Thursday 30th May 2013

This is my catch up effort after finally sorting and editing all of the Vietnam photos for my travel blog.

Wednesday 1st May 2013 - This was not a good day.  My tummy bug from Vietnam returned as soon as I started eating food so I spent the day in bed in recovery mode.

Thursday 2nd May 2013 - This was a ditto day from yesterday.

Friday 3rd May 2013 I was feeling a bit better.  In the morning we did some household shopping at West Gosford and then I had lunch with Lorraine & Margaret - my old work colleagues at Alexanders in Gosford.
That evening we went to the Golf Club for dinner and the raffles draw.

Saturday 4th May 2013 Dianne called around to talk about the golf club gardens.  Garry called in to talk to Peter about the Townies Reunions.  We looked after Joel and Emily while Rod and Anne did some shopping for Joel's birthday and then stayed for their baths and dinner.

Sunday 5th May 2013 We played golf early in the Club Foursomes Championships. After golf we went to dinner at the Gosford Hotel with Mark & Anne.

Monday 6th May 2013 we were at F-Troop at 7 o'clock.  It was a busy day and we worked until after lunch.

Tuesday 7th May 2013 I played in the Ladies Golf Open Day. My playing partners were Lea Southon, Doon Jansen and Carol Farrell.  We had a good day and the weather was not too bad.

Wednesday 8th May 2013  I spent the day at the Golf Club trimming & weeding the putting green hedges

Thursday 9th May 2013 I did more work on the putting green hedges and gardens.

Friday 10th May 2013 I was back at the putting green garden area again to finish off the whole area so that it was neat and tidy.  That evening we were at the raffles night and celebrated Ron's 60th birthday with a huge seafood dinner and a birthday cake - not to mention the champagne.

Saturday 11th May 2013 We did the household shopping and then I went to my beauticians to have my nails done.

Sunday 12th May 2013 it was Mother's Day so we did not play golf.  Shane called around and so did Rod, Anne & the kids for a Mum's Lamb Roast dinner followed by pavlova.  I had a lovely day.  Shane stayed the night so he did not have to drive home late at night.  Luckily he did because the dishwasher water supply pipe broke and we had water everywhere.  Shane heard the water running at 3 o'clock in the morning and turned the water supply off.   We had to take everything out of the cupboards and mop up the mess.  I hate to think what we would have faced us in the morning if Shane had not been there.

Monday 13th May 2013 we were at F-Troop early as we had a lot of work to do. We worked until lunchtime and then it was home for a nanny nap.

Tuesday 14th May 2013 I played golf with Lea Southon and Carol Farrell.  We had a good day although the golf was not too wonderful.  Today we got the pipe on the dishwasher repaired and it is back in working order.

Wednesday 15th May 2013 I spent the day repacking the cupboards and weeding the back gardens. In the afternoon I caught up with the ironing and did some of the Vietnam photos.

Thursday16th May 2013 I worked in the front gardens all day.

Friday 17th May 2013 I sprayed the garden for aphid attack.  We did some household shopping at West Gosford and some shopping at Bunnings for some garden things.  In the afternoon I did some more work on my Vietnam photos.  That evening we went to the Golf Club for dinner and raffles.

Saturday 18th May 2013 I did some more work on the hedges at the front gardens & did a bit on the photos.  That evening we went to the Annual Presentation of the Narara/Wyoming Cricket Club and Peter presented Greg's Memorial Trophy.

Sunday 19th May 2013 was Joel's 4th Birthday.  I made a salad up to take to the Narara Park where they were holding Joel's birthday and having a BBQ lunch.  There was a cold breeze to start with but is eased into a lovely sunny day.  The park was great as there is a bike track where the kids can ride their bikes and get rid of their energy.  Joel enjoyed his day and was very impressed with his presents.  We caught up with family and friends and it was a lovely day.

Monday 20th May 2013 We were at F-Troop for another busy day.  We worked until lunch time and then it was home for a rest.

Tuesday 21st May 2013 I played golf with Georgina Lamb and Julie Hazzard and we had a good day although the golf was a bit ordinary.  The NBN boys arrived to start to run the fibre cable to our house.

Wednesday 22nd May 2013 I was back in the front gardens finishing the hedges and weeding.  I cleared out that part of the garden where the NBN box had to go.  Peter is repairing the garden seat so I am happy about that.

Thursday 23rd May 2013 it was raining.  The NBN boys were back to run the cable inside the house so I needed to tidy up around the computer which was a problem as I had travel documents everywhere.  It needed a good clean up anyway and I found a few things that I thought I had lost.  In the afternoon I caught up with the ironing and did some more photos.

Friday 24th May 2013 it was still raining so we decided to go to the movies. We went to Erina to see "The Call" which I thought was a crime thriller - but it turned out to be a scary cross between Silence of the Lambs and Psycho.  That night we went to the Golf Club for dinner and raffles.

Saturday 25th May 2013 We did some household shopping.  Shane called in to say hello on his way to Bowls.  Peter went to golf and I did some more work on my photos.

Sunday 26th May 2013 We called over to see the kids at Rod and Anne's.  They had both been sick all week as Emily is teething and Joel has a cold and eye infections.  We went to golf at 11 o'clock and our playing partners were Garry and Doreen Trigg.  We had a great day although our golf scores were rather dismal with the exception of Peter who played well enough to win the day.  After golf we went to dinner at the Gosford Hotel with Mark, Anne & Kevin.

Monday 27th May 2013 we were up early again for F-Troop day.  It rained lightly in the morning so we called it a day after morning tea.  We had a large social group on the course so we were restricted in what we could do.

Tuesday 28th May 2013 I played golf in the Foursomes Championship with Rosemary Cohen.  We have been playing together for a number of years now.  We did not disgrace ourselves and managed to win a ball which was good. We had played 27 holes on a very wet course and it was late afternoon before I got home.

Wednesday 29th May 2013 the weather had improved so I got a lot of washing dry & worked on my photos.

Thursday 30th May 2013 (today) the NBN boys returned to finish off their cabling work so we are now only waiting on Telstra to come next week and do their part.  Then we will be all set up to go when they finally get around to switching on the fast broadband.  I have worked on my photos and blogs for most of the day and am now ready to start uploading my Vietnam photos to my travel blog which is my mission for next week.  Hopefully then I will be able to keep everything up to date.

Tuesday 30th April 2013 - Vietnam and home

We had a full on holiday in Vietnam for two weeks - every day was busy and interesting.

Tuesday 16th April 2013 we travelled to Sydney Airport with two of our travelling companions - Bert & Annie Brink leaving at 6.00am for a 10.40am flight via Vietnam Airlines.  We were booked in as a group booking so we got our seat allocations - all with window seats and it was a comfortable trip over.  It was interesting flying across Australia during the daylight hours.  There were twelve of us in our group which was a good manageable number especially for the golf games.  We arrived in Ho Chi Minh city initially as it was an International Airport.  We transferred to a domestic flight to Saigon and arrived there to be met by our guide who took us to our hotel which was the Sheraton.

Wednesday 17th April 2013 we headed off for our first game of golf at Tam Dao Golf Resort.  We had a fine but very hot day and felt the humidity.  Our playing partners were Ron & Lyn Puiatti and we enjoyed our day.

Thursday 18th April 2013 we played golf at the Hanoi Golf Course again having fine and hot weather.  Our playing partners were Bert and Annie Brink and we had a good day.

Friday 19th April 2013 We travelled to Halong Bay via bus to Tuan Chau Island where we boarded our luxury boat to take us overnight on Halong Bay.  Our cabin was very comfortable and the service was good. Halong Bay is a most beautiful place where we could relax and enjoy the scenery.  We had trips ashore to view the Hang Sung Sot (Surprise Cave) which is a most beautiful grotto, Ti Top Island where three of us climbed 400 plus steeply graded steps to get to the top lookout which was worthwhile as the views were stunning.  That evening we had a cooking lesson on the top deck - learning how to cook spring rolls and enjoyed a nice happy hour on deck watching the scenery float by before we had dinner in the dining room. Our cabins were lovely with every amenity.

Saturday 20th April 2013 we stayed in the Halong Bay area long enough to take a traditional rowing boat ride the the Luon Cave and Lagoon which was also very beautiful.  Our weather had been mostly overcast which meant we did not have the beautiful blue water that would have showed in the photos - but I still got some very nice shots around the Bay.  There are 1600 islands in all so it is quite spectacular.  We arrived back at Tuan Chau Island about 10.30 am which gave us time to bus back to Hanoi.

Sunday 21st April 2013 We travelled to the Hanoi Airport to fly to Dalat which is about the middle section of Vietnam.  We had a good flight but our guide was late picking us up at the airport which meant we had to wait around with all our luggage including golf clubs.  Travelling from the airport to Dalat we stopped off to view a waterfall which was a good experience.  We had to ride down the mountain on a self controlled sled which was a bit scary but great fun.  It was a beautiful waterfall which could be viewed from various levels.  We caught the cable car right to the bottom and then back again.  The sled then automatically took us back to the top.  There was a lot of natural beauty there and the area was well maintained.  From there we visited the Buddha Monastery and gardens which was also beautiful,  We arrived in the afternoon at the Dalat Palace Hotel which was across a lake from the Dalat Palace Golf Course.  The hotel was very old but beautifully maintained.  The bedrooms were old fashioned and also the en suites but we could imagine it would have a been a top of the line hotel in its prime.  The views from the hotel were beautiful.

Monday 22nd April 2013 we played golf at the Dalat Palace Golf Club which was a good experience.  The weather was very hot and again we felt the humidity. Our playing partners were Col & Lauren Matterson and we enjoyed our day there.  After golf we visited the embroidery factory that had some magnificent wall rugs of all kinds of intricate designs.  Then we went to visit the "Crazy House" which is just that.  It is place that was designed by a very wealthy woman and people can book in to stay in the accommodation rooms if they wish.  We were astounded that anyone would want to do that - however it would appeal to some people I suppose.  It was a weird place and worth the visit as you could not describe it to anyone who has not been there.

Tuesday 23rd April 2013 We bused from Dalat to the coast and stayed for two days at Phan Thiet and stayed at the Romana Resort which again would have been a beautiful place in its heyday.  It was a little dog eared in places but comfortable.  We had a nice room with a balcony overlooking the beach and the pool which was lovely.  We played 9 holes of golf  at Sealinks Golf Course an Phan Thiet which we enjoyed. My playing partners were Rhonda Robertson, Bert Brink and Ron Puiatti and we had a fun day.

Wednesday 24th April 2013 we had another day of golf at Ocean Dunes Golf Course an Phan Thiet.  It was a beautiful ocean side course.  Our playing partners were Wally & Rhonda Robertson and we had a good day.  Our boy caddies picked us a fresh frangipani flower to wear in our hair.  The weather was extremely hot and we felt the humidity a lot.  Wally could not finish the match as the heat had got to him.  We had a relaxing lunch at the poolside when we got back to our resort and chilled out until dinner time.

Thursday 25th April 2013 We travelled to Saigon by bus.  It was a 200klm journey and thankfully we were in an air conditioned bus.  The highways were rough in places so it was not all smooth riding.  We arrived at our hotel which was the Majestic Hotel near the River in Saigon.  We had lovely big rooms which were almost apartments which gave us plenty of room to unpack and organise our washing etc.  We went shopping in Saigon in the afternoon and checked out the shops.  That evening we had a traditional Vietnamese Dinner.  Being ANZAC day we managed to clear the restaurant by singing Advance Australia Fair in very loud voices.  We finished off the evening in the 8th floor bar which has beautiful views overlooking the river.  We made the 8th floor bar our own while staying in Saigon and enjoyed the evening entertainment and got in some dancing.

Friday 26th April 2013 We played golf at the Song Be Golf Resort which was very nice. Our playing partners were Duncan & Rosalie Dyer and we had a fun day - firstly playing 9 holes on the desert course and then 9 holes on the Lotus Course which was an interesting contrast.   After golf we visited the silk factory and did some shopping.

Saturday 27th April 2013 we played golf at the Long Thanh Golf Club and Residential Estate which was more like the luxury courses that we played when over in China at Mission Hills etc.  The course was magnificent and in immaculate condition.  The gardens were to die for.  All the girls played together that day so my playing partners were Lauren Matterson,, Lyn Puiatti and Rosalie Dyer.  We had a great day and enjoyed the course.  This was our last golf game so we all finished on a good note.  We had mixed fortunes.  I won a game, came runner up once and won a nearest the pin overall - so a good result for me.
That evening we had dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe as we were in need of a change in diet. This was followed by some dancing on the Hard Rock Cafe dance floor.

Sunday 28th April 2013 we travelled to the Mekong Delta by bus where we caught ferry boats across to Con Phung (Phoenix Island)  and visited the village of Ben Tre Province where we could taste and buy the local food and products.  We had fun on a row boat down the Mekong River and had a horse and cart ride back to our ferry boat to take us back to our bus.  The we had the long rough trek back to Saigon for our last evening.  We celebrated Ron's birthday aboard a luxury cruise boat enjoying a dinner cruise along with entertainment along the Saigon River.  Later that evening we finished up at the 8th floor restaurant as usual for our final fling.  I had picked up a tummy bug and was fighting it all day which spoilt my day a bit.

Monday 29th April 2013 was our check out day from Saigon.  We travelled by bus to Long Phuoc to view the tunnels built by the Viet Cong in the war and then went to Nui Dat to view the Australian Camp sight at Kangaroo Hill.  From there we went on to view the School that was built for the Vietnamese children by the returned forces of the Australia and then onto the Memorial for those lost in the Battle of Long Tan.  It was a sobering day having to re live all of those awful years but we can be assured that none of the forces have been forgotten.  The Vietnamese locals look after the Memorial and appreciate the work of the returned forces.   From there we went straight to the Ho Chi Minh City Airport for our evening flight home.  We arrived far too early and had to wait about and hour and a half before the check ins opened.  I suppose that is much better than being late and missing our flight home.  As we had a group booking it turned out that all of our seats had a booking and we all got window seats which was great.  Our bonus was that we got the last seats in the row which meant that we could put our seats right back for the duration of the trip without annoying anyone.  I was still not eating much so I went straight asleep after dinner was served and slept right through until the lights were tuned on to adjust our body time clocks.

Tuesday 30th April 2013 we arrived back in Sydney about 8.30am.  Bert & Annie's daughter picked us up at the airport and we were home in good time to unpack and get some grocery shopping done before the kids arrived to say hello.  Rod, Anne and the kids stayed for a quick dinner. We bathed the kids and had them ready for bed.  Then it was time for a catch up ourselves.  I was feeling better as I had not eaten much.