Hoi An & Danang – 1st June

I had planned to work my last 3 hours of the week on Thursday 1st June, however, it made sense to finish them tomorrow. Instead, we had breakfast at the Silkian Hotel then got ready and packed to check out before noon. We had an expensive day ahead of us as we were heading over to Danang for a couple of nights. But first I was off shopping at one of the best swimwear places in Hoi An. During Covid lockdown, Mommy Shark had helped me out with getting some swimmers and shorts sent up to me in Phong Nha (without having been in the shop) and they had fit. Now we were actually going to the shop which was a bit tricky to find but did have AC and a fan. Na and her mom greeted us and welcomed us in to the overstocked shop. I explained what I was looking for, she plonked Captain Caveman down on a seat with a fan and then started to sift through piles of items for me to try on. I tried a lot of bikinis and shorts on, some of which looked good, others that didn’t suit me or Captain Caveman didn’t like. We both loved the cycling shorts with hidden pockets in though and their matching bra tops.

Here’s what I bought at Mommy Shark and the prices in Vietnamese Dong:
1 red & white bikini 350,000
1 floral bikini 450,000
1 zebra print bikini 680,000
1 black bikini shorts 220,000
3 cycling shorts 750,000
2 sports bra tops 600,000
Total spent 3,050vnd (£97.60)

I wasn’t planning on buying so much but after losing weight, there was so much more stuff that fitted me and it’s better to get it when you can. I thought the prices were extremely good value too. We said our goodbyes and called a grab to head to the Meliora Hotel in Danang. We were a bit early for check in so the receptionist gave us a bottle of water and we sat in reception to wait, it was melting hot outside. Once in the room we made use of the washing machine and I got my Mommy Shark purchases out. We had to hurry along though as we had places to be and people to meet, as is usual.

After drinking 2 cold beers, which I’d got from the shop next door for 11,818vnd (38p) each and waiting for the washing to finish, Captain Caveman and I decided to visit an old favourite restaurant. The Nomad Kitchen, which was within walking distance from our hotel, had changed premises and no longer had AC. It did have a roof top with a bit of breeze and some fans so we went up there. We each ordered a glass of wine, I fancied the chicken salad as I had bikinis to look good in, Captain Caveman ordered pasta. The food was great, more wine was had (we should have ordered a bottle) and then his friend and former colleague came to meet us. Katie, her husband Sasha and her little baby, Sam, are really lovely and we spent a couple of hours with them chatting. We had a complimentary cheese cake, said hello to the owner and our friends shared a generous portion of fish and chips which looked great. I forgot to take a note of the bill as Captain Caveman paid online.

In the evening, I collected my new glasses from the opticians while slightly squiffy and was convinced I couldn’t see as well as before. The optician suggested I wear them and check again tomorrow.
Captain Caveman treated us both to a fantastic meal at another one of our favourite restaurants, Olivia’s Steakhouse. Here’s what we had and the prices;

1 pepper sauce 65,000
1 750ml still water 70,000
1 grilled sweetcorn 100,000
1 macaroni cheese 120,000
1 grilled asparagus 145,000
1 bottle red wine 950,000
2 250g fillet steaks 2,400,000
5% service charge 196,000
Total spent 4,116,000vnd (£131.71)

This was probably the most expensive meal we’d had in Vietnam so far but it really was worth it. We were served complimentary bread and dips, which Captain Caveman asked for seconds of and we weren’t charged for. We also got 3 shots of complimentary chocolate vodka each for our dessert. Olivia’s has been one of our favourites for a while and the new venue was a winner. We also felt really lucky to have been able to go as Captain Caveman had only just got confirmation that he didn’t have to go back to work earlier than expected.
We were back at the hotel by 9pm as I wanted to be up early for work tomorrow.

Hoi An – 31st May

Wednesday 31st May was another busy day in Hoi An; I worked from 6.45-8.15am, before breakfast. It was weigh day but I had no scales so I just took my measurements.
My bust was the same, my waist had increased by 6cm and my hips by 3cm – not a good result, but hardly surprising.
Captain Caveman and I ate in the Silkian Hotel for breakfast and it was ok but nothing special.
I went back to work for another 2.5 hours while Captain Caveman had gone out looking at phones. I got a grab taxi to meet him for lunch at Baba’s Kitchen, the Indian restaurant. We both ordered the masala dosa but, when it came, mine had chillies in. I didn’t realise until it was too late and I’d already eaten quite a bit and had to have a cheeky lunchtime beer to help take the burn off. I got a taxi back to the hotel, I left Captain Caveman to his own devices and managed a whole hour of work before I became ill. My stomach swelled so much that it looked like I had swallowed a football or was about to give birth and I spent far too long in the bathroom. I measured my waist again to find it was 24cm bigger than when I was in Dalyan and 15cm bigger than before I ate chillies a couple of hours ago! I also had very swollen cankles! I was worried I wasn’t going to make it out tonight, as arranged, to meet 2 of our lovely friends.

Not being one to miss a night out and, after a very short rest, antihistamines and Maalox, I was ready to go out out. Looking and feeling like I was pregnant, I went to meet Captain Caveman. He was already with our friends, Steve and June, at Market Bar and I managed to navigate a Grab taxi to find the bar. It was a lovely place with 2 for 1 on gins so I had two with cucumber and two with cocoa nibs (as you do). It was great to see our friends to catch up after 11 months of not seeing them. They took us to a lovely French restaurant, Le Petit Bistro, in Hoi An, which their friend owns and it was an absolute delight. June and I ordered the rum punch and we tried some nibbles courtesy of the chef. The staff were lovely and we all ordered main meals, I had wine, the men had beer and June was on the water. My beef stew was gorgeous and not particularly diet friendly. By 9.30pm it was home time, back to the Silkian Hotel for our last night. Tomorrow we had more exciting plans!

Chiang Mai to Danang – 30th May

Tuesday 30th May was jam-packed with activity and a bit of drama!
We left the Deluxe Boutique Hotel by pre-booked taxi, just as the sun was rising. Our flight with Air Asia was at 7.25am from Chiang Mai to Danang, we were off back to Vietnam with my 30 day visa.
At the airport we didn’t get any breakfast or a drink but instead we spent 970 of the 1,000 Thai Baht hotel deposit on Duty Free. I chose a bottle a bottle of Prosecco and a bottle of Hardy’s red wine which came to £21.55.
Our luggage allowance on the flight was only 7kg so Captain Caveman had taken most of the fresh laundry in his bag as I think mine weighed heavier because of my lap top.
We landed in Danang around 10am and went to the official taxi queue where the man with the lanyard walked us over to a car and driver. The car was not an My Linh or a Vina Sun taxi, it didn’t have a yellow plate and there was something odd about the chubby taxi driver with foreign arm tattoos. We got to the opticians where I had an appointment at 11am but we were early, when we asked how much to the driver. He tried to more than double the fare and wouldn’t let us out. Captain Caveman told him the money was in the bag in the boot so he let him out while I was winding the window down to try to let myself out but it was locked. Captain Caveman gave the driver half of what he asked for but then he got aggressive, telling him to get back in the car. I took photos so that we could (yet again) report it to the airport authorities and Captain Caveman told him to F off. Once in the opticians we were a bit wound up and this was not the first time for it to happen to me. It was concerning as this could be a reason tourists would not return to Vietnam. Captain Caveman said he would report it and I sent him the photo evidence, which I luckily got.
I had my eye test appointment and decided on transitional lenses in my new glasses to save swapping normal glasses to sunglasses all the time.
I had all the protective/glare stuff on and finally picked some lightweight transitional specs to the total tune of 3,660,000vnd (£117.12) – so much cheaper than in the UK.

Our next stop was a taxi ride to Hoi An for us to check in at the Silkian Hotel, we used Grab to be safer. Captain Caveman had picked it because it was new, had a good price and was close to Caroline’s cafe. Unfortunately, Caroline had took off on an impromptu trip to Cambodia so we didn’t know if we would get to see her this trip. The hotel was nice, the staff friendly and our room was lovely. We dumped our stuff and popped to 9 Grains (Caroline’s cafe) for our lunch because we’d had no breakfast. We both had juices, hot drinks and bacon sandwiches all of which were great and I spotted, and bought, the last bar of ‘my’ particular soap which is made from coconut and helps my eczema.
I worked from 1.30-6.30pm with super whizzy free internet at the hotel room, while Captain Caveman entertained himself and booked a table for dinner.

The Slimming World diet had not been going well of late but I really did push the boat out at Le Cabanon, one of my favourite restaurants in Hoi An. We ate baked camembert with rosemary and honey, a Cochonne pizza to share, drank 2 bottles of Viognier wine and thoroughly enjoyed it.

Our bill was as follows:
Camembert 360,000
Pizza 170,000
2 bottles of wine 1,360,000
Total spent 1,890,000vnd (£60.48)

There was an offer on for wine and pizza so our actual bill was less than this in the end. It was so hot in there and the waiter was absolutely fantastic as it was very busy so Captain Caveman did leave a tip.

We decided to have a little walk to find a bar Captain Caveman had been recommended, called Mescal.
I was so impressed when we walked in as the building is amazing and it’s hard to find. Captain Caveman had an Old Fashioned while I went completely mad and ordered a trio of tequilas with a watermelon sangria. For 240,000vnd (£7.68) it was definitely up there with the most memorable drink choice I’ve ever had the pleasure of. It took me ages to drink it so Captain Caveman had a second Old Fashioned which were 250,000vnd (£8) each. I don’t recall getting back to the hotel that night!

Chiang Mai – 28th May

On Sunday 28th May Captain Caveman asked me where I wanted to go for breakfast and I decided that the best thing I could go for would be SP Chicken. On the way, Captain Caveman wanted to stop off at a cafe, called Sun Ray, for a coffee. I ended up getting hangry and moany as they had an inefficient system for seating people and I hate pretentious coffee places.
This time at SP Chicken, we ordered the chicken (obviously), rice and 2 plates of veggies. I always give Captain Caveman the skin from the chicken and it’s been barbecued on a spit so is reasonably healthy. It was so delicious that I said I could eat it every day!
It was extremely hot, compared to what we had been used to in Sapa, so we headed back to the hotel. On the way there, Captain Caveman met an astronaut and I took his photo. At the hotel, I managed to book in at my favourite opticians back in Vietnam for Tuesday.

That evening, wearing one of my favourite dresses from a Dalyan friend, we went out to Why Ribs and Rumps. A place with a terrible name but excellent pork ribs, which we shared. I really liked it there and can’t recall the prices as Captain Caveman paid and I didn’t keep a receipt. For dessert we went to another old favourite, Cru, for wine and a cheeseboard. Aside from there being far too many tomatoes for my liking, we enjoyed it. We walked via a shop for beers and water which we had when we got back to the room, tomorrow would be our last night in Chiang Mai.

Sapa to Chiang Mai – 26th May

We were the first in to the dining room of the Silk Path Grand Resort and Spa Hotel at 6am on Friday 26th May. At breakfast we made up a sandwich to take with us for the long journey as we didn’t have long until our limousine bus was coming to pick us up. As I drank my cup of tea, I realised what was missing from our afternoon tea yesterday – the tea! I’d been looking forward to trying all the teas but had not noticed that they had never brought us any tea, nor even asked if we would like some. How odd, and even stranger that I’d not noticed! We’d already packed and checked out ready to make the journey to Hanoi airport which was just under 300km away. Unfortunately, the bus was over an hour late and we had to sit in the back seats which were more bumpy. At the service stop off along the way, we saw a cute dog with red dye on it and some very interesting ladies toilets.

We arrived on time for our flight to Chiang Mai, Thailand, checked in and got a beer which was $5.50. It was the busiest I’d seen Hanoi airport and we sat at a different gate to our one to eat our ham and cheese sandwiches.
We arrived in Chiang Mai, got a taxi to the Deluxe Boutique hotel and quickly checked in around 6pm. We took a Grab taxi to Gekko restaurant where we were meeting an old friend of Captain Caveman’s for dinner at 6.30pm. Sid Perou has been a caver and film/documentary maker as well as having written a book – a very interesting man. We got there as they were arriving and sat with Sid, his wife and grandson. We all had beers and I ordered Pad Thai, Captain Caveman had a masaman curry. Both meals were great and we had a good laugh chatting with our friends. It wasn’t a late one as Sid and his wife had to be up early tomorrow and it was already past their grandson’s bedtime.
We had a relatively early night for our first of three nights in Chiang Mai.

Sapa – 25th May

It was another great day on Thursday 25th May, but sadly our last one in Sapa. I only had a 15 day visa exemption for Vietnam so I had to be out of the country before the 29th May, I also was still waiting on my next visa approval. I had a bit of a lay in until 7.30am and was surprised when I looked out of the window to see it was raining. Captain Caveman and I went for the buffet breakfast just after 8am and it was delicious. We decided that as it wasn’t great weather we would book in some hotel things to do. The hotel manager was brilliant and so on his game as we booked me in for one of the spa packages and then afternoon tea.
When we got back to the room I got an email to say my 30 day Vietnam visa was approved. Captain Caveman was glad to hear this as we were flying to Thailand tomorrow.
My Thai massage with Cherry was absolutely amazing and I almost fell asleep at the end. I went to Cat Cat bar afterwards to meet Captain Caveman who had brought me Carol’s (ironically of Fat Club fame) dress to change in to for our afternoon tea with a bit of a difference (I will see if you can tell what the difference was from the photos)!
I’d done so well to not have put weight on this week but now I found myself shovelling sandwiches and cake down a bit too greedily. As I was already dressed for the occasion, but wearing trainers because of the rain we booked the free shuttle bus in to to town.

We visited Saparis bar again for cocktails before doing the short uphill walk to Ganesh, the Indian restaurant. I tried to stay as healthy as possible with a chicken tikka (no sauce), rice and a spinach dish but I did have a couple of beers to go with it. The food was nice and filling, we walked back down the hill to the bus pick up spot and to say bye to Sapa town. Tomorrow we had another early start to what might be a long day of travelling.

Photo credit – some by Captain Caveman

Hanoi – 21st May

Foolishly, I’d hoped for quality time and extra snoozes on Sunday 21st May but, obviously, Captain Caveman had other ideas. As he had promised me a shopping trip, we had to get up early to get it done. I’m sure he gave a good reason why and it could’ve been due to the weather but I was too tired to note it. By 7.30am we were showered, dressed and in the hotel dining room tucking in to a shared fruit plate. We both had the chicken noodle soup (pho ga) and a hot drink before Captain Caveman insisted we look lively for today’s mission. At 8am it was already 31°C with a ‘feels like’ 39°C and the air quality was not good in the capital city. Just a couple of weeks ago, Hanoi had suffered a heatwave with the highest temperatures ever recorded.
We got a Grab taxi, which are really cheap in Hanoi, to the shopping centre to find we had to wait for it to open. Once inside, we headed straight for Uniqlo where I’d been online to check the choices and had taken screenshots of a few items I liked the look of. It didn’t quite pan out as well as expected because the largest they had in stock for almost everything was an L (about a size 12). Captain Caveman helped me pick out a few practical items and I headed to the Fitting room a little too optimistic.
I hate shopping anyway so I did get a little despondent when the first couple of things didn’t fit. I had to remind myself that this time last year I wouldn’t have even got in the XL (size 14 approx) if they had any. In less than an hour I had managed to spend 3,194,00vnd (£108.60) of Captain Caveman’s hard earned cash on 6 items and I was happy to have 2 pairs of skorts, which I’d never had before!
We dropped my wares off at the hotel and I had a little fashion show with my new clothes while Captain Caveman took terrible photos of me in them, from the position of him laying on the bed. I’d not even been here quite a week and he was getting bored of taking photos on demand.

Our next stop was to meet two Phong Nha friends for lunch; Leonard, the old guy who stayed at Funny Monkeys from before the pandemic, now lives in Hanoi, and our good friend Kat, who divides her time between Hanoi and Phong Nha. Both were available on the same day so Leonard had chosen one of his nearby favourite restaurants, Pizza 4 Ps.
Captain Caveman and I were the first to arrive and we decided to order a cider that came with some cheese as a pre starter! Leonard was the next to arrive with his arm strapped up after breaking his collar bone in a fall. Other than that he was on good form and it was great to see him. Kat arrived next and was only able to stay for an hour due to her having an upcoming painful dentist appointment. We were having such a good catch up that I almost forgot to take some photos and I had a weird incident in the toilets with the cleaner who wanted me to rate the toilets, on an electronic board, as ‘needing improvement ‘ and then comment on why. The toilets were fine, so I wasn’t quite sure what she was getting at but Leonard said a similar thing happened to him. The half and half pizza which I shared with Captain Caveman was fantastic, the salad was a bit too drenched in balsamic vinegar for me but I managed to get it down me with another cider (no cheese).

After lunch and walking Leonard back to his hotel, Captain Caveman and I walked to the gold shop to exchange some foreign currency and it was so hot that I was getting a bit moany. We had to make a refreshment stop at Puku cafe where, to my delight, they had the iced slushy drinks with passion fruit at 80,000vnd (£2.72) each.
Just as I thought we were off back for a siesta or a rest, Captain Caveman announced we were meeting Lien, our old Vietnamese teacher and friend. We got a Grab taxi to Oliberry cafe where Lien was already waiting. We got chatting about clothes shopping and Lien recommended a woman’s independent clothes shop nearby called Rico Clothing. Within minutes, I was on the back of Lien’s Honda Cub heading to Rico, where I picked out a few dresses to try on. Captain Caveman walked it there and caught us up to give his opinion on the clothes I tried on. I bought a lovely dress and even tried a Size L which was too big for me, I also found a couple of pairs of knickers that fit me too.
We said our goodbyes and I hoped we’d be going home to freshen up and get ready for our dinner date tonight – no, we were out out. Captain Caveman and I had arranged to meet Johan, a friend through caving and Andrea, for tapas with a bit of a difference at Pinchos. We were a little early so we called in to 7 Bridges for a pint of ale, as you do.

At Pincho’s we shared sparkling water and red wine but we didn’t go mad as Johan was on a strict regime and would be up early for boxing class before work tomorrow. Pincho’s was easily one of the best meals I’ve had and it was amazing to be able to eat so much meat and cheese. We tried quite a lot of the different tapas dishes and I only got a surprise chilli the once, luckily I could smell it. We were back to the Aquarius Grand Hotel by 9.30pm and were already setting our alarms for another very early get up. Our day had been an amazing one and when I got in I had to try my new dress on, which I liked more the second try on. The hotel room had cost 765,000vnd (£26) per night and well worth that price, which included breakfast. Captain Caveman paid our bill which also included the 400,000vnd car pick up service (£13.60) from Hanoi airport to the hotel. We also paid in advance for 2 bus tickets at 480,000vnd (£16.32) each as we were off to our next destination for 4 nights at 6.30am tomorrow!

Phong Nha – 19th May

I was so hot that I couldn’t sleep and was still awake at 1.40am on Friday 19th May. I got up and drank a lot of water with Oresol in, to keep hydrated. At 3.15am I was checking out prices of my return flights with Scoot and they were quite pricey. I had about 6 weeks left until I was due to go back and I wasn’t quite sure how I would survive this heat. I also remembered I was meant to have applied for my next visa as I was only allowed to stay in Vietnam on the 15 day exemption until 28th May. I dozed off around 3.40am and woke up with the loud speaker at 6am, which was irritating. Of course Captain Caveman’s lost watch went off at 6.45am then I went back to sleep, despite the room being a bit warm already. I’d arranged to meet Veronika at VRV for lunch at noon, so I got myself ready for a cycle in red hot sun. I borrowed Captain Caveman’s trousers and a T-shirt to protect me from the 38°C sun and I took a dress to change in to. I have Factor 50 sun cream with me but I find it runs off quite easily.
Veronika had been looking after her eldest grandson for a whole month, while Ben and Bich were in Australia. She was eager to get out and celebrate her freedom as they were back in Phong Nha now. When she arrived she had a bottle of our favourite fizz in the fridge and she asked for it with an ice bucket and 3 glasses. Another lady, Jenny, was joining us and we decided to order lunch too. I had the courgette salad, Veronika had the duck and Jenny had a pho. All of the food was good and we were having a lovely lunch when a customer started chatting to us. It turned out that the customer and her lively young son knew the Wiringi family and had come here on Melissa’s recommendation.
Captain Caveman arrived back from his Son Doong tour and came to join us around 3pm at The Villa’s restaurant before he had to go to his Gala Dinner at 5.30pm. He was a bit cross with me that I’d still not got round to applying for my 30 day visa so he did it for me, he also brought me a backlight for my cycling home in the dark. Veronika had booked to stay the night at VRV so she went for a Nannan nap, Jenny went for a swim and I started work. I only had 2 hours left to work this week so planned to work 4-6pm and today I was working on something new. At 6pm, Veronika came back to join me, as well as Tatas, Jenny had returned to the Farmstay. I decided to be naughty and ordered my favourite Villa’s pizza, the Showstopper. It had salami, blue cheese, fig jam and spring onion on and is not in the least bit Slimming World friendly. It was delicious and we had a great night. Captain Caveman rejoined us after he’d finished work. I had some work queries and corrections which needed finishing so I had to do another hour’s work from 8.30-9.30pm so that the task wasn’t left until Monday. This meant I would only work 15 hours next week which was fortunate as Captain Caveman now had at least 2 weeks off, with a possibility of it being 17 days holiday. This was great news, as he had been working a lot recently and he really was ready for a break. He’d also planned a really great holiday for the two of us, including a trip to Thailand, starting from tomorrow!

My bill for today’s food and drink at The Villa’s restaurant was as follows:

Mango Lassi 85,000
Pot of Jasmine tea 50,000
Zucchini salad 175,000
3 Huda beers 105,000
1 7up 25,000
Showstopper pizza 240,000

Total spent 680,000vnd (£23.12)

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.

Singapore to Saigon 14th May

I landed at 5.45am in Singapore on Sunday 14th May, 6 hours ahead of Greece and Turkey (8 hours ahead of the UK). Even though I’d had some sleep, it had been a bit uncomfy and I was not looking forward to my lay over in Singapore. I would ordinarily have hammered the lounge but the thought of drinking any alcohol made me feel sick. My next flight wasn’t until 1.25pm which meant I had about 7 hours to kill. I had a little rest in a quiet spot but wasn’t there long as a load of people came and sat next to me, making a noise. The amount of people who listen to their phone on high volume instead of having earphones in makes me so angry! I do not want to listen to it!
I decided that I would go to a lounge in Changi airport to pass the time on and for a bit of peace. I didn’t drink any alcohol though, which was a first for me in an airport lounge. I just did 3 hours in there and ate some nice food before finding a reclined seat for a nap. I set my alarm and was about to drift off when the guy next to me decided he would have a very loud conversation on his phone, in the quiet area!
At the gate for my flight from Singapore to Saigon (Ho Chi Minh City), the staff insisted that I put my hand luggage in the hold because the plane was full. This was annoying as I didn’t want to be waiting for luggage at the other end. I decided to take out all my essentials, including my laptop, in case the luggage went missing – I didn’t take any spare clothes out though.
My third flight was uneventful and took less than 2 hours, landing in Saigon at 2pm. It took me 2 hours to get through the very lengthy queues at immigration. I had a little wobble when the official asked where my visa was, I told him I was entering on the 15 day visa exemption, he said “no” and pointed to the visa area, expecting me to go to buy a visa. I knew this was not the case and stood my ground, maybe he was confused or maybe they were trying to get people to spend money on visas they didn’t need.
Anyway, after a few minutes, he let me through but by then the carousel for our luggage had been stopped and my case was not there. Great!

At around 4pm on Sunday 14th May, I found a baggage handler, in Saigon International airport, and tried to ask him where the cases from my Singapore flight were. He said ‘finished’, which was useful! The queue for the lost luggage was rather large so I grabbed a man with a lanyard who looked official, to explain my predicament. He asked if I had checked at the other end of the airport, I hadn’t (obviously) so off I toddled. I found my case sat in a corner, by itself, 10 carousels further along. Brilliant, I would have fresh clothes to wear now!
As instructed by Captain Caveman previously, I went to the domestic terminal to get the taxi and managed to be more assertive than I was last time at this airport. He tried to tell me to get in a different taxi and I said no and chose the one I would get, for myself. It was extremely hot in Saigon and very humid, I was still dressed in jeggings and trainers! The taxi cost less than 250,000vnd and took less than half an hour to get to one of my favourite hotels, The Common Inn, where Captain Caveman was staying. When I arrived he was already there and had been on a mammouth cycle ride with a brewery stop off! I had the luxury of a hot shower (I’d not had one since Friday afternoon) and popped on a dress as we were in a rush to go out. We went to Mad Wine in Thao Dien and Captain Caveman said how happy he was that I was finally here, little did he know I nearly wasn’t! Our friend Andrea arrived, who’d also been on the cycle ride and she’d been a little tired afterwards so wasn’t joining us for dinner. Valerie arrived next for just a drink and we all had a wine or two to celebrate being back in Vietnam. It was really nice to see Andrea and Valerie and I was surprised that Captain Caveman had thought to organise a reunion rather than have a quiet night in – he was even happy to take photos and I knew Steve’s sunglasses would come in handy! There’s always a method in Captain Caveman’s madness though; our flight tomorrow had been changed! It had been brought forward to 8.30am, we needed to be at the airport by 7.30am so it would be an early get up and the promised shopping trip was no more. To further smooth the disappointment of us not being in Saigon very long and Captain Caveman having to be back at work tomorrow at 6pm, he had chose somewhere nice to dine tonight.
To be honest, I could quite easily have gone straight to bed but Captain Caveman was going to be away for the first 4 days of me being in Phong Nha. We went to a place called Arto House in Thao Dien, District 2, which had been recommended by another of Captain Caveman’s cycling mates. We shared a burrata cheese starter which was amazing, then I had duck and Captain Caveman had pasta with lots of mushrooms. The food and the bottle of red wine we shared was so good and it was a great first meal in Vietnam. Our bill came to 1,567,500vnd (£51.73) including the bottle of nice wine. I noticed that Captain Caveman must no longer be suffering with his gout, like he was in December, because mushrooms and red wine are usually triggers for it.
I hardly remember getting back to the Common Inn as I was starting to feel a bit of jet lag. Captain Caveman ordered the car to go to the airport for 5am the next day and we set out alarms. Tonight I would probably dream about sleep!

Lardos & Faliraki – 12th May

Although I didn’t start work as early as Steve and Michelle, I did decide to put a short shift in on the morning of Friday 12th May. I’d only been working about an hour when Michelle put her chef skills to use with a fantastic breakfast (the diet was going well)! Xena, the dog, was also a fan of sausage so she was glad when she got some leftovers. It was a sunny day and most of the cats had to seek shade, except for one who was having a sunbath. I was struggling to remember all their names but that one looked like Dave! We all got back to work after talk of what we might do tonight. Obviously the sensible approach was to have a quiet evening and an early night, as I needed to be at the airport at stupid o’clock tomorrow morning.
In the afternoon we had a bit of a change of scenery with a couple of Milokleftis ciders at Yamas bar. A little kid went past and dropped his ice-cream so Steve very kindly bought him another one. We all had one too, from the bakery in Lardos square, where I had fruits of the forest flavour. I’m not usually an ice-cream fan but this place has lovely ice-cream. There are lots of flavours to choose from too and the people who work there are friendly.
In the afternoon, while I packed for Vietnam, Steve and Michelle went back to work.

There was live music at Ambience bar so we were heading there to celebrate the end of the holiday. Taxis in Rhodes are pricey for example I think the cost of a taxi from Lardos to the airport is about €70 – €80. We called in to a few bars along the way and it was certainly a blast from the past for me. I’d not been to Faliraki for a long, long time and it had changed quite a bit. A few of the old favourites were still there and we enjoyed a mini bar crawl on the way.

When we got to Ambience, we were a bit early and the live music hadn’t started yet but we chatted to the lovely owners and discovered they had, what I now refer to as, a Danger Wheel. On the bar, was a strategically placed spinning wheel with lots of names of drinks on it. Customers could pay to have a spin and get a random/surprise drink. It had some of our favourites on there, as well as some which were not so pleasant. It was €2 (£1.71) per spin and there was all sorts of drinks from tequila or sambuca shots to prosecco or nothing at all. Our first shot was Tequila Rosé, which I absolutely love and hadn’t had for ages. The owners joined us too and we had a good laugh before the musicians started. I hate sambuca but Steve hates Fernet Branca so we did swaps when that came up on the Danger Wheel. At some point I thought it was a good idea to order a bottle of prosecco which would turn out to be somewhat foolish.

The Danger Wheel in action – we loved it!

The saxophonist was great and I really enjoyed Ambience bar. Hours of fun ensued and we kind of forgot that I had a flight at 6.30am tomorrow, maybe we should have brought my luggage with me and gone straight to the airport. On the way home, we resisted the late bars and I took photos of a couple as well as a tattoo shop that was still open! We decided to go for a pizza/kebab and I don’t even really remember what we had but it seemed to go down well. I do remember being in the takeaway place at 12.30am, where they had a horse’s head statue on the wall. It had been a great night out and a rather lively end to a wonderful holiday in Rhodes. We even decided that I’d visit again on my way back from Vietnam!
It was after 1am when we got home so, to make doubly sure we got up in time, both Steve and I set our alarms for 4.15am and 4.30am. Check-in opened at 5.30am, the flight was at 6.30am to Athens and I was packed and ready.

Lardos – 11th May

I was up for doing more work on Thursday 11th May, even though I don’t usually work on Thursdays. I was enjoying the flexibility of being able to work whatever hours or days suited too. In the morning I transferred some money to Rebecca, from Captain Boris boat trips, for the bottles of wine I’d bought. They were already delivered and my parents had got the other half of the stash, with Ma keeping a close eye on Pa not to drink it all too quickly. I knew that prices were set to continue to rise in Turkey, especially as the election date loomed, so I was happy to splash out now at what would probably be a cheaper price.
For lunch I had fruit with greek yoghurt and honey because tonight Michelle had a girls night planned in Lardos, with dinner at one of my favourite restaurants.
I worked in the afternoon, just for 4 hours, then I got ready for a meal at Valentina’s. I’d previously been with Captain Caveman and I remembered that the carafes of wine were particularly good value so I was looking forward to my second visit. Joining Michelle and I, were her friends Katy and Tracy.
Tracy arrived after we had ordered so she didn’t eat but the rest of us shared some tasty cheese balls for starters. I just had to have pork (again) and went for the massive pork chop for main, Michelle had a steak and Katy had pasta. It was all delicious and the carafes of red wine went down well. The owner gave us a shared dessert of baklava and ice-cream as a treat, which was also delicious. The bill came to €30 each (£25.68) which I didn’t think was bad, for what we had – my pork took over an hour to eat because it was so big.
After saying bye to Katy and Tracy, Michelle and I had a cheeky Milokleftis cider in Yamas bar on the way home. It had been a great night and I was sad that tomorrow was my last day (and night) in Rhodes. Captain Caveman was excited that I would be in Vietnam in a couple of days and had arranged to meet me in Saigon with the promise of a shopping trip for new clothes.

Lardos – 10th May

When I got up on Wednesday 10th May I did my weekly measurements. My bust and waist had remained the same but my hips had increased by 3cm. This was not surprising, given the amount of calories I’d had this week. When I stepped on the scales, albeit they weren’t Carol’s scales, I was 0.5kg heavier than last week. I had tea and toast for breakfast then pottered about while Steve and Michelle were working. For lunch Michelle made us a nice mushroom, ham and pesto pasta which none of the pets got to eat any of. Strangely, I was starting to miss doing a bit of work so I decided to get the laptop out and do a few hours. Pixie decided to keep me company but she soon fell asleep when she didn’t get much attention.
That night, after one of the finest spaghetti bologneses that I’ve had the pleasure to eat, (another of Michelle’s talents was definitely her cooking) we were off out. Steve and Michelle had arranged for us to watch the football and have some drinks at a lovely bar in Lardos, called Yamas. We met up with their friends who were great fun and we all had a really good laugh. The Milokleftis ciders were getting a bit moreish and I could definitely get used to those.
I didn’t actually watch any football as we were all so busy joking, chatting and laughing. After several ciders, we all went to another bar, close by, called Cuckoo. They were also going to be opening a cocktail bar across the road very soon and we discussed a potential night there on my return from Vietnam. The night ended up with (some of) us playing air guitar on a walking stick and making our own dancefloor. I do love a dance so I needed no encouragement as some fantastic rock songs kept being played. It was gone midnight when we got back to Steve and Michelle’s. Steve went to bed but Michelle and I had a cuppa and a piece of Kate’s lemon drizzle while having a good natter.

Video and photo credit – Steve

Dalyan – 6th May

My last full day in Dalyan had arrived on Saturday 6th May and I was a little bit torn about how I felt. It was 139 days (or 4 months and 18 days) since I last saw Captain Caveman so, obviously, I was looking forward to seeing him again. In that time, he’d been working a lot and we’d hardly had chance to chat. I’d spoke to my parents and friend, Vanessa, more times in fact! I had also been in Dalyan for 233 days (7 months and 3 weeks), since I returned with Captain Caveman from our trip to Europe last year. This was the longest I’d been in Dalyan in one stretch without at least going somewhere else for a short break and I was going to miss it. Of course I’d planned to have a relaxed and easy going day because my taxi with Fikri was booked for 6.30am tomorrow. To say I’m quite an organised person though, things still didn’t go as smoothly as they could have. It had temporarily slipped my mind that it was Coronation Day and that lots of holiday makers and expats were going to be celebrating it, here in Turkey. Obviously, for those of you who know me well, it was not something I wanted to be part of and I had declined the various invites. It was an unusual breakfast, to eat up leftovers, of falafel, cheese balls, gherkins and a bit of tahini. I did my packing, emptied the fridge and freezer then took some stuff to Jamie’s to store for me. I also gave him some leek and pumpkin soup, chicken livers for the dog shelter and various items I knew my parents wouldn’t have. The rest I packaged up for my parents who would call to get them later, including half a crate of beer which Captain Caveman had left in December. On my way back from Jamie’s, I went to the bank to change some lira to Euros and forgot it was closed. Ordinarily, I could have gone to the jewellers or a bar but I was determined not to have to be dragged in to a Charlie-crowning celebration unnecessarily. I drew out lira at the ATM and hoped I’d be able to use that or get it changed in Greece. I then went to the supermarket to pick up the essentials for Steve and Michelle. At the pharmacy I caused a bit of a to-do because there was only one strawberry lube left and I asked if they had any more. All the staff got involved, alternatives were offered and a queue had built up by the time I paid the 156 lira (£6.37) for the one I’d had in my hand. No doubt I would be the talk of the town (again)! My next stop was the supermarket and probably my most unusual shopping basket contents in Dalyan, I’m sure – here’s what I bought:

Migros Supermarket
1 Twix 9.95
Mints 12.72
2 small Nescafe Gold 119.80
2 big Nescafe Gold 199.80
2 strawberry lube 263.80
Total spent 606.07 lira (£24.74)

Back home, I finished my packing then had the rest of the courgette tortilla for lunch and the Twix!
At 4pm I got a message from Captain Caveman. He was out of the cave, sat drinking with the porter team by the river, topless, as it was very hot. He had barbecued crickets for his dinner with lots of beer. I was not envious, my parents and I had arranged to go for a nice meal at Firats for my last civilised night in Dalyan. We said we’d meet at 6pm and just hoped the rain would stop so we could go out.

The rain continued and threw a bit of a spanner in the works for us that evening. I’d had a message from Kate to come join the party with the pool gang at Rehab bar as she was having to put up with Coronation frivolities. I really didn’t want to so I said no, I also wasn’t feeling in the mood to say goodbye to all my friends in one place. I knew I’d get upset, that I would miss them and I didn’t want to be on a downer for my last night out with my parents later.
Unfortunately, the rain meant that we couldn’t go to Firats as planned as it’s mainly outdoor seating. They have shelter overhead but those covered tables were taken when we walked past. Instead we decided to have a drink in Bistro Blue and then we could decide where to eat. Ma had a bottle of Efes Malt, Dad and I had pints of draft Efes. Drinks were reasonably priced at 80 lira (£3.27) and were cheaper than a friend had been talking about yesterday. We got chatting with Annie, Selahı, Suha and Ömer at Bistro Blue and, despite it being a busy Saturday night, we were able to get a lovely table for dinner. We decided not to go for starters as the main course portions are usually plenty and this time I couldn’t be taking half home to put in the freezer! Dad chose the liver and onions, Mom went for the fajitas and I tried something new – chicken with pepper sauce. We got complimentary bread and nibbles and all ordered a glass of wine. As prices are increasing in Turkey I did keep a note but they still seemed good value; a glass of wine was 80 lira (£3.27). Liver and onions 500 lira (£20.40), fajitas 400 lira (£16.33) and chicken 450 lira (£18.37) were on the pricey side for Dalyan but I have to say it was absolutely delicious and we all enjoyed every mouthful. The service was impeccable too, with a free çay or apple tea afterwards.

What should have happened then is probably obvious to any of you reading this now, however, it was only 9.30pm! We decided to go to Sofra bar and I messaged Jamie to say we were on our way there for our last drink and to say goodbye.
More beers were had and Jamie and I were really going to miss each other a lot. We were sad but also happy to know that I’d be back in just 7 weeks. Gone were the days where the authorities of Vietnam allowed me a 90 day visa so I was planning on entering on the 15 day visa exemption. Of course it was after 1am when my parents and I left Sofra bar and we said our goodbyes. I’d had an amazing, but too short, time with Ma & Pa where we’d already started to plan some more exciting things for when my sister and family came to Dalyan in July!
I tidied up the apartment and set my alarm for 5.30am. Why do I never remember that 4 hours sleep and too much alcohol the night before a journey is never a good idea!?

Dalyan – 5th May

By this time of year Dalyan is usually pretty warm and sunny so it was disappointing that my parents weren’t getting good weather. However, Friday 5th May was a very good day. A while ago I had arranged for 11 of us to go on Captain Boris’ cheese and wine boat trip today. I’d been in touch (a lot) with Rebecca and Boris because we were in danger of having to postpone due to rain/storms. As well as myself, there were a few people who could only do this date so it was all or nothing and I’d took a risk by telling Rebecca to buy all the food. If we couldn’t go on the boat we’d find somewhere to have the cheese and wine, I’m sure.
On account of me having a Sunday dinner for breakfast, I didn’t have a second one when I got up, just a cup of Yorkshire tea and lots of water. I got a message from my boss to say he was paying for my ferry to Rhodes on Sunday and he would transfer the money – this was unexpected and very much appreciated. I booked Fikri and his taxi to take me to the Fethiye ferry port at 6.30am on Sunday which meant tonight had better be my last late night!
I had a nice treat booked in at 11am for some reflexology at BC Spa. My friends from back in England (Claire, Clare and Kelly) wanted to treat me (a belated birthday treat) and had arranged for me to book in for a treatment. It was one of the luxuries I’d given up to save money so I was super excited to be able to go. When I arrived I was shown to the massage room and my Swedish masseuse was excellent – I almost fell asleep. Although prices had gone up considerably I could see no difference in the quality of the massage or the room I had it done in so I was pleased. Back home, I made a cup of herbal tea and put my feet up, as advised, while making a packing and to do list for my forthcoming trip.
The Captain Boris boat trip was going ahead regardless of weather, and we were taking clothes for all eventualities. I had everything from swimmers to one of my favourite bobble hats and was keeping everything crossed it would turn out ok.

The Captain Boris boat trips are of the best I’ve been on so I was really looking forward to the cheese and wine themed one. We met at the boat outside the Tezcan hotel at 1.30pm, on-board were the following people;
Jo (me), Anne (my Mom), Stuart (my Dad), Ann, Jacqueline, Lee, Linda, Trish, Steve, Jo and Steve. So with 2 Jo’s, 2 Steve’s and 2 Ann/e’s it was going to be fun!
The boat cost £400 in total for the private trip, which included all the food but not the booze. When we set off it wasn’t raining but it was a bit cold however Rebecca kept telling us to keep the faith that it would be ok. Captain Boris had rejigged the route so that we would go down river to Little Dalyan first and then over to Çandır lake so that we could make the best of the weather. Only my mom had brought the suncream as we all thought it wouldn’t be necessary but by the time we were sipping our first Moldovan wine, the sun had come out. A few of us moved to the front of the boat and Mom shared the sun cream around the fairer skinned or bald guests as it became quite nice.

When the platters of cheese, meats, fruits, nuts, olives, crackers, dips, conserves and breads came out, it was certainly luxuriously impressive! It’s hard to believe that such wonderful presentation can be achieved in a small boat kitchen too. The sun stayed out but it wasn’t hot enough for me to swim. Lee did get in the sea for a little paddle and we all were just glad the storms had passed. At one point it started to rain but Boris was on it with his human windscreen wiper and a quick diversion to avoid the rain clouds. The boat trip was amazing and definitely one of the best ones I’ve been on in Dalyan – it’s certainly worth the money for the quality and attention to detail. Rebecca and Boris definitely know how to look after their guests and make sure everyone is looked after. I was also pleased to see the prices of wine were on a par, or cheaper, than some of the bars I drink in. The wine was so good, in fact, that my parents and I decided to order a box each of the white, red and rosé to see us through the summer.
Following the fantastic trip, most of us attempted to go to Sofra bar for a drink, I said I’d catch up as I stayed to finish wine, thank Rebecca and Boris for a lovely day and ask them to join us for a drink. When I got to Sofra, Jac and Lee were sat with a drink and the bar was very busy so my parents, Jo and Steve had gone to sit at Dalyan Lounge opposite and had also ordered a drink. I ended up at Dalyan Lounge too, followed by Rebecca and Boris.
After all the wine (I’d had 2 rosé and 2 red) I decided a soft drink would be better as we were off to Lukka Bingo with Mark & Kate shortly.
We had a good time at Lukka bingo but I did have to limit my drinks to just 1 wine and a soda water as prices were higher there at 95 lira (£3.88) for a glass of wine. Pamela and Glynn hadn’t made it out, Daisy and Tom didn’t stay out long either but the 5 of us enjoyed my last night together. Kate very kindly bought me a Healthy Eating Notebook so I could keep track of my food and drink while I was away.
I was meant to go for my leaving drinks with the girls at Rodrigo’s but it was late by the time we left Lukka and I had lots to do tomorrow before my trip to Rhodes and Vietnam. I said my goodbyes, Mark and Kate said they would see me tomorrow before I went but I didn’t think I’d be out.