It's just like starting over.....

Welcome to 2018.

I know I almost disappeared in 2017, but the website is still there and I have made a few updates.

I promise that 2018 will see a lot more activity on the website. As well as a bit of a refresh, I have a number of updates to add.

The "Re-unification Express" magazine sort of ground to a halt as well. This was partly through lack of energy and partly because it seems to get harder and harder to find new info about Vietnam Railways.

One good thing that has happened is the number of videos depicting current VNR operations has increased significantly on YouTube. If you look very carefully there are also a few "old" videos also posted.

I will try to publish a "2017" annual issue to cover last year and then try to get back into the swing with Volume 2 Issue 1 to clearly show that I intend to continue.

Towards the end of 2017 I was given very short notice to move so I'm only now settling in and finding some time to update and refresh.

Here's something I found during the year. The photos show the final connection of the "Trans Indochine" in 1936 with Emperor Bao Dai and Governor General Rene Robin in attendance. For the first time trains could run all the way from Saigon to Hanoi.

That's it for this time. Just thought I'd touch base and explain what my plans are for this year.

Wish me luck!

I'm back....

Hi. Yes it's me again.

Doesn't time fly?

I know I haven't been around to visit you for a while but I've had a few car problems which have kept me at home.

I hope you're not too cross.

No, actually I had to go back into hospital for a few days, recover from that, then a visit from my stepdaughter from Vietnam (I had to organize the visa etc.) , then Christmas, New Year and Tet and the extremely hot weather we've been having here in Sydney (3 days of 46 degrees would you believe) meant that I lost interest in a lot of things or didn't have time (don't look at my garden!).

On top of that I started building a new Australian based model railway layout. There aren't enough hours in the day. Where did I find the time to go to work?

A litle DSVN news. A new set of approximately 30 new coaches is being built/has been built at the Di An works near Saigon. Externally the coaches don't look that different to the current ones but utilize the latest technology including a new type of seating.

The rail system isn't fairing all that well at the moment with budget airlines such as VietJet 'stealing' passengers that used to travel by train because of discounted fares and of course faster travel times. Two hours instead of 2 1/2 days between Ho Chi Minh and Hanoi. For business people in particular it's an easy choice. The loss of the Ghenh Bridge didn't help causing significant revenue loss. With the new bridge up and running hopefully this will ease. Revenue in 2016 was only 70% of that in 2015. Not a good sign.


At some stage this year we'll be going back to Vietnam, with a special trip to Quang Tri but while I've asked 'she who must be obeyed' for the dates she hasn't got back to me yet. At least it will give me a chance to refresh my VNR photo collection.

I've  been doing a little work on my Ga Hong Ha model railway layout but not a lot.
Here's a couple of pikkies:

Of course the Japanese signs on the new buildings will be replace with Vietnamese ones.

As part of my New Year resolution ("back on track in '17"), I'm hurriedly working on the almost complete issue 7 of the 'Re-Unification Express' and working on issue 8 almost in parallel. Issue 7 will be the last issue in volume 1, with issue 8 becoming volume 2 number 1.

Check the website for the two issues in the next few days. I've done this to signal clearly that it's a new year even if it is the year of the rooster (I'm a tiger).

Until next time....

Back Again....

Hi

After a three day stay in hospital and a few weeks at home I'm now back from my operation/recovery.

Unfortunately while I was in hospital the hosting company for my website "Railways in Vietnam"  decided to suspend my account! This hopefully has now been sorted out.

Unfortunately I cannot access my website through Firefox or Microsoft Edge but can access it through TOR (if you don't know what TOR is, try googling). I hope you're having better luck than me in accessing Railways In Vietnam.

My operation and the access problems have also meant "Re-Unification Express" No. 7 is delayed as well. It will happen but I'm not giving a firm date. Of course if you can't access the website then you can't access the e-mag anyway.

I will continue to communicate with my host and hopefully full access will be restored.

In the meantime I've done a little more work on my Ga Hong Ha model and have started doing the drawings for the background market building (Cho Hong Ha) based on the market at Phan Rang.

 

I've also been doing various bits and pieces on the layout such as installing power poles, fences, ugrading scenery etc and have replaced a couple of buildings with new ones and moved a couple of other buildings around. 

I don't know about you but I'm not a great fan of electrical work, but I've finally decided to bite the bullet and install a proper 'twin cab' system for the layout rather than the temporary one I have at the moment. Remembering that I have to be careful when I bend over because the operation was on my neck, this will take a little time, but seeing I'm retired that shouldn't be a problem. My time is my own (or at least some of it - the rest belongs to "she who must be obeyed").

Hopefully everything will be back to normal soon.

Until next time....

David

Patience is a virtue.....

This is my first post for a little while.

It's basically just to inform you, dear reader, that I will be going into hospital to have one of my thyroids (is this how you say it?) removed early next week.

I'm assured that it is a 'straightforward' operation so I should be back on deck after a short time.

If there's anyone reading this who has had a similar problem or has a similar problem you will know that this problem tends to cause tiredness, and in my case shortness of breathe due to my trachea being partially blocked, and plays havoc with your internal clock

It.s not an excuse but it is a reason why "Re-Unification Express"  number 7, is still to see the light of day.

I've also changed the software I use to produce the issues, so as with all new software I have been going through a steep learning curve. The new software is a bit more flexible than the previous package. For example I can add 'live' internet links. So in the long run this should make the magazine a more interesting one.

Issue number 7 is almost complete so please be patient.

With Saigon to Bien Hoa trains back in operation it's good to see DSVN has survived it's 'operation' as well, that is, the building of the new Ghenh Bridge.

Those who have written to me either at 'railwaysofvietnam' or 're-unificationexpress' I must apologize for not keeping up to date. My aim is to sit down and go through both sets of email and to answer as many as I can in the next few weeks.

I have made some small updates to the Railways in Vietnam website and added a 'Trams' page. This will be basically photographs for the time being. If you want some more information  Tim Dolings excellent publication "Railways and Tramways of Vietnam" should be your first port of call.

 See you after the operation....

Onward and ever upward.....

Great news everybody.

Issue no. 6 of the Re-Unification Express e-magazine is now up and available to be downloaded.

 This issue has 2 extra pages so I can fit everything in I wanted to, so a small bonus. Because of the large number of images, be prepared for a large file size, despite a lot of compressing of individual images.

I promise the next issue won't take as long. Issue 7 should be available in July, perhaps with not quite so many pages but at least close to time.

You might remember the recent disaster with the Ghenh Bridge near Saigon. (see previous posts), well apparently the new bridge, costing some US$13.5 million dollars will be opened  around June 26, a month ahead of schedule.

To build such a bridge in three months is quite outstanding. If the same job needed to be carried out here on Australia, it would probably take a couple of years, what with environmental surveys, health and safety checks, site inspections, river surveys, wild life surveys, the tender process and so on.

The above photo shows work well under way on the new bridge in early June. Image from Than Nien News.

On another topic, here are a couple of recent images of my "Ga Hong Ha" model railway layout.

There's still a lot of work to do but It is looking better don't you think? I really must start constructing some more rolling stock. That BNSF locomotive looks completely out of place!

Until next time......

Slowly... slowly.....

Since returning from Vietnam in March I have not been all that well. Apparently an enlarged thyroid is causing shortness of breathe and tiredness.

This has meant serious delays to the Re-Unification Express e-mag and the updating of the web site.

I have lots of bits and pieces to update and lots of photos to post, but a serious lack of inclination to do so.

I am due for an operation in the near future, quite straightforward I'm told, and that should renew my ability to get on with my plans.

In the meantime the much delayed Issue 6 of the magazine should be available in the next couple of days and then Number 7 to follow, hopefully before my operation.

In the meantime the rebuilding of the Ghenh Bridge continues with trains providing a local service from Saigon to Di An and ex Hanoi trains terminating at Bien Hoa.

Carriages have had to be moved by truck so that rolling stock is in the right place, a major undertaking in itself.


A plus for this is that the trains from Di An to Saigon and return are proving very popular, the nearest Saigon gets to a suburban service. Hopefully they will continue after the bridge restoration and run through to Bien Hoa.

Initially the plan was to restore the two spans that fell into the river, but the Government has now decided that the entire bridge should be upgraded, still with the same completion date of sometime in July.

Another recent upgrade is the new main station building at Bien Hoa, opened last September.

The photo above shows the old building, parts of which seemed to have survived colonialism, war and peace for nearly a century, but now gone to be replaced by a modern concrete and glass structure.

I suppose customers need modern facilities, but it is a shame when such historical buildings are demolished.

On the modelling front I have basically completed the  Coopmart supermarket and am now embarking on the building of the front of a market (Cho), based on the Market at Phan Rang, but smaller.

I will just be building the front wall as it will be placed against the backdrop.

Until next time...........

Home again....

Back from Vietnam earlier this week.

I tried to post while I was there but access to bloggs is a bit hit or miss when you're in Vietnam. The Government sometimes denies access (they say they don't) because of concerns about bloggs being too political.

First in my last blogg I suggested that a rail line had once existed as far as Can Tho. This of course is not correct, it only went as far as My Tho so "nothing to see here" when we got to Can Tho.

The city of course relies entirely on river traffic and road transport. There are a large number of coaches each day between Can Tho and Saigon and would you believe not all are 'sleeper' coaches, so the three and bit hours sitting up wasn't too onerous.

A rail line would be very useful I would think for both freight and passengers.

As always we travelled to Thap Cham by train. I was looking forward to sampling the refurbished coaches of SE7/8.

The new seats were quite comfortable but no tray table, so you had to balance your food tray on your knees. The actual ride quality doesn't seem to have changed, still a bit bumpy (probably as much to do with the narrow metre gauge as to anything else), and the nearest toilet was still of the 'squat' variety (I had imagined they would have been replaced by western style toilets as part of the upgrade). Some European tourist passengers (particularly the women) weren't impressed.

The old cloth curtains have been replaced with shutters, but the windows were just as dirty as always.

The new uniforms looked smart but the food available was exactly the same as before and some staff still hadn't quite grasped the concept of "good customer service" but there has been an improvement.

Another area that DSVN needs to address is the custom of local passengers using the passenger services as some sort of freight/parcels system. The number of large cardboard boxes, bags of fruit and vegetables etc manhandled into the carriages is far too many. These items should be stored in a baggage car.  The bus companies seem to have worked this out, but not the DSVN apparently.

The major event which occurred just before we returned was the destruction of the
Ghenh Bridge, a major river crossing just outside of Saigon on Sunday March 20. If you don't know, the rail/motorbike bridge was hit by a barge and several spans are now at the bottom of the river. Luckily no train was crossing at the time and no-one was hurt, but it has now caused a major problem. Trains are currently being terminated at Bien Hoa and passengers are being ferried to Saigon by bus. This not so bad because Bien Hoa is near Saigon, but with any sort of temporary crossing not being available for at least three months there is now the problem of the locomotives, passenger stock and freight vehicles being stuck on the southern side of the river both at Saigon itself and at the major workshops at Di An.

The bridge was built by the French sometime between 1902 and 1909 and had originally carried cars as well but these were diverted to another bridge in the past few years.

DSVN now has to decide whether to build a completely new bridge or try to repair/restore the current one.

The captain and crew of the barge have been arrested.

Until next time....

Well we're off to Vietnam next week for what has become our annual pilgrimage.

As usual I will try to get lots of photos while I'm there.

Apart from visiting the relatives, we plan to visit Can Tho in the Mekong Delta for a couple of days.

Unfortunately there is currently no rail connection to Can Tho so I'll have to put up with one of those sleeping buses which I love so much (see previous blogs). There used to be a connection with Saigon but for various reasons it was closed and taken up many years ago. I understand that the station building might still exist so maybe a photo of that. Plans have been announced to restore the line but I don't think any work has actually started yet. Such a large city (1 1/2 million people) with no rail connection to Saigon does seem problematic.

You may have noticed that the no 5 issue of Re-Unification Express is now available. I'm trying to catch up with No. 6 (December). My aim is to get it out before I leave, so that I can produce the March edition close to on time when I return. We shall see.

I've been doing a bit of work on the layout. My main project has been building a "Co-OpMart" supermarket. It's built out of card and signs printed from the internet, so cost me virtually nothing to make.This is now close to completion. It's not a copy of one particular building but more a 'composite' of several I have seen (see photo). The building still has to be 'planted' properly into the layout.

For those that don't know Co-OpMart is a large supermarket chain throughout Vietnam.  Sort of like Woolworths or Coles (Aussies will understand), and most of the buildings include other shops such as bookshops (Fahasa) and Korea's answer to MacDonalds 'Lotteria", which is all over Vietnam.

I had a bit of a problem whether to put the 'new' logo or the logo from several years ago and eventually went for the older logo. I still have to add more motor bikes and customers and hope to site a small street stall outside as well. The main round section is made from a toilet paper roll but if I ever do this again I think I'll cover the roll with paper to hide the 'spiral' marking.

Oh well I'd better get back to preparing for my trip.

I'll try to post while I'm in Vietnam.

Wow!

Have you seen the latest news snippets about the long awaited upgrading of the main SE services on the good old DSVN.

They've been talking about this for some time and now it's here.

Some 57 freshly painted coaches inside and out, all with modern toilets, upgraded seating, upgraded catering, new uniforms for the train crew and a small increase in speed.

Very nice.

SE1 & 2, SE5 &6,  and SE7 and 8. For those who don't know these are the main passenger services between Hanoi and Saigon sometimes (but not officially) referred to as "Re-Unification Express".

SE3& 4 of course was upgraded at the beginning of 2015, so it's good to see the rest completed as well.

Interesting that the new uniforms are similar to the SE3/4 ones but appear to be grey rather than blue.

With a total expenditure in the millions of dollars this is a major upgrade and despite this no increase in fares, in fact a slight reduction.

Can't wait to travel on SE7 in March!

The only concern is that passengers and crew look after the new trains. This hasn't always been the case in the past. No more water sloshing around in the toilets, and plenty of toilet paper and everyone will be happy.

New Year Resolutions

The tradition at the beginning of a new year is to make a number of resolutions, things you intend to accomplish over the next 12 months.

The usual ones include losing weight, being more careful with money, learn a new skill, get a better job and many more.

Then there are the resolutions special to each person.

For me they include getting my business off the ground, keeping my website up to date, making sure "Re-Unification Express"  comes out on time, and launching a new e-magazine focussed on Australian N scale  model railways.

What about Vietnam Railways?

Over the past couple of years DSVN has promised a lot. Some of the promises, such as replacing and upgrading infrastructure are well on the way to being achieved.

Others such as the line to Vung Tau and the line to Canh To don't seem to have even got off the ground.

And the dream of a high speed rail between Hanoi and Saigon is still just that,  a dream.

Of course Vietnam is not a rich country, so these projects rely often on help from friendly countries such as Japan, Australia, South Korea and France.

And of course in the past we have seen the problem of some of that money not necessarily ending up where it supposed to.

Aĺl we can hope is that our favourite railway system has all the success that it deserves and that those D19Es D9Es and all their sisters keep operating for our pleasure.

BTW Looks like I'll be back in May. Something about a house.

Until next time.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

Well Christmas is over for another year and New Year as well. Now for 2016!

I  have made a big decision and decided to retire.

So hopefully I will actually have time to get the 'Re-Unification Express' out on time. I intend to put it on a more commercial footing (no, it will always be free) by adding a few ads and by finally getting my New Era Hobbies business off the ground.

This will be better for everyone I think.

It will hopefully give me more time to answer my email and update the website as well!

More about this in the next blog.

On another matter, the excellent Vietnamese forum daumaytoaxe seems to have disappeared. There one day and gone the next! I don't know if it has moved or if there is some technical problem.

If anyone knows where it has gone please let me know.

Until next time.

Spring Has Sprung.....

It's October and in Australia we're well into spring.

We've already had a few hot days (35 celcius hot enough  for you?) and it's not even summer!

Spring is also a time of renewal and growth and the time for the DSVN to make another announcement about it's future.

It's almost become an annual event! Sort of like Tet.

There have been quite a few announcements in recent years. The construction of a new line to Vung Tau, another to the Mekong for example.

Worthy projects you might suggest. And they are. If they are ever built!

The latest plan calls for a number of new locomotives, designated passenger and freight.

Up to now most VNR engines have been mixed traffic, so this is new.

The other interesting item is that the Hanoi - Saigon very fast train seems to be still on the menu, despite National Assembly concerns about it's cost and whether  Vietnam can build it.

It's still a long way off but it is still on the table.

See ya later!

Riding the Rails

This is a bit of an experiment.

I'm writing this as I travel home on the train.  On my mobile. Ah the wonders of technology!

I'm currently doing quite a lot of work on my Ga Hong Ha layout, especially finishing off the backscene and planting lots of trees.

I also have about four boxes of people on motor bikes to add. Never too many motor bikes on a Vietnam model railway.

I also have some cars from China which I intend to repaint into various VN cars such as taxis, police cars etc.

Unfortunately these tasks all take time as you know. No wonder so many people involved in the hobby are retired!

I came across sn interesting story about VNR. Apparently they intend to spend quite a lot of money on the system over the next few years including 24 new locomotives. Can't wait to see that!

My train is arriving at my destination shortly, so until next time.

See ya.

Onward

Well it wasn't quite two years but it's been a long time. Early in the year I was quite sick (a combination of the earlier pneumonia and another respiratory problem) but I'm a lot better since our May Vietnam visit.

We travelled to Vietnam again in May this year, a short 3 week trip. Boy was it hot! Temperatures in the order of 39 and 40c were the order of the day.

We travelled to Danang and had a look at the station there.

I maintained my promise of never travelling by coach again so we travelled by train of course and enjoyed the trip. We travelled back by sleeper and surprisingly we had a good nights sleep. Must be the gentle rocking of the carriage. Vietnam coaches tend to rock a bit because of the narrow metre guage.

We also got to the entrance of the locomotive depot in Saigon, but couldn't get in. But I did get some photos at the entrance. We weren't prepared to walk all the way back to the station in the heat just to get permission! Next time maybe.

I’m actually very excited.

I was recently browsing the internet and came upon an image of the cover of a book I have been trying to obtain for quite a while. I clicked on the image and was taken to a bookshop in Adelaide (Australia) where a copy of the book was being advertised.

The book was described as second hand and in good condition. Now this book, published in 1990, is exceedingly rare so I got quite excited. The price being asked for was probably about 3 or 4 times it’s initial price when new, but I couldn’t resist.

So I now have the book and it lives up to all my expectations. It is indeed in excellent condition including a clear plastic cover.  I have a little French so I am currently wading my way through it.

How it found it's way into a bookshop in Adelaide, Australia, is a mystery. 

The book is “Les Chemin de fer de la France D’Outre-Mer” Volume 1 “L’Indochine Le Yunnan”by Frederick Hulot. For those that don't speak French, "French Overseas Railways".

The book covers the French era of Indochina Railways and contains some wonderful photos as well as detailed text, particularly about locomotives.
So expect a number of corrections to be made on the website, as well as additional data.

I know I've said this before, but hopefully you will get a few more blogs now that my health is significantly improved.

Don't forget Issue number 5 of my e-magazine "Re-unification Express" is also due in the next couple of weeks, so look out for that one on the "Railways In Vietnam" website. 

Until next time.

Resurrection Shuffle...

Wow!

Forgive me Father, it's been more than two years since my last post!

A lot of nước has flowed under the cầu since then!

Another trip to Vietnam in March this year (visiting Nha Trang), the publication of my e-magazine "Re-unification Express" with the second issue finally available, lots of additions to the 'Railways in Vietnam" website and lots of other fun times.

As we get older we seem to lose some of that youthful energy we once had so the fact that I'm still trawling through all things Vietnam railways after nearly five years is a bit of surprise, even to me.

And now that I've taken on the "Re-Unification Express" e-magazine I'm busy, busy, busy.

Somewhere in all this I'm building a model railway layout and going to work!

My recent few weeks of what turned out to be pneumonia helped me have a think about future directions. But don't worry I'm not going anywhere. It helped me understand that I'm in for the long haul.

There are still many areas of the website that need updating, especially the freight vehicle page, so that is certainly on the agenda, but each time I decide to work on it, some interesting photo or document appears related to locomotives and that's my main interest so it becomes a priority.

My visits always seem to produce something unusual. This time it was this tank car which seems to be a 'one off". The tank appears to have been fitted to an older vehicle.

I also had my usual day around Saigon Station and as usual the staff were quite happy to let me wander. Some of the staff insisted I took a photo of their comrade:

I've also been very excited because I came across three (count them "three") builders photos of CFI steam locomotives including the 231-300 class and the SACM built 141-500 class as well as a 230-300. These will appear on the website when time is available (see locomotives again).

So that's your lot for today. I hope it won't be two years till we speak again.

See you soon.

Another long gap between posts. Sorry about that, folks. I've been doing lots of other things since the last post including another trip to Vietnam. I came back at the end of February after a stay of about a month. While the primary aim of my visit had nothing to do with railways (I got married) , I did get to squeeze in some photo opportunities, once again at Thap Cham and Saigon. I will have to try somewhere else next time! The station staff must be getting sick of me!

During the trip I got to see one of the new D19E class (963 if my memory serves me) at Thap Cham on a freight coming from the north. The D19Es have clearling become the main motive power for the DSVN both the original 'Doi Moi' locomotives and the later pink and blue ones.

I also wandered around Saigon Station for a couple of hours.

As far as the website goes, nothing much has happened over the last couple of months. But that should change soon. I am working on 'blending' my former model rail website into the Railway In Vietnam site as well as adding an English language forum to the site. As well I'm working on an on-line (pdf) newsletter/magazine which you will be able to download and read at your leisure.

All these changes take time and as I am back in the workforce my time is even more limited. But it's all good fun!

Until next time.

Back in Action.....

Today is the first day of spring in Australia. A chance to renew the old and take on the new.

It's been quite a while since my last blogg. Personal and family changes have continued to get in the way of my interest in Việt Nam railways, but hopefully things are now back on track.

I have added a few bits and pieces to the website but I still have a backlog of material. At the moment I'm redesigning the 'Freight' page which will become similar to the 'Locomotive' page ie. an index page and then separate pages for each type of freight vehicle. This should make it easier to update and add new data as it comes to hand.

My plan is to do the same thing for the 'Coach' page but I think that is still some time away.

My other plan is to produce a brief history of railways in Việt Nam which will be in the form of a PDF booklet which can be downloaded. In the back of my head I see this as a test run for a possibly much larger volume, similar to the recently republished 'Railways of Thailand', which could be commercially published (if any publisher is interested), but I think that is still a long way away.

All these plans take time to complete, so don't hold your breathe.

I'm also currently trying to learn Vietnamese by attending Vietnamese language classes but this is a long slow process. Isn't it sad that as you get older your brain seems to have a lot more trouble 'assimilating' new knowledge and learning new skills. At least that's how it is for me.

There is also the possibility of myself travelling to Việt Nam  to live for a longer period of time, which I think will enable me to access large amounts of information that is not available to me now, as well as continue to build my own photo collection.

So, if anyone is still reading this blogg... welcome back.

A long tme between drinks....

Once again I must apologize to the person who reads this blog. Yes you know who you are!
It's been a long time between drinks!

I've had some major changes in my life over the last couple of months, I've moved and had to set up a new house. My work committments have and will continue to change and I have a future wedding/marriage to contemplate. Hopefully I'm more settled now so more time to blog. As the wedding will be in Vietnam it will be strange and interesting for me. So I've had no time for website updating or modelling until very recently.

I've  added some more bits and pieces to the website so hopefully some people will find that useful. I intend to do a major revamp when I get time so watch out for that, especially the freight and passenger sections, with a seperate page for each kind/class of vehicle..

As my future wife's family comes from the Phan Rang/Thap Cham area you will forgive me if lots of my photos on my website are from that area. It's the place I know the best.

I've had a bit of a think about the matters in the previous blog (relating to travelling on the DSVN) and now feel that maybe I was a bit harsh. I'm sure the DSVN staff were doing that best in a less than ideal situation.

I'm reminded of something that a manager in the rail system that I work for said a few years ago. He said we have to change the way we think about the main aim of what we do from 'running a railway' to 'providing a service'. When you 'run a railway' you concentrate on operating technology, changing points (turnouts) running locomotives and trains, operating signalling systems, shunting (switching) and so on. In this scenario customers are really a bit of a nuisance. In 'providing a service' we turn everything around so the customer becomes the most important aspect, 'operating' is just a way of providing the service that customers want. It's a big change and not so easy to introduce. I feel that DSVN hasn't quite made the shift yet. Just my personal thoughts.

The above photos was taken at Thap Cham in March. It's amazing that the D9Es (GE U8B) are still going strong in the south after all these years. Some of them must be nearly 45 years old!


And I'm not getting any younger either. So on that note I'll finish this blog. See you next time.

Travelling on the VNR...

Sorry about the gap between entries. I'll try not to let it happen again.

I've recently returned from my third trip to Vietnam (I must be a gluton for punishment!). During my most recent trip I made two journeys on the DSVN, both on SE8, the first from Thap Cham to Hue and the second from Hue to Hanoi.

I have to be honest and say that these were not the greatest train trips I have ever made, in fact after these two, I'm not sure I want to travel by train in Vietnam again!

There was an article in the English language 'Vietnam News' which was about how tourists were deserting Vietnam railways in droves, because of the poor service and poor quality carriages. Apparently less than 7% of tourists travel by train. I'm not surprised.  I have to say I was reading the article on a very pleasant air trip by Vietnam Airlines from Hanoi to Saigon so the comparison was even more apparent..

Anyway on with my experiences. The train from Thap Cham to Hue was about half an hour late, which I suppose isn't too bad considering it had spent the previous 6 hours travelling from Saigon. We were booked on SE8 'Cold, soft seats' said the poster on the wall. I presume they meant airconditioned and soft seats. I had specifically booked 'A' but not sleeping as we would arrive at Hue at about  2.00 am and expected to sleep in our hotel.

I must say staff of VNR must have never heard of Customer Service. (I work for the rail system here in Sydney, Australia, so know something about Customer Service). Passengers had to struggle from the low level platform onto the train with their luggage and absolutely no help from the staff who just stood and watched. On board the train again no help was provided to find your seat, which were helpfully numbered on the back of the seat in front. Total chaos. (Every time we stopped at a station we went through the same madness, with people struggling with luggage and trying to find their seats, with of course no help from the coach staff) Once we had found our seats, the foot room for big westerners like myself was very small and very uncomfortable. Aparently seats on VNR trains can be folded to an almost horizontal position, either that or the seat back was broken, which meant that the woman sitting in the seat in front of my travelling companion almost had her head in my companion's lap! It took several hours to convince her to put her seat up. During the trip the unsmiling VNR staff seemed to be totally uninterested and were only seen when they were trying to sell us something, usually food. The food on the train was very poor, my travelling companion, a Vietnamese national, wouldn't touch it with a forty foot pole. There was no attempt to provide alternatives for non-Vietnamese passengers either. I wouldn't have a problem with that if the Vietnamese food provided was of a reasonable standard. The trip was very uncomfortable, and the 14 hours seemed to go very slowly. The toilet was dirty as well. The carriage windows were covered in a film of dust, which made photography very difficult.

Our second trip was from Hue to Hanoi, a journey of about 13 hours, again on SE8. Our coach this time was an ex 'Green Train' coach which had certainly seen better days, though the windows were a bit cleaner! The train was supposed to have departed Hue at 2.08 am (yes that's right, 2 o'clock in the morning!) but guess what, was about half an hour late! I must congratulate the train crew as it was almost on time into Hanoi. Again the train was dirty, the seats had a sort of oily, gritty feel, which told me they had not been cleaned in a very long time. As it was the same train as our first journey the problems were pretty much the same. Food? Awful. Toilets? Dirty (and Vietnamese 'squat' type rather than the more usual western 'sit' style). Apparently only about 10% of Vietnamese trains have modern toilets. Customer Service? Non existant. As well there was something wrong with the airconditioning as I ended up with a terrible sinus headache (bad airconditioning treats me like this).

We finally arrived in Hanoi feeling tired and less than pleased with the trip.

There was some evidence that things might change in the future, with a number of bridge replacement projects noted on the way. But as long as the main line is single track and the safeworking/signalling systems are so old, the trains will always be slow. For a railfan such as myself it was very frustrating not to be able to go onto the platforms until just before the train arrived. I've never seen that before.  At Hue I asked if I could go onto the platform to take photographs and was told to come back when the next train arrived (about 2 hours away).

The coaches on the highways are faster, more comfortable, cheaper and stop at very reasonable comfort stops. As we waited at Hue at 2.00 am I heard one tourist state that this was her last trip by train. It would be road coach from now on.

Oh, and I wish they'd do something about the brakes!

Modern Narrow Gauge....

Here are some of the photos I was blogging about yesterday to prove that narrow gauge systems can be up to date.

The first one is of Queensland Railways 'Tilt' trains. These passenger sets come in two flavours, electric and diesel. This is the diesel version. They are the fastest trains in Australia and they travel on narrow gauge!

These are recently aquired 4000 class diesel electric locomotives. 3000 hp and again operating on 3ft 6 inch gauge.

And finally the new DL class for KiwiRail (New Zealand Railways).

Again about 3000 hp, made in China and specifically designed for narrow gauge.

So what's my point? With a bit of track upgrading, and some thought about double tracks (at least on the busiest sections), DSVN could develop a modern, high speed system, and not have to fork out the billions required to build a Very Fast Train.