14 Jun Farewell, Vietnam – Last Leg of the Trip
We took a break at a world heritage site that crossed our path: Citadel of the Ho Dynasty (40,000d). It is four stone gates and most of a wall around a square area that is now farmed by locals. There isn’t much to see, but it’s a nice place to stop, rest, and take a walk around.
Some random ceremony we interrupted
We stayed two nights in Ninh Binh, which was uneventful and not somewhere I would care to visit again. Next we hit Haiphong, which was much more interesting. There is a good street food scene there, and a walking area with a small park not far from where we stayed at the Dong Duong Hotel. I also had some welding repair done on the bike, and this guy was so excited to have a foreigner come to his shop! After being sent away by 4 other people it was a relief to find someone so helpful. We spent some time bartering about the fee, but when he finished I tried to tip him, as he had done some extra work I had not asked for. He wouldn’t have it, he just wanted a picture with me.
Cat Ba Island
In the morning we set off for the ferry terminal to Cat Ba Island. You can drive your motorbike right onto the boat at the terminal on your left for just 25,000d. Once we arrived on the island, we rode across to Cat Ba town, where we found a decently priced hotel with an ocean view. Turns out the hotel, called Trang Anh, gave us bedbugs – but we didn’t discover that until our last day there. 😱See below.
I hate to say it, but like the other very touristy areas we had visited, it was mediocre. It is very beautiful, and it isn’t outrageously expensive there, but the food was not quite as good and every activity costs money. There are only a few hikes on the island, and each individual hike has a fee! It’s just not somewhere I can see myself spending a lot of time. However, that is what I originally thought about Koh Rong Island in Cambodia, and I ended up staying there for two weeks!
Regardless, we spent several days there. We took one motorbike and explored the major roads on the island, going from port to port and checking out the mountains and beaches. We did a small trek through the hospital cave (40,000d) in the National Park, which was a bomb proof hospital and safe house during the war. We even checked out one of the climbing areas, though we didn’t rent gear for climbing as it was too expensive. Instead, we signed up for a deep water solo trip with Asia Outdoors.
Deep Water Soloing – Take 2
We met at the Asia Outdoors office in the morning, both half hoping the trip would be canceled due to the rain. Both David and I were feeling under the weather and he was having some stomach issues. But the group was still set to go, and luckily we didn’t have any problems during the day. They shuttled our group to the harbor where we transferred to a large boat. They gave us a brief orientation, then we were free to take in the spectacular views of Lan Ha Bay.
Most of us on the boat were kayaking for the first half of the day, so once we got to their anchor point we boarded the two-person kayaks in pairs. David has never kayaked before, and I’ve only gone a couple of times, so it took us a while to get the hang of it. Well, ok, so we never really got the hang of it, but every once in a while we were moving at a pretty good clip! Pretty sure David just put up with it for my sake, but I loved it. We passed many karsts and floating villages, and went through a small cave opening to a swimming area. Not that anyone felt like swimming with the tide pushing trash around the water, but we did stop on a small beach and took a dip there.
Lunch was served when we returned to the larger boat, then the groups split again. We boarded a smaller motorboat with the rest of the deep water solo crew and headed to the climbing areas. Now, I do a lot of height related activities, but I really am terrified of heights and of falling. That includes jumping. I’ve jumped from some pretty tall cliffs before, but I was usually holding someone else’s hand or had someone calling me a pussy, which usually makes me ornery enough to go for it (until mid-air when I start screaming for my life).
I went deep water soloing in Thailand and couldn’t get myself to jump from more than 6 feet above the water, and that was with people I had already become friends with. This time I didn’t know anyone else (other than David, of course), and while we chatted a bit most people kept to themselves. The system also didn’t suit me, as they bring one person to the wall at a time, then move the boat back and we all watch the person climb until they fall or jump. Needless to say, I panicked and could not bring myself to climb. I only did one traversing route, overgripped because of anxiety, then almost cried as I let go and dropped into the water 6 feet below me. Pathetic, really.
David had a frigging blast, though! He is nearly fearless, and accomplished some challenging climbs and barely hesitated at plunging into the water from the highest jump points. It was thrilling to watch, and I haven’t seen him so happy in a long time.
Bed Bug Horror 😱
We spent one more day in Cat Ba. Of course, on the evening I am packing up I see an enormous bed bug crawl across the sheet behind me. I had never seen a bed bug before, but I was 100% sure that was what it was. I squished it and it stained the sheets in blood. I freaked out and got all of our things off the bed, but after having spent a few days there the damage had to be done.
Southeast Asia is a hard place to deal with bedbugs because heat is one of the only ways to destroy them, and there are no dryers anywhere. Everything is line dried. That can work for your clothes, but you have to clean everything else as well.
I tried to tell the guy running the hotel about the bugs. He had absolutely no idea what I was even talking about. They’ve probably been there for a good while, infesting many a weary budget traveler. I ended up taking all of my things, including my disassembled bag, to the roof of a hostel and laying them in the sun for several hours. I baked everything to a crisp, including books, clothes, electronics, tent, toiletries…My soap melted, but I haven’t seen any sign of the nasty buggers in the last month (thank you, whatever guides the universe!)
Hanoi
Anyways, after that extremely restless night we took the ferry back to the mainland and headed straight to Hanoi, getting caught in a massive downpour of rain again (really, just our luck!). In the city traffic was intense, and we were glad when we finally found a hotel in the Old Quarter where we could park our bikes out of the way. We stayed the first couple of nights at Camel City Hotel which is in a tiny alley off of beer street. It was nice and surprisingly quiet, despite the location.
We went to the movies that first night to see the new Avengers film, which was sick. When we got back, we weren’t allowed to drive our bike in to our hotel! There were barriers and security on the streets and the area was flooded with young locals and tourists. We had no idea that they close the streets down to traffic at night. We finally found an officer who pitied us and let us walk the bike through, which was a disaster, but we eventually made it. Mental note made.
We put our beloved motorbikes up for sale on Facebook, pasted some signs on them, then moved to a hostel dorm to save some dollars and hopefully meet people wanting to buy a motorcycle! Tough luck, there. We were in Hanoi for about a week before both of our bikes sold. But the Funky Jungle Hostel we stayed at was cool and we had a good time. The rest of our time in Hanoi we didn’t do much other than explore the old quarter and do some light shopping. It’s much too crowded for our taste, but there were some highlights.
The absolute best part of Hanoi was the egg coffee. Not just anyone’s egg coffee, but Cafe Giang’s egg coffee. They made it even better by grating Vietnamese cinnamon on top. We went almost every day. We also tried Pasteur street’s Coffee porter, which is heavenly. Then there was the stir fried duck intestines from a street stall, lots of banh mis, local Vietnamese yogurt, and plenty of bia hoi (fresh drought beer). David bought a phin filter and some cooking chopsticks, I got new sunglasses (maybe my 5th pair this trip?). We even both got stylish new haircuts on a street corner! The man said he has never cut a woman’s hair, and that he would never forget it. We felt stuck in the old quarter, and a week was a bit too long. Luckily, both bikes finally found happy new homes and we got the fuck out of there.
Danang
We took a night bus to Danang for 330,000d with the FUTA line. David had wanted to go because he read about a fireworks festival held there every May. We arrived and discovered that the fireworks are actually only on certain weekends, and that this wasn’t one of them. Bummer, but oh well! We were happy to be in a smaller and less touristy area and spent a few relaxing days together walking along the river, getting massages, eating chicken and waffles (of all things in Vietnam!) at Jeremy’s cafe, watching the famous dragon bridge spew fire, and so on.
David had to catch a flight back to Colorado, so we went to the Danang airport together to say goodbye. I spent a couple more days there alone at the Kontiki Hostel. I did a bit of exploration and shopping, saw another movie (Deadpool, fuck yeah!), and conversed with some local students who also ended up teaching me the proper way to make Vietnamese coffee! I avoided many of the touristy things in town and kept mostly to myself, as I was trying to fight off the depression of David leaving. It was starting to feel like I may never leave the country, though my flight was only a week away, and I was falling deeper and deeper into the throes of homesickness.
Ho Chi Minh, Second Time Around
I finally caught another overnight bus to Ho Chi Minh City for 360,000d. I arrived mid-afternoon at a major bus terminal several kilometers from downtown. I packed up and walked until I reached district one, where I stopped for some pho and found a hostel. I stayed at a small place called Hostel Tu Anh that was inexpensive, but seemed fine. I went out for a few beers at Pasteur street, then to bed. When the owner came up in the morning I said I would stay a couple more nights. He asked me to pay ahead of time, which is strange, but I reached for my bag….And my 500,000 note was gone. I specifically folded it and put it inside my passport for safekeeping.
My eyes started tearing up as I tried to fight back a panic attack (those have been popping up quite frequently this last week). I was not planning on taking out any more money while in Vietnam, and without the 500 note I would be out of money after paying the bill. I was more than frustrated. I told him it must have been stolen, and he avoided eye contact and didn’t say anything. I paid him with the last of my money. He left and I stayed in bed to calm down and try to get some work done. At last I relaxed enough to think clearly and decided – this place is uncomfortable, and someone stole my money.
Nope, I’m out of here. I went downstairs with my things packed and without a word he pulled out his wallet and gave me back the money I had paid for the next two nights. He passed it to me without argument and didn’t even bother to count out exact change – he rounded up. If you’ve ever been to Vietnam, you would understand how suspicious that is, and I strongly suspect he had a hand in the money that went missing.
I was frustrated and angry. I had to talk myself down a bit again after his suspicious behavior. Okay, so 500,000 is like $25. It’s a decent chunk of change, but it’s not the end of the world. I’ve traveled cheaply and have plenty of money left. Chill the fuck out, Mallory, and enjoy your last few days here. Maybe splurge a little.
I found FIV hostel just off of Bui Vien Street. It’s a tiny, somewhat cramped building down a narrow alley where the scent alternated from stale urine to fresh lilies and incense. It was quiet and perfect, though, and I spent my last few days there. During the day I tried to work on my blog, fit in all of my favorite foods, drink plenty of fresh smoothies, and get in some last minute souvenirs.
I splurged as much as I could with my super-budget mindset 😬. I got a box made from cinnamon wood to hold the cinnamon bark I bought in the mountains, I bought an entire pound of Vietnamese powdered cinnamon, some local coffee beans, a small bottle of fish sauce…are you noticing a trend here? As much as I love knickknacks from around the world, I’m still traveling and happen to live in a van back home…So currently all of my souvenirs are edible reminders!
As I was walking through the park near my hostel a group of young Vietnamese students stopped and asked if I would like to chat with them so they can practice their English. We all got along so well that we moved to a cafe to hang out for a while, then walked around the city, enjoyed some street food, and performed some impromptu karaoke together. It was an awesome experience – their English was good enough that we could hold real conversations about politics, Vietnamese and American life, hobbies, interests, hopes and ideas. It was the perfect pick-me-up after such a bad day previously. I met some very wonderful new friends. I also spent some time hanging out at Marou Chocolate, which is a Vietnamese chocolate company run by Frenchmen. I had the best hot chocolate ever there, and may or may not have done my ‘splurging’ there.
Flying Out
And so, here I am. At the Ho Chi Minh airport awaiting my flight to Europe. It’s been a wonderful 185 days in Southeast Asia. My acute homesickness is fading to a dull ache as I alter my idea of travel in the near future. It also helps hearing from supportive friends back home. There are many places I still want to see here, and friends I would like to come back to visit, but for now I am moving on to new adventures and wild experiences.
Expense
Food: 3,051,000d ($133.85)
Lodging: 1,579,000d ($69.27) + $41.16
Alcohol: 695,000d ($30.49)
Transport: 777,000d ($34.09)
Entertainment: 955,000d ($41.90)
Massage: 450,000d ($19.74)
Misc (phone fix, souvenirs, etc.): 1,431,000d ($62.78)
Stolen: 500,000d ($21.94)
Motorbike Expenses:
Fuel: 347,000d ($15.22)
Welding and oil: 250,000d ($10.97)
Sold bike -$200
Total: 10,035,000d ($440.26) + $41.16 – $200 = $281.42
Total Vietnam Expense: 53 Days
Flight/transport: 790,000 ($34.66) + $50.37 (flight)
Visa: 260 Malay Ringit ($66.11)
SIM: 199,000 ($8.74)
Food: 6,165,000 ($270.62)
Lodging: 3,553,000 ($155.96) + $66.55
Water: 10,000 ($0.44)
Alcohol: 1,196,000 ($52.50)
Entertainment: 2,241,000 ($98.36)
Massage: 450,000d ($19.74)
Misc (shopping): 1,636,000 ($71.79)
Scam/Theft: 600,000 ($26.33)
Motorbike expenses:
Motorbike: 5,240,000 ($230.16) – $200
Air: 5,000 ($0.22)
Tire patch: 20,000 ($0.88)
Fuel: 1,617,000 ($70.99)
Brake, Welding, Oil change: 580,000 ($25.47)
Absolute Total:
24,302,000 dong + 260 ringit + $116.92 – $200
= $1,049.90
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