Vietnam 2024 – Trip Report 1

Saturday 31 August – Tuesday 3 September – Melbourne – Saigon – Hue

A slightly more abbreviated version, still with random, and not so random, thoughts, as well as the possibility of an actual ‘important and informative’* bit.

*not guaranteed

Saturday 31 August

The day has arrived, and I’m not really sure how we managed to get here.

The last four months have been a bit of a blur, getting Dad’s house ready to sell, and trying to organise his new place.

Sounds simple when you write it like that, but gee, a quick and easy process it was not.

The day I’ve been counting down to is here, but our flight is not until late tonight, and one that is so late, it’s actually tomorrow.

The last few things to be ticked off, are, and not surprisingly, it takes most of the day.

Final shower, final packing of the last few pieces, and we’re on our way just before 6.30pm, courtesy of the girl, who with the promise of a complimentary tank of petrol, has agreed to play taxi driver.

The petrol is purchased, the tyres are even given some air, which apparently, is a very difficult and confusing job, and therefore not done very often, and a little over 30 minutes later, we’re at Tullamarine.

A quick goodbye, and because we still have hours to go, it’s off to the bar that I sat at 365 days ago, plus 3 days, along with an extra one, because it’s a leap year.

Dinner of chicken parmigiana had, and then it’s next door to another bar, which appears far more inviting than this one.

A quick check of check in times, and sometime around 9.00pm, Vietjet, unbeknownst to us, has already commenced the process.

Drinks finished, we join the queue, and then remain in it for a fair amount of time.

It’s painful, and some 60 minutes after getting there, we finally have our boarding passes.

It’s happening!

Off to immigration, and it’s not even remotely similar to check in, and we’re through in no time.

Gate found, and because it’s only a gate or two from last year’s gate, last year’s bar is utilised.

Everything, apart from actually getting there, is now done.  It’s a good, but also rather surreal, after the last four months, feeling.

A few drinks, and now getting close, we head off to the gate.  There’s no real movement happening yet, when it comes to boarding, so we take advantage of a nearby bar, that’s within eyesight of where we will be handing over our boarding passes.

Onto the plane just after midnight, and they’re playing the ‘Hello Vietnam’ song.

Not surprisingly, it gets me, and my vision is somewhat impacted.

In the air just after 12.30am, and with the plane only being three quarters full, we take the opportunity, along with a few others, to steal two empty banks of three seats.

It sounds good, and I’ve always dreamt of doing such a thing, but it’s actually not good at all, as despite trying every possible position, I just can’t get comfortable.

In the end it doesn’t matter, as an hour or so later, we are asked to remove ourselves, if we’re not prepared to pay 300 000 Dong per seat – so 900 000 in total, to take advantage of our spacious surrounds.

We pass, and head back to disappoint our fellow passenger, who has been enjoying our empty seats that had originally been allocated to us.

The trying to sleep thing works as it does every time, with only snippets achieved, along with an incredibly sore neck, and an overwhelming feeling of being cramped.

But, it does result in what we want, and we’re on Vietnamese soil a touch before 6.30am.

Into immigration 20 minutes later, and we come to a standstill.  There are people everywhere!

They eventually open more desks, and we’re finally out and downstairs just after 7.30am.

Thinking our bag will be waiting patiently for us, we’re a little surprised that it is yet to make an appearance.

But it does eventually do so, and we’re outside at 7.45am.

Vinasun taxi from the taxi marshal over to the left as you exit the terminal, and he actually has some English, managing to tell me that I’m handsome, which was nice, if not a little concerning.

The usual sights of Vietnam then begin to hit; I feel like an excited kid on Christmas day; and half an hour later, we reach the Le Blanc.

Fare of 135 000 Dong on the meter is rounded up to 150 000 Dong, which will cover the 10 000 Dong airport toll, and we make our way down the currently dug up lane way.

Into the LeBlanc, and as expected, our room is not available, so bags dropped, and we head out to deal with our greatest problem right now, and that is a lack of food, along with a much-anticipated cà phê sữa đá (iced milk coffee).

Sunday 1 September

Down to the corner, the food issue is dealt with by two bánh mì opla’s (egg sandwich – 15 000 Dong each) from the lady with the cart, and then onto our café from the last two years, with the taste of that coffee already in my mind and my mouth.

It’s closed.

Because we happen to be here on the National Day long weekend?

Not sure.

Up the street towards my beer place, and a mum and dad street cart is found.

Seat taken on the street, surprised look turns to one of happiness; them, not us; and we quickly have our cà phê sữa đá’s, along with complimentary trà đá’s (iced tea – 17 000 Dong each).

Was always going to be the first drink!

A walk up to the Viettel store a bit after 9.00am, sim card – 390 000 Dong for 4GB per day, and 100 mins of calls, or 410 000 Dong for 6GB and the same calls – and 410 000 Dong is handed over, along with passport, and all installed and set up by the incredibly friendly girl behind the desk.

Back into our hems, which are our hems, and the café with the ordinary cà phê sữa đá’s from last time, is found.

Juices ordered, but they have no juice, so I try the cà phê sữa đá option again, while Lisa goes with ginger tea.

She’s happy with the tea; the cà phê sữa đá is still ordinary, but the owners, and their friends, are incredibly welcoming.

Back to the Le Blanc to cool down in the reception area for a bit, meet a Serbian guy; very friendly; and then his wife, and walk them up to the market, seeing as buying tropical fruits, to potentially help cure cancer, is their day’s target.

We leave them be, and head off for lunch; cơm tấm (broken rice – 30 000 Dong), up near my beer place; before making our way up to the not so nearby VIB branded ATM.

Card inserted, ‘other’ selected when it comes to amount, and 5 000 000 Dong received, with no ATM fee.

Back towards the Le Blanc around 1.00pm, and just down from my beer place, I notice a guy looking in my direction.

The helmet, and mask, he’s wearing, throws me for a minute, but then the penny drops, and I realise I know him.

He’s my take away beer guy from the last two years, and he’s actually the one who spotted me first.  It blows my mind, and just reconfirms what this area, but more importantly, these people, mean to me.

We head over, shake his hand, and for obvious reasons, namely my lack of Vietnamese, don’t have the ability to say too much to each other.

But it doesn’t matter, because feelings and emotions can still be portrayed without the use of words.

It’s seriously great to see him again.

Rest and recovery session had, and an hour later, I am in possession of a slightly more human feel.

Out for juice, or similar; some kind of lemon tea (25 000 Dong); is found, arriving in a plastic cup, with a plastic lid, a plastic straw, and in a plastic bag thing.

Yep, we’re back in Vietnam.

Back to the Le Blanc, a wave and a quick chat to the bún bò Huế guy from the last two years along the way, and then a quick cool down before leaving Lisa and heading up to my beer place.

Part way across Dien Bien Phu street, and the Cambodian girl from last year sees me approaching.

I’ve mentioned ‘little moments’ in the past; those seemingly nothing things that end up meaning far more to me than they would ordinarily appear.

Well, this is one of them.

The look on her face, when she first realised she recognised me, was absolutely priceless.  The stunned look, followed by quite possibly the biggest smile I have ever seen; yep, it was right up there with some of the best moments I’ve had here.

She races across and grabs my hand, still beaming, while the other three or four, who I don’t recognise, stand there looking rather confused.

I can’t see the other main guy from the last two years, but the Cambodian girl points out the older guy who looks after the money side of things.

He looks up, and a second later his face reveals that he too remembers.

Yep, those little moments, the reconfirming of the connections, it just means so much to me.

First beer quickly arrives, and while we’ve already been here for a few hours, this signals that I’m well and truly back.

It feels like I’ve returned home!

Sights watched, as the rain starts, which then turns into a drenching.  Oh well, there are far worse places to be when that happens.

More sitting, more watching, interspersed with that huge smile, whenever the Cambodian girl walks past.

Beers (24 000 Dong each) had, and I head back in still raining Saigon, along very wet streets, stopping at my take away beer guy for the obvious, at 12 000 Dong each.

Back home, soaked, shower had, dry myself which seems pointless, and then back out in the rain, but this time, wearing a poncho each, that extremely fortuitously, I had kept and actually brought back, in the hope of saving the world from having to produce another two pieces of plastic.

Can’t find our dumpling soup couple from last year, so it’s up to the phở place opposite my beer bar.  Ponchos peeled off, a few smiles and giggling as we extricate ourselves, and we quickly have phở bò in front of us, along with a couple of very warm Tiger cans, but also a glass with ice in it, to deal with that issue.

Phở is simple, but good, beer just fine, atmosphere brilliant, and the entertainment from the girls as a rat shows off his speed and athleticism running along an overhead pipe, hard to fault.

We’ve actually seen a few today, but none showing the agile skills quite like this one.

I’ve missed it!

Bill paid (35 000 Dong, and 15 000 Dong for each beer), and it’s over the road to the beer place, which, because they’re having an early night, is just to let them know, using Google Translate, that we’ll be back at the end of the month.

She’s still smiling, while the others still have slightly confused looks on their faces.  It’s funny, but also incredibly heartwarming.

A quick walk in search of another possible beer place, even venturing across Nguyen Dinh Chieu, but it’s a fruitless exercise, as the rain, along with a long weekend holiday feel, contributes to a very quiet vibe.

Nearby convenience store used for a couple more beers, as well as a packet a chips and some soap, and then it’s upstairs for the bed thing of Trip Advisor and notes, and final touches for tomorrow’s trip to Hue.

Airport transfer arranged with Eva from Eva Homestay, a mental note taken to try and get a hole that I’ve only just noticed in my backpack repaired, and by 10.30pm, Lisa’s eyes have glazed over, and she’s essentially ‘left the building’.

Beer finished, it’s my turn.  It’s been a long day, after a long night, but I wouldn’t change it for anything.

Monday 2 September

Outside around 7.45am, last year’s café is still closed, so it’s back up to yesterday’s spot.  They’re happy to see us return, quickly arranging a table and chairs for us.

Our lovely cà phê sữa đá lady, who is well and truly in charge, while her husband’s job is to clear tables, and take orders.  Mainly from his wife!

Cà phê sữa đá (17 000 Dong) still good, watching of the world even better.  Down to our bánh mì girl from last year, with two of the cold meat variety, which is the only one they do, purchased for 20 000 Dong each.

These, because we’re sort of Vietnamese now, as well as having a rather high dislike of airport food and their prices, will be coming on a short journey with us, before they meet their fate.

Back to the Le Blanc, final pack up, then downstairs after almost forgetting our passports in the safe, and a quick chat with Chau at the desk.

It’s good to see her again.

Outside by 8.45am, Grab ordered, then we’re approached by a local.  This would ordinarily raise some concern in the way that he did it, but being this far from tourist central, he was just up for a chat.

And that chat, for the second day in a row, involved me getting told I’m handsome, again.

Like yesterday, flattering, but also slightly concerning, while Lisa just stands there and rolls her eyes.

Our car appears (95 000 Dong), and we’re unloading at Tan Son Nhat airport by 9.15am.

Bill paid, along with the airport toll, and off for Vietjet check in, which is far less painful than what it was in Melbourne a bit over a day ago.

Boarding pass in hand, we find a quiet spot and partake of our cleverly thought out bánh mì decision, while watching the joys of people making their way around an airport.

Good deed of the day done when I offer a family taking it in turns to photograph each other, by taking a photo for them, so they could all be in it.

Yep, I’m a nice guy.

Through security no problem, but for Lisa, she’s held up when the guy in front of her forgot about the drill bit, cigarettes and cigarette lighter in his pocket.

Yep, people at airports…..

Find gate, and everything looks different, to the point I just can’t get my bearings.

Do manage to find a few cà phê sữa đá options, picking one, and then asking the guy behind the counter for said drink.

He hands me a bottle of water.

Sigh…..

Eventually get what I desire, then head back to do the waiting thing, which actually goes alright.

Boarding begins just after 10.30am, and then the bus trip around the tarmac until our plane is found.

Onto the plane, kick out the guy in my window seat, and then discover that that screaming kid in the terminal we had to deal with over the last hour, just happens to now be a close neighbour.

Sigh…..

In the air just after 11.30am, which is just in time to miss the worst of the very black looking clouds of a storm, which has just arrived to unleash on Saigon.

Not a lot is seen out the window until we get closer to Hue, and when I can see, I watch us fly past it, out over the sea, and then back again, finally landing just before 12.30pm.

De-plane, to the sound of ‘Hello Vietnam’, along with throat lumps and watery eyes, and then into the terminal to be greeted by the sight of a basin full of vomit in the men’s toilet.

At least he made it.  Sort of.

Bag retrieved, and then outside to find a guy holding a sheet of paper with my name on it, along with ‘Eva Homestay’.

It’s actually Eva’s brother, and we’re on our way by 12.45pm, reaching our home for the next four nights 30 minutes later.  Eva is away for another night, visiting family, but her husband looks after us well.

Out for lunch in our favourite little local street one block over, and some kind of soup that includes what looks to be broken rice, along with beef, onion and some greens, is found.

It’s peppery, gingery, and just really good, and at 30 000 Dong, there’s really nothing to complain about.

A walk down to the river follows, and oh my, is it hot!

It’s a continual readjusting of steps, looking for any and all shade available, while being constantly touted to by the Perfume River boat ladies.

It annoys me, but it’s probably made worse due to the heat.

Finding an outdoor river side café, the opportunity to rest is taken.

Two chanh dây’s (passion fruit juice – 30 000 Dong each) are had, and they go some way to rectifying our heat issues.

Back to Eva’s, finding last year’s beer / restaurant place along the way; damn it’s hot!; and then stopping for a one litre water (15 000 Dong) at the convenience store over the road.

Quick cool down, then out for beer at 4.00pm, and back to my place from 2 years ago.  It’s more a restaurant than a bar, but the woman there, just like last time, is more than happy to oblige me.

While I could easily find a ‘real’ bar over in the tourist block, the down side to that is something too large for me to seriously contemplate.

Sit and watch, while enjoying 450ml Huda beers, which is a change, albeit slightly more dangerous, than the probably more common, smaller 330ml size.

Beers done, tab fixed up at the rate 20 000 Dong per beer; while liking Hue, I’d struggled this afternoon with finding a real love for the place, but 20 000 for 450ml beers has helped a little with that ‘love’; and it’s back to Eva’s, stopping at my convenience store from last time.

Walk in, grab some from the fridge, but can’t see a person to pay.

That changes, when the sound of the fridge door closing, prompts a ‘Aaaargh!’, from a girl laying down behind the counter.

That reaction signals the same response from me, as me startling her, startles me.

Sincere apology given, and 15 000 Dong beers paid for, which continues to help with the love level.

Down to Eva’s, one of those beers, shower, then out to our local street around the block, and back to a street cart we ate at last time.

It’s beef and rice, along with a watery soup thing, which is about the limit of my ability to describe food.  But oh my!  It doesn’t happen very often with me, but taste and flavour wise, it is up there with some of the best dishes we’ve had in Vietnam.

Only rice and meat, but gee it’s good!

Beer is asked for; “How many?”  “Hai” (2).

He disappears over to the bar across the road, and returns with our hai bia.  I love the way Vietnam works.

Dinner done (40 000 Dong and 20 000 Dong for a beer), and we make our way over to my afternoon beer place.

Again, they’re happy to see us, and we do our post dinner thing while watching the locals do theirs.

9.00pm arrives, and being a moving day, it’s starting to catch up, so we head off, stopping for supplies at my convenience store, while being careful not to scare anyone.

It is still so hot, and just as hot inside with no breeze around, to the point I’m actually worried about the girl working there.

Back to Eva’s, the usual on the bed, and somehow make it an extra hour or so, before succumbing to the long day.

It’s funny, you sit in cars, sit in airports, and then sit on a plane, and even though it was only four and a half hours door to door; which is actually pretty quick for an hour flight; it just wears you down.

Then again, the heat has probably played a bit of a part as well.

Tuesday, 3 September

Stomach pains during the night, but by morning, life is feeling as it should.  I think.

Out and around to our street, and a place is picked that has a few locals in it.

Perhaps not surprisingly, it’s a noodle soup.  Probably a phở.  But it never really concerns me what name it goes by.

But I do have a slight problem, and that is that I can’t distinguish any animal bits in the soup.

Not that they’re strange unrecognizable things, just that I can’t actually see any animal parts.

And then it dawns on me.  It’s a vegetable phở!

The combination of mushroom and fungi bits, carrot, baby corn, a few other things that classify as flora, and the realisation that there’s also tofu floating in there, confirms the reality.

Aaaaargh, I’m eating vegetarian!

To be fair, it’s actually not bad, but really, once is enough.

Breakfast done, 50 000 Dong for two, and seeing a narrow lane over the road, and because we’ve not been down it before, we do.

And yep, it’s narrow, and like most lanes seem to be, relatively quiet.  But, and not that we were expecting anything of real note, there’s really not that much down there.

Well, apart from people’s everyday lives, and a number of quaint little dwellings that they live in.

So yeah, hardly a tourist attraction, but still rather fascinating.

Back out, seeing as it’s a dead end, and off in search of a cà phê sữa đá.  A tour guide stops us, “Where you from?”

Australia, is the reply.

“G’day mate!”, comes back.

Yes, G’day indeed.

Coffee found at a small family run place, and despite sitting at one of their tables, our cà phê sữa đá (20 000 Dong) comes in a plastic cup, with a plastic lid.

The coffee itself is alright, but it’s not always just about the product, it’s also about the ambience of a place, and how you’re made to feel welcome.

Well, we weren’t made to feel unwelcome, but we were given nothing that left us with any desire to return.

Bill paid, back to Eva’s for a toilet stop, and then out with the plan to find a local market that we found by accident way back in 2014.

The recollection being, that it was not all that far from tourist central.

Into said tourist part, and straight away, the hassling begins.

A xe ôm (motorbike taxi) driver calls out as we approach, “Where you from?”

Here we go again…..

“Australia”, says I.

“Oh, G’day mate!”, is the not at all unexpected reply.

“Yep, that’s the one”, I mutter.

This area just annoys me.  It annoyed me two years ago, and I really didn’t enjoy it that much in 2014, either.

Maybe it’s the heat.  Maybe it’s my age.  Maybe it’s just me???

On we go, trying to limit eye contact, and not too long later, pretty much where I thought I left it all those years ago, the market.

We head in, and yep, it’s local.  Not a huge market, but totally authentic.  The sights, the colours, the noises, the smells.  Always good.

Back out, more street vendors along the way, and it’s hot.  Like real hot.

Find three guys making tofu, and while it’s all rather interesting, the time and effort just doesn’t seem to equal the reward…..

The heat continues to be a thing, and sensing a wilting of the person behind me, the objective is to find something cold and wet.

And quickly.

Fortuitously, a guy doing nước mía đá (sugarcane juice) is found, and we’re quickly seated in front of a fan, while the goodness is crushed from lengths of cane.

At 10 000 Dong, it’s an excellent purchase on all levels.

Suitably cooled, we continue, with, after a check of Google Maps, a nearby bridge being the objective.

We reach it, and because there’s another side, despite the heat, we walk it, just to see.

There appears to be nothing of any great note, and Google Maps suggests that a continuation of the walk in this direction, is unlikely to return anything of any great reward.

Bit like making tofu…..

We backtrack, the nước mía đá reward already starting to wear off, and up back on the ‘main’ road, which really isn’t.

Past a woodcarver, with carvers of pretty much anything, always resulting in me stopping and looking on in awe.

Much admiration!

Back to the market, and it’s hard yards; peak sweating production has been reached.

We stumble upon a fish shop, but of the pet variety, which I guess makes it an aquarium, but they also sell birds.

It comes across as a strange combination, with it feeling like a form of torture for the birds in their cages, with their ‘prey’, being the fish, so near, yet so far.

Around the corner, and we’re back to the stadium that we walked past, and ducked into, 10 years ago.

The Olympic rings on the façade make me think back fondly to the year that Vietnam hosted the Olympics, but my memory is somewhat impacted by the passage of time…..

A group of local tourists alighting (yes, a far bigger and classier word than I should be using), are being taken across the road, one by one, to a hotel, while being sheltered by a hotel employee holding an umbrella.

It’s both a funny and sad scene, while our t-shirts feel more attached to our bodies than our actual skin does.

Finally back into our local street, and being lunch time, the question is asked, with the answer being bánh mì.

Great, because in our short time here, as well as our few days here two years ago, I don’t recall seeing a bánh mì vendor in this vicinity.

With not too many options available, we manage to find a lady doing a couple of different dishes, with Lisa ending up with what looks like the same as this morning, while I end up with a drier version, consisting of glass noodles, mushrooms, various other bits of cut up flora, and yep, tofu.

It’s alright, but yeah, another vegetarian dish, with the only real positive being the price, which is only 20 000 Dong each.

Would still happily pay another 10 000 or so, for a couple of bits of animal.

Lunch done, the heat still very much a thing, and two Cokes (15 000 Dong), along with some complimentary fun interaction, are purchased from a local’s small convenience store, on the way back to Eva’s.

Upstairs, and t-shirts are peeled off for a much needed rest and recovery session; I’m absolutely knackered.

A message from Annie, from Trip Advisor, is received.  We had plans to meet up in Hanoi next week, but some medical issues have resulted in her and her husband’s trip coming to a premature end, with them now leaving at the end of the week.

I’m gutted for them, and so disappointed we won’t finally get to meet.  Fingers crossed there’s another opportunity down the track, at some point.

Back out around 3.00pm, and over to a local café that we went to two years ago.  It never really filled us with excitement back then, but noticing its popularity with the locals since we’ve been here, as well as the fact that it’s close, we give it another shot.

Two pineapple juices (31 000 Dong), and it comes in a salt rimmed glass.

Sigh…..

Drink done, opinion unchanged, and it’s back to Eva’s, with the happy surprise being that’s she’s home.

It’s great to see her again, and we end up sitting downstairs and chatting, while eating a fruit that has the flesh of what looks to be an orange, but its skin suggests otherwise.

It’s nice, but the work involved to enjoy its goodness, is rather involved.

More chatting, more peeling, the occasional eating, and decisions, with the help of Eva, who incidentally is one of the friendliest and most helpful people you will ever meet, are made on how to spend our next two days.

The loose plan is a bike ride around some part of Hue, along with a possible beach trip, just because it’s relatively close.

Eva offers to look after the bike side of things, and Grab will likely get utilised for the beach thing, but only after Lisa gets a sim card.

And yes, the decision for only me to get a sim card when we arrived was intentional, and getting one for Lisa while we were here in Hue, was always the plan.

Actually spending 31 nights here in Vietnam meant that my sim would run out before we left, so the plan was made to stagger the sims, with each of us using hotspot as required.

Yep, rather clever, I thought….

Off to do the beer thing, along with the usual watching of the sights, including a 40 to 50 strong cyclo tour, which just happened to go past.

I am always enthralled by them, with the main interest coming from the looks on the faces of the passengers, which is usually one of boredom and or embarrassment.

Regardless, the number of cyclos I’ve seen in Hue in the last two days, makes me think that Hue is indeed the cyclo capital of Vietnam.

Head back ‘home’ at 6.00pm, shower had, and then out to our nearby street, and down to last night’s place.

“Beer?”, is the question asked as soon as we arrive, with the answer being the not at all unexpected one of ‘Yes’.

Food, just like last night, is excellent, but the vibe in the street is a quiet one, with the long weekend holiday coming to a close.

Bill (120 000 Dong) fixed up, and then off to my beer place, with it too being very quiet.

A few had, while watching the incredibly friendly and attentive young waiters go about their job; Lisa actually uses Google Translate to tell the owner; and then back to Eva’s around 9.30pm, stopping off for supplies along the way.

Onto the bed for the same old routine, and with confirmation that our hire bikes will be here in the morning, a bike ride tomorrow is now definitely on the agenda.

As to where, it will likely be over the other side of the Perfume River, with the Citadel playing some sort of part, as well as perhaps a pagoda or two.

But, we’ll see…..

Cheers,

Scott