ho Chi Minh' s Mausoleum, only to find that it is cloed in the afternoon ( thank you Footprints Guide for the inaccurate information ). Visit instead HCM's house and Museum and keep a promise to Craig to take some photos of a B52 Bomber shot down in the Ngoc Ha Village suburb.
Walk back to hotel via alleys and laneways teeming with the incredible industrious Vietnamese going about their business. ( No weekends or penalty labour rates here! )
As a special treat we have booked dinner at reputedly Hanoi's finest hotel, the neoclassical Sofitel Metropole. Their Le Beaulieu restaurant offers fine dining at its very best and is a far cry from the $3 and $4 meals which have been our main fare during the trip.
The meal, wine and the experience are all that we could have asked for and we round off the evening with a visit to the famous  Water Puppet Theatre near to the Hoan Kiem Lake.
Back to the hotel in good time to pack our bags for the departure the next day.
Leaving Hanoi with very fond memories of this attractive city. Whilst lacking the frenetic activity of Ho Chi Minh City it is in our view a more stylish city which has kept much of its character and elegance from the French colonial era.
The Obese Ferret.

Ta Van and trek to Su Pan 1st January 2011.

I greet the New Year by bringing up all of previous night's meal at about 7.00am and decide to give a breakfast of pancakes and other goodies a miss.
Mist has lifted somewhat but still drizzly and chilly as we set off, this time accompanied by a new trio of villagers. The morning trail very slippery and demanding so Gail has no alternative other than to enlist the aid of one of the women to negotiate the more difficult sections. A real workout for my Titanium knee but it seems to be holding up remarkably well, certainly better than my gut. Such situations only serve as a reminder, if such were required, of what the soldiers had to contend with in the jungles of Papua New Guinea and elsewhere. Puts my temporary problems into perspective.
Gradually wend our way down to the riverbed and late morning say goodbye to the three villagers who have been tagging us. Not really a fond farewell as they are unhappy with our gesture to pay them a reasonable amount for their help on the trail but not to buy any of their very poor quality locally made items.
On arrival at Su Pan we wait for our transport back to Sa Pa in the house of some delightful villagers who made us feel very welcome, even to the point of offering me some local herbal medicine for my gastro problems. They looked and tasted pretty horrible but I felt obliged to give them a go. Long later showed me a business card which the family had had printed extolling the virtues of their herbal remedies, one of which was designed to solve erectile dysfunction!  I explained to Long that given the way I was feeling nothing was further from my mind than a knee-trembler deep in the heart of the Vietnamese countryside!
Bumpy ride back to Sa Pa for quick lunch, after which we say goodbye to Long who has been an excellent guide.
As part of the tour we are able to have a quick shower at Hotel Papillon and then wait for bus to take us back to Lao Dai. The 4.30 bus finally arrives one hour late and what follows next is truly Pythonesque.
A mini bus designed to carry 15 people spends close to one hour picking up people from various hotels, dropping them off again, driving down numerous streets and then reversing back up the same streets. The increasingly harassed young driver finally managed to squeeze 18 passengers sardine-like into his vehicle and as luck would have it he proved to be a very careful driver as he negotiated the thick fog on the road from Sa Pa to Lao Cai.
All aboard the train at 7.30 pm for the usual uncomfortable trip to Hanoi. The cabin this time shared with a very friendly Kenyan/British guy and his French partner.
The Obese Ferret.

Sapa 31st December.

Wake up to a valley shrouded in mist so the much-vaunted views of the valleys are non-existant.
After lovely breakfast we are met at hotel by Long, our guide for the trek into the mountains and outerlying villages. As soon as we step out of the hotel we are surrounded by villagers,mainly from thr Hmong minority ethnic group. 3 of the villagers tag onto us as we set off on our trip. After walking out of Sapa for about 500 metres we realise that Long is expecting us to do only a day trek and return to Sapa in the evening. We explainn that we are in fact booked on a two day trek with an overnight stay in one of the villages. A quick phone call to Long's office sorts all of this out, one of a number of problems which we are to encounter along the way with regard to the Sapa travel arrangements.
We leave Sapa and gradually descend into the river valley cursing our luck with the weather and accompanied  by the three Hmong villagers, ranging in age from 17 to 47. the 17 year old hasa 5 month old baby and we are informed by Long that the girls in the villages get married as young as 14 and start a family very early.
Some explanation on the system in operation with regard to the omni-present 'hangers-on'.
The villagers leave their homes at about 3.00 am to walk to Sapa and tag onto a guide with tourists in tow.
They then accompany the group back to their village, helping the trekkers when necessary on the at times slippery tracks. The unstated agreement is that the tourists will than purchase from them some of their locally handcrafted items such as purses, handbags cushion covers etc, often hemp dyed. The purple dye is there for all to see on the hands of the villagers.
The quality of the items is variable and some prices charged do not really represent the best value-for-money. Nevertheless, it is a way of putting some money back into the local community.
There are ,however, some pitfalls - firstly on reaching the first village at lunchtime it is not easy to identify among the sea of faces the villagers who have in fact accompanied us along the trail. Secondly, as we leave the village a second shift of the Red Dao minority group takes over to be with us to the village where we will spend the night. Fortunately, we manage to get the message through that our budget has been spent for the day and the taggers drift off.
Arrive late afternoon at village of Ta Van ( Giay minority group ) and 'check into' our very basic homestay. This consists of a ground floor where we will eat our meals, a veranda from which to enjoy the still elusive vistas and an upstairs with up to 30 mattresses laid out on the floor.
Fortunately, we are only sharing this with 4 very pleasant Thai girls so we are each  able to to use numerous quilts and pillows to keep out the the bitter cold. ( there is no heating in the place )
The New Year's Eve meal prepared by the landlord, an assistant and our guide comes as a very pleasant surprise with a huge array of superb Vietnamese food,washed down by some rice wine. Much frivolity as the wine takes effect even if by now Gail's cold has taken a real turn for the worse.
Into bed before 2011 arrives ( a sign of old age ).
The Obese Ferret.

Hanoi 29th Dec( cont )

Hanoi nowhere near as frenetic as Ho Chi Minh City and it has retained much of its traditional architecture. The French Quarter in particular is a delight.
We stroll Hoam Kiem Lake and have a snack at the Paris Deli near to St. Josephs Cathedral. Generally try to soak up the atmosphere before returning to Paris Deli for dinner.
Off to the station to catch the 20.35 train from Hanoi to Lao Cai. We have booked a Deluxe cabin ( 4 berth ) and find ourselves sharing with 2 New Zealanders who have only paid for a standard 4 berth cabin, much to Mrs Ireland's displeasure. However, they are a very nice young couple and the 9 hours overnight trip is as comfortable as it can be on a very hard bunk bed and a railway track which is seemingly in great need of some maintenance.
Arrive in Lao Cai at 5.00 am on 30th Dec. Usual chaos and lack of communication leads to our waiting in a mini bus for 2 other passengers who are supposed to travelling with us to Sapa. The male passenger is Juan but after I have spoken to a French-speaking guide at the station it transpires that Juan is actually Sam, the Kiwi who shared the cabin with us from Hanoi. This little incident really sums up the joys of travelling in a Vietnam still coming to come to terms with their burgeoning tourist trade.
Eventually get under way for the fairly bumpy drive to Sapa.
Sapa is a mountain retreat at 1650 metres with a vaguely alpine landscape. Although the town itself is ethnically Vietnamese its shops and markets serve the minority groups such as the Kmong and Red Dao.
More on these groups later.
Book into a very pleasant Papillon Hotel, after which we spend a fairly sunny day walking around the town. As evening draws in the mist really descends on Sapa and the temperature drop quite dramatically, apparently the norm for thid time of year. To be fairly early to prepare for our trek the next day.
The Obese Ferret

Craig's departure for Melbourne

Craig's books a motorbike to visit Ho Chi Minh's Mausoleum but unfortunately did not have time to visit the sight of a B52 bomber which crashed during the Vietnam War. Also visits the 'Hanoi Hilton' prison,ironically named as such by USA airmen and soldiers in reference to the brutal treatment meted out to so many during the war.Unashamedly biased from a Vietnamese point of view, the prison held John McCain when he was shot down during the war.
Craig leaves by cab to airport and we then venture out to also visit the same prison, wander round to get a feel of this attractive city.
More later as yours truly has come down with some stomach trouble and I am in 'take-off' position at the hotel computer which is not really conducive to my muse sending pearls of wisdom!
THe Obese Ferret