Sleepless night flight
Despite going to bed early, neither of us got any sleep. I can never get to sleep if I need and try to make myself sleep. Our flight to Vietnam was at around 3:30am. Way too early for our cognitive skills to be functioning correctly. We’d packed as best we could a few hours beforehand, so all we had to do was get our night gear/toiletries packed. Once everything was packed away, we descended our final accommodation in China. We swiftly checked out and hailed a taxi. The place is still so busy, even at night.
We tell the taxi driver we want to go to the airport, and away we were! The countdown to Vietnam was on! We didn’t have to queue long once at the airport, but there were plenty of folks around. Mat and I are always in competition to see who has the lightest bag when we weigh our bags in. I think my journal is what’s making me lose every time so far. It’s pretty hefty and a bit bigger. One day, I’ll get there, I swear!
They saw we didn’t have visas in our passports, so asked to see them. Luckily, Mat whipped out the Vietnamese acceptance letters, and we were waved through. We had a short wait in the departure lounge before our flight to Vietnam. I used the last of my yuan on a small McDonalds that was next to our gate. Of course, just as I started eating, they started boarding the flight to Vietnam, so I had to scoff down my final supper.
Good morning Vietnam
Our flight to Vietnam only took a few hours, so we arrived at around half 5 in the morning. The plan in Vietnam was to fly to Ho Chi Minh City, then work our way north. Despite having an acceptance letter, we didn’t actually have a visa, we opted for the ‘visa on arrival’ option. This meant we had to go to the visa desk and hand over our documents to the chap behind the desk. However, there are no card payments, and we didn’t have cash. In light of this, Mat got escorted to an ATM outside the airport where he was able to withdraw some cash. The cost of the visa at the airport is $25, or around 500’000₫ (Vietnamese dong, best currency name ever!).
After some time, and thinking Mat may have ditched me, he returned with the money. We then gave the money straight to the guy and within a few minutes he presented us with a Vietnamese visa in our passports. There was only us and one girl waiting for visas, not busy at all. After receiving our visas, we joined the queue to go through customs. Whilst in the queue, we started talking with a Chinese girl stood behind us. She was actually at the visa desk with us. Holli, as it turns out her name was, is visiting a friend in Vietnam for their wedding. We told her all about our journey in China, and we struck up a good conversation.
After going through customs, we went to search for our bags. We found the correct luggage belt, but no luggage on it. I don’t know about Mat, but I was slightly panicked, I began thinking that our bag had been lost or gone elsewhere. We searched for the lost and found information desk, and to our relief, our bags were there. I suppose it took so long for us to go through customs, due to getting visas, they’d stowed our luggage.
Tip!
When at an airport, make sure to have all documents to hand/open on your phone. If someone asks you to show them something, you’ll immediately be flustered and it’ll take you 5 times longer to find it.
Before you head to another country, always check if you need a visa, and how much it will cost. Not every country will be as lenient as allowing you to cash out at an ATM outside the airport. In a lot of South East Asia, chiefly Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia, they accept US Dollars for visas. It’s a good idea to get this cash before going for the visa to save any hassle like this.
It's so damn hot
As soon as we exited the airport, it was like a wall of heat and humidity hit us. Despite being the early hours of the morning, the heat certainly didn’t have a lie in. At the exit of the airport, we proceeded to get a Vietnamese SIM card. Just like our flight into China (which you can check out here), I made sure to look up the different SIM card companies beforehand, check out the website here. From my research, it seemed as though Viettel was the clear winner. Unfortunately, their booth was not open this early in the morning, so we had to settle with Vietnamobile, which is the smallest.
It turns out Mat and I were staying quite close to Holli, so we took the same bus into the city. We continued talking on the bus, and exchanged WeChat info, so we could stay in contact and potentially meet up later. When the bus arrived at the depot, we went our separate ways for now. The best thing about Vietnam (at least coming from China), is that everything Google works! Woohoo, I feel like a million dollars again, I have the world at my fingertips. I was absolutely elated, and jumping for joy when I realised it worked. Though this meant I was co-navigator now I had Google Maps.
Arriving at our humble abode
After managing to not get run over in the Vietnamese chaotic traffic, we finally rolled up to our first hostel in Vietnam. We didn’t find it at first, but we spoke to a dodgy looking Vietnamese chap who pointed it out to us. Don’t judge a book! Our hostel was very modest, and the people very helpful and accommodating. The hostel we’re staying at it called Phố Nhỏ (check it out here). We chose this primarily because it was the cheapest place, less than £2 per person, per night. The dorm was our room for a couple of nights, there were 8 bunk beds in the room. There was air con which is a must in this city, otherwise you’re likely to spontaneously combust.
As we didn’t have any sleep the night before, nor on the flight to Vietnam, we decided to take a nap now. This was at 8am. I must admit, I do like the feeling of sleeping in the day sometimes. The sleep was thoroughly needed, and thoroughly enjoyed by me! Eventually we decided to make a move, and did so at around 1pm. At this time, we were going out on an exploration and reconnaissance mission; to withdraw cash, and find a laundrette.
Whilst we were getting ready, I noticed the padlock on my bag had gone. Upon inspecting my bag, I found a piece of paper from the airport authorities saying they had detected a prohibited item. Before the bag was allowed on the flight to Vietnam, they had to open my bag to confiscate the item. This item turned out to be the damned magnesium fire lighter that I got bag searched for in Shanghai. So, I was looking for a new padlock as well!
Exploring hectic Ho Chi Minh
When we exited the hostel, we searched for ‘ATM’ in Google Maps, and headed for the nearest point. This hostel was relatively central, so a lot of things were within walking distance. We found the ATM easily enough, and withdraw some dong. This was the first time I was a millionaire! At this time, the exchange rate is around £1 to 30’000VND, so it’s not difficult, but I’ll take it!
We continued down the street, keeping an eye out for shops selling locks. The majority of people in hostels/on the road are sound, but I felt a bit vulnerable without security on my backpack. There was a small shop that had loads of random stuff in it, and Mat, thankfully, thought we should take a punt on it and ask. I showed them a photo of a padlock, and they pointed them out to us. Winning! It didn’t cost much at all, so I was pretty buzzing that we’d had success already.
We carried on looking around for laundrettes having searched for it in Google Maps. All the walking and events of the day had us working up an appetite. An Indian restaurant caught our eye, so we decided to pop in and have a look. It was a refreshing change to have the owner/waitress speaking English. She was extremely friendly and upbeat, and taught us how to say ‘hello’ and ‘thank you’, which was helpful! Locals will beat google translate any day. After an enormous curry arrived, as well as copious amounts of rice, and big ass naan bread, we were stuffed to the brim!
In need of clean clothes
Having eaten our mouth-watering meal, we continued our search for a laundrette. We found one just up the street, so we took note of it and hurried back to the hostel. The plan was to gather our clothes and then drop them off at the laundrette. However, as luck would have it, we were almost at our hostel, when we saw a very small apartment with washing machines in it. This was within eye sight of our hostel. Fantastic! We didn’t have to traipse through the city with our underwear on show in plastic bags.
At the hostel, we compiled all our washing together (in 2 separate bags) and handed it over to the lady at the laundrette. She gave us a receipt, and we guarded it with our lives! It was getting on a bit now, in to the evening. I’d messaged Holli, and we planned to meet up, although she was far away at the moment. Mat and I went for a walk to a plaza that she suggested. It took a good amount of time to get to, and it was all right when we got there.
The place was pretty lit and had a lot of interesting lights/buildings, but nothing awesome. We made our way back, closer to home and waited for her response. Mat and I decided to go to a bar and get the drinks in before Holli arrived. After early, and long day, including a flight to Vietnam, it was the least we deserved!
Time to chillax
Mat and I are cider drinkers; beer wasn’t our thing. To be fair, cider isn’t really a thing in Asia, just the standard brands of Somersby for the most part. So we got a few fruity ciders going, which were nice and refreshing in the humid Ho Chi Minh. Eventually, a small Holli appeared, and we say round a table and all enjoyed drinks together. There was a live singer and guitar player who jammed to some Asian tunes, as well as English favourites.
After an hour or so, we decided to dip from this bar and move to the main road/strip. This was coincidentally where we had our curry. Every place on the road had tons of chairs set up outside, facing towards the centre of the road. I couldn’t believe how busy and hectic it what. This is what I’d think Ibiza or Malaga are like. We continued with the ciders whilst fending off the occasional beggar, and admiring the fire breathers. I did wonder if it was healthy for a boy of about 12 to be gulping down fuel and spitting fire. At the end of the day, a man’s gotta eat!
In the early hours of the morning, we bid Holli a fond farewell, and made our way back to the hostel. It was a bit of a hassle as the hostel had locked up, so we had to wake the old guy up who was sleeping downstairs. The dogs also kept barking for an age after we’d woken them up. After a long day consisting of a farewell to China, a flight to Vietnam, and plenty exploration of Ho Chi Minh, plus drinking on top, it was safe to say I was ready for this night’s sleep!
