Vietnam

For fall break, I spent most of my time in Bali, Indonesia, but we also met up with Nicha in Vietnam.  I give all the credit to Calien for organizing the flights and getting us to Vietnam.  In Southeast Asia, AirAsia has a point system where you can purchase tickets for cheaper prices.  It's pretty frustrating to use because it's glitchy and getting from point A to point B is usually not a straight flight.  Calien was able to pick our flights for fall break but to get to Da Nang where Nicha was, we had to have a layover in Malaysia and spend 24 hours in Ho Chi Minh.  It was pretty exhausting but made for an exciting adventure.  We were also pretty stoked to get a Malaysian stamp in our passports.

In Ho Chi Minh, we did my favorite thing to do, which is simply walking around and seeing what we could find.  Since we were only there for the day, there was no use in driving somewhere far and wasting time.  We spent a lot of time in district 1 exploring in the famous Ben Thanh market.  Compared to Thai markets, Vietnamese markets were crazy.  The market was packed with anything you could imagine.  You couldn't show interest in anything or the sellers would be up in your face trying to make a deal.  I made that mistake looking at a basket bag and the seller grabbed me and tried to pull me back to her stall.  I can ignore yelling, but I don't like to be pulled.  I don't think anyone does.  I think a lot of sellers try and get sales by intimidating tourists, but I like to think of myself now as a seasoned traveler who could care less about intimidation.

Pho Bo for lunch!

Another place we spent some time at was the War Remnants Museum.  It was devastating to see hundreds of photos of victims of Agent Orange.  This museum was well-organized and really let me witness the tragedy of the Vietnam war.  In school, we are never really taught about the Vietnam war.  Teachers focus on other wars where the war crimes are committed by other countries and our country is portrayed as the hero.  As hard as it is to come to terms with, the United States has committed terrible acts on innocent people too.  Even today, I could see the effects of Agent Orange among the people in Vietnam and future generations will deal with Agent Orange as well.  Agent Orange isn't the only thing people suffer from today.  Landmines are still scattered across Vietnam that kill many each year.  It is predicted that it will take over 100 years to clean up them all.  This museum really showed me how wars affect people for generations upon generations.

That night we flew up to Da Nang, Vietnam to meet up with Nicha at an Airbnb.  The next morning we got some breakfast and grabbed a car to Sun World to see the new Golden Hand Bridge.  To get to Sun World, we had to take a cable car to the top.  It was so magical to travel up the mountains and through the morning fog.  Once we reached the top, I felt like I was at Hogwarts.  The buildings looked so mystical and medieval.  The bridge was even bigger than I imagined and was truly a work of art.  After the bridge, we walked around the courtyards and enjoyed the Halloween decorations.  There was so much to explore and they had an incredibly large, indoor amusement park.

That night Calien and I ate some Pho Bo for dinner and walked to the beach.  The streets were actually pretty quiet that night for once and there were a lot of fish markets near the beach to look at.  The last thing we did was walk across the dragon bridge back to our Airbnb.  It changes colors and breathes fire.  

Yoga on the Beach

Fish Market on the Way to Dinner

Pho Bo Time!

The next and last day, we explored the city by bike and popped into all the little shops we could find.  I really enjoyed riding bikes on the backroads and through farms.  It was a great day.

Vietnam and Indonesia were something else.  They made me really appreciate Thailand and how nice the people are.  They made me feel like Thailand was my place to come home to.  They challenged my independence, patience, and self-respect.  They taught me how to talk to strangers and put trust in them.  They taught me that sometimes I can't do things for myself and there are people out there willing to help.  And for that, I'm so grateful for Vietnam and Indonesia.