I only had a cup of tea on the morning of Sunday 8th September as I was busy checking out the updates on Typhoon Yagi and the havoc it had wreaked in Hanoi, before I headed off on a day trip. I was happy that Captain Caveman was safe in Hanoi now but still worried he would be ok on the 5th floor of a building. He assured me he was fine, despite the capital city looking like it was a scene from the film ’28 Days Later’.
I was off on a boat trip which started at 10am with Captain Fuat on Adıl boat with some friends and family. There was a quick introduction for everyone then tea/coffee and some simit to nibble on as we sailed out towards Köyceğiz and the lake. The sun was shining, the scenery was lovely and I was looking forward to a day out with Gayle & Neil. Captain Fuat put on a delicious lunch which catered for everyone’s requirements easily (and there were quite a few of us that needed different allergies taking in to consideration). I obviously was not really concerned about the amount of syns I shoved in. I ate chicken, pasta, salads, meatballs, bread, fruit and, later, cake.
We did quite a bit of swimming, where we met a friendly terrapin who we called Bob. He took a shine to Ann’s chest and kept going really close to her, even though she wasn’t keen. He even went off and brought 2 more friends over who swam amongst us and seemed to want to play with us. We called these 2 terrapins Rita & Sue and then when we thought Bob had returned, but it was actually another terrapin who was slightly more interested in the ladies and their chests, we called him Bob 2. I probably found it funnier than most other guests that we had called our new friends Bob, Rita, Sue & Bob 2 after the film. The day was really relaxed and easy going with lots of swimming, which I loved. By the time we got off the boat I was quite merry and I’d gone way over my usual wine consumption by having 5 glasses.
We got off and said our goodbyes to everyone. Ann, Stuart, Gayle, Neil and I were walking the same way home so we ended up stopping off for a quick drink in Askın’s where I ordered a pint of draft Efes. I ended up having a gin & tonic at Neil’s insistence, back at theirs and then Jamie, Drew, Norman & Edna were passing for the dog walk so they popped in to say hello. Edna took to Neil very quickly and wanted to sit on his knee while Norman had a sniff about to check for any scraps of food. I did the dog walk with Jamie & Drew and then realised I was a bit tipsy and peckish. The night ended with me getting pizza that I didn’t recall until the next day. My Sunday had been so good and I still managed to do it on a budget; the boat trip plus drinks on the boat 2100 lira, a beer at Askın’s 120 lira and pizza 310 lira – a bargain total of 2,530 lira (£52.81).
Photo credit – Vietnam ones taken from various news and Facebook pages. Boat trips ones shared from various attendees.
I think it’s fair to say that Wednesday 17th April could definitely have gone better! I was in a real tangle and could not function when Captain Caveman’s alarm went off at 6am. Our flight from Noi Ba airport in Hanoi left at 8.55am and Captain Caveman had to take one for the team and get me to the airport in my completely incapable state! He had left Lizzy’s key card at our reception when she had gone home without it and this caused some confusion with the receptionist. Captain Caveman had completely done the right thing getting to the airport earlier and by 7.30am I was checked in and lolling on a seat trying not to be sick or collapse. I don’t even remember leaving the hotel, the taxi ride to the airport or going through security. How Captain Caveman was functioning I do not know and, if it wasn’t for him, I would not have made it to the flight. Looking back I was still drunk as I’d had less than 4 hours of sleep and the most alcohol I’d drank since I missed my flight in Rhodes. I slept through the flight and was glad to get in to the Oxalis car at Dong Hoi airport. I was not so thrilled to be in the back of the pick up service for a customer who was quite sociable. Luckily, Captain Caveman was dealing with all the questions. We got to Phong Nha before midday and dropped me off at Phong Nha Homestay where we were staying for a few nights. I was so happy that the early check in was available and I got straight in to bed, only then realising I was still wearing last night’s clothes. Captain Caveman had his Oxalis briefing at 6pm and, quite frankly, I was so glad it wasn’t me who had to work tonight – I was broken. I’d eaten nothing all day so I managed a full fat coke and some crisps. It was weigh day, obviously I didn’t get weighed as I’d barely made it through the day before I knew what day it was. I took my measurements to find there was no change to my bust or hips and 1cm off my waist. I counted the syns for last week, including what I’d had last night (using photos) and Captain Caveman’s rather observant memory – it was the most I’d had in months at 323 syns. I went to sleep not even checking any of my messages or getting in touch with Amanda and Greg who had come to see us in Phong Nha for a week on their way back to Australia.
While the Aussies (Amanda and Greg) had arrived in Vietnam already, Captain Caveman and I were leaving Bangkok on Tuesday 16th April. It had certainly been a very moist weekend despite our efforts to not participate fully in the water festivals of Songkran, the Thai new year. Our belongings were packed in a plastic bag within our rucksacks and we were getting an early Grab to Suvarnabhumi airport. By 8.15am we were at the airport for a 11.55am flight with a Grab driver who had no change. Captain Caveman had to go in to the airport to faff about changing a note while I waited outside. There was a 7-Eleven shop in the airport so we got ourselves a couple of ham and cheese toasties and some peanuts, Captain Caveman had a coffee. They weren’t expensive (but I didn’t keep the receipt) and tasted really delicious. We only had hand luggage and were already checked in so we went through to the gate early, even before it opened. Captain Caveman treated himself to a can of Heineken beer for 199 baht (£4.30) – the most expensive beer of the trip. At the gate we were held up because all non-residents to Vietnam, including me, had to have their visa checked. We boarded the plane just after 11am and Captain Caveman gave me his aisle seat while he took the middle one. We got a tasty meal of chicken noodles on the flight to Hanoi and when we landed we took the 86 bus for a total of 90,000VND (£2.77) for both of us.
From Hanoi airport to the train station the journey was just less than an hour and we were staying at a hotel within walking distance and very close to Puku. Captain Caveman dropped me off there while he went to the bank/gold shop and I had a passion fruit and mint slushy drink, without sugar, for 85,000VND (£2.62). We love Puku and have been visiting for years, it’s open 24 hours a day, every day, and is in central Hanoi. It’s been ideal for when we have got off the overnight train early in the morning, the menu is vast too so there is always something suitable to eat and drink. Our hotel was a small one above Fika Coffee shop, which we initially walked past. We checked in and dropped our bags off, Captain Caveman went straight back out to say hello to Lizzy, a friend of Josh’s and fellow caver, who was in Hanoi with her brother. I met Captain Caveman back at Puku and then we went over to meet Johan, we had planned for a civilised evening with nice food, as tomorrow we had an early flight.
Felix – Spanish fusion tapas was small and nicely decorated. The menu was pretty exciting and I know a meal with Johan is always going to be excellent as he has great taste in food, he particularly loves meat and cheese. We started with one bottle of Primitivo, an Italian red wine, between the 3 of us. The food was tapas style and Johan made some great recommendations. Here’s what we had with the prices in Vietnamese Dong; 3 crispy duck tacos 255,000 2 tuna carpaccio 315,000 1 smoked salmon 125,000 4.5 beef prata 428,000 1 brie with jam 189,000 1 grilled duck 199,000 1 pork banh mi 275,000 1 unagi with eggplant 125,000 400g suckling pig 415,000 2 bottles Primitivo wine 1,760,000 1 San Pellegrino water 90,000
Our total bill came to a whopping 4,772,544VND (£146.80) which included 8 – 10% Vat and a 5% obligatory service charge. Johan and Captain Caveman had all the fish/seafood ones and I stuck to more of the meat tapas. Instead of a dessert, because none of us are sweet people, we finished with a tapas each of our favourites; I chose the beef prata which we asked for 3 individual bites rather than the 2 (so a one and a half portion), the boys chose crispy duck and a tuna carpaccio. The food was absolutely amazing and definitely the best food I’ve had in Vietnam so far. Having the second bottle of Primitivo was Johan’s idea, and I wasn’t sure it was a good one. At 8pm, we sensibly got the bill and shared the cost, at £50 a head we had enjoyed a fabulous feast and were very full.
To end the night we decided to join Johan in a cocktail at a bar that he knew, where we were just in time for the 2 for 1 happy hour cocktails. By 8.30pm we were doing cheers; Johan with a whiskey sour and us with a martini. As we had to leave about 6.30am tomorrow for the airport, it was obviously a mistake to have another round. Captain Caveman and I had sensibly chosen the same drink as each other so that we could just have the one, but that left Johan to drink a second whiskey sour alone. It was only 8.55pm and happy hour ended in 5 minutes so we ordered 2 more martinis, but Johan ordered another cocktail which looked like a pornstar martini. We met some fellow drinkers who had just missed the happy hour and we got chatting while finishing our final drink, as I was already feeling a little tiddly. Needless to say the night got quite out of hand as Captain Caveman and I had another 5 martinis! I remember walking Johan to his Grab taxi, as we were on a walking street, but then got temporarily lost on my way back. We met a nurse who was from America but turned out he had lived in Germany but was of Turkish parentage. I got excited thinking I could speak Turkish to him. After Captain Caveman paid our bill, which I don’t remember the amount, we walked with our new nurse friend to Puku to meet up with Lizzy. I proceeded to order red wine and Lizzy had a bit of a to do with her brother who she had left in their hotel room but had brought the key card with her. We had a great time in a very full Puku where I finally made some Turkish speaking friends. They were cabin crew for Turkish airlines, and I was able to prattle on in their native language to my heart’s content. I ordered another red wine and it was gone 2am when we left Puku. Lizzy left her key card and I left my phone, Captain Caveman had to go back for both and luckily they were still there. As I got in bed fully clothed and absolutely hammered, I don’t remember falling asleep, packing or setting alarm for tomorrow’s morning flight to Dong Hoi.
I’ve had some unusual Fridays in my life but Friday 12th April certainly fell in to that category. We got up and packed our bags ready for an exciting break to Thailand, I was feeling a bit better but still had a cold and a cough. We walked to Saint Honore bakery to get some breakfast to take to the airport. They were building outside so it wasn’t easy to get in and we ended up just getting a croissant. By 10.30am we had exited Vietnam at Hanoi airport so that I could send a photo of my passport stamp to Lynn Visa. She was going to apply for another visa for me while I was out of the country and, hopefully, send me the new one on Tuesday before our lunchtime flight back. Captain Caveman had organised a weekend in Bangkok for us and we were going to be meeting up with one of his Son Doong customers. Thailand was celebrating Songkran this weekend so there would be lots of water festivals everywhere. Our Vietnam Airlines flight from Hanoi to Bangkok left at 12.45pm and we got seats sat together, me in my preferred aisle seat. We boarded 30 minutes late but still departed on time. On the flight we got a really nice meal which included; a banana, a beef noodle dish and some bread – even the hot tea with milk wasn’t bad. On landing, Captain Caveman had to change $200 at a fairly low rate and got 6,742 Thai baht. Even though money was still a concern to me, Captain Caveman had put money aside for this holiday and said not to worry. We were not staying in Bangkok for the next 2 nights, Captain Caveman had booked us in to a small hotel in Ayutthaya, the old capital. The journey there was not for the inexperienced traveller as we had to ask a member of staff at Bangkok airport train station how to get there. He told Captain Caveman it was off the edge of the map, but, luckily, he was well versed with the London Underground map and it wasn’t dissimilar. The train was a bit of an eye-opener and we only just made it on to it in time. Somehow we had managed to get from Bangkok airport to Bang Sue Junction, buy a 14 baht (30p) ticket each, for a 90 minute journey and grab a seat. The train was not unlike one I’d been on in India, it was insanely hot and fairly busy and I found it difficult to cope. I moved seats several times to try to get near a fan, while Captain Caveman played Bridge on his phone for the duration of the ride. At 6.23pm I had never been so ready to alight the train, an absolutely dripping mess of sweat. The train station at Ayutthaya was nice and Captain Caveman managed to get a Grab taxi without any issue. When we arrived at Nature Home, our accommodation for the next 2 nights, the owner showed us to our room. He proceeded to educate Captain Caveman on how to work an Air Con remote, how to open and close windows and how it was very hot here for English people. That went down well and I could tell Captain Caveman had stopped listening. At 6.55pm I unexpectedly received a message from Lynn Visa, who had already got my new Vietnamese visa for me. I checked it, it was correct, and thanked her for such a quick service – well worth the $80 (£64). This meant that I was permitted to stay in Vietnam for another 90 days should I need to. That evening we needed to get some laundry so we spent our Friday night between Happy Mix Wash & Dry launderette and Earthling Craft Cafe & Bar. An usual day turned strange when I realised that the Earthling Craft Cafe & Bar had spiders, reptiles and sphynx cats. Luckily they also had good ales, a delightful cider and excellent food. Happy Mix was amazing and we managed to do a load of laundry for an acceptable 105 baht (£2.28) and this included tumble drying as well. Captain Caveman and I took it in turns to check on the cycles as it was just across the road and had free WiFi. Our garlic bread and pizza at Earthling was very good and I don’t recall the prices as Captain Caveman paid but I know it was reasonable. Back at the Nature Home hotel, I didn’t take long to fall asleep which was good as we had a busy day tomorrow.
Thursday 11th April was one of our most extravagant and expensive days of the year so far. I was still feeling really poorly when I woke up so Captain Caveman went alone to meet friends for a Bun Cha breakfast. He also had a walk to the famous Hanoi train street but didn’t take any photos as he’s been before. I got up to a lovely surprise when I needed my morning pee; a blocked toilet with a real treat from my other half! I could’ve cried but, instead, I got dressed, cleaned my teeth and walked to Oriberry cafe to use the loo and have breakfast. I had a hot winter tea to help sooth my throat and cough along with turmeric and ginger cookies. Captain Caveman came to meet me and we had words about the toilet situation and I paid my bill of 110,000VND (£3.45). I also transferred our Turkish letting agent the money for her cut of the rent paid, a deep clean of Captain Caveman’s apartment and a replacement front door lock. The lock came as a surprise as there was nothing wrong with it when I left a month ago, but now it was broken! The only people who had been in were the workmen for the repair and replacement of the balcony railings, which we still needed to be finished by next week and were going to cost 55,000 Turkish lira (£1,358). Captain Caveman was aware of these costs and had been saving up before finding out about his job but, still, it was all pay out. I was hungry so Captain Caveman decided to treat me to a nice lunch at Hanoi Taco Bar which looked out on to West Lake. We both ordered the lunchtime special, him with tacos and me with enchiladas. It was very tasty and for only 350,000VND (£10.98) for the both of us with a drink, it was worth it. I was still very snotty but we decided to go to Republic for a drink overlooking the lake. To try to get some iron in me, I plumped for a Guinness and Captain Caveman had an Espresso Martini. Next, I decided to top up my calcium levels with a White Russian while Captain Caveman had 2 pints of Sapporo. Our bill for the 5 drinks came to 560,000VND (£17.57) which I didn’t think was bad for a fancy bar in Hanoi. We walked back to Aisha hotel where I tried to make Captain Caveman deal with telling the staff about the toilet blockage. He said the cleaner would have been and sorted it out by now, but he was wrong. The cleaner was in another room so I went to get her and hoped Captain Caveman would speak to her. He laid on the bed on his phone and ignored the whole thing while she obviously thought it was my blockage. I couldn’t cope with it without heaving so, as she shoved her hand in to a plastic bag and then down the toilet, I went downstairs to sit in reception. When the lady finished she came downstairs and gave me 2 bottles of water, obviously thinking I was ill. I was so embarrassed and when I got back to the room, Captain Caveman had not moved or spoken to the woman! I was not pleased, at all!
Captain Caveman had arranged for us to meet up with Johan at a fancy restaurant in Dang Thai Mai, Tay Ho (West Lake) in the evening. On the way, we called for a cheeky drink at The Bottle Shop, I just had a soda as I was still not well but was getting better. At Los Fuegos, where Johan was a regular, we indulged in the most amazing meal I’d had so far in Vietnam. No expense was spared as we tasted so many different dishes and it was Captain Caveman’s holiday, after all. I really ẹnjoyed 2 of the dishes which I thought I’d replicate once I was back in Turkey; the water melon & feta skewers and the dates with goats cheese – both were simple but amazing! Johan chose the wine which was a vintage Pinotage/Syrah at 840,000VND (£26.35) per bottle. Here’s what the 3 of us ordered and shared for our dinner, prices in Dong;
Black garlic sauce 60,000 Grilled Brussel sprouts 80,000 Watermelon & feta 125,000 Cheese 135,000 Bone Marrow 220,000 3 bottles of sparkling water 420,000 Rump steak 490,000 Skirt steak 730,000 3 bottles of red wine 2,520,000 Churros 100,000 Dates with Goats cheese 140,000 Total (Inc tax & tip) 5,020,000VND (£157.60)
It was worth the just over £52 each, which included a bottle of wine and a bottle of San Pellegrino water each, but I did feel a bit out of sorts for spending almost a week’s budget on one meal. It definitely made up for the shitty toilet incident earlier, though. Los Fuegos closed at 10pm so, after a quick photo with a Maradona painting, we were back to The Bottle Shop for one last drink. We said goodbye to Johan with a loose arrangement to meet up on our return to Hanoi. Back in the hotel by 11.30pm, Captain Caveman fell asleep instantly on top of the covers, in just his pants. I stayed awake coughing for quite some time, hoping to be better for tomorrow’s 12.45pm flight.
I slept in until pretty late on Wednesday 10th April and my cold had got a lot worse. Captain Caveman and I walked to the nearest shoping centre for breakfast and he had coffee and a cheese and ham toastie. He bought me a croissant and an earl grey tea but I could hardly taste it and kept coughing a lot. I was running out of underwear so we went to Rico where I bought 2 pairs of sensible knickers for 200,000VND (£6.38) and Captain Caveman thought it was a bit of an unnecessary expense. I rarely spend any money on clothes and when I do it’s always for practical reasons, but these were essential. I’d had my eye on one of the cute dresses they had for 400,000VND (£12.31) to take on our trip to Thailand but I was too sick and the budget didn’t include clothes to make me look pretty. On the way back to Aisha hotel we called a the shop for more essentials, here’s what we got and the prices in Dong;
Winmart Supermarket 1.5l water 10,600 Revive isotonic drink 11,800 Lays crisps 12,100 Japanese Crisps 19,000 Fridge cost 500 Total spent 54,000VND (£1.69)
Once back, I decided I needed to get back in bed and Captain Caveman was going to meet a friend for lunch, without me, but bring me something back to eat. As it was weigh day, and the 5th Fat Club in Dalyan that I’d been away for, I did my measurements. We had no scales but I’d put 1cm on my bust and waist, my hips had remained the same – maybe I didn’t need clothes in a smaller size if I was going to fill my baggy clothes again! When Captain Caveman returned from a nice lunch at a yoga retreat with Cuc, he had brought me back a beautifully presented takeaway box. He told me they were fresh veggie spring rolls with a pesto dip. I bit in to one and it was super slimy and I had to spit it out. Unfortunately, he had brought me avocado rolls with some guacamole dip and had forgotten I hate avocado. Instead I ate crisps but I was still hungry. That evening we were meeting our friend and Vietnamese teacher, Lien, for dinner but she had to rearrange plans and we met at Oriberry cafe. They do food but there was nothing I liked on the menu so I had a herbal tea and a slice of banana bread which Captain Caveman had half of and it was more like cake. It was only a brief meet up with Lien but it was good to see her, she looked really well. Captain Caveman decided we were going to go to an old favourite, Dalcheeni Indian restaurant, for dinner but Lien didn’t want to join us. I was a snotty mess and took ages to decide what to order. My eyes were streaming so I could hardly see the menu. I wasn’t having a good day where food was concerned as the samosas and my chicken tikka were too spicy so I ate the rice, naan bread and some of Captain Caveman’s chicken starter. Luckily Captain Caveman was able to eat what I had ordered without any complaints. We walked back to the hotel, via the same shop where we bought the following;
Winmart Supermarket 1.5l water 10,600 Tissues 30,500 Total spent 41,100VND (£1.29)
Strangely, there was no extra cost for drinks from the fridge this time. Back at the hotel, I took some medication and went to sleep, hoping to feel better in the morning.
Captain Caveman and I were tucking in to Bo Ne at Mr Bull’s in Dong Hoi before 8am on Tuesday 9th April. Our flight from Dong Hoi to Hanoi was at 10.50am, meaning we would arrive in to the capital city just before midday. I was a bit cranky in Dong Hoi airport, as I had ordered what I thought was an oolong tea but it turned out to be a bottled sweet tea with tons of sugar. Captain Caveman often goes in to complete shutdown in an airport and doesn’t respond to being spoken to, he is so used to travelling alone that he spends the entire time on his phone and I find it rude. The flight was as expected and we arrived on time with plans to get the number 86 bus to Xuan Dieu to meet an old friend. Captain Caveman had arranged to meet Leonard, who used to live in Phong Nha, at a nice little Italian restaurant of Leonard’s choosing. We were meant to be meeting at Giovanni’s between 12.30 and 1pm but, unfortunately, there was a bit of a delay with our bus. There were quite a few pushy men at the bus station, asking where we were going and probably trying to get us to take an illegal taxi. Captain Caveman was having none of it and we both kept our wits about us as we saw what looked like a bit of scamming. We got on the bus and paid the 90,000VND (£2.84) for the pair of us to go to Xuan Dieu. We sat a while and then we were asked to get on another bus, which was further delayed and meant that Leonard was waiting a long time for us. We didn’t get going until 12.46pm and it meant we had about 15 minutes before the Giovanni’s kitchen closed at 2pm, once we arrived. We said hello to Leonard who was looking very well and was dining on a pesto pasta dish which Captain Caveman also ordered and I went for the tomato version. It was very tasty but I had started to feel a bit under the weather and had a bit of a cough. I put it down to the pollution as we walked Leonard back to his nearby apartment and said our goodbyes.
We walked, with our bags, to the Aisha Hotel where we were staying for 3 nights. It was very nice and it had a super comfy bed and no windows – ideal for getting to sleep in at last! There was no rest to be had though as we needed to get ready for the evening’s entertainment and, quite frankly, Captain Caveman had excelled himself with what he had up his sleeve!
Captain Caveman and I had been invited by his friends, Martin and Martina, to an evening event at the Czech Embassy in Hanoi. We arrived to a champagne reception and I was glad I had worn one of my new dresses, a black floor length number. There was a fundraiser for Blue Dragon where the founder, Do Duy Vi, was there to receive donations from an auction. The designer Mimi Lan Nguyen put on a fashion show which incorporated Vietnamese silk with Czech linen to raise money for the charity. Hynek Kmoníček, the Czech ambassador, was there to introduce it all and was quite an amusing speaker. Vi and Mimi were great and their stories were particularly moving, especially Vi who had grown up in poverty himself. There were stalls dotted around the outside of the building, my favourite being the Belgian chocolate one. We got to taste amazing chocolates by chocolatier Peter Rudolf Braun and it was so good. After the show there was a chance to mingle with the likes of the Finnish ambassador and his wife, both wearing big shiny rings. A buffet of fancy canapes was put on and I had 3 with a glass of red wine. Captain Caveman managed to snaffle down a considerable amount more than me but was still up for food and drink elsewhere later. I’d really enjoyed my evening of Vietnamese and Czech culture a lot more than I thought I would – definitely another first for me.
We left Martin and Martina to ‘finish their duties’ as they work at the embassy and we headed over to 7 Bridges where we arranged to meet back up with them. Here I drank cider as I was still trying to stay off the beer while Captain Caveman tried a couple of different IPAs. We also had some food, I had quesadillas and Captain Caveman had sausage. When Martin and Martina rejoined us we each had a slice of pizza too. It had been a great night, something a little different. Around 11pm we paid half each of our 1,580,000VND (£49.38) bill which consisted of 6 beers, 1 cider, 1 soft drink, 1 quesadilla, 1 sausage, and 4 slices of pizza. I was definitely glad of my bed that night and had a bit of a sore throat as I went to sleep.
Captain Caveman was off in to the cave on Friday 16th June and he would be doing 2 tours back to back over the next 8 days. I was looking forward to some quieter, less active days. In 2 weeks time I would be arriving in Rhodes to stay at Steve and Michelle’s house in Lardos. Captain Caveman and I ate left over pizza, from The Villa’s, for breakfast and then I saw him off from Ho Khanh’s homestay. I worked 10am to 7.15pm but with a couple of gaps for breaks. I ate cheese, biscuits, fruit, yoghurt and peanuts and after work I had a cheeky can of Huda beer from the fridge then watched Netflix. It felt cooler or was it because I was acclimatising after cycling in sun the last 3 days!?
For a change of scenery on Saturday 17th June, I chose to work from Victory Road Villas. I sat in the AC room of The Villa’s restaurant at the back and decided to go off piste on my breakfast order. I thought I’d try the recommendation from Captain Caveman of Bo Ne (without eggs) which was a little on the pricier side to my usual breakfast. When it came, it was different to what I imagined it to be; instead of sausage it had pâté, which I don’t like and the dish was in lots of tomato sauce, served with cucumber, which I don’t eat either. The bread was also sweet so I didn’t eat it all but I enjoyed the little hone made cookie served with my pot of Jasmine tea. I worked from 10.15am to 1.15pm then ordered an orange juice and some fresh spring rolls with prawns in. Lunch was very tasty and I washed it down with another pot of tea and got back to work. I finished around 4.15pm as I had planned to meet Lucie, who had returned from the new Jungle Boss tour. I had a soda, a lime juice and some peanuts while I waited for Lucie to get ready. Her son, and Lucie’s mom also joined us and we all ate together, we should have ordered a bottle of wine as I had 3 by the glass. The Showstopper pizza was as good as always and we had a lovely evening.
Here’s my bill at The Villa’s restaurant for the whole day;
Bo Ne 170,000 2 pots of jasmine tea 100,000 Fresh orange 60,000 Soda water 25,000 Lime juice 30,000 Fresh prawn spring rolls 100,000 Peanuts 35,000 Showstopper pizza 240,000 3 glasses of wine 270,000 Total 1,030,000vnd Discount of 206,000vnd Total spent 824,000vnd (£27.19)
I cycled home and slept very well that night, having the bed to myself.
It was my first time, but not Captain Caveman’s, of visiting Sapa on Monday 22nd May. We were up too early to have any breakfast as the limousine bus was picking us up at 6.30am. The seats were comfy with massage function and there was plenty of space in the 9 seater air conditioned vehicle. Our journey was pleasant with a stop at a decent services after 2.5 hours, for a toilet break and to eat some fresh pineapple. I got talking to fellow passengers who had booked a rural homestay in Sapa and the wife was slightly concerned that she may be a bit too far out in the sticks. On previous holidays with Captain Caveman I’d also had the same concerns and knew how she felt, but not this time. We arrived at the Silk Path Grand Resort and Spa Hotel in Sapa after a 6 hour journey and I was so impressed with the look of it. Even the lady I was chatting to was impressed and wished us a nice holiday. Check it out here, Captain Caveman really had chosen well; https://silkpathhotel.com/en/Sapa/ Our mountain view room was ready early and, of course, I had to take some photos. We were booked in for 4 nights and I was really looking forward to that.
We were peckish, having only eaten a bread roll and the fruit so we got the free shuttle service in to Sapa town to look for food. Our friends, Phil and Hoa, had sent us some recommendations for eateries in the area. Sapa is incredibly hilly and it was very different to how I expected it, I loved that the temperature was so much cooler and I was impressed that my leg was completely recovered now. After a walk up and down hills we found Good Morning Vietnam restaurant and sat down inside with a menu. AC was not even needed but it was still shorts and t-shirt weather. We both ordered a Hanoi beer, Captain Caveman chose fried spring rolls and I asked if he was going to share. He agreed but didn’t want to have any of my tofu in tomato sauce. We both had another beer and I never got to try the spring rolls as Captain Caveman had snaffled the lot in record time. He often says he’s not hungry but then polishes food off quite greedily, today was one of those times. Our lunch with 4 beers came to 250,000vnd (£8.25) which wasn’t bad considering we were in a tourist town where beers were the same price as VRV.
We decided not to get the shuttle back to the hotel but to have a look around the town. We found Tag Beer, a nice bar with proper beer and a pool table. Although Captain Caveman had not played pool for over 6 months, he’d not lost his touch and proceeded to thrash me. After a couple of cheeky beers we walked up the hill to Little Sapa restaurant where we met Hoa for dinner. Unfortunately Phil had got Covid so he was isolating and couldn’t join us and we were all disappointed on his behalf. For dinner I had the sweet and sour chicken, Hoa had beef and Captain Caveman had pork. All the food was good and great value but, as Captain Caveman paid, I forgot to take a note of the price. Captain Caveman had arranged to go on a mini expedition tomorrow, while I ‘worked from home’ in luxury. Hoa had arranged for him to do a 2 day trek up a mountain with just a Vietnamese guide for company. After seeing Hoa, we sauntered back to the centre of town to get the free shuttle back up the hill to our hotel. It had been a great day and I was already quite taken with Sapa.
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!
Our stay in Hanoi was almost over but on Sunday 10th July we had one last friend to see. Lien used to be our Vietnamese teacher and we arranged to meet her at Oriberry cafe. I’d mentioned we should probably get something for breakfast first but Captain Caveman said we could eat later. It was nice to see Lien and she looked really well as we chatted about work related topics. Captain Caveman ordered himself a chicken and pesto salad sandwich but I really didn’t want to eat lunch at 10am and they didn’t have breakfast items.
On our way back to check out we bought a croissant for me from the supermarket. We had a car booked for the airport at 11.15am and we were off. Hanoi airport was very busy and the self check-in counters were broken so Captain Caveman had a bit of a to do. He went to complain at the staff member behind the new ticket sales counter. We were likely to miss our flight because the check-in queues were horrendous so she helped us by pushing us in to the front and getting us our tickets printed. The airport was noisy and stressful, we didn’t even get an alcoholic beverage. The flight was on time and, before we had even took off, Captain Caveman was working, the holiday was over! When we landed it was Captain Caveman’s job to meet and greet his customers which he did. When we went to get in the organised transport there were 2 cars which we were allocated the one with the Vietnamese customers in, while the English speakers were in the other car. They dropped me off, with both bags, at Elements and Captain Caveman went straight to Phong Nha to drop off customers then to his briefing for the tour tomorrow.
Shannon, was in town and we’d organised a soirée at the Phong Nha Farmstay. I snaffled down a toasted teacake and passion fruit snack, then got ready. I met up with Shannon, Veronika, Ross, Trang and Andrew for some dinner and a drink. I had a couple of beers and ordered a pork clay pot while the others had pizza or snack food. Mine took a bit longer to be served but it was really good and I had some rosé wine with Shannon. It was a pleasant evening and good to see Shannon passing through Phong Nha after a year away. Captain Caveman was back home before me and the rain had started to get heavy when I got my lift back home.
We had breakfast on Saturday 9th July at a place in Hanoi which Captain Caveman had told me about. I’d been looking forward to trying 7Frydays for its fish and chips, which are meant to be ‘the business’, but a good English fry up would do me. The rain in Hanoi was pretty heavy so we had borrowed an umbrella and taken the shortcut through the alleyways to get there. I think Captain Caveman was hoping to prove where I went wrong on getting lost yesterday, but we got lost again and it made me laugh. At 7Frydays the staff/owners were friendly and hard working and they dried off a table for us to sit at. As soon as I saw the breakfast menu I was happy and went for the build your own, while Captain Caveman ordered a Full Monty, of course. I had a lovely pot of tea with cold milk and a proper mug too. Something I have noticed that seems to be increasing is using chillies as garnish, as I’m allergic I find it unnecessary, but Captain Caveman had the bit that was on top of my hash brown. The food was absolutely wonderful and I would definitely eat there again when I’m in Hanoi. I was very full and wouldn’t need any lunch.
In the afternoon we went to meet Gary in a Bia Hoi, the weather had fined up so we walked. To be honest I’m not a fan of the Bia Hoi places because, although now I can drink the beer, the ones we usually go to are aimed at Vietnamese men. The toilets are always basic at best, no one has heard of soap and there’s lots of smoking (cigarettes and weed) on most occasions. Nevertheless, I do love Gary and his wife, Hanh, their friends are often good company too, so I put up with it. I usually end up having a great time and just get drunk so I worry less about having to use the piss drenched, stinky toilet. Joining the group today were Matt and Darren, both of who were also fun and we talked about a load of random topics. Captain Caveman got his beer served in a wonky glass which I wanted to see if we could buy but Captain Caveman wasn’t interested in doing that. I enjoyed the humour and having such a good laugh, which we always do whenever we meet up with Gary and his crew. The time went too quickly, I was very merry but it was time to say farewell. We had a dinner booked for our final evening in Hanoi together, tonight.
On the way back to Euphoria apartments Captain Caveman pointed out that the Bia Hoi next to where we were had a small Frydays within it. We stopped off and I tried the fish and chips, Captain Caveman had a fish sandwich. Unfortunately they didn’t have the Atlantic Cod, probably as they had been busy last night, so we settled for the red snapper. Our bill came to just 255,000vnd (£9), the portions were good and that included 3 beers. It was very tasty and hopefully helped soak up some of the alcohol before I had to go back to get ready for our last night out in Hanoi.
I decided to wear my orange dress with a bit of cleavage on show and had my hair down despite it being a bit warm still. Captain Caveman booked us a Grab taxi and texted his friend, Mr B, to let him know we were on our way! It would be a romantic table for three at the Drunken Duck. When the car dropped us off it was a bit of a walk down some alleys to find the place, it is on the canal by the Intercontinental hotel. As we walked in to the Drunken Duck it definitely looked like the type of place you’d go on a date. I noted it would definitely not be a place my Dad would like, though, on account of it being very dark and there were absolutely no menus whatsoever, not even for cocktails or wine! We sat at the bar, where the extremely young bartender was making cocktails and we chose ours. I wasn’t expecting to be that impressed with my Old Fashioned but it was spot on. My next cocktail was a dry martini with olives, by which time Mr B had arrived and we sat at our ‘table pour trois’. I think I preferred a menu rather than the waiter telling us we could have ‘chicken, pork, beef or fish’ and then Captain Caveman and Mr B asking for lamb. I ordered chicken in a rush and regretted it instantly. My food was good and came with 5 spice sauce on half a chicken, served with salad and pickled white carrot. The guys got what I thought was one portion of lamb to share but the waiter assured us it was two portions but on the same plate. We asked if they had wine and he directed us to the wall where I asked the price of a Primitivo. It was a reasonable cost at under £30 so we went for that and enjoyed it.
The night was delightful, we saw Mr B off in to a taxi before walking back to our accommodation. On the way back we inadvertently ended up in 7 Bridges Taproom bar, again! It had been great to see Captain Caveman as well as him be able to have some time off to see friends. Tomorrow we would be back in Phong Nha, we were both looking forward to it.
Photo credit – some at the Drunken Duck taken by Captain Caveman
My first job on Friday 8th July was to book myself on a trip to Laos for my next visa run. I had found an agent who did organised van/bus trips to the Vietnam-Laos border to be able to go out and in again with a new e-Visa. They were based in Danang and were doing at least one trip per week so I made enquiries, leading to a provisional booking for the end of the month. Captain Caveman’s train was running a bit late but he was on his way. I took a walk to Republic in the West Lake area of Hanoi and had a pot of earl grey tea. When I asked for some milk for it they brought me hot frothy milk which was a bit strange but I used it. Captain Caveman arrived and we had to leave straight away because he had arranged a lunch appointment with a friend. I’d particularly wanted to visit Con Heo Beo (The Fat Pig) as I hadn’t been for so long. It’s primarily a pork restaurant, a short walk down the hill from Republic, and where we went when my parents were visiting a few years ago. When we arrived the place had been done up a tad and looked very nice, Captain Caveman’s friend was already sat at an upstairs table, we ordered beers and pork scratchings for starters. We listened intently to Mr B sharing tales of his life since he and Captain Caveman last met up, 15 years ago. We ordered a sharing platter over more interesting updates. I was just getting to find this guy entertaining when it was informed to me that Mr B and Captain Caveman had to leave as they had arranged to be somewhere else at 2pm. Captain Caveman gave me his rucksack, put a shortcut on my phone of how to get back to Euphoria apartments, through some back alleys, and sent me off. It was not quite the romantic ‘welcome back to Vietnam’ reunion I’d imagined but, honestly, it was not unexpected – Captain Caveman has form for this sort of thing.
Google maps told me it was a 3 minute walk through some alleys back to Euphoria apartments. I followed the map for about a minute then my map told me I was stood in the middle of a lake and stopped directing me. It was hot, humid, I was lost but I was definitely not in a lake. I decided to go right and when I saw some building works, which Captain Caveman had mentioned, I turned left thus ending up in a school playground. It was 2pm as Google directed me to walk through the school, which I did and was back on track. I did some Turkish practice and lolled about back at the apartment for a bit. Captain Caveman had said he would meet me at the Moose and Roo at 5pm where I’d also rearranged to meet friends from our cancelled plans yesterday. I walked the 10 minutes to the pub and arrived at 5pm, just as Captain Caveman had got off a Grab motorbike. He hadn’t brought his friend so just the 2 of us went inside the Moose and Roo. Leonard made it and was doing well, I’d not seen him since before the pandemic, when he lived at Funny Monkeys, Phong Nha. We ordered some beers and the service wasn’t super quick so we weren’t going to be getting drunk. Leonard is a pensioner, and not too steady on his feet, so he just had the one beer. We happened to notice a guy we knew from a few years back, Declan, and he joined us for a drink too. We got talking to him about mates we had in common and had a bit of a laugh. Once Declan left, we decided to have some food and checked out the extensive menu. Leonard ordered the topped nachos, Captain Caveman and I shared a cheese board, both were nice but not the best ever. We had another beer (or 2) then said our goodbyes to Leonard and stopped traffic to get him in to a taxi, back to his hotel, in the old quarter. As we were leaving I started petting a customer’s dog and we got talking to the owner, they knew Mark and Lesley from Phong Nha and were coming to Phong Nha soon, so we exchanged details on Facebook. They needed information on what to do in Phong Nha and would message us with questions. We set off walking home and decided to call for one at the 7 Bridges bar. We ended up staying a little longer than expected and even had more food. Captain Caveman had a slice of pizza and some onion rings, I had the most amazing mac and cheese with bacon in. We left when a big group got too noisy – they just happened to be British! Captain Caveman and I had just one more full day in Hanoi tomorrow so he was going to make the most of it!
Thursday 7th July was particularly rainy in Hanoi so I stayed in the apartment. Kat was up early and had stuff to do so we said our goodbyes, it had been a really great couple of days and I was going to miss her company. She’d already had a croissant for breakfast, I had mine a little later. By lunch time I was eating left overs and doing a spot of Duolingo Turkish. Captain Caveman was due out of Son Doong today and would be going to his gala dinner tonight. His train was leaving Dong Hoi in the late evening but would arrive at 10am (approximately) tomorrow morning. We had arranged to meet up at a place I could walk to for lunch. I helped my sister, in Dalyan, organise a private boat trip with Kaan and breakfast at Çandır Resort for this coming weekend and then I did some blog editing. I couldn’t be bothered to go out in the rain as I didn’t have the clothes for it so I stayed in. I was meant to be meeting some friends at 5pm but, because of the rain, we postponed to when Captain Caveman was here. I drank the peach cider and finished off what was left of the picnic. It was all very nice and the peach cider is definitely worth a try. It was a lovely relaxing day, one I should have appreciated more because our weekend was going to be busy!
I had a bit of a funny turn at about 2am on Wednesday 6th July. Kat turned the light out for us to go to sleep and I lay down. I got an overwhelming feeling of not being able to breathe properly and my chest was very hot to the touch. I scared her as she wondered if I was going to need medical attention and I didn’t know what was wrong with me. When I sat up I seemed to feel better but when I lay down I got worse, I turned my head toward the Aircon and we left the torch, on Kat’s phone, on until I calmed down a bit and eventually fell asleep. Thinking about it, it was the same thing I had when I got on the plane in Singapore so I wondered if it was just from lack of sleep and a bit of stress. When I woke up, Kat had already been out to buy us some local food for breakfast. She had got me xoi ngo (or xoi bap), which is sticky corn rice with mung bean and fried onion. It’s very filling and tastes great. Kat had xoi xeo for herself, which was similar to mine but without the corn. We ate it with kombucha, which I didn’t particularly enjoy but it did cut through the stodge of the breakfast well. After breakfast I got ready and we decided to go over to West Lake so we could grab a drink at a cafe. Our first stop was at Mystic cafe where they put up a parasol for us to sit by the lake. It was hazy but hot and I borrowed a sun hat from Kat. I had a fresh iced tea and the menu looked good so we ordered lunch there. I had a chicken taco and Kat had chicken salad, both were great value for money. Next we stopped off at Huy Long cafe on a nice corner spot, Kat had a coffee and I had a fresh lemon juice. Kat had stuff to do in the afternoon so she kindly dropped me off at the accommodation which Captain Caveman had booked from tonight. We loosely said we would meet up later and off I went, to the Euphoria reception desk to check in.
I was excited to find we had been upgraded to a snazzy 2 bedroom apartment at Euphoria. I roughly knew the area too so, after unpacking and taking some photos, I had a walk to the shopping centre next to Fraser Suites. I was surprised to see that the Annam Gourmet shop sold Yorkshire tea bags but 80 were 450,000vnd (£16.20). I found that wine was cheaper and bought 2 bottles of screw top red and some croissants for breakfast tomorrow. I wasn’t sure if I would be eating out tonight but noticed the pizza place had 2 for 1 offers on Wednesdays which was good.
Back at Euphoria, I chilled out a bit and worked out how to operate the TV so that I could put my Youtube playlist on. Kat was coming over later but I got peckish and thirsty so I ordered pizza and started the wine. Kat arrived with treats of cheese, olives, Korean chocolate nibbles, some pastry things and peach cider. We had a bit of a picnic for our dinner, with wine and some great tunes. At first I was reluctant to try the Ricco Tiramisu gluten free sweets, but Kat insisted. I’m glad that she did because they are life changing and I need to have more if them in my life. We went to bed late and it was pretty luxurious to have a bedroom each tonight.
joloyolo 