Subject to minor changes

Transcription

1 Subject to minor changes Day 1: Sunday 6 January HANOI AIRPORT ARRIVAL PRIVATE TRANSFER (WITH GUIDE) AM: Arrive Hanoi. Meet our local guide at the airport for group transfer to the hotel in Old Quarter. After check in, briefing on health and safety orientation and schedule for the next day. Then free time until dinner. Meals: Dinner Hotel: May de Ville Old Quarter Hotel (Deluxe Room) Day 2: Monday 7 January FULL DAY AT HANOI UNIVERSITY Full day at Hanoi University (HU). Lunch: at HU canteen (own expense) Free time in the evening. / Dinner Day 3: Tuesday 8 January FULL DAY - CITY AND CULTURAL VISITS Full day of cultural visits to: 1) Ho Chi Minh mausoleum complex; 2) Temple of Literature, an 11th century relic, built in homage to Confucius and home to Vietnam s first university; 3) Vietnamese Women s Museum, detailing the life of Vietnam s women both past and present; 4) explore winding back streets of the Old Quarter, the 1000-year-old heart of the city. Lunch (at own expense) / Dinner

2 Day 4: Wednesday 9 January MET GOVERNMENT - COOKING CLASS Morning: Guest lecture from the Government - Dr. Nguyen Tu Anh, Head, Economic Policy, National Economic Management Institute of Vietnam. Lunch (at own expense) Afternoon: visit to Chau Long Market then settle in at Hanoi Cooking Centre. Your instructor will explain the basics of Vietnamese cuisine and then on to your workstation to follow the instructor s lead! After the class, move to the centre s dining room to sample your creations along with a beer or wine. / Dinner Day 5: Thursday 10 January FULL DAY AT HANOI UNIVERSITY Breakfast, then full day at HU. Lunch and dinner (own expense) Day 6: Friday 11 January MICRO FINANCING MODEL VISIT - MAI CHAU Early breakfast then transfer in an air conditioned van to an ethnic minority community in Hoa Binh province, approximately 70 km west of Hanoi. We will visit the borrower who will benefit from a loan your visit fees provide. You will directly meet the person whose livelihood you are making an active and sustainable contribution towards! Listen to her personal story, learn about her plans for the microloan, and find out about her hopes for the future. After saying goodbye to our borrower, head back to our local host to enjoy an authentic Vietnamese lunch. Your host has been working as the head of the Women s Union in the village for over 10 years and will be sharing with us some of the challenges and opportunities faced by rural women in Vietnam. End the visit at the Head of the Commune People s Committee where you can learn more about the community itself. At around 3.00 PM we continue to Lac Village in Mai Chau District, where we stay in a beautiful Thai stilt house, eat dinner then relax, ready for the next day activities. Accommodation: Local guesthouse Day 7: Saturday 12 January HANOI - MAI CHAU Morning: trek (2 hours) to Na Chao village and enjoy magnificent view of Mai Chau mountains, green fields, and villages. Na Chao is one of the poorest villages in the area still untouched by tourism. The people are very friendly and welcoming. We are invited to the local community house to talk with the head of the village about the history, cultures and economy of the area. Lunch in Na Chao village then meet local teachers and interact with the kids. The students are encouraged to think of some simple games to play with the kids in the village. Afternoon: Divide into smaller groups and follow the ladies of the village to their own kitchen to learn how to cook typical traditional food. Dinner at guesthouse followed by a dancing class then bus back to Lac Village. Overnight in Lac village. / Lunch / Dinner

3 Day 8: Sunday 13 January MAI CHAU - HANOI Morning: Walk around Lac village to gather information on minority ethnic village life Lunch at the guesthouse then back to Hanoi Hotel: May de Ville Old Quarter Hotel (Deluxe Room) Day 9: Monday 14 January HANOI UNIVERSITY - FREE AFTERNOON Morning: HU workshop Free afternoon and evening in Hanoi Lunch and dinner (own expense) Day 10: Tuesday 15 January HANOI - HALONG Morning: Drive to the coastal port of Halong (four hours). Take a small tender to reach your traditional wooden junk and enjoy lunch onboard as you cruise into the bay. The scenery is just spectacular as you pass limestone karsts jutting up into the sky. Take the tender to visit a fish farm or to pick up a kayak to paddle through the waters. Or if you like just relax onboard the junk and admire the scenery. End the day on deck with a drink in hand to watch the sun set over the bay followed by a freshly prepared seafood dinner served under the stars, before retiring to your cabin for the night. Halong 2D1N Hotel: Aphrodite Cruises (Luxury Window 2D1N) Day 11: Wednesday 16 January HALONG - HANOI Morning: Early breakfast on-board. Arrive at the Cave of Surprises, the largest cave in Halong Bay filled with rock formations. Afternoon: Return to Hanoi and on to airport for the flight to HCMC. Evening: Flight Hanoi Saigon / Dinner Hotel: Alagon Central Boutique Hotel & Spa

4 Day 12: Thursday 17 January HO CHI MINH CITY HALF DAY TOUR BUSINESS VISIT Morning: Site visits to the Notre Dame Cathedral and Central Post Office (built between 1877 and 1883 by renowned designer Gustav Eiffel), Opera House (once a bomb shelter then parliamentary Lower House, and once again a theatre), Reunification Palace (once a symbol of the South Vietnamese Government. It was here on 30 April 1975, that the war ended when a North Vietnamese Army tank crashed through its gates), and the War Remnants Museum. Lunch (own expense) Afternoon: Saigon Innovation Hub Dinner at a local restaurant / Dinner Day 13: Friday 18 January HO CHI MINH CITY BANKING UNIVERSITY HCMC Full day at Banking University HCMC including a workshop and cultural activities Lunch and dinner (own expense). Day 14: Saturday 19 January HCMC COMPANY VISIT - SITE VISIT Morning: Visit Microsoft Vietnam or similar to learn about direct foreign investment and business culture. Lunch (own expense) Afternoon: Site visit Cu Chi tunnels. Travel through the countryside, once a stronghold of the Viet Cong. The cramped tunnels were central to a few of the war s strategic operations, including the famous 1968 Tet Offensive. The tunnels served as living quarters, supply routes and hospitals for thousands of guerilla fighters. Today they are viewed by some as a testimony to the Vietnamese people s resiliency. Dinner (own expense) Day 15: Sunday 20 January HO CHI MINH CITY - CAN THO Morning: Leave HCMC for a three-day excursion on the Mekong Delta, one of the largest rice producing regions in the world. Cultural and historical knowledge will be imparted and discovered along the way. Hotel: Kim Tho Hotel Can Tho (Superior)

5 Day 16: Monday 21 January CAN THO - CHAU DOC Morning: Visit the Can Tho floating Market Afternoon: Visit an eco-reserve and a small village of ethnic Khmer, where you will learn about the importance of Buddhism in the community. / Lunch/ Dinner Hotel: Victoria Nui Sam Lodge (Superior room) Day 17: Tuesday 22 January CHAU DOC - HO CHI MINH CITY Morning: Bus back to Ho Chi Minh City (about seven hours). There will be plenty of stops along the way to stretch your legs. / Lunch Hotel: Alagon Central Boutique Hotel & Spa (Former: Hoang Hai Long Hotel HCM) (Superior) Day 18: Wednesday 23 January HCMC - AUSTRALIAN CONSULATE Morning: Australian Consulate Afternoon: A hotel meeting room for final research project work and consultations. Evening: Farewell dinner Day 19: Thursday 24 January HO CHI MINH CITY AIRPORT DEPARTURE PRIVATE TRANSFER (WITH GUIDE) Your guide will meet you at your hotel and transfer you to the airport for your flight.