When I first decided to move to Thailand, it was because I wanted to be able to travel around SE Asia/Asia with a bit more convenience. I had some countries in mind already that I wanted to visit and until this point, have been making super slow progress, but that’s okay. It’s been a great ride nonetheless.

So, what were the countries on my list:
1. Laos
2. South Korea
3. Vietnam
4. Philippines
5. Singapore
6. Taiwan

Countries I’ve been to planned and somewhat unexpected:
1. Japan (again)
2. South Korea (ended up going twice)
3. Laos
4. Maldives
5. Egypt
6. Vietnam (where I was when I started to write this)

Countries planned from now through the beginning of 2024:
1. Philippines (I have now been) – dive trip
2. Taiwan
3. Singapore
4. Malaysia (x2) – a dive trip and a regular trip
5. Vietnam (again)
6. South Korea

I’m not sure my finances are up for all this, but I’m determined to make it work. If all goes according to plan, I may be back in the USA for good as of the middle of next year. Back to the original topic. I finally made it to Vietnam! I was there for a week…in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). I’m doing extremely lazy traveling (no real plans, except to eat some really good food and walk/bum around and see some things. So far, I’m doing great on the food list and even discovered something new that I’m loving. I think I’ve taken lazy traveling to another level (I’m even squeezing in naps between bumming around, finding food and working). I never even left D1 (District 1) except to go on a day trip with Christine.

I had some withdrawing money issues, but was able to resolve that. First problem solved. However, it was sad to say the first thing I had here was an almond cold brew coffee and an almond croissant from Starbucks (they take credit cards and I didn’t have cash yet). BUT, the second thing I ate was pho. Then I met up with some new friends (Couchsurfers) and had a nice meal and dessert out.

Day 2 started off with a super cheap (less than $1) street banh mi (so good – I even ate the cilantro because it was much harder to take it out). I would totally get this again or EVERY morning. Then I was going to have some bun thit nuong (but was confused about how the hawker stall worked and it was completely full and I didn’t want to wait – I have more days here). I ended up having lunch for dessert (chocolate mint cake and the Marous special drink). Dinner was a bun bo hue hawker stall with SOOOO many people in line. I had to work this night, but was peckish, so ordered pho rolls for delivery. OMG, I would eat these ALL the time. How have I never known about them?

Day 3, the food hunt didn’t start until lunch time. I was supposed to have breakfast with a local, but never heard from him so breakfast plans cancelled because then I had to work. Food for today’s list include: banh cuon and bun thit nuong and maybe some goi cuon (fresh spring rolls) as well. None of this happened and I ended up getting some pizza and mozzarella caprese at Pizza 4P’s. I wanted to try the pasta, but it was just too much food for one. That night I did get some goi cuon and pho though.

Day 4 is a light work day for me, so I moved my schedule around and went on a day trip to the Mekong Delta…or that was the plan. Let’s just say that didn’t happen. I went on the hunt for a specific pho, but they ran out and closed up shop before I got there (cute old Saigon area though). I ended up at a street stall getting vegetarian pho (not planned, but was hungry). I took a rest at home while it rained and ventured out for some banh cuon and bun thit nuong (too much food for one, but I did it). I followed it up with a passion fruit panna cotta and some lemonade for dessert. That night, I met up with friends for dinner and drinks (we did Vietnamese hotpot – so good). The “laughing gas” here…the balloons are ginormous! We ended the night, obviously, with pho.

Day 5 is the day Christine comes back from South Korea! It’s also Thursday, which means I only have a few days left here. I started with a banh mi for breakfast. And then, me and Christine went to Pizza 4P’s for lunch. We were being fancy, but I also wanted her to try the pizza. And I got to try their pasta this time. Afterwards, we went to a small (in the alley) cocktail bar and followed that up with a real cocktail bar (with prices that matched).

Day 6 is Friday, which is generally a super light work day for me. It’s a day for me and Christine to hang out all day. We decided to do a half day tour up to see the Cu Chi Tunnels. After getting back to HCMC, we went to a food market (ate and drank) and were going to nap, but got stuck at Starbucks while it rained outside (I thought coffee would be a good idea). My friend came over and we got ready to go out. At night, it’s time to party….it was my last night after all. We also ate some seafood (this was on my list). I tried crab soup…and we drank some more.

Day 7 is my last day in HCMC, but my flight isn’t until late at night (9:30p-ish). So, I bummed around with Christine today before I head to the airport. We got some banh mis. We had some tea and coffee. We “slept in”…or I worked. We checked her into her hostel and then we just hung out.

So, to sum up my trip to Vietnam. It was amazing! I knew I would love the food, but I didn’t have much expectations other than that. Even though I was only in 1 city for a week, it was great. It’s a beautiful country from what little I saw. So I can only imagine how the rest of the country looks and later this year, I will get a chance to explore Hanoi and Da Nang.