Jillian's Travels

Vietnam, Part 4

Day 27, January 24

I had the best night’s sleep so far of this trip. The bed was so soft and the pillow was perfect. The mosquito net made me feel like I was 100% protected so I didn’t toss and turn worrying if I was going to get bit or not. I probably got a good solid 8 hours of sleep.

I gathered up my dirty clothes to give to the front so they could do our laundry. After that I ordered the coconut milk coffee and fruit plate. The coffee was so good! The coconut milk was very fresh and the coffee was strong and hot…exactly what I needed.

I finished the fruit plate and coffee off and decided I needed another coconut milk coffee. My whole meal came out to less that $4. I love this place!

After breakfast we bought our bus ticket for the next day to Ho Chi Minh City (formerly known as Saigon). That will be another 20 hour bus ride. Taryn decided she wanted to leave today at 5pm so she could get to Ho Chi Minh sooner rather than later because their Tet Holiday is on the 27th and we are told that everything shuts down. So it is kind of a race to see all the sights and get out of Vietnam before the 27th. We are also told that prices will go up.

My sister and I really wanted to see a little bit of Hoi An since we were here so we decided to leave tomorrow at 5pm. We went to get ready for the day and organize our stuff in case the top bunks were rented out. I had to wear my bathing suit today because most of my clothes are dirty and in the bag I gave the front to do laundry. We also pulled out our money belts so we could roam around with our hands free. I had been reading a lot of stories about people getting purses pulled off of them and robbed and whatnot so I didn’t even want to take a chance. So I strapped my money pouch on my stomach and hiked my pants up. It was a cute look.

As we were asking for a taxi the lady at the front said 2 other girls had requested a taxi going in the same direction so we just hopped in with them and split the fair. It ended up being less than $1 a person.

The taxi driver dropped us near the Hoi An old quarter. We roamed around looking at the shops and then went to buy our tickets for some of the sights. You buy one pass that allows admittance into 5 places/attractions.

Our first stop was the Japanese Covered Bridge. There was a bridge built here in the 1590’s by the Japanese to connect them with the Chinese quarters across the stream. The French flattened out the roadway to make it more suitable for their motorbikes but the original arch was restored in 1986. Apparently it is Hoi An’s most famous tourist attraction. The bridge was very modest and simple in appearance compared to all the other buildings we saw that had the traditional Japanese and Chinese wild decorations.

After the bridge we walked to what we thought was a cafe with food but it turned out to only have coffee and tea. So we entered the Hoi An Ancient Town and found a restaurant by the river. I got the pork noodles with a salad.

We then backtracked to look for the Old House of Phung Hung. It was right next to the Japanese Covered Bridge once you cross over. The sights aren’t marked that clear so it’s a lot of looking at the map and wondering around.

The house was nice but they try to push souvenirs on you to the point where you don’t even care if you’ve seen everything, you just want to get out. Or at least that’s how I felt.

Our next stop was Quang Trieu Assembly Hall (Assembly Hall of the Cantonese Chinese Congregation). What I remember the most from this place was the over-the-top decorations and a lot of incense.

I kept seeing signs for banana pancakes so I wanted to try one. I found a lady making them on the side of the street but instead of getting banana I got the mango pancake. It wasn’t really the type I had been seeing but I was still curious. It wasn’t great. I couldn’t taste the mango at all. All I could really taste was corn meal so I ate the top crunchy part and threw the rest away. It was probably equivalent to less that 50 cents. So no big loss.

Our last stop was Phuc Kien Assembly Hall. Again it was over-the-top decorations. A lot of red and dragons stood out the most to me.

We decided to head back to where we were originally dropped after at so we could go to this shop we first saw. There was a shirt there we wanted but we didn’t want to carry it around the whole day and it was also a bargaining tactic. We got the guy to come down a lot on the price. We are becoming quite savvy bargainers.

After that we decided to walk back to where we saw a bunch of taxis to head back to our hostel. On the way we came across a place that had the pancakes that I wanted to try so we stopped in. I got the banana pancake and my sister got the pineapple pancake. It was amazing!

We got back to the hostel right as Taryn was about to leave for the bus. It’s her birthday today (well Asian birthday) so I told the front when I left earlier today that it was her birthday and she told us that they brought out a crepe with chocolate sauce and sang to her. The people here are so nice and very accommodating.

Taryn headed out and we went to shower off. After that we sat out in the restaurant area for the wifi and ordered food. I got the fresh spring rolls and a green tea.

The 2 girls that we shared a taxi with told us that they are also trying to race against the clock to avoid the Tet Holiday so they are flying to Ho Chi Minh City instead of wasting a full day on a bus. So we decided to look into prices and realized it was only about $45 per person and we’d get into Ho Chi Minh a little earlier than Taryn and wouldn’t waste a whole day. So we decided to book the flight and get a refund on the bus ticket. We were much happier with this decision because we were not really looking forward to another 20 hour bus ride. One is enough for us this month.

After we booked our flight and ate, we headed to our beds. We have a full day tomorrow so we need to get going kind of early and to be honest I just couldn’t wait to lay back on that bed that was so comfortable.

Here are some more random shots from today.

Day 28, January 25

It’s our last day in Hoi An and last day at Under The Coconut Tree. I think I am more sad about leaving Under The Coconut Tree than I am about leaving Hoi An. I enjoyed Hoi An for the little that I saw but it was so rainy and overcast that I didn’t fall in love with the place like I did instantly with Bali and some of the other places.

I didn’t get much sleep last night because I made the mistake of drinking a green tea before bed and then my top bunk neighbor not only snored but talked in his sleep. So I was up pretty early today. I waited for my sister to wake up so we could go put our breakfast order in right away since it takes them a long, long time to prepare it. Everything is really fresh and made on the spot so you have to give them plenty of time. While we waited for our food we got our clean laundry back and settle our bills.

I got another fruit plate with a coconut milk coffee and devoured it. My 2 new favorite fruits are dragon fruit and papaya.

After we ate and paid we went back to our beds to sort out our laundry and then pack up. We had a taxi coming at 10:30am to take us to the Da Nang Airport so we had about less than 20 minutes to get dressed and packed up. It was a mad rush but we had 5 minutes left over. We used that time to quickly find a hostel in Ho Chi Minh City for our arrival. I was really sad to leave the hostel and the people at our hostel. They were very accommodating and so, so very nice.

When the taxi driver came to get us it was pouring down rain. I had to put my rain cover on my big bag and use my rain jacket for my backpack. I was more concerned with my stuff not getting wet than I was with me getting wet and being cold. The ride to the airport was a very quick 35 minutes.

We were dropped off right in front of our check in counter and breezed on through. It was probably one of the quickest and easiest airport experience on this trip thus far. It was also just a domestic flight so that could be why but it was very much appreciated.

Once through the security line we went to scope out our gate and then find food. My sister got Burger King and I got chicken and egg pho. I was 2000 dongs short so I had to yell at my sister over in another line to borrow money. I could not find a currency exchange counter anywhere so I had to keep borrowing my sister’s money.

After we ate, we found some water and used the restroom and headed to our gate. We got downstairs only to find out that it was delayed by 50 minutes due to late arrival. So instead of leaving at 1:15 we were now scheduled to leave at 2:05pm. I should know by now that pho does not keep me full for more than an hour so I was already hungry again.

I borrowed more money and went upstairs to get a cappuccino. When I was upstairs I saw one of the guys from Under The Coconut Tree. I remember him because one of the other backpackers pointed out that he looks like Woody Harrelson and he did! He didn’t ever speak, though. I only saw him smoking cigarette after cigarette and downing sodas and then beers.

It was finally time to board our plane but first, of course, we have to take a bus to the plane and then board. The flight was a quick 1 hour and 25 minutes. It felt like we waited longer to deplane than the actual flight.

We finally got off and went to baggage claim. After searching for the correct conveyor belt, we finally got both bags. I was able to get my cover off but my sister struggled with hers. We had to move over to the side and spent a good 30 minutes trying to get hers untied. Finally we gave up and decided we’d try more at the hostel.

We converted some money and then found a taxi. It felt like rush hour but honestly it is probably the normal traffic in Ho Chi Minh. It is such a transition from Hoi An. I wasn’t fully prepared to deal with the city today. I was still in lazy, Hoi An mode.

Our taxi driver finally found our hostel and I asked her how much and instead of saying the price she had to pull out money to show me how much. The language barrier is much stronger here.

Once we got into our hostel and found our beds, we locked things up, grabbed our money belt and headed out in search of food. It was starting to sprinkle but we didn’t feel like turning around to get our rain jacket. We decided we’d stop at the first restaurant we came to.

The first one we came to was serving only ramen and my sister didn’t want that. The second one we came to had a lot of cow tongue, cow tendon, frogs, chicken feet, etc. so immediately I nixed that place. The third one had fish tanks up front and center so we figured that was a pretty good indication that it’d be full of seafood and not much else. Finally we saw a place across the street that looked like a New York diner type so we went into there. We walked in and they told us to go to the corner so we head that way and realize that we have to take an elevator to go up to more seating.

After we were seated, I order a water bottle from the waiter and he doesn’t understand so he brings over 2 other waiters to help. My sister finds it on the menu and points to it. They understand and then stand there waiting for us to order. We’ve learned that the process for ordering food is different over here. We are used to having waiters take a drink order and then come back for the food order after a few minutes. Over here they take both at the same time so I think we confuse them when we say we need more time.

We spend so much time flipping through the pages to try and find something that sounds decent. This place is very similar to the one we saw with the fish tanks. They even have fish tanks of their own. So it is slim pickings for us.

We find a fried rice with chicken dish and each get that. At the last minute, I am sad to say, we order a side of french fries. It has nothing to do with what we ordered, but I just got the sense that they did not like us.

When they brought out the french fries they brought out what we thought was salt on the side in a bowl but it was really sugar and then another bowl of butter. We inhaled the fries just in time for our food to come out. It looked how I thought it would look based on what was on the menu. There was chicken skin all in the dish so I spent most my time picking the chicken and skin out and just eating the rice.

I then did my universal signal for check, hands opening like a book. I have used it every place so far and everyone has understood. I did it at this restaurant and the waiter brings over the menu. Finally we are able to communicate that we want the check and he takes us over to the cashier. The cashier tells us our bill and, as if we didn’t already look like foreigners, we have to lift up our shirts a little to get to our money belt. It is never a subtle action but we are working on it.

We leave and both agree that we don’t feel great. We would have rather had something from Starbucks and gone to bed. At this point, I really, really need water. We pass this lady on the side of the street near an alley, that is selling water. I ask how much and she has to pull out money to show me because we can’t communicate with each other. She shows me what I think is 2000 dongs so I give her 4000 dongs and grab 2 waters. She then starts yelling and shaking her head. I realize that I did not give her enough but don’t know how much to give. So I give her the waters back and take my money from her hand and we quickly try to cross the street. She is yelling angrily something to this guy next to her and I know it is about me.

We make it to the other side and walk until we see a convenience store type place and go in. I find the biggest water, peanut M&M’s and a green tea kit kat (just because I’m curious) and we head back to the hostel.

Outside our hostel is the main city which means a lot of city noise…honking, yelling and lucky us, an Asian guy with his boom box on the corner singing. It sounds like a karaoke bar from my bed. I eat my candy, shower and pray I can quickly fall asleep.

So far Ho Chi Minh City has not welcomed us as Hanoi, Halong Bay or Hoi An has. I hope we can bounce back tomorrow because I know how much history this city has to share and I really want to learn all I can.

Things I miss right now:

-Under The Coconut Tree and especially their food

-crosswalks that tell you when to walk safely

-Showering without flip flops

-Chips and Salsa (for my sister)

-Currency that is easy to tell the difference between bills

Comments

1. 

   Leave a Reply

   Jamecia
   January 28, 2017

   You forgot to add me to the “Things I Miss Right Now” list !:)

   • 

     Leave a Reply

     Jillian
     January 28, 2017

     Well that’s a given, Mecia!