November_30

Hello everyone,

From Saigon we booked an "Open Bus Ticket", which
allows us to travel from Saigon to Hanoi, with 5
predetermined stops and go at own pace. It only costs
$25 and seems to be a good way to travel. The
government overcharges tourists for the train which
make us more likely to choose the bus, and then we
stop at the stops on the route that they are more
happy with. Oh well, since it is our first time here,
the stops are just fine. Our first stop was Dalat.
It is in the central highlands and it was cold. A
pleasant change from the heat of the coastal cities.
It was beautiful. Lots of hills and pine trees. It
felt like being home. We visited a large waterfall
and just hung out in the cute village. They say it is
like being in France. Brad would have to concur. The
saying in Vietnam is "The Americans gave of us coca
cola, but the French gave us poetry". We dealt with a
bit of a crisis. Our friends Rob and Chris purchased
motorcycles and are driving to Hanoi. Some how they
got seperated on the road and were out of contact with
each other for 24 hours. Rob called us in Dalat for
moral support while he searched, and we found out
later that Chris spent the night on hammock in a
Catholic Church. As you can tell, they worked it out,
but it was a stressful 24 hour period for all of us.

From Dalat we caught the bus to Nha Trang with
sniffles all the way. We bought winter hats to late
as we both contracted very bad colds. Jennifer's
turned into bronchitus and Brad's into pink eye...YUK!
Upon arriving in Nha Trang we found a pharmacy and
laid on our butts for 3 days. Jennifer healed up
quicker than Brad and therefore took care of the
errands. She exchanged money, bought food and
explored the city. A real confidence booster for her.
Because she worked so hard she treated herself to a
haircut and a highlight. Our hotel manager says she
looks like a movie star...and Brad agrees. She says
it is the best haircut ever! As for the pharmacy, if
you know what you are looking for, you can get any
medicine you need. Could be fun or scary! We are
healing well now and are looking forward to spending
some time on the beach. Nha Trang is situated on the
coast and has a beautiful beach running the length of
the city. It is a quiet place with less tourists and
this suits us just fine! We were going to head on,
but since we are feeling better will stay another 5
days. Also, we are enjoying our stay in Vietnam so
much; we have extend our visas for another month. We
are only likely to use two more weeks though. Our
visas for Laos starts December 28th. We hope the
people of North Vietnam are as hospitable as the
people of the South. We have heard stories to the
contrary but we are keeping our hopes up. If not, we
will just move on the Laos a little sooner.

One last note, Brad's college football team is in the
quarterfinals of the national championship
playoffs....Go Johnnies!

We hope everyone is having fun preparing for the
Holidays and the (we just heard) 30" of snow in
Minnesota!?!

Peace,
Brad and Jennifer

A beautiful picture of Dalat Falls

additional pictures!