Vietnam Trip Report: Part 5

[GregF]

Vietnam Trip Report: Part 5
   We left Ho Chi Minh City very early in the morning and flew to Hia Phong to meet Trang’s parents. I was very nervous because her parents do not speak any English and I know only some very basic Vietnamese, with a horrible accent. When we got to Hia Phong we went to the hotel and decided to take a nap before going to her house. After a nap and a shower we headed to her house for lunch, which her mother was making special just for me. I was very excited and nervous as we got to the gate to her house but as soon as I met her parents that all dissapered. Trang parents are both wonderful people and even with the language barrier we had no problem getting to know eachother. After only a few minutes I felt very comfortable with them and started enjoying the royal treatment I was getting. We had a wonderful lunch and then spent the afternoon drinking beer and talking. Later that evening we all went out and they showed me around the town. We then had an excellent meal at a beautiful Chinese reatraunt. The next morning we went to meet Trang’s Brother. We had a nice lunch with him and took many pictures before we gathered our stuff and headed for the train station to go back to Hanoi. As we sat together on the train the thought that I would have to leave the next day loomed over our heads.
   When we got to Hanoi we quickly went to the hotel, changed and left to meet Trang’s friends for dinner. We meet Trang’s 3 friends and one of the other girls boyfriends at a very nice seafood restraunt in downtown Hanoi. I lucked out in that, the other girls boyfriend was also an American, so I had someone to talk to wail the girls where chatting in Vietnamese that was not meant to include us. We had a very wonderful dinner and Trang’s friends are all very nice girls. After Dinner we go to the Apocalypse Now Club is Hanoi. The club is smaller then the one in Ho Chi Minh City but it is free to get in and the crowd is more to my liking. We have a great night drinking and dancing that lasts well into the next day.
   The next morning we spend just holding eachother and talking. We try not to think to much about my leaving or about how long it will be until we see eachother again. We have a very quiet last lunch together and then finish packing up my stuff. The taxi ride to the airport seamed to last forever and reminds me of what a man walking to his execution must feel. We are both trying very hard not to cry. It is incredibly hard for us to say good bye and as we Hugh for the last time I can no longer hold the tears back. I board the plain and cry the whole way to Taipei.
The end but yet just the beginning:)  

[Stephen]

... in response to Vietnam Trip Report: Part 5, posted by GregF on Feb 23, 2004

This was great.  Thanks for sharing.  AND POST SOME PHOTOS.

Stephen

[Jeff S]

... in response to Vietnam Trip Report: Part 5, posted by GregF on Feb 23, 2004

Thanks and best of luck to you.

- Jeff

[Ray]

... in response to Vietnam Trip Report: Part 5, posted by GregF on Feb 23, 2004

Thanks Greg for sharing your adventure. It seemed that your trip was so short but you got a lot done while you were there. How many rolls of film did you end up shooting?

I hope your visa process goes smoothly.

Ray

[GregF]

... in response to Re: Vietnam Trip Report: Part 5, posted by Ray on Feb 24, 2004

Thank you everyone for your warm welcome to this board and for all of the information you provid here. I had a wounderful yet way to short trip and encorage anyone who is looking for a great country to visit to give Vietnam a chance. I took about 40 rolls of film todal and it will take me about another mounth to develop and edit them all. If I can find a way to get them into a digital format I will gladly post them, but I do not have a scanner?
Greg F

[surfscum]

... in response to Re: Re: Vietnam Trip Report: Part 5, posted by GregF on Feb 24, 2004

You can have them "digitized" when you have them developed. I do this when I go to CostCo and use their film service (for Kodak processing, never their own!). I get prints, negatives and a CD with all the pics on it. The quality is better than scanning after the fact. I think any decent film processing center can do the same.

[GregF]

... in response to Re: Re: Re: Vietnam Trip Report: Part 5, posted by surfscum on Feb 25, 2004

Can they digitize allready developed prints because I develop my own film at home?
Greg F

[surfscum]

... in response to Re: Re: Re: Re: Vietnam Trip Report: Par..., posted by GregF on Feb 25, 2004

That's more specialized. I've checked around on digitizing my slides, but it's still expensive ($1 each).  It can be done with film, but I don't know how much.  Call some shops and they'll quote you their prices.

[Jeff S]

... in response to Re: Re: Vietnam Trip Report: Part 5, posted by GregF on Feb 24, 2004

I'll scan them for you, if you like. E-mail me.
- Jeff

[Humabdos]

... in response to Re: Re: Vietnam Trip Report: Part 5, posted by GregF on Feb 24, 2004

40 rolls wow are you Japanese? LOL Great trip report!
Hum