Happy New year

Hello. I am now in Vietnam, have been here for about 4 days now. We started off in Chau Doc which was kind of just a stop off to split up the journey, not alot to do there really but my hotel room had a proper shower which was a bit of a treat. Then we got an 8hr bus journey into Ho Chi Minh City. It was a really busy place, especially as they were preparing for chinese new year. We went to another market and turns out Vietnamese market sellers are even more pushy than Cambodian ones, at one point i had about 5 women latching onto my and trying to grab me and pull me into their market stalls, even thoguh they were all selling the exact same things. and they try to rip you off ridiculously so if we dont really have a choice but to haggle. That evening we went to a bar with a live band and me and 2 of the other girls got up and sang ironic by Alanis Morisette and then the bar gave us free drinks!we also met a group of Australians who were travelling, they reccommended tubing in Laos which i think we are doing some time next week. The next day we went to the Cu Che tunnels whichis a network of underground tunnels where the Viet-cong (sp?) soldiers hid during the Vietnam war. We had a tour and then we went inside the tunnels. they were reeeeally claustrophobic, i would have been a rubbish soldier in the war because i had to get out after about 3 minutes because it was too cramped! Apparently the soldiers would hide in there for up to 6 hours. That night we got a sleeper train to Nha Trang, which wasnt actually too bad, infact compared to the second sleeper train we went on it was luxury! there were clean sheets and the beds were made for a start. so anyway, in Nha trang on the first day we just went to the beach, i didnt really go in the sea though as the waves were really big and the current was really strong. So we were just chilling on the beahcand then suddenly out of nowhere, a dead pig got washed up on the beach right in front of us! it was so weird and really disgusting, its tongue was flopping out of its mouth and its eyes were open. some people took pictures.. i did not. That night it was chinese new year so we had a free dinner in the hotel which was HILARIOUS, we had a buffet it looked like dog food and the only thing any of us could stomach was the chips. The main dish was Pigs penis! so i opted for a chip butty. But it was free so cant complain! then we headed down to the beach for some drinks and the fireworks display which was AMAZING never seen one so good in my life. it went on for about 20 minutes non stop. The town was absolute chaos, there were thousands of people and every single one of them seemed to have a motorbike. The next day me and one of the other English girls Jess went to the mudbaths. We spent about half an hour in the mudbath itself which was literally what is says on the tin, a wooden bath filled with liquid mud, and then we went in this mineral water jet spa thing which is meant to be good for your skin and then we had a soak in a warm pool. it was so relaxing, although at the same time quite depressing on Valentines day, especially as our bath was in the shape of a heart! we renamed ourselves the lonely hearts club that day. Anyway after the bath we had a full body massage, I had never had any kind of massage before so i was a bit nervous but it was so nice. She even cracked my back for me like the chiropractor did, although she used the method of walking on my back instead. but it was really rlaxing and i definitley want to get another one while i am here. It was so cheap, a day in a spa at home would probably cost about 80 quid but here it was the equivalent of 12 pounds. That night we got our second sleeper train which, as i earlier mentioned, was disgusting. i slept for about 15 minutes in total i think. i was on the top bunk and the train was so jerky i was constantly worried about falling out of my bed, and i was really cold as the air con was blowing on my head. and the sheets were smelly and had already been used so i am very glad i had my sleeping bag liner! (thanks amy)
We are now in Hoi An which is a really quaint little town with loads of tailors and little cafes. Yesterday i got a dress made for me so today i am going back for a fitting, will let you know how that goes! This is my favourite place we have been to so far in Vietnam. Last night we went out for some drinks and as we were walking to the next bar we saw a local guy sat outside his shop playing the guitar so we said Chuc Mung Nam Moi (happy new year) and he invited us in for food and drinks and he played the guitar for us. We had already picked up another group of Danish people and some English lads so it was a very surreal experience but really nice. (By the way,if you say happy new year to anyone in Vietnam they offer you drinks or food or for you to come into their home, the man wasnt just being creepy.)Then we rode home on the back of a motorbike which was so fun. Today i am picking up my dress and hopefully going to a cooking class and then maybe to the beach. Sorry this has been an extremely long blog but there was alot to catch up on! tomorrow we are heading to Hanoi i think... I cant actually remember but i will keep you updated. Anyway, better wrap this up but thankyou for all your messages, keep them coming its so comforting to hear from you all, it can get pretty lonely out here! Comment on the pictures aswell, let me know what you think. Miss you all loads xxxx