Captain Caveman had over exerted himself with all the action from the Saigon Children’s Charity Cycling Adventures over the weekend. On Tuesday 24th November he was still in bed when I left for physio – at 1pm! I’d had no breakfast but I had made myself some rice with vegetables for lunch and had some crisps as snacks. I didn’t feel guilty about the crisps as we were trying to help support the Phong Nha Shop and Go by buying as many as possible.  
It was Matty’s last day at the Farmstay and we didn’t get to see him off – he had promised he would be back soon, though, and there was talk of him being up for Christmas. When I walked in to the clinic I spotted some weighing scales near the door and decided to get weighed. It had been 6 weeks since I had got weighed and was pleased to see I was even lighter with just 2.5kg left to go until I reached a ‘normal’ weight. The physio went well and when I got home I made myself ill by having a Snickers which no longer agreed with me. Captain Caveman had been watching Netflix most of the afternoon but then made chicken with potatoes and peppers for dinner. I decided not to bother with any alcohol and tried to drink as much water as possible.

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I read an interesting article in the news when I woke up on Wednesday 25th November; Quantas were the first airline to announce that having a Corona vaccine would be made a condition to be allowed to fly with them. I imagined most airlines would follow suit and if any of us wanted to get on a plane once the vaccine was readily available, then we would have to have it. Captain Caveman made us a fry up with the left over potatoes and peppers from last night and some bacon and mushrooms. I had 3 lots of jasmine tea and sat outside in the sun finishing off some crisps from yesterday. My eczema had flared up again and I suspected that while my stomach seemed to be handling bread now, the wheat was aggravating my skin, along with the eggs and dairy I kept trying! We had tortilla for lunch with pickles and then decided to go for a walk around the block. I took the crutches again and this time I was so pleased to get my best time yet; 12 mins to complete 500 metres – yet more progress!
At 5pm I logged in to a free Virtual Training session on Artificial Intelligence and, although I found it interesting in parts, it was a bit full on for me. For dinner Captain Caveman cooked chicken with steamed rice, sweet corn and asparagus and it was delicious. We shared some M&Ms while he watched some programme on Netflix.

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On Thursday 26th November Captain Caveman cooked breakfast (I had bacon and mushrooms) and then I did some more work on the Artificial Intelligence job as well as more training courses. I made some popcorn and had some of it instead of lunch before getting picked up at 1pm for my trip to Dong Hoi for physio. I had my usual physio session and now I make sure I spend as much of the session doing Vietnamese lessons on Duolingo, this is definitely a sign I’m progressing as I wasn’t able to concentrate on it when the therapy was really painful. Captain Caveman had come with me and Phuong in the car and they had gone off to do the weekly shopping and have coffee while I was busy.
Back home I cracked open a cold Strongbow and Captain Caveman had a Huda with our East Hill chicken combo which arrived right on time. I even saved some chicken for the next day this time and it was as tasty as always. For dessert Captain Caveman had brought us a treat of a Snickers Oats which was a nice idea but we both agreed it’s probably the worst thing you can do to a snickers – it was terrible!

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I had changed my physio schedule this week and so on Monday 23rd November I was able to stay in Phong Nha. Captain Caveman went for breakfast at the Farmstay with the cyclists who were still here after the charity event. He had volunteered to take the ones who wanted to go, to Phong Nha cave. Most of the team were leaving this afternoon and a few the next day so Captain Caveman was making the most of having some like-minded men around while he could. I had toast for breakfast and then did more of the Artificial Intelligence work that I had completed more  training on. Captain Caveman came back, having been for pizza at The Villas again, but forgot to bring me any takeaway lunch so I just had crisps. In the afternoon we went to Phong Nha Farmstay where Captain Caveman and I shared some spring rolls and I had a ginger beer. Later I had a salami pizza, Captain Caveman had pie and chips and I had one glass of wine.
Elements Collection had been having some sprucing up and the lads had replaced all the damaged lanterns then added new ones to jazz up the large car port.
It was lovely being able to go out for dinner on a Monday night. A lot of my friends and family back home (in England) were getting bored now of being unable to go out at all and I know we are so lucky to be in Vietnam right now. I had another online course booked in for 10.30pm that night and unfortunately fell asleep before it started and missed it.

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While a rather tired Captain Caveman went off for the final day of the Saigon’s Children Charity cycling event on Sunday 22nd November I had an extra hour in bed. I skipped breakfast in readiness for my lunch at The Villas where I had arranged to meet Captain Caveman. His route was in the Phong Nha Ke Bang National Park today and so the lunch stop for all the cyclists was at Victory Road Villas. Unfortunately I didn’t end up going in to Phong Nha as I was too late to get a car by the time Captain Caveman called to say he was already there. Instead I said I would go to the Farmstay later to try to get a photo of the finish. I had cheese on toast for lunch at home and it was pretty tasty.

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At Phong Nha Farmstay I’d just got myself a white wine and soda when the cyclists started to finish but, because of my leg, I wasn’t fast enough to get many finish photos. I was lucky enough to get to watch the buffalo run past and then stop so I could see their baby before they started their own race! Captain Caveman was one of the first to finish and he and some others grabbed Heart of Darkness beers from an ice bucket. It was thirsty work as they each had a few more beers while more and more cyclists finished. Captain Caveman and I went home so he could shower and change ready for the evening’s event and he got in the pool with his beer!!!

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Back at the Farmstay that night, there was a presentation and a buffet which I was lucky enough to be invited to. Captain Caveman had been instrumental in connecting the director of the Saigon Children’s Charity with his Oxalis boss and was allocated a substantial amount of money to be able to complete the building of a school in Ban Doong, with the Oxalis Foundation. I was very proud of him because this year there was so much worthy demand for the money raised because of the floods. Everyone got a medal and there was an auction for the unused cycling jerseys – I suggested next year they might auction off the dirty ones for more money if they included an autograph and a photo of the wearer! Rimaha was doing his debut solo act after the presentation. I sat with him, his family and Matty while the cyclists all sat together. Ben invited us up to get the buffet and it was amazing – I had pork, lamb, potatoes, cauliflower and broccoli cheese, then fruit and chocolate brownies! The guitar playing and singing went well for Remy and he had the same problem I used to have with the Easy Tiger microphones, they were too quiet. It was a great night and we didn’t get home until quite late! 

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Here’s Ben’s video of the final day of the cycling event, for those who haven’t seen it yet;
https://m.youtube.com/watch?feature=share&v=VJqTAAFW0T0

On Saturday 21st November it was Momma D’s 50th birthday and she was having a party at her rooftop bar from sunset that night. My breakfast was buttered toast and fruit with jasmine tea. I made some popcorn and took some with me in case I got peckish or needed something to line my stomach before the party. Phuong’s Transfers was booked to pick up Dong Hoi party guests and so Phuong had kindly arranged for me to have another driver take me to Dong Hoi for physio at 1pm.
Meanwhile Captain Caveman was on his second day of the Saigon Children’s Charity cycling event, attempting 137km of intense terrain on the most difficult day of the three.
My driver arrived early with clear instructions from Phuong as I needed to go to the ATM. The physio session went well and I was definitely improving while Kimmie, my visa agent, had made it easy for me by dropping off my passport with my new visa extension stamp in it. The driver was waiting for me and we left Dong Hoi at 5pm, ready to call to pick up Melissa, Remy and her 2 youngest kids. Captain Caveman was back, earlier and more exhausted than expected, but would manage the Phong Nha Farmstay BBQ which had been organised by Ben and Bich for all the event participants.

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It was exactly 7 calendar months since I had last been to Momma D’s rooftop bar! The celebration at the end of the enforced 2 week lockdown in Vietnam, back in April, was what had lead me to drunkenly tear ligaments in my ankle and knee. So, while it had been marvellous to be able to go out and do as we pleased for the last 7 months, I had been doing it with extremely slow recovering injuries since that night! I was very apprehensive about my return and especially concerned about the stairs – the shiny two-toned, marble, slippery, no hand-railed stairs, to enter the Thuong Hai hotel. Melissa was there to help me (luckily) and for the first time I managed to get up more than 12 steps in one go. I was knackered and it hurt a little bit but I had managed it, the way down was more daunting. We got the lift to the 6th floor and the set of stairs to the rooftop were ok for me. Momma D had spent money on decorating the place, she had free frozen shots for everyone, free peanuts on the tables (which I was glad of as I was so hungry after physio). We were greeted by Momma D in a lovely black dress, while sporting a tiara and a wand! There was a roast beef dinner option available, with a glass of wine, for 220,000vnd (£7 ish) and I decided to limit my alcohol knowing I had to navigate stairs again. I had just started tucking in to my dinner when Phuong arrived with the guests from Dong Hoi, plus some Phong Nha outskirts people. The party got quite busy, there was a birthday chair for photo opportunities and 3 cakes! So we sang happy birthday, the blowing out of candles still went ahead (Corona had not yet banned people here from blowing on cakes) and then the birthday girl made a speech. There were lots of familiar faces, some who had travelled from Hanoi, Hoi An and Danang to wish Momma D a happy 50th. I did my best to get some photos, although my phone’s camera isn’t the best and the disco lights weren’t helping.
Melissa helped me on the stairs which was great because I wouldn’t have managed it successfully by myself and I had booked Phuong to take us back to our place. Back home Captain Caveman was in a bad way, he was exhausted and already in bed but was determined to carry on the next day, the final one of the cycling event.

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Here is Ben’s video of the Saigon’s Children Charity cycling event, Day 2. While we were enjoying Momma D’s 50th birthday party I suspect there were a few cyclists reaching for the Sudocrem but feeling proud of their achievements so far!
https://m.youtube.com/watch?feature=youtu.be&v=Dgx8pB0Rw5U

It was Teacher’s Day in Vietnam on Friday 20th November where the school teachers get given gifts to show appreciation from students and parents. My favourite teacher at school had been Mr Hoy who was slightly eccentric but amazing. I still remember him letting us act out the violence of Maxwell’s Silver Hammer by The Beatles in a drama class at the age of about 10!

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My first excitement of the day came with Captain Caveman donning his lycra and his rather snug cycling jersey before going up and down the cluttered steps to find various cycling paraphernalia for day 1 of his cycling event. I was going to go to see the Saigon Children’s Charity cycling event start at the Farmstay but I couldn’t be bothered and instead wished him luck and went back to sleep. By 8.30am I was having toasted sourdough with raspberry jam and jasmine tea for breakfast. I was just about to get in the shower when I got a call from Veronika who wanted to know if I could make myself available for the morning to work at short notice as a model on a photo shoot. I barely had chance to ask the details when wine was mentioned and so I (obviously) agreed, showered and selected a brightly coloured top to wear.

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At 10am Duyet ran me up to the Farmstay in the rascal where Veronika and I were tasked with sitting by a fire, sharing a bottle of wine and some nibbles while posing for promotional photos. It was hilarious, very hot with the fire on and we were both shit-faced before midday. All while those poor cyclists were cycling to Dong Hoi and back in about 30°C, for charity! I decided to post a lycra clad Captain Caveman photo on my Facebook with a link to the charity page in an attempt to get some last minute donations and it worked – I even got a second donation from a friend who asked me to not show him any more lycra!!!

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I’d not been home long when Captain Caveman arrived back and had chance for a shower and a beer before it was time for The Villas’ pizza night. As all the cyclists were invited to all you can eat pizza we got picked up a bit later, which meant we had sobered up. At The Villas a returning Farmstay guest and amateur musician, Matty, joined us for a few drinks and a feast. The pizza, as always, was so good and most of us went with the all you can eat pizza option. Some of the cyclists ordered off the usual menu too and despite it being a busy night the staff were fantastic and I certainly left feeling full.

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Day 1 of the Saigon Children’s Charity cycle event video by Ben is here if you’ve not already seen it. This is what Captain Caveman was doing while I was having wine before lunch on my first gig as a model:

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=8Ji9w8eLfoo

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Photo Credit – Lan Thanh & Thi Kuu

Sunday was our last day on the island, Koh Yao Noi, and the weather wasn’t too good (about 24 degrees and cloudy) so we headed out on the scooter at lunch time. The best restaurant was quoted as The Rice Paddy so we decided we’d go there. The sign said it opened at 1pm but the waitress said they would open at 2pm. We hadn’t had breakfast so instead went to Kaya for Tempura, the place was really nice. Captain Caveman decided we would call in to the poshest resort hotel on the island, Six Sense, where we would splash out the 20 dollars a drink in their bar. We arrived and had to be escorted inside the resort, once they had rang ahead to check we were ok to visit. It was as I smelled lavender quite strongly that I realised there had been a communication error – Captain Caveman has said ‘bar’ the concierge had heard ‘spa’! We then had to have a golf buggy to take us from the spa to the bar which made us all laugh when the mistake was realised. The Sixth Sense Resort Bar was amazing (the spa looked pretty good too) and the list of gin cocktails was pretty impressive – we chose very carefully the two drinks costing more than the night in our cheap hotel! The buggy rides and views were very impressive and luckily the bar snacks were free as we couldn’t afford to eat there. We savoured each sip slowly while enjoying the lily ponds that surrounded us. As you can imagine the toilets were 5 star, they even had free insect repellent body lotion which I slathered myself in.
We never did make it to the Rice Paddy because we had to drop the scooter back at the hotel so we walked to La Luna for our final meal on such a beautiful island.

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Photo credit – Captain Caveman and Six Sense resort

Captain Caveman was working on Thursday 19th November and had gone to Tu Lan for the day. I was off to Dong Hoi later and could pick up my passport but I realised I hadn’t got enough money from Captain Caveman to pay for it so had to arrange for Saturday. Previously I had been using a friend’s visa agent in Hanoi and had been lucky to get 3 month extensions but now only 1 month extensions were allowed. This time I had used Kimmie Nguyen, an agent located in Dong Hoi and everything had gone according to plan. Of course, doing the visa extension with a local agent meant the cost was much more expensive than in Hanoi but overall meant I didn’t have to spend money on travel to and from Hanoi, plus accommodation while my passport was with immigration. I also needed to attend my physiotherapy and so I didn’t want to travel to Hanoi just to renew visas. I had a dragon fruit and an apple for breakfast then crisps for lunch before heading off to physio in Dong Hoi. Physio went well and I was definitely improving now, there was hope I might be able to walk without too much of a problem by Christmas. Thuy gave me a gift which came wrapped in newspaper, was hot and had salad with it and it looked big! When I got home, I opened the food package to discover a whole duck with rice and salad – and when I say whole, I mean whole duck, with the head and it’s tongue sticking out of it’s beak! Captain Caveman was on his way back but had been invited to the Farmstay for a BBQ dinner as part of the weekend’s cycling event. I had a whole duck to eat and so it was a good job I was hungry but Captain Caveman had to help me eat it! I watched repeats of The Big Bang Theory on Netflix while scoffing away and it was absolutely delicious. I saved all the bones and skin for Captain Caveman to make a stock with, it was a big duck! I finished the night off with jasmine tea and went to bed early, before Captain Caveman got home. The weekend was going to be exciting – Saigon Children’s Charity were in Phong Nha!

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It was a lovely sunny day on Wednesday 18th November and I was planning on going for a walk later. Captain Caveman was already booked in for a medical in Dong Hoi and had gone with the other cavers. I did more online work where I was viewing photos for Artificial Intelligent use – it was interesting but not that well paid just yet. I also applied for roles which better suited my past experience in Insurance with a view to working online until it was safe to travel to the UK. I ate a lot of fruit and some toast for breakfast and lunch and then, when Captain Caveman eventually returned, he had been for pizza at The Villas but not thought to ask if I would like a takeaway bringing back. He’d passed the medical then went shopping, as we were running low on provisions, before lunching at leisure in Phong Nha. It was 4pm by the time we got to go for a walk and this time I decided to do it on crutches, just to see if it was any better or quicker. Ruth, the zoom physio, had mentioned walking poles but Captain Caveman had forgot to pick them up from Phong Nha so this would be similar. I wore my trainers for the first time (I’d not been able to get them on before) and they felt so comfortable on the bottom of my feet. I was actually slower than the last walk but I did feel less pain and I could have walked further, which was a good sign.

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For dinner we went to the Farmstay and I had a treat with the beef in bamboo, steamed rice, vegetables and a ginger beer. Captain Caveman had pie, chips, beans and gravy and Veronika just had a pie. After food Captain Caveman went over to introduce himself to some of the cyclists who were arriving for the Saigon Children’s Charity cycling event this weekend. Captain Caveman had entered for the first time this year (usually we aren’t in Vietnam when this event takes place) and he was super excited. I caught up with some blogging and had a look at the new rooms. While the place was quiet I took photos of the place, it was hard to imagine that only a month ago it was completely flooded and covered in mud, the staff had done an amazing job to get it back to normal. It was getting late so I went to intercept Captain Caveman from getting another beer with his new cycling friends only to find I was introduced to the group, passed a Strongbow cider and was chatting away to some really nice people from all different places.

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Photo credit – Ben & Bich at Phong Nha Farmstay

I had buttered toast again for breakfast on Tuesday 17th November and I offered to make Captain Caveman something different for dinner again. We had been trying for weeks to find mince to make a Bolognese but it just isn’t available anywhere so I thought of a veggie alternative made with lentils. He declined my kind offer and I said he could make dinner instead. It was hot outside and the cleaners were in giving the place a full going over while I got on with languages and some blogging. For lunch I had a banana and an apple, then I got picked up at 1pm by Phuong’s Transfers (as usual) for my trip to physio in Dong Hoi. The physio went well and the trapped nerve in my lower leg was getting slightly more bearable when they pressed it, but only just.
When I got home I was greeted by a bottle of chilled bubbles and a very tasty chicken dinner, made by a badly barbered Captain Caveman. For dessert we had rice pudding again, it was becoming a favourite, even though the milk definitely made my stomach bad.

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The week started well and on Monday 16th November I got confirmation that my visa had been extended until the 9th December, which I was grateful for even though it would cost quite a bit. Phuong was going to his brother-in-law’s wedding today and wouldn’t be available so I booked Le to go to Dong Hoi for physio. Tatas was off to the dentist in Dong Hoi and so we arranged for her to get picked up first. I’d not seen her for such a long time and so it was good to catch up on the way. When I got to physio it was still lunch time as I was 20 minutes early so I just waited, while doing some Vietnamese on Duolingo. Le picked me back up at 4pm as we had to get back to Phong Nha where Captain Caveman was taking me out for dinner. Veronika joined us for food at Phong Nha Farmstay where there was some excitement – the menu was being put on a QR code which you scan with your phone, instead of being passed a menu to read. Veronika ordered the Banh Xeo (a crispy pancake) with seafood and I took a video of how it should be eaten, the two of us had a pizza each and we all shared a bottle of red wine. I managed to eat all of my pulled pork and pesto pizza, the first one I’ve had at the Farmstay and I really enjoyed it but was so full!

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Photos at Phong Nha Farmstay with Captain Caveman, Bich & Veronika

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Captain Caveman was off on a one day kayaking trip in the jungle with work on Friday 13th November. He left before I even got out of bed and we arranged to meet at The Villas at 6pm. I had sourdough with butter for breakfast and then decided not to eat anything else until I was at The Villas later because it was the infamous Pizza Night. I posted a request on a couple of Facebook groups to say I was on the look out for a Honda Cub 50cc and to let me know if any were for sale – until I was able to ride it, Captain Caveman would use it. Phuong picked me up for my usual trip to Dong Hoi for more physio. My session went well and I had 2 therapists working on my leg at once.  Afterwards I got dropped off at Victory Road Villas in readiness for the 6pm start of the all you can eat pizza night. Captain Caveman and his colleagues arrived and were pleased to have spotted monkeys on their trip. Everyone sat at the big table outside, the weather was still warm, and Manu and the staff kept the pizzas coming, I also had a couple of margaritas which were excellent. It was a good night and we were very full. Captain Caveman and I went back on his motorbike and it was a bit colder than usual, before bed we had a whisky nightcap.

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Typhoon Vamco was on its way to central Vietnam and on Saturday 14th November we wouldn’t have known it – it was definitely the calm before the storm. The weather seemed absolutely fine, the new car port metal structure was finished and the staff were working on tidying up the place. The storm was now a level 14 out of 17 and was due to directly hit Danang at 4pm. Curfews were in place in that area, flights were cancelled, beaches closed. I made the mistake of eating both egg and yoghurt for breakfast, both of which were making me have a dodgy stomach, so I didn’t know which was the offensive food. I had tortilla and then yoghurt with frozen berries which took a while to defrost. For lunch I had more tortilla and some bread but was fine so I deduced yoghurt was the culprit. In the afternoon we went for a walk round the block and I wrapped up warm, even wearing socks with my porter sandals, like the cavers do. I managed to complete the same 500m walk in only 15 minutes this time and so was 7 minutes quicker than my first attempt at it. On the way we noticed that Duyet and Co were propping up trees and tying them down in readiness for any destruction. When we got back we shared some peanut  M&Ms and Veronika had returned from a very stormy Hue – she couldn’t believe how calm it was here, compared. It was pork stew for dinner, after sharing a bottle of fizz.

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We woke up to it raining on Sunday 15th November but there were no signs of the typhoon here in Phong Nha yet. Further south in Hue, Hoi An and Danang they were already suffering the beating of the winds and heavy rains and a few people we knew had been evacuated to hotels. During the morning the rain got a little heavier and the paddy field opposite Elements Collection was definitely starting to fill up. I had tea and toast for breakfast and then planned to have a cosy day indoors with a book to read, but I never got round to that. For lunch Captain Caveman warmed us up some left over stew which we had with cheese on toast – mine was Red Leicester which is one of my favourite cheeses to have on toast. By 1.30pm the storm was here and it was quite powerful. The precarious tree out the back was ready to fall and I kept watching it, I went away leaving Captain Caveman to get a video of it if it fell and when I came back he hadn’t even noticed it fall onto our phone wire – he was on his phone and missed it. I took various videos of what was now a heavy storm and it really did go deadly still when the eye of it was over us, which was very strange. One of the baby geckos was on the balcony looking relieved to be alive and we tried to encourage it in, I named him Nâu (meaning Brown).
We had fried rice for dinner and by 7pm the storm had passed and we were back to normal.

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