Phong Nha – 15th April

Thursday 15th April had some excitement afoot; my leg was making slow progress but I was conscious that I needed to try to get out more to places I have been struggling to visit for the last year because of my injury. If I was going to make it on a trip away any time soon I needed to get used to walking where it is unpredictable and more difficult than the places I know well. I just had an apple for breakfast because we were off out for lunch as well as meeting Tatas later at The Villas for holiday planning, once she got out of her Tu Lan 4 day tour. On the way downstairs I tried for the first time putting one foot in front of the other to go down each step and I managed it (twice) for the first time since my injury. Captain Caveman and I went by motorbike to East Hill for the BBQ chicken and sticky rice for the first time in over 1 year. We had ordered delivery from there but had not been to visit because of my bad leg and the steep uneven steps they have. I managed the steps up ok, with a bit of help from Captain Caveman and we had a whole chicken to ourselves which was so gorgeous and, as long as I could get back down the steps, we said we would visit again soon. I did need help with the way down, especially where the handrail disappears but I made it – I wouldn’t have made it in the dark though.

Afterwards we went back to the Glass House so that I could collect a few things and Captain Caveman could sort out the allocation of Son Doong tips then get his washing repacked for his next trip tomorrow. Our next stop was at The Villas to wait for Tatas before Captain Caveman went to his briefing at 6pm but by 5.30pm I’d not heard from her and she hadn’t arrived. Captain Caveman ordered a pizza and I had 2 pieces of it and a lemon juice, then some red wine. Tatas finally messaged to say she was at Chay Lap with her customers so wouldn’t be coming out. I sat and caught up on blogging with wine while Captain Caveman went to his briefing then I had a chicken and bacon sandwich which I took most of the bread off and only managed a few chips before I had a bad stomach. Since the gastroenteritis my gluten intolerance was back with a vengeance, it appeared and we even had to do an emergency stop on the way home because of my stomach. Captain Caveman was not impressed and insisted I needed to give up gluten and dairy completely now and made me promise to. In the news there were reports that Asia was suffering from not having enough room for Corona patients in hospitals, after a record amount of cases and new lockdowns imposed, more info here:
https://tuoitrenews.vn/news/international/20210415/hospitals-run-short-of-beds-as-asia-s-covid19-cases-surge/60383.html
Before I went to bed I noticed that the bit of dust I had got in my eye on the way home had made it bloodshot and a bit sore, it even made it difficult for me to get to sleep.

Phong Nha – 14th April

Captain Caveman brought me my breakfast in bed on Wednesday 14th April; a banana, some strawberries and some grapes. He had a day off and we had been awake since the 5.30am tannoy which had been a bit quieter today. I’d hoped we might be spending the day doing something different but Captain Caveman had already arranged to go to Phong Nha and then off on a rented motorbike for a reccy of a cycling route for a race coming up this summer. I was hoping for an extra nap when the housekeeping staff knocked on the door to come in to clean. I decided to sit outside and admire the garden while catching up on the To Do List. Mr Ky, the dog, was off his lead and wandering around so he came to say hello when I called him. For lunch I had an apple, a small piece of crust from the fresh bread and the last of my vegan meals which was braised root vegetables. When Captain Caveman returned I made him an omelette, it’s the only thing I’m good at cooking but won’t eat and we decided to open a bottle of Lindemans sparkling white wine. While he ate the sour cream Pringles, I had some cashew nuts which we bought at Funny Monkeys. For dinner Captain Caveman made us a tasty pasta dish with salami, mushrooms and peppers and we had a relaxing evening. Even though I had eaten gluten I was not ill from the pasta, which was good news!

Phong Nha – 13th April

I’d already pre-ordered some fresh bread from the Lake House for Captain Caveman to pick up on Tuesday 13th April. Veronika had also ordered sourdough for all of us via Bich and so we were about to be rather full of bread in our house, just as my gluten intolerance returns! The tannoys this morning were quiet with only a short announcement which was a relief for anyone with a hangover. Captain Caveman went out for the shuttle service but it was late by 15 minutes and he then didn’t even go to The Villas for his breakfast, just to pick up his bicycle and call in to his work. I had a banana, grapes and strawberries for my breakfast at home and then plonked myself on the sun-lounger by the pool for the rest of the day. I had more Earth Cafe food for lunch with a delightful vegan spaghetti which I really enjoyed and could easily have eaten that dish again.

When Captain Caveman returned I suggested we have a walk to the Farmstay as a bit of exercise for my leg and we took my walking poles. The walk took us 32 minutes and 45 seconds which is still slow but Captain Caveman took videos of my walking and it looked to have improved.

Captain Caveman’s video of me walking to Phong Nha Farmstay

We sat with Veronika, Karl and Sue and I had a couple of ciders, Andrew and his 1 year old were in the pool but joined us and then Bich joined us too. For dinner it was shepherd’s pie night with a new deal which is 300,000vnd (£9.30) and includes a drink and a dessert, we decided we would have something different today. Captain Caveman had meat pie, chips, veg and gravy which is 120,000vnd (£3.72) and I had duck a l’orange for 160,000vnd (£4.96) and both are great meals. When we got home, though, I wasn’t too well again and had a bad stomach, I was beginning to wonder if I was just allergic to eating out! It was just typical that I would be ill again when Captain Caveman had the day off tomorrow too.

Phong Nha – 12th April

I was awake at 3.30am on Monday 12th April with terrible indigestion resulting in me having to get out the Maalox. The tannoy was on form at 5.30am for an hour, so by 7am I had done quite a bit of blogging, writing and languages. I had a banana and some strawberries for breakfast and then had another vegan lunch from my Earth Cafe takeaways. This time I tried something which was a first for me; tempeh with green banana and mushrooms. The taste was very different but I really enjoyed it and found it very filling with a piece of fresh baguette. Phuong picked me up at 2.30pm for my ride to The Villas to celebrate a whole week of no alcohol and a couple of days of eating vegan food. Captain Caveman would meet me there after he got out of his Son Doing trip. Even with the shopping trip spending I had been very frugal with the housekeeping this weekend and so I still had 1,000,000vnd (£30) left to splash out on a bottle of wine, even though it was technically Margarita Monday. I decided to have a bottle of white wine with an ice bucket, some soda water and a bowl of peanuts. Captain Caveman arrived, having had an excellent tour group and was drinking the wine a bit too fast. We had a margarita and then the car for Chay Lap arrived. It wasn’t my intention to join Captain Caveman, Dat and Coc for their gala dinner but Nguyen, the head guy of the fertilizer company, invited me and insisted I join for the fish and goat BBQ. Before we sat down for dinner we had a few margaritas at the bar and then we all sat in the garden at a special table. The men from the tour made various speeches about how much they enjoyed their trip and how appreciative of Captain Caveman’s input they were, which was lovely to hear. Captain Caveman did a speech to thank them all and then the lads got even more on the booze than they already were. We ate soup, morning glory with garlic, roast pork, rice crackers with snails, river fish and goat. Coc had made an amazing video of their tour which we watched and applauded at the end. Captain Caveman was drunk and when the group CEO asked for Captain Caveman and I to do a duet love song he desperately needed me to help him out. I’d had 2 margaritas by this time so I told Dat and Coc to load us up Lose Yourself by Eminem and, if I do say so myself, I took one for the team! The group absolutely loved it and then insisted we all sing more, most of the group were great singers and a lot of songs were sang, in the end Captain Caveman had to sing Country Roads, which was then the cue for me to take him home. It had been a great night with the men from Ca Mau, and we now had another place that we wanted to visit when we get chance for a trip down south again. When we got home I set the alarm to make sure Captain Caveman got up in time the next day.

Phong Nha – 11th April

I continued my vegan weekend with the delicious pumpkin soup from Earth Cafe for breakfast on Sunday 11th April, it was raining heavily but at least a bit cooler. Tatas popped over and we started discussing a trip to Danang as Hamish and Ania had invited us both to visit. Hamish had also sent us a few recommendations of where we could stay, including the Bridges Danang Boutique Hotel where they, and Mik, were staying and it looked great value for money. Because my stomach was doing so much better with the vegan diet I decided to pass on the Sunday Dinner at the Phong Nha Farmstay. I did try to book the free shuttle to The Villas to meet Captain Caveman tomorrow afternoon, possibly to enjoy Margarita Monday, but there was only one available at 8.30am which was a bit early for me to start on the booze after a week off it. Instead I booked Phuong at 2.30pm at a cost of 150,000vnd one way so that I could perhaps indulge in a beverage with my man.
I had grapes, a banana and the vegan fried spring rolls from Earth Cafe for lunch and I was feeling really healthy. For dinner I had the pineapple fried rice from Earth Cafe in Dong Hoi and a few strawberries as a treat – they were so good!
After doing a bit of writing and languages I was a bit peckish and decided to try the original flavoured Pringles. I don’t normally eat them because I’m not keen and now I know why. I was so ill after scoffing them, within a few minutes and when I checked how many calories they contain it was ridiculous and I will never eat them again! I lay in bed and finished watching series 4 of Breaking Bad before falling asleep.

Dong Hoi and Phong Nha – 10th April

Phuong, of Phuong’s Transfers, picked me up at 7am on Saturday 10th April for our shopping trip in Dong Hoi. I was feeling much better but didn’t eat anything before the drive there (just in case) and our first stop was to buy Captain Caveman 2 new pairs of porter sandals for work. After being ill I desperately needed more basic provisions and some healthy food so I was looking forward to my trip with Phuong by myself. Our first stop was Co-op Mart which was empty and it took me only 20 minutes to get as much as I could from the list before coming out to a heavy rain shower. We loaded in the bags and went to out next shop, Tuan Gourmet Viet, the security guard helped me by sharing his umbrella and walking with me on the wet slippy marble as he could see my compression bandage on my knee. Since the last time I’d been in this shop the amount of western products had reduced so I didn’t buy as many things as I thought I might but I splashed out on a punnet of strawberries! Our final supermarket visit was the Vin Mart and I go here to get the remaining things the other shops don’t stock but it is generally a bit more expensive than the Co-op. Before 9.30am I had got everything except for popcorn from my list and we were on our way to Earth Cafe for breakfast. Phuong had already nipped off for some eel for his breakfast but did come to join me for a coffee. Mo, the owner, was busy making sure my order was completed because I had decided to order a few dishes from her takeaway menu to help me get back to full health, as well as having the udon soup at the cafe. It had been a very successful shopping trip where I had learned I could be quicker than Captain Caveman and that although the Vincom shopping centre didn’t open until 9am the VinMart supermarket opens at 8am and there is a lift to the first floor. The rain continued to be pretty heavy on the drive back to Phong Nha and when we got back Phuong brought a lot of the shopping in for me.

For my lunch I ate the mushroom vegan burger from Earth cafe, still warm, and it was really good. Then I had a rest before doing a few tasks and eating some peanut M&Ms. For dinner I had more of my Earth cafe takeaway meals with the vegan fresh spring rolls and peanut sauce which are one of my favourites. I’d really enjoyed today, I was out of the woods with being sickly and had a fridge full of lovely, healthy food.

As I had been to 3 supermarkets and bought quite a lot of shopping, I decided to compile a list of my items and the costs. I also made a list of all the takeaway vegan meals I bought at Earth Cafe and their prices too. For info 32,000vnd is equal to £1 and all prices are in Vietnamese Dong.

Co-op Mart
• Carrots 8,352
• Washing up liquid 23,000
• Pringles (sour cream) 29,000
• Pringles (original) 32,200
• Laughing Cow cheese triangles 32,600
• Peanut M&Ms 39,600
• Dragon Fruit 39,859
• Sweetcorn 40,200

Tuan Viet Gourmet
• Tissues 15,000
• Diet coke 18,000
• Gluten free stock cubes 22,000
• Coconut cream 26,000
• Pasta 37,000
• Mushroom pasta sauce 65,000
• Butter 73,000
• Gluten free crackers 105,000
• Gluten free crispbread 105,000
• Strawberries 160,000

VinMart
• Notebook 8,900
• Baguette 9,000
• Bananas 21,800
• Crisps 22,000
• Mushrooms 35,500
• Salami 38,300
• Red peppers 45,000
• Mouthwash 58,500
• Grapes 68,000
• Apples 102,900

Earth Cafe
• Vegan tofu rolls 35,000
• Fried spring rolls 40,000
• Pumpkin soup 45,000
• Pineapple fried rice 45,000
• Vegan spaghetti 50,000
• Braised root vegetables 50,000
• Vegan Burger 50,000
• Tempeh and green banana 70,000

There were no dates or alcohol bought this week and so I got quite a few things, including the transport, for around 2.5 million vnd (£80). Except for the apples, grapes and strawberries (always expensive in Vietnam) was there anything which surprised you?

Phong Nha – 9th April

There’s nothing like a bout of stomach flu to make your clothes feel baggy! On Friday 9th April I was already awake early, before the time Captain Caveman would have left for Son Doong and I hadn’t spoken to him yet. He’d been too busy and so he called me from the bus on his way and I didn’t get to chat too much. I was starting to recover from the sickness so I had decided I would book Phuong for a shopping trip tomorrow and arranged for a 9am pick up. My shopping list was quite long because we’d not been on a shopping trip in ages so I was looking forward to getting stocked up. I decided I was feeling well enough to venture to the Phong Nha Farmstay for an early lunch and went to sit outside, to admire the plants, while I waited for Duyet with the van. For lunch I ordered a mushroom soup and some veggie spring rolls which were nice, then went home for a bit of a lay down. In the afternoon I ate some plain crisps and felt a lot better but decided not to go to pizza night in case I was contagious still. There was mention on the Farmstay noticeboard of a free shuttle service between Farmstay and The Villas which I was pleased about, so I messaged to book in for Monday, in case I fancied a Margarita!
I contacted Mo, the owner of Earth cafe in Dong Hoi, to preorder several takeaway dishes for me – after being poorly I fancied getting some healthy food in and wanted to try her new takeaway menu.
For dinner I toasted some sourdough then added a tomato sauce base, salami and cheese to make a very small pizza style meal – I was definitely feeling much better. Phuong messaged to ask could we move the shopping trip to 7am the next day to accommodate an airport pickup so I agreed and set the alarm for 6.15am.

Phong Nha – the 1st week of April

I try to keep focused on the fact that I’m pretty much living an amazing life out here in Phong Nha, Vietnam, but every now and then there are things that crop up to make me a bit sad that I can’t visit England or Turkey. Tuesday 6th April was one of those days where I had a little wobble because, written in my diary on today’s page were my flight details. At 7am I should have been on a flight from Manchester to Dalaman in Turkey for a few weeks holiday in between the two weddings of friends, both of which had obviously been postponed due to the Corona situation. Of course my EasyJet flight had been cancelled and I still needed to choose another date to move it to, so I randomly picked 29th September. There was hope that, because of the vaccines in the UK, the flight could go ahead but, if I’m honest, I wasn’t sure that Vietnam would have vaccinated the 96.5 million people here by then, but we could hope that maybe I would get back to the UK before then!
I had leftover pizza for breakfast (with no ill effects) early when the tannoy went off, did some writing, watched more of The Serpent then went back to sleep. For lunch I just had bread and butter and my stomach was fine still and as it was Tuesday it would normally be Shepherd’s Pie night at the Farmstay but I decided to get some chicken out of the freezer and cook something for dinner instead of going out. I had chicken with steamed rice and sweet corn and with the left over cooked chicken I made masaman curry to eat, refrigerate and freeze, using the paste Quyen had brought us from Saigon. It was a quiet, easy going day which ended with me finishing The Serpent on Netflix which, if you like serial killer documentaries, is pretty good.

On Wednesday 7th April I did not expect to spend my day as I did; at 4.30am I woke up feeling as sick as a dog, was in the bathroom for a whole hour and felt terrible. My previous gluten intolerance reactions usually happened within 10 minutes of consumption but could it have changed to me reacting more than a day later? I doubted it and was convinced I had food poisoning. By 5.30am the tannoy was going and I felt hungry so I decided to have a small amount of the chicken masaman for breakfast. That was a big mistake as it made me worse and I spent the rest of the day mainly in the bathroom, sweating in bed or sleeping. I managed to drink water, sometimes with rehydration tablets, jasmine tea and I forced some gluten free pasta with the tiniest bit of tomato sauce down in small portions for lunch and dinner.
I’d not felt this bad since I had gastroenteritis in Goa years ago – oh no, I had caught the stomach flu which some others in the area had suffered with!

Thursday 8th April wasn’t a good day for me, having hardly had any sleep and being quite ill. The loudness of the tannoy woke me up at 5.30am but I was determined not to get up as I needed some more rest. My temperature was high but I could now keep fluids in a bit better than yesterday. The thought of eating anything, especially meat, made me feel nauseous and I was very weak and exhausted. I thought that having some peanut butter would be good for energy but when I opened it and saw how much peanut oil had settled, that also made me feel sick. I went back to bed with the Aircon and the fan on, checked Facebook, watched some Big Bang Theory and then fell asleep. Captain Caveman was half way through his 8 days in the Big Cave but called with some good news, he would do his briefing tonight then come home to see me, spend the night at home then go back in tomorrow. I really wanted him to come home, of course, but I was sensible and told him he’d be better to stay at the Glass House tonight because if I was contagious and he, or any of his customers, got what I’d had it would ruin the trip for everyone! Despite me having zero appetite I decided to force myself to eat a small portion of masaman curry with steamed rice and sweetcorn for my dinner. It felt fine eating it, the food was tasty and all was good until about 1 hour after I’d eaten it – I was back to feeling horrendous again!

Phong Nha – 5th April

Hamish and Ania had decided to fly to Saigon on Monday 5th April for a few days before continuing their travels to other places in Vietnam. Captain Caveman said his goodbyes and went off to his Son Doong trip which would run consecutively with his next trip and so I wouldn’t see him until the 12th or 13th April – we were glad that he still had plenty of work in the current climate. Last night a suggestion of lunch at the Lake House had been made but in our hungover state we settled for the Farmstay and I got a lift with Duyet at 10am to join Hamish, Ania and Tatas who had already had their breakfast. I had an orange juice and a pho bo then felt loads better so decided to stay for lunch. Tatas had her Son Doong briefing that night so she went home to pack and we ate our last meal together, until we meet again. I had the fresh prawn and pork spring rolls with a can of full fat coke while Hamish had sausage, chips & curry sauce and Ania had the beef in bamboo (one of my favourites). I was meant to have an online meeting which I had already moved and so I went back home to accommodate that, then ended up missing it.
Hamish and Ania’s transport to the airport was coming at 6pm so I went back up to the Farmstay to see them off. I said goodbye to our friends who gave me some Polish vodka to look after until they came back and a yoga mat for Tatas. I had a cider and talk to Karl and Sue and Trang and Andrew. I decided to order a pizza to take home and was pleased to not have any reaction to the gluten or the cheese, when in the past I have reacted more to the pizzas at the Farmstay compared to the ones at The Villas. Margarita Mondays looked to have slowed off lately, so I didn’t attempt to go this week. I had an early night with a lot less alcohol to start this week, I was looking forward to a quiet few days but as you probably know, Phong Nha can be somewhat unpredictable!

Phong Nha – 18th April 2020

There was some good news on Saturday 18th April; the bottle of wine from Phong Nha Underground had made it home with me last night unscathed and I had no idea how. I, on the other hand, had not escaped without injury. Captain Caveman had to help me to the toilet because I couldn’t put my right foot down and my arse was killing me! My knee hurt and my ankle was a bit swollen and I had puffy toes. Captain Caveman strapped me up, gave me ice and a leg rest and went off in search of painkillers and compression sock things. I could hardly remember what had happened until I tried to sit up and the pain in my bum bone was quite bad, I even had to have breakfast in bed, on a tray.
There’s always someone worse off and so I still checked the Corona virus updates and checked in on my app to say I was healthy! Vietnam had 21 more recoveries which was great news and meant 73% had recovered already. The UK recoveries now were showing as ‘no data’ but there had been 14,500 deaths and 108,000 cases with lockdown looking to continue for a few more weeks. I’m sure I don’t need to tell you that we had left over Indian food for lunch and then we decided to watch a film. Captain Caveman put on The Outsider but I fell asleep and missed what it was about. It was so quiet in town that a goat had wandered up to the door of Namaste and Raj had filmed it and sent it to us – so funny.
In the evening we ordered our food from Phong Nha Underground and watched another film, Lost Girls, which wasn’t bad. Captain Caveman was back on the beer but for me I think alcohol would have to wait a while!! Well, at least until I could navigate to the toilet (the one which isn’t broken) and get a shower unaided!

Saigon and Phong Nha – 4th April

Having had a lovely deep sleep, Captain Caveman was awake before 6am on Sunday 4th April. I was still incredibly tired, having had very little sleep and took a few minutes to understand when Captain Caveman said our flight was delayed. We were booked on the 12.20 from Saigon back to Dong Hoi which was now due to leave at 14.30, giving us an extra 2 hours. We’d already arranged to meet friends at Lubu for breakfast at 8.30am so we stuck with the original plan and it just meant we could take it more leisurely. A couple of friends had to cancel but still on the guest list were Keith from Grimsby (who got back from Phong Nha late last night) and Andrea, who also brought her friend, Anne. We had packed, checked out of the lovely Common Inn and got a Grab taxi to the restaurant, where it turned out we had been before for tapas a few years ago. The food was really great and I had the best pot of earl grey tea and a bacon sandwich I’d had in a long time. At Lubu there is a free Bloody Mary included in the breakfast which the others all had and Captain Caveman even had a second breakfast of a buttered crumpet and I tasted it, I loved it. I’d been eating gluten all weekend without any problem but for some reason both Captain Caveman and I had bad stomachs after breakfast and he had to pop to a chemist for imodium.

We said our goodbyes to everyone after a lovely breakfast and got our Grab taxi to the airport. Just as we were about to board the plane a massive downpour came, I heard it on the roof first but Captain Caveman reckoned it was the sound of the planes! Typically, I hadn’t brought a rain jacket so it was a good job there was a bus to the plane, there was a lot of pushing and shoving up the steps and I eventually got sat down on the back seat.

Captain Caveman’s video of the rain at Saigon airport

Our original flight from Saigon on Sunday 4th April should have been landing in Dong Hoi just before 2pm. I had arranged for Kimmie, my visa agent, to meet me as we landed and so had to reschedule her as well as Captain Caveman having to change our pick up car. Luckily our vehicle was picking up some Oxalis customers who were also on our flight and so we were able to get the same car (for free) and get Captain Caveman back in time for his Son Doong briefing at Oxalis Home. It did mean that I had to get dropped off along the way, instead of going home to shower or change and, as luck would have it, another night out was on the horizon. It was Hamish and Ania’s last night in Phong Nha, they had decided to leave earlier than intended so we had picked the ideal spot for a bit of a leaving do – at the Lake House.
I had thought I’d be late but it turned out I was early and ordered some fried rice to line my stomach with before the shenanigans started. Tham and Tony, the Lake House owners, joined me for a chat and it was reassuring to hear that Captain Caveman and I may have been out of town but we were still being talked about! Tham insisted that we had moved in with Shannon, Stu and the kids and would not have it that we hadn’t – the guy who told her is apparently more reliable than one of the people involved. Tony and I found it funny and were still laughing as Hamish and Ania arrived. They had been on a lively one the previous night and were feeling a bit delicate so we all had to have a soft drink while we waited for Tatas to arrive. She arrived, wearing a really nice dress and ready to party – we were both going to miss Hamish and Ania! They were an entertaining couple that was for sure and we chatted about meeting up again in the not so distant future. Tatas and I got a bottle of the cheapest (but still very good) red wine, the others went for a nice bottle of white wine. Everyone but Tatas decided to have the Australian beef steak and, for 275,000vnd (£8.53), it is fantastic. Tequilas were requested and poor Tham brought 2 in martini glasses thinking that’s how much you get in a shot! In the end Tony took over and just brought the whole bottle out. It was a brilliant night and obviously got a bit messy. We had to wake the security guard up to sort out a taxi home and the waitress took Tatas home, we had had such a laugh and I had limited myself to the small shot glass for my Tequila, in case I’d had to walk home! When we came to pay Tony insisted he pay for the tequilas and would not let us leave until we finished the whole bottle, even though he had an interview tomorrow and his wife had long since gone to bed! Captain Caveman was pleased I was getting a taxi home as it meant he could go straight home after his briefing and have a relatively early night before his next trip to Son Doong tomorrow. Because he had cycled Bluey to the Glass House on the morning of the 1st April, she was still there and so he rode her home that night, thinking I would need her while he was gone for my exercise routine.

Saigon – 3rd April

Captain Caveman was awake at 5am on Saturday 3rd April, slipping on his cycling attire and getting excited for his forthcoming participation in a 66km cycle route in the Tri An reservoir area. I had the day to myself and had arranged to meet a few different friends who I was trying to coordinate in to the one meeting place but failing.
In the Vietnamese news it was officially announced that there would be flights from Vietnam to Thailand, South Korea, Japan and Taiwan starting this week, but it was still only possible to book the return journey if you are Vietnamese or have a company sponsor as an expert, not to be used for tourism. More info here:
https://vietnaminsider.vn/its-official-vietnam-resumes-international-commercial-flights-tickets-now-available/
Thao Dien is District 2 but the people I wanted to meet up with were in either District 1 or 7 and they were a bit reluctant/didn’t have time to come to where I was. I really liked the area we were staying in and had a list of places I wanted to eat at so my first meal of the day was at Marcel Gourmet Burger for lunch. It was a very short walk from Common Inn but because the last time I had gone past it, it had felt further away, I actually missed the turning and walked twice as far. When I arrived it was fairly busy so I sat on another high chair in the corner and ordered the blue cheese burger with French fries and homemade lemonade. As my food arrived an English bloke had started having a work related telephone meeting and he obviously wanted the whole room to hear how important he thought he was – I hate people who have to work loudly in cafes, what is wrong with people!? It went on for the whole hour I was there but I still enjoyed my food and would definitely eat there again. After a very filling meal I walked back in the hottest part of the day for a lay down and to watch The Serpent on Netflix.

I missed an invite, in the afternoon, to a cafe called Kashew which has vegan cheese so that went on my list to try next time but I did bump into one of Captain Caveman’s cycling mates in Bia Craft. I had regretted not trying the cherry beer yesterday so had stopped off for a couple where Neil and his mate Mark were drinking. After my beer I walked to try another recommended place called Union Jack’s, with the aim of Captain Caveman joining me for their famous fish and chips. He had finished the cycling, had a few beers and was now on his way back to the hotel for a shower so I told him to hurry up or we would be late to the gig later. I ordered a Bramble (cocktail) and was surprised at how good it was, by the time Captain Caveman arrived he was late and very sunburned and merry. We ordered cod and chips straight away, him with mushy peas and tatar sauce, me with a slice of bread and butter and I had another Bramble. They didn’t have non-brew condiment vinegar so I had the malt vinegar and I have to say the fish was as good as a lot I’ve had in the UK, the chips were good but less greasy than in England. I had to race mine down, Captain Caveman was already good at eating fast and then we got a Grab taxi to the venue so we could buy a ticket and reserve the seats.

At Cafe de Stagiaires we were a bit early to get to the rooftop but we only had to wait a few minutes, pay the ticket price of 200,000vnd (£6.20) each and navigate the oddly structured staircase – I couldn’t have walked up them a few months ago! The bar situation was a bit complicated and resulted in a long wait with staff stood about but unable to serve because of the ticket and payment process but eventually we got beers, only to realise there was table service from a bloke who looked more like a guest than staff (it’s a sign I’m getting old). Chris and Huong arrived and we had a great night, the music was really good and we were giving the ball a right old kick until Chris noticed Captain Caveman having a crafty nap! Because of the boozing and bicycling it looked like Captain Caveman was done in and so we waited until the grand finale of the band before planning our exit. Chris and I recognised the last song which all the Vietnamese people seemed to enjoy, only to realise it was a version of ‘Itsy Bitsy Teeny Weeny Yellow Polka Dot Bikini’ – hilarious! I reluctantly said goodbye, with promises to come back again for more fun nights out and I managed to navigate the unusual staircase by holding on to Captain Caveman, thus holding up a big load of people behind us. I really liked the venue and would definitely come back again, I even decided we should walk it back to the hotel rather than mess about with a Grab but we got a little bit lost. Before I even got to bed Captain Caveman was fast asleep, fully clothed and snoring and I could not get him to move or stop snoring – I was in for a sleepless night!

**Photo credit – Captain Caveman and photographer at Cafe de Stagiaires**

Saigon – 2nd April

After a big week of eating and drinking at the end of March, beginning of April, I was astounded to find I had lost weight when I stepped on the hotel room scales on Friday 2nd April. I had lost 3kg since I had last got weighed (2 weeks ago) and I was so excited about that. Captain Caveman had gone to meet a friend for coffee so I had a chance to relax but I made a mental note to get him to check the scales were working by seeing if he weighed any differently to normal (he checked later and the scales were probably correct). The Amanaki Saigon Boutique Hotel, in District 1, was very nice with lovely staff, a great shower and environmentally friendly products so it was a pity that we were only staying there 1 night really, we checked out at noon and got a Grab taxi to our lunch stop.

I’d suggested we could have a curry for lunch (we had eaten so much yesterday that we didn’t have breakfast) and Captain Caveman had on his list of recommended places an ideal spot, walking distance from our next hotel in District 2 (Thao Dien). We arrived at Baba’s kitchen, sat in a corner with our luggage, perused the extensive menu and ordered a couple of Saigon Red beers. Captain Caveman ordered onion bhajis to start and we shared those, then we had masala dosa for him and a chicken tikka masala with a chapati and plain rice for me. The food was amazing and the beers refreshingly cold on a hot day so we ordered another. The staff were great, I even got just the right level of spice for my meal and we were so full afterwards that I was needing a rest before our next lot of activities.

Captain Caveman had booked us in at the Common Inn hotel, in the Thao Dien area of Saigon, for a couple of nights so we walked there from Baba’s Kitchen. The receptionist was friendly and had good English so we chatted for a bit and I signed some paperwork. The room was small but with enough storage and a comfy bed so I was pleased, it’s location was also great for me to walk around by myself when Captain Caveman was busy. After unpacking, including the bottle of Israeli wine Captain Caveman received from Hung last night, we had a bit of a rest (I maybe had a little nannan nap) and then we had a short walk to Bia Craft on the way to meet our friend, Andrea. Captain Caveman and I met Andrea at Pasteur Street Brewery in Thao Dien, another short walk away, where I managed to sit on a high stool for the second day in a row – I even had a couple of actual beers which were great and the manager came across friendly and welcoming. Andrea and I had arranged to go for an Italian meal while Captain Caveman went to watch Saigon United play football, with Scott. I’d chosen to dine at Pendalasco (the Italian place recommended by Mauro, the Italian) and it was just a short walk away from the pub. Andrea chose a nice bottle of red wine for us to share and we ordered a mixture of foods which Andrea insisted I choose. Our shared starter of prosciutto and melon was so tasty but light and we shared a couple of delicious main courses; beef rib with tomato salad and a walnut and gorgonzola gnocchi which was fantastic.
As Andrea was joining the cycling event the next day too we didn’t want a late night so we got a taxi to drop me off on the way to her’s and then got lost. I got to the hotel, had a shower and got in to bed, waiting for Captain Caveman to come home so he too could get an early night. Instead, he called me to say he was at a Vietnamese BBQ place nearby, to get dressed again and come to join him.

Captain Caveman’s video of me getting on a high stool

I found Quan Ut Ut easily and a rather tipsy Captain Caveman had got a beer, some extra loaded (with cheese, jalapenos, sweetcorn, salsa, sour cream, bacon and crispy chicken skin) fries and a half rack of BBQ ribs. I ordered a diet coke and tried to resist trying the ribs and fries which smelled great. He couldn’t eat all of it so I did help out a little and the ribs were pretty good. As we were talking about meeting up with people while we were in Saigon and only having a short time left, Chris (the Belgian) and his girlfriend, Huong, walked past. What great timing, as I’d wanted to go out with them to the P’ti Sunday brunch which we would now be missing. We arranged to meet them tomorrow as they invited us to see a live band with them – I couldn’t remember when I was last at a gig and I didn’t even care what kind of music it was, we were in!
We walked the short distance back to our hotel, got in to bed and set the alarm for 5am!

Phong Nha to Saigon – 1st April

April had an exciting start and on Thursday 1st April I was lucky enough to be able to join Captain Caveman on his weekend trip to Saigon. My visa agent had agreed to let me hand in my passport for the next visa extension on a Sunday so as long as I was back by then, all was good. Captain Caveman was up early and off to Phong Nha to do a few last minute jobs and have breakfast at The Villas. I packed my bag and then went downstairs to see if we had anything in for breakfast. I checked our fridge to find that there were quite a few things which had gone off, including a completely green block of cheese! I had the last of the 2 dates for my brunch and avoided bread in case it set me off for travelling later.
In the news there was hope of direct flights from Vietnam to the UK being put on, could this news mean I could go back to the UK this summer?
https://tuoitrenews.vn/news/business/20210401/vietnams-bamboo-airways-secures-slots-for-direct-flights-to-uk/60089.html
Reports mentioned a potential reopening later for the UK but there was nothing definite as yet. More info here:
https://tuoitrenews.vn/news/business/20210401/vietnam-aviation-authority-proposes-timeline-to-reopen-intl-routes/60084.html
Captain Caveman got picked up from the Glass House at 1.30pm and then came to pick me up at Elements with an Italian customer, Mauro, who was also on the same flight as us. He was nice and chatty and even gave me some recommendations of places that he liked to eat at, in Saigon. At the airport we bumped in to Annette and Sonya and we even ended up sat near them on the plane.

Captain Caveman and I landed at Ho Chi Minh airport at 17.10 and I was really excited to be visiting again. This trip was mainly because Captain Caveman was cycling in a ‘fun’ event with some friends but I had took the opportunity to join him so that we could meet up with friends we hadn’t seen in a while and one in particular who we really didn’t know when we would get to see again. Ali, the filmaker, had finished the work on his film about Phong Nha so would be going back to Japan with no imminent plans to return. Both Captain Caveman and I really like Ali’s company and we always have a good laugh with him, I think it’s the passion that they both share for Phong Nha (the people and the caves) which makes them get on so well – it’s certainly really refreshing to see. We had agreed to meet for a cocktail (or two) around 6.30pm and this meant we were in a rush to get our bags to the hotel and then to the venue I had suggested. Captain Caveman dropped me off at Racha Rooms while he took the bags and checked in to our hotel in District 1, the Amanaki Saigon Boutique. After hand sanitizer usage and being escorted to my table by a masked waitress I ordered my first cocktail, noticing it was 50% off most drinks until 8pm. I was also extremely hungry, having only had 2 dates to eat that morning, so I ordered a couple of snacks. The Bellini cocktail was good, the duck dumplings and the wagyu beef gyozas were delightful and I’d scoffed the lot before Captain Caveman or Ali arrived. Captain Caveman was surprised to see a full martini with olives in front of me when he arrived, but I reassured him I’d drank a cocktail and had 2 starters already. He looked relieved as he knows I get hangry very easily and he ordered his cocktail. Ali arrived and he ordered a gin cocktail, we ordered more dumplings and the waitress remembered I had said I couldn’t eat chillies so she told me the pork dumplings’ sauce had chilli in it – impressive service. Captain Caveman and I decided to have the same cocktail as Ali when he ordered his next one and then we had to think about dinner.

As it turned out, the restaurant Captain Caveman and I wanted to try was the place Ali had been to the night before but he said it was great and that we should go again. Captain Caveman and I got the bill in Racha Rooms, mainly so that Ali didn’t see what a pig I’d been by eating so much before going for dinner, but I knew we would be drinking and didn’t want to get hammered.
When we arrived at Quince it was around 7.30pm and they were busy, being in Phong Nha we weren’t used to the city life where you should book a table at a restaurant – especially one that came recommended. Ali stepped in and was able to secure us a table at 8pm and we went to the upstairs lounge, Madame Kew, for a pre-dinner bottle of red wine. Ali and Captain Caveman were like happy little kids when they saw the leather Chesterfield sofa and I got a couple of photos of them messing about. The wine was really good and the next time I’m in Saigon I would like to try the food at Madame Kew’s as it’s a really nice place.

It was about 8.30pm by the time we got seated at our table in Quince for dinner. I managed a progress milestone by being able to sit on a high chair, which I hadn’t been able to do before very easily, because of my injury. We completely over ordered on the food but it was absolutely delicious and I would definitely go there again (no wonder Ali agreed to go 2 nights in a row). We had another bottle of wine, shared starters including some really good hummus, the service was excellent. For main courses Ali and I had the duck dish which was lovely, and a half baked cauliflower which we loved. Captain Caveman had a fancy version of pork with black pudding and mash, we had more wine and had to leave the side order of buttered lettuce as we were all too full. When Ali was given the bill, a plate of jelly teddies with a twist came too and they were very different!

Just as I was getting ready to go to our hotel for a much needed lay down, Captain Caveman had a message from his friend, Hung, who invited us for a nightcap at the Cork and Bottle. Ali got us all a Grab and we moseyed over there, where Hung was with his friends, An and Huyen. We were made very welcome, despite the bar being ‘closed’ and you could tell we were drinking expensive wine with VIPs when I noticed they had a member of staff constantly on wine top up and photo taking duties. Chugging glasses of posh red wine and shouting ‘một, hai, ba, dzo!’ which means 1, 2, 3, drink, is not how I expected the evening would end – but I managed it. We even met a famous Vietnamese TV actor, called Minh, who was very nice and had a lovely assistant who was very friendly.
We rolled in to the hotel after midnight and had to put the Aircon on to sleep, it was still hot!

Photo credit – Captain Caveman, staff at Quince and Cork & Bottle

Phong Nha – 31st March

Tatas was still in bed when I got up on Wednesday 31st March and I had arranged to get a lift to The Villas at 8.30am so that I could meet Captain Caveman for Happy Hour later that afternoon. Tatas was driving her motorbike back and I left her getting ready while the car arrived with Annette, Sonya and Ania in. They were off to Phong Nha cave and Ben had suggested I go too but I didn’t think my leg was up to getting in and out of boats just yet.
As I was going to be spending all day at Victory Road Villas I ordered bacon, beans and oolong tea for my breakfast and got comfy in the work space area so I could do some ‘work’. Tatas had gone to meet her housemate for coffee at Tree House who hadn’t shown up so she came to The Villas for coffee and pho, I had a lime juice.
Before lunchtime Annette, Sonya and Ania arrived back from Phong Nha cave, all at differing intervals, in a sweaty mess after walking from the tourism centre to The Villas in blazing sunshine – I was so pleased I hadn’t joined them as I walk too slowly for it to have been ok to do. We all ordered lunch and then Keith and his friend, Tra, arrived who had cycled from Funny Monkeys, where they were staying.
Ali was also there having lunch and had all the info on what Captain Caveman had planned for the weekend in Saigon and proceeded to update me, in the hope that I would also be joining the trip. On the first night Ali and Captain Caveman had arranged to meet for dinner, on the second Captain Caveman was off to football with Scott, a friend of Keith’s, then he had an all day cycling event followed by beers the next day then back to Phong Nha for work. It was interesting to hear how I fitted in to all these plans, as well as the friends we had tentatively arranged to meet up with! It was going to be hectic but fun, I expected.
There were at least 3 of the group working on their laptops this lunchtime at The Villas and it was good to see the co-working space was taking off – how they could concentrate with me wittering on is anyone’s guess!
Lunch arrived; Ania had the zucchini ribbon salad, Annette the smoked duck salad, Sonya had a burger and I had the potato, artichoke and edamame salad. Keith gave me his football season ticket card, as even he knew that Captain Caveman was going to football on Friday night and he wouldn’t need it as he was staying in Phong Nha until Saturday. I ordered a cider and Keith had a beer, well it would be rude not too. Annette and Sonya decided to ask for a lift back to the Farmstay as they preferred to swim there but Tatas and I were happy with the privacy of the pool at The Villas. Ania had work to do, Ali was off back to Saigon this afternoon, Keith and Tra were off to see Phong Nha cave then would come back for happy hour and a half at The Villas. I got in the pool and managed quite a few lengths until I had to take up my job as photographer for Tatas in a rather lovely bikini from Mommy Shark.

I think I was in a bit of a mood because I was very much aware that it was my Dad’s birthday (a big one this year) and we were all meant to have been doing something to celebrate together, but he was in lockdown in Sheffield and I was in Phong Nha where the day would take an unexpected turn.
Captain Caveman was the first to arrive at The Villas for Happy Hour and a half, Tatas and I were already round the pool with a pre-happy hour drink of sangria for me and a margarita for her. At first we didn’t recognise the handsome, clean shaven fella approaching us as he’d nipped off to Onion’s for a haircut and shave on his way and was earlier than we expected. He wasn’t staying long as he had to get his pick up at 5.30pm for his gala dinner at Chay Lap with his group. He ordered a margarita and had a quick chat before Keith and Tra arrived back from their Phong Nha cave trip and Keith ordered a margarita on the 2 for 1 offer, as did Tatas, Captain Caveman and I. Unfortunately, the waitress bringing the drinks had some bad news; margaritas were no longer part of the happy hour deal and were only 2 for 1 on Margarita Mondays! This couldn’t be right, especially as it was still on the menu and I’d not been able to get to Margarita Monday for the last couple so I wasn’t aware of the new Happy Hour conditions. I messaged Ben as this was the worst news I’d had in ages, he rang me and he agreed to honour the deal, which was fortunate as we had already had a couple each. Ania, oblivious to a potential margarita-gate, finished work inside The Villas and went to the bar to order a Margarita but was told she couldn’t have one and so ordered a sangria. She came to join us outside to find out if they had ran out of tequila. Hamish arrived back from his Tu Lan trip and ordered a beer for him and his tour guide, Victor, Keith ordered a beer and Ania’s sangria arrived. We decided we would eat at The Villas tonight and, as Captain Caveman left for work, 3 more beers were requested by the others. Tatas and I ordered another Margarita which arrived but the beers didn’t, the waitress told us there were no more beers left, not even warm ones! Unfortunately this meant that Keith, Tra and Hamish would go elsewhere for another beer after their caving trips which had built up a thirst so it was decided everyone was going to Momma D’s and they set off walking. Tatas and I sat finishing our drinks wondering how it had all gone wrong so quickly, as we finished up and went to pay some beers had arrived.

I had to make a choice on what and where to eat for dinner and also be able to get home (safely) so that I could call my Dad to wish him a happy birthday. I really didn’t fancy going to Momma D’s because of the stairs and the propensity to get drunk and reinjure myself on the way out. I also dislike having to rely on other people to make sure I’m safe and can get down the stairs when the people I’m with could just turn out to be more reckless than me! Captain Caveman knew this and when I messaged to check if he would be able to pick me back up later he was a bit put out because he couldn’t definitely say that he would as it would depend on his customers requirements. It was 2 weeks off from being a year since my injury resulting in my double torn ligament disaster which would end up costing us a lot of pain, time and money! I was also extremely hungry and the options were limited so I agreed to go to join the others at Momma D’s. Tatas and I went together very slowly and when we arrived she helped me up the stairs, which I managed to get up pretty well. It was a dry night and I had sensible (grippy) shoes on so all was good.
Momma D was so pleased to see us all, we got a frozen Bellini shot each and a welcome lick from Kevin, the dog. Hamish and Tatas were straight on the shots but I was taking it steady. Captain Caveman called to say he was dropping off his customers and to be downstairs for a pick up in a few minutes but I’d not had any food yet so I had to tell him I couldn’t be ready and he should come to Momma D’s – he wasn’t happy and was worried we wouldn’t get home. Colin and Martin arrived, and joined us for drinks and a chat. I ordered gluten free pulled pork tacos and nachos for my dinner and I had a cheeky bite of the sausage rolls which the others had. Wow, the food was amazing and it took all my willpower not to eat all of the sausage rolls and order more. Tra had the chicken parmigiana which she seemed to give more to the dog than she ate, on account of him mastering the begging look. Keith had the mac and cheese for dinner but he was almost orgasmic over the cheese cake. Captain Caveman arrived, declined the shots but had a drink and told me to keep checking my messages for a reply from Ben about our lift back, especially as I’m not quick to get down the stairs. Tatas got absolutely wasted and the only non-drinker of the party, Tra, agreed to drive her home the few hundred metres while Keith jogged along to walk Tra back to Funny Monkeys.
As Captain Caveman had predicted there was some confusion over our lift home with Ben and getting Momma D to order us a taxi which I got the blame for and wasn’t too pleased about! I’d already paid the bill before we ordered a taxi and then another round of drinks because it would be a while, when Ben arrived to pick us up – Captain Caveman ran down the 7 floors of stairs, Momma D cancelled the taxi and I tried to go my fastest (which was too slow) with Ania helping me down the stairs. It was one of ‘those nights’, I had spent just over £60 (1.9m vnd) for the whole day and I was just glad to get home so that we could sing Happy Birthday to my Dad. When I finally got to call him, Captain Caveman had already got in to bed and he must’ve been confused over what day it was because it was Wine Wednesday not Naked Tuesday. Oh well, it’s not every day my Dad gets sung Happy Birthday to by a half naked duo in Vietnam – it wasn’t quite the memories we were hoping to give him on his special day!