Vietnam

I always knew I wanted to go away when I turned 30, I felt to celebrate the event with a holiday to a somewhere new and an experience I had not been part of before would make the occasion memorable and special, South India was my first calling as last time we visited India we mainly stayed North and I am told the South is beyond beautiful. With being a May baby though India is far too hot therefore another destination had to be chosen, Sam had mentioned Vietnam before and with a bit of research I decided this South East Asian country was definitely somewhere I wanted to explore and wow did it deliver. 

We decided we would start the trip in the North of Vietnam and work our way down to the south, we had 3 weeks to explore meaning we couldn’t adventure around the whole of Vietnam but felt we could cover a fair amount. We flew into Hanoi and as we left the airport my instincts made me feel unaware and prepared for the chaos I thought would be waiting for us outside, as my main experience of SE Asia being India the airport was manic, the hustle and bustle took over and was hard to digest when just arriving off a long flight. How different I found this to be in Vietnam, the airport was deserted and we nicely walked up to the taxi queue without any stress or uncertainty we were being ripped off or tricked into an unknown cab. We met a really nice man on the plane who asked us to share a taxi, the journey’s from airport to the first hotel excite me so much, the feel of fun in my stomach and the sites of a new country and how it works always make me look wide eyed and a sense of need to soak in every minute thing. The sound of horns, the madness of the scooters and the happy faces on the sidewalks hard at work, I knew we had left London and were about to indulge on an adventure that would stay in my heart forever. 

Our stay in Hanoi was short and sweet but was so memorable and for me one of the highlights of the trip. I am not a city girl, as I have got older I prefer the beach and although I live in London I thrive for the day I can move North and be back by Northumberland coastal areas. I always fear that when I land in a main city my sense of relaxedness will go and the bustle of the city will consume my manic mind. I found Hanoi different, I enjoyed the chaos and street side boi hoi drinking, and I loved the side shops that were filled with vibrant colours and eager sellers. The food we ate in Hanoi was amazing, some of the best eats, Sam and I filled our stomachs with some of the tastiest dishes and spring rolls became our main treat. Since becoming vegetarian I have not felt many challenges where meat has been something I have wanted to go back too, my health has improved and physically I don’t feel lethargic or ‘heavy’ anymore, I did fear the newness of a different country would challenge my vegetarianism but Hanoi restaurants catered well and the tastes were sublime. We spent a few days wandering and exploring, finding pagoda’s and lovers lakes to stroll around and take in the busy air but the joyful feeling of a city that was full of riveting life. 

Our next part of the trip was to Ha Long Bay, we decided to take a 2 day, 1 night trip, I was unaware of what Ha Long would be like and even after looking at pictures and reading lonely planet I still couldn’t foresee how the trip would be and how blown away I would be.  The trip started by getting a bus from Hanoi to Ha Long, on route we managed to get a puncture and like all good drivers he didn’t have the equipment to change the tyre, the boys on the bus all get involved and after an hour of sweating, stress and laughs another coach pulled over the help us out. We arrived at a busy Ha Long Bay early afternoon and boarded our small boat to get to our junk boat, the group we were with seemed nice and everyone talked together about where they had been before or were headed after. We were given our room keys and already I could feel the sense of excitement building at the thought of staying on a boat for the night, my nautical side started to feel embraced and I knew the trip was to be a an experience like no other. Ha Long Bay is a UNESCO site and as our junk boat left its sea position and we ventured into the lime stone rocks I sat on deck mouth opened at the beauty that surrounded me, after lunch our guide told us we were going kayaking, I was excited but also somewhat scared at the thought of my rubbishes when it comes to any form of exercise, especially open sea sports, thank goodness for Sam being in the back! The kayaking turned out to be the highlight of the trip and as corny as it sounds I really feel we experience a moment that could have been captured in a guide book as a ‘must do experience’. The company we went through have been carrying out tours for some years and have excellent extensive knowledge of the area. As we went out in our kayaks it turned out the earlier puncture had helped us as most people were back on board there boats ready for an evening meal. We went out in the kayaks round 4pm and spent 2.5hrs kayaking through a cave into a wondrous lagoon; it was a picturesque moment with monkeys swinging in the surrounding nature and the sound of tropical wildlife basking in the evening sun. We ventured out of our kayak and went swimming, being left to see the lagoon in its natural form. It was breath taking and I didn’t want to leave, sadly the evening sun came down and we had to head back to the boat for our evening meal. The trip showed me of the adventure that can be done when you allow yourself to be free of day to day stress, already I was planning my next trip back and when we could relive the beauty of Ha Long Bay. 

We arrived back from Ha Long Bay and took a night bus to Hoi An, where we would spend the next 5 days in heaven, after a long bus ride we arrived in a different place to what my imagination had. I was taken over by the serene pleasure of Hoi an and how relaxed and beautiful it was, I had in my mind a busy stay; instead I find a doll like town with beaches of beauty. We spent my birthday in Hoi An and I was so pleased at Sam planning this as I couldn’t think of anywhere else I would have wanted to be. The next 5 days were spent doing sunrise Hoi An yoga, An Bang beach time, beach cycles, clothes making, more delicious food, cocktails, beautiful colours, toy town buildings and joyful smiling faces. Our villa was beautiful and was pool facing, the villa was set in a tropical like garden with birds of paradise flowers growing wildly and the sound of tweeting birds surrounding our time there. Before leaving I knew our stay in Hoi An would be revisited as it truly was the most perfect way to spend my 30^th and a relaxed 5 days of sheer heavenly delights. 

From Hoi An we took another night bus to Dalat, our stop in Dalat was to break the journey to Ho Chi Minh City, we wanted to visit Elephant Falls and the giant happy Buddha whilst in Dalat so planned a two night stay to venture around the hills. We decided to get a moped and join in with the chaotic driving around us, with my trust left in Sam we headed off on our own adventure to find the mystical waterfall and smiling Buddha. We were informed beforehand about the easy rider tours but when looking on the map we felt the journey was easy enough for us to do alone and also I wanted to stop at some of the flower farms on route. How pleased I was we did the journey alone, we spent the whole day out in the hills and visited many flower farms with dahlias and birds of paradise growing in vast amounts. When we arrived at the falls it was different to how I imagined, I hadn’t imagined it being so touristy and expected a short walk with the waterfall just coming before us, instead the waterfall was waiting as we pulled up and the walk was a small treacherous one through wet rocks and tumbling vines. We made it to the waterfall though and embraced the rainbow colours coming from its fall and powerful sound of rushing water. It was amazing to be underneath it and feel the power of it, sadly it was so busy there was only a small time alone to listen to its sounds before the easy rider tours came upon us. From here we walked up to the sunshine and sat for some time drying out. We then took a walk to the giant happy Buddha and wow what a beautiful sight of gold structure, Sam bought me a book about Buddhism for my birthday and sitting here in front of this symbolic image the meaning of Buddha came into me, I felt fully ‘awakened’ by the statue and felt a sense of peace sitting restfully in front of it. Sam and I decided to spend the afternoon relaxing in the presence of the Buddha as the silence was beautiful and it felt a wasted opportunity to not indulge in the peacefulness around us. 

From Dalat we travelled to Ho Chi Minh City, we only spent one night in HCMC as we were using the time as a stop off before flying to Pho Quoc. My fear of big cities came flowing back as we arrived into HCMC, we spent the evening venturing into the abyss of markets, drinking beer in the local restaurants and playing shuttle cock in the local park. We fell into bed sleepy and exhausted from our travels and intake of the maze of streets, ready for our flight tomorrow to Mango Bay. 

We flew out to Pho Quoc island the following day, we both knew we wanted to spend our final week in paradise and be away from the city streets and relaxing on a beach, reading and drinking cocktails. We found exactly that and more at Mango Bay resort, Pho Quoc, Mango Bay is set along one kilometer of beach, amid twenty hectares of largely endemic forest and gardens. There are 40 bungalows in total that are all eco based lodges, the bungalows are situated along the beach and in the forest and each are beautiful in there design and layout. 

After a short drive and a long dusty road we arrived at Mango Bay, my first thoughts were of heaven, we entered the beach restaurant and sat in front of the wavy sea with chilled music playing and a serving of delightful fruit juice, our host explained some of the Mango Bay way’s and where we could find the wellbeing centre for massages and beauty treatments. We were then walked to our lodges with huge beaming smiles on our faces I wasn’t ready for the next installment of mango bay beauty. Our bungalow was set in a row of 4 and I couldn’t have been happier at how perfect the lodge was, our bathroom had an open top window which had a blind we could pull down, although the sound of nature was so serene I knew the blind would be staying where it was. We woke to find frogs in our open shower and gecko’s paying evening visits to us through the huge window space. We spent our days on the sandy beaches reading, being massaged and dining in the beach bar, serving delicious cocktails and tasty treats. Our evenings were spent playing scrabble, drinking tasty wine and enjoying the array of sea food in the restaurant. Mango Bay was so peaceful and relaxing it did exactly what we hoped for and allowed us to relax fully from our previous 2 weeks of traveling the Vietnam world. 

The three weeks we spent in Vietnam was such an experience that I have already planned our trip back there, with the hope of my parents visiting us when out there also. I could see so much from the trip they would enjoy and feel it’s an experience everyone should have.