| Day
1 / Sunday 28 March |
O/N
HANOI |
For
those on the Highlands tour of Sapa and Bac Ha, tonight begin
your journey back to Hanoi on the overnight train, departing
at 20:20. Supper and breakfast included. |
If
beginning our Vietnam Regional Cooking program today, you
will be personally met at the airport with a welcome gift,
then transported to the 5-star grande dame of Hanoi's hotels,
The Sofitel Metropole. Once in your room, you will be sent
a welcome food gift of Vietnamese specialties, and the rest
of the day or evening is free to explore the old city. (We
have also included a complementary foot reflexology which
can be scheduled at your convenience. This massage is optional
but complimentary, so let us know if this is not of interest.) |
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The Metropole is very central -- from the nearby opera house,
to nearby parks, or take a cyclo pedicab through Hanoi's meandering
streets. Hanoi is the country's second largest city and administrative
capital, yet it maintains a distinct charm of yesteryear,
reflecting a Medieval character of specialization, from paper
street, silk street, tin street, and the like. Our strong
advice is to see Hanoi NOW, rather than later. Each year brings
more modernization, and higher buildings. |
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| Day
2/ Monday 29 March |
O/N
HANOI |
Whether
you arrived the previous day, or back early this morning on
the Sapa railroad, we meet together in the hotel dining room
at 9 a.m. for breakfast and introductions. This is our first
full day of the tour, so we have planned an edible introduction
to Vietnam, and particularly Hanoi. Don't fill up too much
at the hotel breakfast, for our morning bus orientation tour
of Hanoi begins with a progression of pho restaurants-- the
ubiquitous noodle soup which originates in the north, then
shortly thereafter to lunch, sampling either the celebrated
bun cha char grilled meats, or cha ca fish with turmeric.
In the evening the group meets in the hotel's Spices Garden
restaurant for a specially-prepared Vietnamese lau steamboat,
the equivalent of Asian fondue, and very traditional to Hanoi.
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| Day
3 / Tuesday 30 March |
O/N
HANOI |
After
breakfast we regroup to meet chef Didier Corlou who takes
us to the markets for the hotel's daily shopping list. Watch
him choose specialty items from the best of game, fowl and
vegetables, bartering for the best price. |
Afterwards we go to the hotel's kitchens and have a cooking
demonstration of regional northern Vietnamese dishes, followed
by a light lunch of generous tastings. The remaining afternoon
is for you to shop and independently explore -- there are
great deals on silk and hand-stitched embroidery -- and in
the evening gather for the water puppet theatre -- a must
see. Post theatre we snack at one of the busy roadside hawker
stands, then cyclo tours for all -- the local bicycle driven
transport still favored in Hanoi. |
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| Day
4 / Wednesday 31 March |
O/N
HANOI |
After
an early breakfast at the hotel, we head south for a full-day's
tour to Hoa Lu, nic-named "Halong Bay without the water."
Here, limestone crags rise steeply from the valley floor onto
beautiful scenic gorges, we board small coracles (similar
to sampans) to sail along the waterways. Lunch is a typical
peasant style meal of northern dishes. |
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| Day
5 / Thursday 1 April |
O/N
HUE |
We
begin with an optional 6 a.m. breakfast market tour, taking
us down one very special laneway to sample some of Hanoi's
lesser known breakfast dishes. After check out this morning,
we take a noon flight, heading to Vietnam's central region,
encompassing the imperial capital of Hue, the port of Danang,
and the charming Unesco heritage village of Hoi An. |
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We arrive in Hue for an orientation tour of the city and its
citadel. Our accommodation is the recently renovated Morin
-- a government hotel of colonial charm (3+ star) and facing
the Pearl River. In the evening, our group votes amongst themselves
to decide the emperor and empress of the evening, who dons
imperial garb and be escorted by an entourage of royal musicians.
Held in a sumptuous dining room of intricately painted wooden
splendor, the rest of us will enjoy the same foods, but from
a more humble vantage point. |
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| Day
6 / Friday 2 April |
O/N
HUE |
Breakfast
at the hotel. We take a morning river boat to Thien Mu pagoda,
and nearby royal mausoleum. The royal mausoleums of Hue are
spectacular sites accredited with world heritage status. A
fair amount of walking is required, but not too strenuous.
Lunch is cooked on board, and then we visit another mausoleum,
with the remaining afternoon and evening in Hue free for personal
exploration. |
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| Day
7 / Saturday 3 April |
O/N
HOI AN |
Breakfast
at the hotel, then we take a chartered coach along the spectacular
Hai Van Pass, one of Vietnam's most scenic highways. The road
winds along the mountainous coast to Danang, taking in that
city's famous Cham museum, with its collection dating back
to the 5th century. |
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After
lunch in Danang, we continue to the charming riverside village
of Hoi An. En route we visit the caves and shrines of Marble
mountain, and China Beach. Hoi-An seems stuck in a 17th century
time warp -- and while a designated Unesco world heritage
site, its provincial charm is still intact. We group this
evening for a traditional dinner of central Vietnamese dishes. |
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| Day
8 / Sunday 4 April |
O/N
HOI AN |
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Breakfast
at the hotel. As there are no busses allowed in the Old Town,
we take a walking orientation tour of the quarter. Hoi An
is the source of numerous local craft works such as silk lanterns,
plus home to the famed "white roses" stuffed noodles. |
| Mid-morning
we have tea and white roses at the "factory" then
it is off to another street-side restaurant to taste the local
specialty of crispy noodles, and finally banh khoai, delicious
tiny sizzling rice crepes, which are the local version of
Saigon's large banh xeo crepes. After lunch sip filtered coffee
along the river front. Typically Vietnamese, the coffee is
roasted in butter to a dark espresso strength. Then we return
to the hotel, or you are free to roam the Old Town streets
by night. (Dinner not included.) |
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| Day
9 / Monday 5 April |
O/N
NHA TRANG |
Breakfast
in the hotel, then we say goodbye to Hoi An, hello Nha Trang.
Flights leave mid-morning, arriving just in time for lunch
at one of Nha Trang's numerous beach-side restaurants. These
restaurants have become something of an institution, and not
surprising, considering their delicious seafood. We stay at
the 3-star Yasaka Hotel tonight because it is central for
independent exploration this afternoon and evening. (Dinner
not included.) |
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| Day
10 / Tuesday 6 April |
O/N
DALAT |
After
breakfast and check out we coach to a tiny village in the
production of Vietnam's famed edible rice sheets, known as
banh trang. We will also stop off at a cham fortifications,
built a thousand years ago by early Hindu-worshiping settlers
to this land, then onto the highlands of Dalat -- known as
Vietnam's mile high city, and agricultural hub to the nation. |
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is no surprise to discover that Dalat is Vietnam's honeymoon
capital -- it has a charm of its own. Here we stay at the
magnificent Palace hotel, where the chef has prepared a special
dinner for our group. |
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| Day
11 / Wednesday 7 April |
O/N
DALAT |
Breakfast
at the hotel, then we have left the morning and lunch free
for you to personally tour the town. (If you get the chance,
be sure to visit the Diem Tham Quan centre for silk hand-embroidery.)
In the afternoon, take a local narrow track train to Trai
Mat village, then at night we re-gather for a walking tour
of the evening market to taste the famed white strawberries
of Dalat. |
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| Day
12 / Thursday 8 April |
O/N
HO CHI MINH CITY |
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Today
we head south to Ho Chi Minh City, formerly known as Saigon.
En route stop at tea and coffee plantations to see these crops
grown and processed. For dinner it’s a famous road-side
specializing in banh xeo (sizzling rice crepes) slightly similar,
but much larger, to the small banh khoai of Hoi An. |
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| Day
13 / Friday 9 April |
O/N
HO CHI MINH CITY |
After
breakfast we are off to the market for provisions for today's
cooking demonstration of typical southern Vietnamese dishes,
followed by generous tastings. |
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In
the afternoon we coach to Chu Chii and the famous Vietcong
tunnel. This vast network covers nearly 250 km, so you will
only see a fraction of this home to more than 5000 Vietcong
during the war. In the evening we regroup for a typically
Vietnamese style hibachi dinner where you grill your own meats
at the table. |
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| Day
14 / Saturday 10 April |
O/N
HO CHI MINH CITY |
Breakfast
at the hotel, then we catch a morning ferry down the Saigon
River to the port of Vung Tau on the South China Sea. Lunch
along the waterfront watching the local fishing fleet, then
in the afternoon back to Ho Chi Minh, enjoying the views along
the way. This is the last night in Vietnam, so we have arranged
a special banquet for tonight.
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| Day
15 / Sunday 11 April |
FLIGHTS
DEPART |
Very
early departures receive a complimentary Continental breakfast
in their rooms along with their wake up calls, while later
departures meet to say good bye over breakfast in the dining
room. We guarantee your room until 12 noon, and later departures
upon request and subject to availability. For those joining
us on our Cambodian extension, we have a mid morning flight
direct to Siem Reap, home of the 8th wonder of the ancient
world: Angkor Wat. |
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