Vietnam: Folie à Deux

 We did get a 2nd chance to visit our favourite country on the trip! And off we went to Da Nang on a flight from Manila. 

One can't not visit Hoi An, if one is in Da Nang! The town centre was as beautiful as it was on our previous visit.

and extremely clean and picturesque with the millions of hanging lanterns.

...and as the even set in, the boats came out in numbers in the river.

One must try to be here at 6:30 PM every evening.

The rides are for ∂120K (£3.80) per person.

We then managed to go to Nha Trang and stay there for a while. The view from our hotel window in the morning was absolutely stunning.

...and the full moon night was magnificent too.

We didn't realise that at one time Nha Trang had a huge Hindu community. We visited the Po Nagar Temple on the hill.

The Hindus still pray here and the Shivling signifies it.

The place has gone through a lot of renovation recently and will surely become a big site for the tourists.

Renovated temple.

Hot Pot! One of the best ways to share a meal! Or not!

We also went to the Long Son Pagoda! 

One can see this Buddha Statue from far and across town.

We did see a lot of Korean and Chinese tourists here.

We walked back from the Pagoda to the hotel and saw this statue. It does showcase, how symbolism is important for governments to put across their point to the people!

Nha Trang beach. Water is cold here during the April sunshine. 

We went snorkelling around. But the cold water wasn't very comfortable for us. We did manage to catch few fish though.

The umbrellas are for ∂30K!

I managed to not freeze!

I did see this CocaCola lady on our boat!

Lunch was served & watermelons were munched!

When in Nha Trang, try to visit the Doc Let Beach. It is about an hour's drive from Nha Trang. The water is blue, the waves are calm and warmer waves. 
Location: Doc Let Beach

We also went to this coffee shop near our hotel a few times and this greedy cat kept searching for food in my bag!

Location: Kh'om Coffee

Now, she didn't find and food, but she asked me to move and then slept near me!

The shop is run by these 20-21 year old kids. They are pretty relaxed, but professional. Worth the visit. 

We then packed our bags and went to the Southern Hemisphere!

Manila - Few Photos

 Got a chance to visit Manila. 

We visited Intramuros and Fort Santiago. 

Intramuros felt like Old Havana or Old Barcelona, but with less crowd. 

The streets are very well maintained and are mostly for cyclists & for walking.

The churches were very European. And you do realise that this is the only Catholic country in South East Asia.

500 years of Christianity in the Philippines. 

Chapel of the Immaculate Conception

Black Jesus! Always there to prove he wasn't a middle eastern guy with blond hair and blue eyes.

The Manila Cathedral had a wedding that day. The ladies were wearing lovely dresses and all these had  butterfly sleeves.

The Bride

The Manila Cathedral

Also visited an old prison and it felt like the place had a nice Marakesh Riad feel to it. 

Manila also suffered immensely during World War - II. Japanese were the aggressor and Philippines was under the Japanese rule for 3 years between 1942-1945.

Palace of the Governor.

We got a chance to see the Fort Santiago. We saw lots of bullet marks on the old buildings.

Ruins of Intramuros during the World War II. 

Entrance of For Santiago.

We were there for only a short while. Just found Manila to be a bit odd.