Saigon to Phong Nha – 15th May

I was in the reception of the Common Inn hotel at 5.20am on Monday 15th May, wishing I’d had more sleep and looking like shit! I was bobbing about with sea sickness symptoms which must have been caused by jet lag. There was no time for breakfast, not that anywhere was open, and we were checked in and sat in a busy Saigon airport at 6.15am. By 7.20am we were sat next to each other on the plane to Dong Hoi, which isn’t a given with Captain Caveman. I’d already arranged to not do any work today due to travelling and spending time with Captain Caveman before he was in the cave for 4 days. On the same flight was Captain Caveman’s friend, Phuong, who was returning to Phong Nha to do another Oxalis cave tour.

We’d arranged to meet friends in Dong Hoi for a very early lunch so we got a taxi to Buffalo Home & Chill Bar. I was already hungry so we ordered some spring rolls and a drink to keep us going, as we were early. Captain Caveman was happy to be back in his province of Quang Binh, while I was already having issues with the extreme heat. Dong Hoi is by the sea so there is some breeze, allbeit a warm one, so Phong Nha was definitely going to be more of a challenge for me.
Jack was the first to arrive, we said hellos and he and Captain Caveman grabbed a beer. It was still too early for me to have alcohol though. Stu and Max arrived shortly after and they both ordered beers and, as they were in their lunch hour, we ordered food. Captain Caveman and I shared the pork ribs while the lads had burgers or curry. I succumbed to a beer with my dinner as it only seemed right for our welcome back lunch. Trang arrived shortly after and just had a drink with us while she was back in town. It was good to see everyone and even Captain Caveman was happy I was finally here. The food was great and I was enjoying eating pork in Vietnam.

We had a car coming to pick us up at 12.30pm because Captain Caveman had to get back for his Son Doong briefing tonight. He needed to go to the Oxalis office so it was decided that I would be dropped off at Victory Road Villas (VRV). It’s one of the more up market places in town, owned by Ben and Bich, halfway between town and where Captain Caveman was living now. He was back staying at the Glass House, our original place, because he was mostly in the jungle so didn’t need to be paying for anywhere fancy with a pool. Captain Caveman took my suitcase home while I had a light refreshment then he came back to join me. We had some drinks and even had a dip in the pool before it was time for Captain Caveman to go to work. I spent the afternoon at VRV, drinking beer and having a loll about on a sun bed – I may have fell asleep on one of the very comfy loungers.

By 6.30pm I was hungry so decided to sample dinner at The Villa’s restaurant. The menu was very similar to the last time I’d been here, 9 months ago, with just a few changes. I had the vegetarian fresh spring rolls for a starter which are 80,000vnd (£2.64) and very healthy. I left the soy sauce dip as I find it a bit too strong. For main, I chose the chicken and bacon sandwich (no mayo) forgetting it came with chips. At 180,000vnd (£5.94) it’s good value and a generous portion. I was still eating it when Captain Caveman returned from his briefing so he had another beer. Beers for 330ml were 35,000vnd (£1.16) which are the most expensive in town but do come with an iced glass, ice and are cold.
Back home, via a short motorbike ride on Trigger, I was shocked to see the Glass House was lacking a bit of TLC, somewhat. There was no internet and the bathroom tap had broken so Captain Caveman had tied it up with string to turn it off. I was going to be roughing it a bit these next few days but I didn’t mind too much, at least I could catch up on some much needed sleep while Captain Caveman was away.