Northern Vietnam

Alright, time for the northland! We begin in Hue, although it isn't quite “northern." Hue sits just below the 17th parallel, but in technical terms it’s above the geographical half-way point so I’m letting it slide.

In Hue we met up with an awesome local named Peter, who was extremely excited to meet a teacher since he was studying English at university. He found me on couchsurfing.org and was hoping to practice speaking English while sharing his culture with us. Peter was the best gateway to local lifestyle we had all trip. He introduced us to his friends, most of whom were university students, and invited us to his home where he introduced us to his brothers. We all prepared dinner together, in spite of the lack of electricity. I helped a girl chop the vegetables for the soup, and Peter prepared a special omelet he insisted only men know how to cook.


We set the steaming food out on the porch, and enjoyed it with a case of beer and some fertilized chicken eggs (these were… interesting). That night, we met up with Peter’s friends again for a birthday celebration, and ordered the seafood “hot pot” which was becoming one of my favorite Vietnamese dishes. We honestly didn’t see many of the historical and tourist destinations Hue is known for, considering it used to be the capital of Vietnam. We managed to explore the outside of the Citadel while it was closing, but otherwise we just enjoyed the company of the young people we met there.

After Hue we were back on the sleeper train headed towards Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam. There we met up with an American friend, Flip, who was teaching English in Hanoi and had an extra room in his apartment. Flip took us to a local soccer game and some bars in the Old Quarter, and encouraged us to see the Ho Chi Minh mausoleum, where we caught a glimpse of the preserved corpse of Vietnam’s most revered political figure, “Uncle Ho.” We also visited a couple temples, which were much more in the Chinese style (since Buddhism in Vietnam and China comes from a different branch than that of Thailand, which is more influenced by Theravada Buddhism in India).


Hanoi was an unexpectedly charming city, with plenty of lakes, trees and parks, and other displays of nature that are lacking in a congested metropolis like Bangkok. It also had interesting architecture and a rich cultural history. We attended a Vietnamese water puppetry show, a performance art derived from a time when rice farmers used to make floating puppets that would work with the water. At this point in our trip, Tim and I were consuming about four baguettes a day (they’re plentiful and cheap in Vietnam because of the history of French colonization… less than 20 cents per loaf), and the food in Hanoi did not disappoint.



Our next destination was the must-see of the north, Halong Bay, a huge cove filled with massive islands, limestone rock structures and caves. The only way to see Halong Bay is through a tour, so we reluctantly booked a package tour when they agreed to let us travel on our own. We began by exploring a large cave (lit up with very vibrant lights) and then kayaking around the bay. Our first night was spent on a beautiful wooden boat floating in the bay; as the sun was setting we jumped into the surprisingly frigid waters, and I remembered the jolt of energy I get from being COLD.




The next day we went to Cat Ba island, the largest island in the bay, and were sent on an incredibly muddy trek up a mountain. The tour guides failed spectacularly in their timing, and sent hundreds of tourists simultaneously up the same mountain, leaving us congested and covered in mud. I slipped so much I broke through the new sandals I had made in Hoi An. It was still a good time, since we were able to get to know the people in our tour group better.


That afternoon we took a boat to “Monkey Island,” passing some pretty incredible floating villages along the way. After my experiences in Thailand, I’ve pretty much had enough of monkeys. They’re everywhere, they’re usually dirty and they’re not friendly. This time wasn’t much of an exception. We tried hiking to a beach on the other side of the island, but a large monkey sat in our way; even our tour guide couldn’t scare him off.


The next day we parted ways with the tour, rented a motorbike, and explored the rest of Cab Ba island outside of the touristy city. We explored (actually, snuck in to) a pretty cool cave and used my cell phone light to find our way around. We again misjudged a hike and ended up turning back after over an hour of endless uphill wandering, then set out to find a place to camp. Mind you, Tim had carried this tent for three weeks and we’d been unable to use it, so we were relieved to finally put the pesky thing to use. We camped out on a beach, where there were three boys (we suspect children of farmers or fisherman) riding bikes and attempting desperately to communicate us.


The rest of our trip mainly consisted of making our way back home. Now that I’m back at work I’ve had some time to reflect on Vietnam, and in all honesty I almost wish I could have a semester teaching English there. The English students I met were incredibly motivated, and (oddly enough, considering the political uniformity) I witnessed more diversity than I’ve experienced in Thailand. Largely due to the history of colonization, Vietnamese cuisine had more hybridity, architecture was more varied, and there were more regional distinctions. It was also cooler. Hot season is just… not fun.

After work this week, I get another two weeks off before I begin school. During that time my two college friends from America are visiting, and I’m taking them down south. And yes, we are going to be passing through Bangkok at some point, but many of us have passed through during the redshirts protests… Bangkok is a big city, and trouble is easy to avoid if you’re careful. So for the time being, la korn ka!

Southern Vietnam

I spent about three weeks in Vietnam, so I’ve decided to split my blog entries into “north” and “south,” drawing the line fairly close to the 17th parallel that divided the country during the war. I began my adventure in a sprawling city down south...


On April 16th I landed in Saigon, a city renamed “Ho Chi Minh City” after reunification but which continues to be referred to as Saigon by pretty much everyone in Vietnam. After a quick jaunt through the Old War Market, where we scoured old photos, lighters and helmets from the war, we stayed in a small hostel called My My Arthouse. I woke up at about 5am with my travel partner-in-crime, Tim, and we hopped on a small airplane to Con Dao, a very empty island off the southern coast.

Con Dao island is incredibly private and undeveloped, with only four resorts spotted amongst its long stretches of blue waters and forests. We designated Vietnam as a plan-as-we-go expedition, but this arrangement led to a bit of a predicament in Con Dao, where there were no taxis or forms of public transport; the only way out of the airport was through private transportation via your booked resort. Um, what resort?

Luckily, one resort had just lost some guests so they were kind of enough to take us into town without requiring commitment to their accommodation. We took the room, of course, and it was the nicest place we stayed the entire trip, with double doors opening up a completely deserted beach and gentle azure sea, speckled with local fishing boats. We rented a motorbike (don’t worry, I didn’t drive) and spent three days exploring, hiking and swimming in this hidden treasure of an island. Con Dao used to be a prison complex, so there were several remains of jails scattered amongst its otherwise tranquil and picturesque landscape.



After Con Dao, we returned to Ho Chi Minh City charged for the rest of our journey. We began with a day trip to the Cu Chi Tunnels, the winding series of tunnels where the infamous combat between the Vietcong and the US Tunnel Rats took place. As one tourist from Tennessee put it, “I hate to admit it, but they were clever little guys.” The Vietcong constructed these tunnels, not only for fighting and defense (can you say traps with spikes?), but for daily living, cooking, sleeping... After squeezing through one of the tunnels I couldn't imagine living in there for a day, let alone seven years.

We departed Saigon via sleeper train (which, incidentally, is turning out to be one of my favorite forms of travel in Asia), and arrived in the less-traveled city of Da Nang. Da Nang is usually utilized as a transitional city, a point of passage between Hoi An to its south and Hue to its north, but we got some really nice insight into the city from two locals. Kent, an editor for Vogue Vietnam, took us out for some 15,000 dong crab & noodle lime soup (that’s about 75 cents US), and told us about his job. As he was jetting me over a colorfully lit bridge on his motorbike, Kent advised me to follow my dreams as a writer.

The next day we rode down to Hoi An, on a coastal road that was so heavily packed with resort construction sites I could hardly see the actual ocean. One thing I can say with certainty about Vietnam is that it’s a country in absolute transition. I’ve never seen such large or plentiful construction projects in all of my life; I also think the younger generation has the potential to revitalize their country with their level of motivation and openness to the outside world (in spite of the restrictions of their government or otherwise).

Hoi An was definitely my favorite city in Vietnam; it was historically a port town, where the import and export of goods flowed during the French colonization. Hoi An was characterized by series of small yellow buildings, with tiled roofs, cobblestone streets and lanterns dangling above every street. Hoi An is best known for its tailor-made clothing, whose magnetism I could not resist. The efficiency with which they created a professional business suit to my exact measurements was astounding. Tailoring is a trade the families in Hoi An have perfected to the point of artistry.


After Tim procured three shirts, jeans and shoes, and I succumbed to sandals and a jacket (when am I going to use a jacket in Thailand?), we agreed a swift departure from Hoi An was necessary to prevent a total financial crisis. The next stop was Bach Ma National park, which a German traveler in Saigon recommended very highly. After a difficult, multi-vehicled journey, we arrived at the gates of Bach Ma only to be informed that 75% of the park was closed due to a blocked road. Since the sun was low and we’d traveled all the way there, we resigned ourselves to stay one night and see what there was to see the next day. One feature of Bach Ma was the “Sliding Rock,” which was essentially a series of mossy rocks glossed over by a steady stream of water, which led to a pool below; basically, nature’s waterslide. I spent about an hour sliding down the rock with local university students (not a westerner to be seen), and had a few beers in the bamboo platforms constructed around the waterfall.


The next morning Tim and I began what we thought would be an enjoyable hike to the only available waterfall. Although I should have learned to distrust the scale of Asian maps by now, I was blissfully unaware of the 2 hour trek straight up a blacktop road (positively radiating with heat) that lay before us—and that was before the actual trail began. I’ve never been that sweaty in all my life, and I live in Thailand. Thankfully, the waterfall was worth it. Two waterfalls, actually, each leading to a deep pool of water I could jump into from surrounding boulders. Swimming under an empty waterfall, surrounded by butterflies and bird calls emanating from the heart of the dense forest… these are the moments I travel for. The almost sappy moments you start to believe are unattainable when you’re surrounded by tons of backpackers desperately in search of meaning and serenity somewhere in the heart of Asia.



After that we were off to Hue, which is where I will begin by “North Vietnam” post next entry. Now to give my keyboard a rest…

A Slice of Pai

For the past couple weeks, I’ve been doing a mixture of things I’ve needed and wanted to do.

I spent my first week of freedom taking care of some chores that I literally lacked the time and means to accomplish while I was working. I bought a fan for the hot season, and a pad to cushion my wooden bed—if you think I’m joking about the wood, think again—then I enlisted the help of my (highly amused) local motorbike taxi drivers to help me carry it all. I also spent some time in Bangkok, where I took care of visa preparations, bought some work-appropriate clothing and met up with friends.

I spent most of my time in Bangkok with my cousins Jeffery and Prapassaree, who took me to a place called the “Ancient City.” This large plot of land just outside Bangkok featured recreations of famous sites in Thailand, as well as beautiful original works of art. It definitely increased the list of wats I’d like to see in person, since the recreations were only half sized.

After a week of stagnancy, I was ready to travel again. This week I headed back up north with my fellow teacher and Sarah, and had the most laid back and healthy trip I’ve taken so far. We are both very like-minded wanderers, and we agreed this trip would be about eating well and relaxing. We started off in Chiang Mai, where I kicked off my first morning with a yoga class followed by a bike ride around the city. I rolled through ruins, temples and parks, and just soaked up the atmosphere of my favorite Thai city.

In Chiang Mai, Sarah and I kicked off our successful wheatgrass-shot-a-day kick, which we agreed was only possible in the health conscious northland. We finally saw the temple on a mountain, Wat Doi Suthep, which is accessed by walking over 300 steps accompanied by colorful dragon handrails. The next day we embarked on the infamously windy minivan ride to Pai, and I hoped the city would live up to its name as I watched the nauseated woman in front of me vomit into a plastic bag. There had to be a reason why people endured this stomach-turning ride through the mountains, all for this small town called Pai.

The city of Pai comes with a lot of baggage: stories, preconceptions, theories, stereotypes… and plenty of hippie hype. All for good reason. The truth was, we arrived on the low season and I can’t imagine experiencing Pai any other way. I think the hippie culture would have come off as suffocating and false with too many people, but with sparse inhabitants Pai felt was possibly the most relaxing place on earth. Pai people included plenty of farangs and Thais covered in tattoos and dreadlocks, although the population was definitely a mixed bag.


Pai undoubtedly had recurring themes: vegetarianism, original art and jewelry, music, organic teas and smiling faces. Barr and I were hesitant to exert a lot of energy meeting other travelers this time around (this was our trip of tranquility, after all) but we ended up casually striking up conversations with several people with complete ease.

Our first day we naively attempted to bicycle up to a waterfall, and made the mistake of believing a sign that said “Mor Phaeng Waterfall 6km.” What the sign should have read was “Mor Phaeng waterfall 12km straight up hill, painful ride” followed by a small sign warning “by the way, Rochelle, your back bike wheel has a hole in it.” My flat tire lead to several ordeals: plenty of walking uphill, a stop at a local motorbike repairman’s shack, and an Israeli man who took pity on us and offered to take us the rest of the way on his motorbike. The waterfall, of course, ended up being pretty disappointing. But the journey itself was hilarious enough to make the day worth it.


We also made it to the local Chinese village, and a neat spot called Pai Canyon. But to be honest, we spent most of our days eating salads, homemade yogurt and tofu dishes with brown rice, and our evenings in jazz bars and in front of bonfires. And upon our return to Chiang Mai, we didn’t indulge in any expensive tours, ziplining experiences, elephant rides and other exotic experiences that lured European backpackers. We just enjoyed the city we were in, and traveling that way felt really nice.


My next stop (and it’s a long one) is Vietnam. I won’t be back until the end of April, and I suspect I’ll have plenty of stories and pictures. I’ll update if I can, if not, thanks for tuning in.