I went to Oxalis early on Friday 5th April so that I could see Tatas before her 2 day Hang Va trip. She was tired and the bus hadn’t got in until gone midnight. I had a bacon sandwich and some green tea before picking up the laundry and cycling back to Sunshine Homestay.
It was a misty, humid morning but it was about to hot up so I agreed that Khanh Linh could pick me up for lunch. She drove us both to Bamboo cafe where she insisted on us having lime yoghurt drinks. I’d been brought up to never mix citrus and dairy in the belief that they curdle but that was not a rule that Vietnamese people held. It tasted good but I worried it would give me a stomach issue. We also shared fresh pork and prawn spring rolls and a mango salad with prawn crackers. It was all very nice but I had a bad stomach before we could leave the restaurant.
In the evening I took myself off for an early dinner at The Villa’s where I had a white wine and soda, smoked duck salad and a pizza. I was only on 7 syns for this week so it was time to treat myself and I only ate a bit of the pizza and took the rest home. I paid 385,000VND (£12.09) for a starter, main, and a wine and soda. I did end up eating a bit more of the pizza before bed time though, as the fridge in the room was not on and had mould in it. Tomorrow, Captain Caveman was due out in the afternoon and he would have one day off before we went on another little jolly!
On Thursday 4th April I got an update from Tatas that she would be back in Phong Nha tonight, as there was no bus yesterday from her home town. Unfortunately, she would not be back until about midnight and was working tomorrow. I decided to take myself off to The Villa’s to catch up with some blogging. I had a fruit salad, yoghurt and muesli for breakfast with jasmine tea. I had a bee in my bonnet about the water bottles with filtered water in which sometimes harbour mould on the stoppers so I recommended to the staff that they clean them more. I didn’t drink the water out of the bottle they brought me because of this as my stomach was already delicate. I had pho bo (beef noodle soup) for lunch and then later a carrot, orange and ginger juice. I paid 220,000VND (£6.91) for breakfast, lunch and 4 drinks so that was quite a bargain.
After a rest at Sunshine Homestay, I got an invite to celebrate Chung’s birthday with her at a local Vietnamese restaurant, not far from Magic Fingers massage place. Chung gave me a lift but I had to carry 2 birthday cakes, one in each hand – a first for me on the back of a motorbike. The party was good with lots of familiar faces as well as some new ones. I didn’t drink any alcohol, mainly because I no longer drink beer and I don’t like the rice wine. A lot of the food wasn’t suitable for me as it had seafood, innards and chillies in but Chung ordered veggie noodles and veggie fried rice for me, which was really nice.
Around 10pm there were swarms of flying ants which were a bit bothersome and I moved away from the table. Huong, from Jungle Boss, offered to give me a lift and I agreed to carry flowers and cake too. We went to karaoke and I even got persuaded to do a Britney Spears song. My battery on my phone died but I think I got in about 1am and Long, the owner of Sunshine Homestay, was surprised at my lateness. Huong gave me a lift as she was only round the corner and I couldn’t wait to get to bed.
Captain Caveman was off in to Hang Son Doong on the morning of Wednesday 3rd April so he’d gone on ahead to Oxalis via the Glass House. We’d decided that I needed to get my bicycle, Bluey, out of storage so I could use her to cycle in to town. I did my measurements, but without any scales I wasn’t sure how I was doing. I’d put 1cm on my waist and hips but stayed the same on my bust. I’d also had 316 syns in the last week with 108 of them being on alcohol so, if I’d been at the Dalyan (Not So) Fat Club weigh in today, I’d have probably put weight on. The weather had certainly got a lot warmer in Phong Nha since I’d returned and walking the 3km in to town wasn’t an option. I arranged to grab the dirty laundry and walk to meet Captain Caveman at Oxalis, where we could have breakfast and I could pick up Bluey. By 8.20am I was tucking in to a bowl of pho bo while admiring the river view. At 10am I was back at Sunshine Homestay, with Bluey, having the remainder of yesterday’s Vegan fresh spring rolls, for a second breakfast. It felt really hot at 38°C and 44% humidity compared to what I’d been used to so I stayed in the room for lunch with the AC on. I ordered the tofu in tomato sauce with steamed rice from Phong Nha Vegan and it was really delicious. In the late afternoon I managed a video call with Vanessa in Sheffield who was doing well to be recovering quickly from her surgery and hoping to get well enough to be able to drive again soon. For dinner I met an old friend, My Linh, owner of Green River Cosy Homestay, at Phong Nha Vegan. We both had a soup, shared the mushroom skewers and she had french fries. It was good to see her but she was so busy at her 2 homestays that she barely had time to eat. That evening I had a bad stomach but I was pleased with myself for having had zero syns on weigh day.
Captain Caveman had booked both of us on the SE6 train at 10.22am on Tuesday 2nd April, from Danang to Dong Hoi. The journey takes 6.5 hours but he’d booked the top bunks of a 4 berth coach so we could lay down. The cost was 319,000VND (£10) each so quite a bargain. Captain Caveman ate my leftover pizza for his breakfast. I don’t eat before travelling because I don’t like to have an upset stomach but there were both squat and western style toilets on the train that weren’t too bad to use. Captain Caveman brought us a packet of crisps each for the journey and ate his straight away. The train was on time, we were lucky to have well behaved bottom bunk passengers and all went according to plan. I ate my crisps once I got hungry and even managed a bit of a snooze.
When we arrived at Dong Hoi we were sharing a car with a customer who was going on an Oxalis tour on a different day to Captain Caveman. We dropped him off at Funny Monkeys, Captain Caveman went straight to Oxalis for his briefing and I checked in to Sunshine Homestay, where I would stay for the next 5 nights. I didn’t have a bicycle and Captain Caveman, in his rush to get ready for work, forgot to give me any money so I walked to Oxalis to pick some up. I then continued to walk to Phong Nha Vegan to get some much needed food. I ordered fresh spring rolls, sweet potato fries and mushroom fried rice which was for both lunch and dinner. I had a watermelon juice to drink and really enjoyed my dinner. I walked to The Villa’s next where I had 1 glass of red wine and then had a bad stomach. Our friends Giang and Aaron were back in Phong Nha on a brief visit, with their young son. They came to meet me and Captain Caveman joined after his briefing. He had 4 beers and I couldn’t manage more than the 1 glass of wine so I was a cheap date with 184,000VND (£5.77) for our combined bill.
Meanwhile, the man in charge of the Saigon Children’s Charity had been back at work after the cycling event. For those of you who have already donated, here’s what Damien (Head of the charity) had to say about how he spent his Tuesday back at work, having had Thursday to Monday off, for the ride;
“All, today I am back at work in the Saigon children office and wanted to tell you what your fundraising efforts REALLY mean….
Today I have paid for:
138 ‘regular’ scholarships for disadvantaged children in 3 provinces
21 ‘special’ scholarships for children living in a leper colony in Binh Duong
Completion payment on 2 schools in Hau Giang, and penultimate payment for 1 school in Hau Giang
Playground & classroom furniture for 1 school in Tra Vinh
Training on autism therapy for professionals in Can Tho City
Online safety training for 144 parents across the Mekong Delta
This is a fairly normal day, and it only happens because you support us!
Thank you for helping us raise money to change lives 🙏🏻.”
A slideshow from the Saigon Children’s Charity cyclists
It is a month since Captain Caveman did the ride, but Saigon Children’s Charity is still accepting donations, if you didn’t get chance to donate before but can now:
I was hungover on Monday 1st April when Captain Caveman got up early and went down to breakfast without me. After his 3 days of charity cycling, I really didn’t know how he was still able to move. I checked my stats for March on my blog to find that the most popular country was still the UK for my readers, by a lot. Second, as I’d expected, was Turkey but the Netherlands were now a surprising third. Readers from Vietnam were still less than half as many from the Netherlands but I hoped the Vietnamese numbers would increase in April. Today marked the first day of a long term tenancy agreement at Fire Opal in Dalyan and work had started to replace the pergola that had fallen down a few years ago. I paid Aslı, in our apartment complex in Dalyan, 2,350 lira (£58.75) for the new pergola – this was a tenth of the total cost. Our wooden balconies were also getting repaired and replaced so the place was going to look good in a couple of weeks time. I wasn’t feeling too good and had a dodgy stomach, Captain Caveman brought me back a small croissant and I forced it down with a tea I made in the room. We packed all our stuff and got ready to check out as we were off to stay at Aha Thang Bom apartment in another area of Danang for 1 night. On the way, we popped in to Quang Optic opticians for them to double check my glasses and prescription. I’d found I struggled with distance in buildings such as airports. All was fine but it was to do with the transitional lenses.
By this time it was lunch time and Captain Caveman fancied calling in to one of our favourite places, Olivia’s. My stomach was still dodgy but I was hungry so I took medication and ordered the same as Captain Caveman, a cheese and bacon burger. We had a side salad and chips too so the diet was going very well! The food was amazing and we also got complimentary shots of chocolate vodka before we left. Our lunch bill came to 724,500VND (£22.89) which included the tip.
In the evening Captain Caveman and I met up with Caroline, Vee, Julie and Gareth at Roof Top Bar. My stomach was still bad so I just had water but the others had a few beers. The bill for 13 alcoholic drinks, 1 soft drink and a water was 1,107,450VND (£34.74) which included a tip. Our restaurant of choice for dinner was Pizza 4Ps where we sat outside and ordered pizzas. I just had half of a margarita with burrata and took the rest as a takeaway. Unfortunately, it was our last night together as tomorrow, Captain Caveman and I were off back to Phong Nha as Captain Caveman had to be back at work for his 6pm briefing. I’m not sure of the prices as Caroline paid the bill before we could notice. Caroline was the first to leave with Vee on a Grab bike, then next were us as I still wasn’t feeling well. Julie and Gareth had another couple of days in Danang before going to Hoi An. It was sad to say goodbye to everyone but we would definitely see each other again in the not too distant future. Back at our accommodation, Captain Caveman was fast asleep by the time I had come out of the bathroom. I had a bit more pizza and then went to bed too.
Saigon Children’s Charity is still accepting donations:
Thank you very much; if you have already donated. If you haven’t donated yet please do, if you can – no amount is too small. In my opinion 308km of hard hot riding over 3 days is surely worth the cost of a pint!?
Sunday 31st March was a busy and full on day to end the month with. It was also my Dad’s birthday and I hoped I would be able to speak to him later on. Caroline went to 9 Grains Bakery while I packed and tried to finish my Canva course as today was the last day. I didn’t get too far on practising anything as Caroline returned with a little friend; Le’s little boy. She also brought me a tea and a croissant for my breakfast which was good of her. Captain Caveman was cycling from Hue to Danang today for his last day of the Saigon Children’s Charity Cycling Adventure. We were leaving by car for Danang at 1pm so it was only right that Caroline thought it a good idea to put her bikini on and jump in the shower with Vee, the dog, to give her a good wash. Vee needed to be clean before her girl’s night away at The Sheraton. She was also trying to teach Le’s son how to shower a dog, neither the kid nor the dog seemed keen. Le’s wife arrived to pick up the child but there was almost an incident when the small child decided to scale the balcony side to see the small dog downstairs better. He almost fell over the side, a massive drop, so the mother decided it was time to go. Caroline and I had a couple of things left on the to do list that we hadn’t got round to doing yet. They were; buying some leather flipflops and trinkets to take to Phong Nha, eating the traditional Hoi An noodle dish of Cao Lau and Caroline wanted me to get my hair chemically straightened at her hairdresser’s. I decided the only one on that list which was feasible was to eat the Cao Lau, so Caroline ordered it to be delivered. It was so tasty and Vee loved us sharing a bit with her, but only the meat. Caroline also decided she needed to give me some unwanted clothes, which I was surprised to find did fit me. But they wouldn’t fit in my rucksack and I had to use a Vietnamese laundry bag. At 1pm the car was here but, of course, we weren’t quite ready. Jake was staying in the apartment while we were gone and there was still the issue of whether the thumb print door knob would work. By 1.20pm, we were on our way to Danang, to a yet to be confirmed location and finish line for the Saigon Children’s Charity cycle adventure.
Captain Caveman had sent me the map coordinates of where we needed to be for the finish line. This is where Caroline got the car to stop, after we had dropped our bags off at our respective hotels. It was literally in the middle of nowhere on a busy main road. Caroline kept the driver on stand by which was definitely a good thing. I messaged Julie and Gareth so that they could join us and we all waited at a little stall for word from Captain Caveman. After 30 minutes of being sat about, Captain Caveman sent a photo of himself at the top of the Hai Van Pass – he’d made it up the hill! They were waiting for the rest of the cyclists to all get to the top and then they would do the last section, downhill, together. He video called and he looked hot and sweaty but happy he was almost finished. We were told to look out for a bus or wagon which would come to mark the finish line. When we saw the guy on a motorbike with a finishing flag, it was almost too late. Captain Caveman and whoever was in the front were only a minute behind this man and we only just captured the video of them arriving. It was so hot and all the cyclists made it to the side of the road where Heart of Darkness had provided some beers. I was thirsty and eager to have a drink but I made sure I waited until all the cyclists had one. It was great to see them all so humble but quietly proud they had done it.
Video of Captain Caveman finishing the cycling event
Video of more cyclists finishing
Video of more cyclists finishing
Captain Caveman joined the rest of the group to go to the Nalod hotel to shower and change. Caroline, Vee, Julie, Gareth and I got in the car and went to Maia Beach Bar for drinks. It was a lovely place but, as is the case with a lot of the beach bars in Danang, service wasn’t the best and there was no soap in the toilets. Captain Caveman joined us briefly before he headed off to the end of the event dinner at My Casa. Our next stop for the 4 of us was to Esco Beach bar where we ordered food, and more drinks. Caroline ordered Vee a steak and she was a bit fussy over how it was cooked but ate it. I had a really nice sweet and sour chicken with rice. Caroline ordered seafood, while Julie and Gareth were keen to try some Vietnamese food. When Captain Caveman rejoined us, he was proudly wearing his medal from the Saigon Children’s Charity Cycling adventure. He was quite merry but pretty tired and we went back to the hotel when the bar closed. Vee got the best service at the Sheraton hotel, where they really cater well for dogs, so Caroline was really happy. At 12.50 am, it was 6.50pm in the UK so we were able to call my Dad and say ‘Happy Birthday’. I still hadn’t told my parents the news about Captain Caveman’s job at Oxalis finishing this year and it wasn’t the right time to discuss now and spoil Dad’s birthday or a great weekend for Captain Caveman. Hopefully, I would get to speak to them properly once we were back in Phong Nha in a couple of days.
On Saturday 30th March Caroline had a treat booked in for us, while poor Captain Caveman was cycling in high heat and humidity from Dong Ha to Hue! Caroline and I had a short trip to Weaver’s Cafe in An Bang with Hawk and Hong for brunch. It’s a cute little cafe run by a Vietnamese woman and her English husband and they do a greasy spoon style English breakfast. Hawk and Hong were already there and he had a pot of Yorkshire tea on the go. Caroline and I ordered a soda water and a pot of Yorkshire tea to share. I obviously ordered the Full English breakfast but without eggs or tomatoes, Hawk and Hong had a chicken salad with poached eggs on top, Caroline had lasagne and chips. Caroline had already paid the bill when I tried to get mine and I don’t remember the prices but it seemed reasonable for western food. The breakfast was good but I knew my body wouldn’t think so and I had a bad stomach before I even left Weaver’s. This didn’t bode well for our next adventure as we were off back to Golden Girls Spa for a 4 hands massage each and I’d booked in for a snatch wax (aka Brazilian).
The massage was amazing and I almost fell asleep, I was also pleased to be able to fit in to the little outfits they gave us, which are normally far too tight for me. After the massage, Caroline went home to walk and feed Vee, the dog, while I got a very thorough waxing from Caroline’s friend. It was very good but it was a little disconcerting when she complimented my lady garden! She had used the wax that peels off rather than the papers so I was pleased but she didn’t have anything to get the residue off with. There was no time to worry about that as I had to get dressed, pay the 750,000VND (£23.61) for the hour massage and the waxing and meet Caroline at the 3 Dragon’s pub. We had arranged to meet Hawk and Jake there but I was first, closely followed by Caroline. I stuck to water while Caroline drank beers and we had some chicken strips to share. The 3 Dragon’s menu is good but not very Slimming World friendly so I decided having smaller portions was a good idea. Hawk arrived and had a chicken dish and Jake didn’t eat. Another guy, Jack, joined us and we all talked for a while. I could see Caroline was looking a bit tired so I suggested we leave and we said our goodbyes. I paid for our food and drinks which came to about 400,000VND (£12.57) as it was definitely my turn. Back at Caroline’s, we were met with a bit of an issue; her newly fitted thumbprint door access wouldn’t work and we couldn’t get in to her apartment. Jake had been in previously and had also left Vee out on the balcony so she was distressed when Caroline asked the landlord to climb up to get in. He couldn’t get in as Jake had locked that door so he had to climb back down and try the door knob again, and again! When we finally got in, busting for a wee, we stayed up talking and Caroline booked her hotel for tomorrow night – her and Vee were going to stay at The Sheraton hotel, near to Captain Caveman and I, in Danang.
While Captain Caveman started his cycle ride from Phong Nha Farmstay on Friday 29th March, I was already begging for mercy a little bit. We’d woken up without any drinking water in the house so Caroline had ordered some to be delivered and gone to 9 Grains Bakery. She wanted me to join her but I needed to shower and I wasn’t ready. Off she went while I revisited Day 2 of the 3 Day Canva course I had started. I was quite happily getting in to it when Caroline returned and started taking her door knob and lock off. She had bought a door knob which only opens with your thumb print and she was looking at how to fix it on. I remember thinking it would be a nightmare for me, my fingers often can’t turn on, off, up or down a ring on the electric hob in Turkey, never mind let me in to my own home when I’ve had a few drinks and am desperate for a wee. Caroline gave up faffing after a bit and insisted we go back to 9 Grains for lunch. I was hungry as it was almost 2pm so off we went. Jake, a friend, had returned from Cambodia and she’d offered him the use of her motorbike. He’d left his bicycle at 9 Grains and it needed riding back to Caroline’s place. After a chicken, cheese, lettuce and onion sandwich on sourdough, some fruit and a berry juice I tackled the ride back on the busy road. I’m not very confident around traffic and we had a lorry in the way which meant a diversion through the fields, but I made it. By 4.30pm I was back at the Chiropractor for another session with Dr An and is team. This time they used a giant vibrator on my back, which was pretty nice and I was stretched on the decompression machine, yet again. I was now 2cm taller than I was when I got to Hoi An. Maybe this was a good plan; to report to Fat Club that I’d grown instead of becoming any lighter!
I got changed in to a frock in the toilet after my final chiropractor session. The chiropractor had cost just 250,000VND (£7.90) per session but I’d paid only £15 for about 5 hours’ worth. The crux of my issue was that my thighs and hip muscles were too tight! There wasn’t much time before our next bit of excitement as Caroline picked me up in a golf buggy to drive us to Apggujung Korean BBQ restaurant. Joining us were Dr An, the chiropractor, a customer of his, Hawk and his wife, Hong. Caroline and I were the first there as it started to rain heavily just as we got there and the others were delayed. By the time the 6 of us were seated I’d come to the conclusion that I disliked grape soju, a Korean rice wine. I was also feeling a bit out of sorts after the therapy and was extremely tired. While I was feeling jaded from laying down or resting for most of the day, Captain Caveman had made the 135km from Phong Nha to Dong Ha and was having a beer and some food. Our Korean BBQ was fantastic and definitely one of my favourite meals. I’d paid 850,000VND (£26.87) which included Caroline and I paying for the chiro and his friend’s rice wine. Hawk and Hong, who don’t drink, sensibly left after the meal but the remaining 4 of us went in to town for a bit of a knees up.
I was conscious of money so was going to take it easy. We went to a trendy little cocktail bar next to a temple, where Caroline and the 2 fellas had a few mango daiquiris and I nursed a glass of white wine. They decided to try a new cocktail which Nick (not his real name) and his bar man performed for the customers. It was a red concoction, where fire and gold leaf were involved. My stomach can’t handle normal food so I wasn’t up for swallowing precious metals. We all had a laugh that they were covered in glitter and would be having sparkling shits tomorrow. Dr An picked up the tab for the drinks so I needn’t have restricted myself to 2 drinks, but I didn’t want to be cheeky. When we tried to get a Grab home, Caroline was a bit tiddly and got a bit annoyed with the Grab motorbike driver who wanted to charge us an expensive 100,000VND (£3.16) and get both of us on the bike at once. Dr An and his friend had a car and tried to offer us a lift which Caroline, for some unknown reason, had declined. In the end, we couldn’t get another Grab so we both got on the motorbike with (surprisingly) enough room. When we got to her’s she gave him 300,000VND (£9.48), well over the odds, and some words on not ripping foreigners off. The night didn’t end there, Caroline and I stayed awake, talking, until 4am! We’d had an amazing day and night but tomorrow was my last full day in Hoi An.
Caroline and I woke up on Thursday 28th March with Vee still between us on the bed. She’d obviously decided her mom needed guarding or that she was not missing out on the girls’ sleep over. Caroline had no specific plans, as she was feeling unwell still, so we headed to 9 Grains Bakery so that I could have breakfast and she could go to the chemist. I had an earl grey tea and a fruit salad with yoghurt and granola. While Caroline brought back dehydration sachets of industrial strength and some charcoal tablets, we watched the flour delivery. It looked like a scene from a Pablo Escobar documentary.
Our next stop was for some pampering at Golden Girls Spa, on Phan Boi Chau street in Hoi An. As Caroline (and Vee) are friends with the owners and frequent the place regularly we were given the royal treatment at great prices. Even without mate’s rates, though, the prices and services were good and a pedicure with normal polish was 125,000VND (£3.95). I really enjoyed my pedicure and the leg massage that it included. Vee even got a cute and quick massage too while Caroline had a manicure, a leg and a shoulder massage.
In the late afternoon we were at the Chiropractor where I got more of the same treatment but a bit more of the machines, including an exercise one where my legs were worked. While we were doing all that, Captain Caveman was over at the Phong Nha Farmstay getting ready for a practice cycle with some of his fellow Saigon Children’s Charity cyclists. Caroline had needed to pick up her glasses and a pair of trousers she’d had made, which hadn’t been ready yet so she popped off to drop Vee back at home.
The 3 Dragons pub was our choice for a bite to eat, another one on the list of places we’ve visited often. It is a sports bar so we sat outside, hoping to avoid whatever sporting event was on the big screens. I was quite hungry as we hadn’t had time for lunch and it was almost 5pm. I ordered the pork ribs with BBQ sauce and fries and I had a small San Miguel beer which came to a total of 335,000VND (£10.59) and was rather good. Caroline had an Aperol spritz and a burger.
By 7.20pm we had gone to see Caroline’s business partner, Le, at one of his other business ventures. Pho May is a small Vietnamese restaurant, popular with Koreans, where we had a beer each and I had to try the prawn and pork wontons. They were amazing but very filling and our bill was paid for by either Caroline or Le.
Caroline had insisted that Le come meet us after he finished work so, after a quick drink at The Box, we went to Salt pub to meet him. It was very nice, Caroline knew the owner so we chatted for a bit, we had a go on the seesaw (as you do), before going to sit by the beach. We tried to order frozen margaritas but we had a bit of trouble so settled on normal ones. Caroline insisted on getting the bill again which came to 625,000VND (£19.76) for 4 margaritas and a bottle of Huda.
In the absence of scales I got up and fished out my trusty tape measure on Wednesday 27th March. Today would be the 3rd Dalyan (Not so) Fat Club I’d not attended, since being in Vietnam. I was missing it but we had a group chat on Messenger that was keeping me going with support from other members and Carol. My pee was the colour of treacle and I was severely dehydrated after yesterday’s overly long journey and the amount of wine I’d had last night. This week my total syn consumption was 352, more than 3 times my allowance, and 197 of those syns were on alcohol. So, I was very surprised with my results this week; Bust no change and still 1cm under target, Waist -2cm and back at target, Hips -1cm and back at target. It was a miracle but I was already aware this could catch up with me next week! Captain Caveman topped up my SIM card from Phong Nha but I didn’t know how to get a phone package on so Caroline booked me her Grab driver to come get me. She also met me outside the hotel and we then changed plans. She gave my bag to the driver and asked him to put it in her apartment, he had a key. Then I got on the back of her scooter and we went to 9 Grains Bakery, which she co-owns. Once there, I was treated to a pot of earl grey tea and an amazing pain au chocolat for breakfast. While there, the Grab driver sent a photo of my bag in her house which was so nice. I met Le, Caroline’s business partner, who helped me put a package on my phone. We also met up with Hawk, a fitness guru and motorbike tour guide from the Uk. He and I met years ago through Captain Caveman, we get on well and he’s now one of Caroline’s best mates. It was good to see him and have a bit of English banter. At 11.30am I also got a great cheese, lettuce and onion sandwich on sourdough and a peppermint tea for an early lunch.
Our next adventure was a trip to Mommy Shark, my favourite swimwear shop in Vietnam. Here I bought some more of the cycling shorts with secret pockets at only 245,000VND (£7.73), a green baggy t-shirt at 250,000VND (£7.88), and a black lightweight top for 300,000VND (£9.46). A total of 795,000VND (£25.06) was expensive for my unemployed budget but also necessary if I was going to be travelling by motorbike more often. We got back on the motorbike and went to Caroline’s house which was really lovely. Vee, the dog, was super cute too and as we walked her, we met the neighbour’s puppy.
Caroline took me with her to her chiropractor later in the afternoon and, while I was there, she paid for me to have a session. It was definitely strange and I had about 90 minutes of Tens machine, manipulation and back stretching on a decompression machine not unlike some kind of horizontal electric chair. Dr An, the chiropractor, recommended I come back for 2 more sessions and could tell I wasn’t quite back to normal from my injury 3 years ago.
That evening we ate at Blue Fin restaurant in An Bang where it was my turn to pay. Here’s what we had; 6 frozen margaritas 380,000 Pulled pork tacos 190,000 1 truffle and mushroom pizza 220,000 1 burger patty and fried egg 75,000 + Vat 76,800 Total 941,800VND (£29.72). The food was really good and I really enjoyed it. The burger and egg was for Vee, the dog, who snaffled it down super quick with it being her favourite meal there. Unfortunately, a horny street dog came over and was being a pain so Caroline had to take Vee home and come back. She also wasn’t feeling too good and had a bad stomach. The food and cocktails were excellent but it wasn’t a late night. Caroline and I shared her bed, which was pretty big and we had our own quilt each (game changer when sharing a bed). Vee came on to the bed for a snuggle with an expectation that she would go to her bed after a while but we all fell asleep together.
On Tuesday 26th March I was taking the 7am bus from Phong Nha to Hoi An, where I was meeting up with an old friend. Caroline had kindly invited me to stay with her and her dog, Vee, near the An Bang beach area of Hoi An. Captain Caveman had booked me a cheap hotel for the first night, just so that I had somewhere definite and then I could move to Caroline’s one bedroom apartment the next day, until Sunday, when I was off to Danang. I always have a bad stomach whenever I need to travel and I was not looking forward to the journey, one bit. I was due to arrive in Hoi An at 3pm, 8 hours later, on a sleeper bus with no toilet. At 6.30am, Captain Caveman was still in the room, finishing off showering so he said to go and he would catch me up to wave me off in town. Mr Diep Le drove me on his motorbike to the bus and I had to remind him where the Hanh Luyen bus company office was. The bus was already there, I still didn’t have a working phone so I tried to message Captain Caveman using free WiFi nearby to tell him I was already on board and ready to depart. The buses often claim they have WiFi but don’t give out the password or say it’s not working. I was a bit sad that I wouldn’t get to say goodbye or wish him well for his forthcoming Saigon Children’s Charity bicycle ride. I got comfy in my seat with a neck pillow and my rucksack with me. I never put anything I don’t have to, in the luggage boot as I’ve heard of it ‘going missing’ before. The driver never lets westerners take seats near the front and often bully us white people in to the back seats. I knew this so chose one about halfway back behind the driver. There are 3 rows and all the seats recline in to beds and have a pillow and storage for shoes, which you have to take off. We set off and turned around to pick up more people along the way. The last pick up in Phong Nha was at Tree House, where Captain Caveman was stood to say bye. I got back off the bus and gave him a hug and a kiss, he would next see me at the cycle event finish line in Danang (if I could find it in time, this year). I did manage to get some sleep, a drowsy type antihistamine (for my mozzie bites) helped. However, at 11.30am we had a bit of an issue; we were just outside Hue when we got a flat tyre. It was incredibly hot but the bus pulled in to a petrol station with toilets. All of us westerners got off and some of the Vietnamese stayed sleeping on the bus. The toilets weren’t the best squat toilets I’ve seen but they definitely weren’t the worst and I had tissues with me and they had soap! Some passengers tried to buy refreshments at the petrol station but it wasn’t that type where there was a shop. They had a chest fridge, no water, and just some random drinks like birds nest soup in a can or Super Horse energy drink. I ate 2 apples and drank 0.5 litre of my water (brought with me from the hotel) then got talking to a Dutch and an Australian passenger. Between us, we decided the bus was going nowhere and in the relentless heat it was getting uncomfortable. We decided to order a Grab taxi to take us to Hoi An. It would cost us about 2,000,000VND (£63) between 4 of us which was the price of the whole bus journey each again. It was also only the price of a bottle of wine and, while Captain Caveman had given me some spending money, I was willing to blow it on a taxi. I got my bag off the bus which, by now, was a sweat box with Vietnamese passengers still in there and the engine off. The taxi arrived and the bus driver came over to say we shouldn’t go as the repair mechanic was on his way and we would be ready to go within the hour. They were quite insistent and obviously didn’t want a complaint or to have to refund (neither of which we were bothered about). We reluctantly agreed and the taxis took the passengers who were destined for Hue, close by. By 12.24pm the mechanic had arrived and, rather impressively, jacked up the bus and changed the tyre. At 1pm we were all back on the oven temperature bus, begging for the AC to blast on, as we carried on our journey.
At just after 3pm, already a couple of hours late, but having got there sooner than I thought we would, we arrived in Danang bus station. This is where anyone for Hoi An was meant to change on to that bus. I went to get off and there were lots of shouty taxi drivers crowding my exit asking if I wanted a taxi. When I put my Vietnamese porter sandals on to the floor to put back on, they all looked at me and I said ‘Quang Binh’, which is the Province of Phong Nha. They retreated to give me more space, looked impressed that I had the army shoes and stopped hassling me. Of course, the Hoi An bus connection had already been missed so a taxi had been arranged for me, the Dutch girl and 2 Australian ladies. We were escorted in to the car and told to wait a few minutes. After 10 minutes of waiting and a local driver giving us some Banh Ep (a cracker type snack) with his dirty hands and a fag on, we were still not moving. We ended up waiting for another passenger, which the driver lied to us about. We were told it was a passenger who had been forgotten so we were patient and felt sorry for them. The girl arrived, looking fresh, and had come from Phong Nha on the 9am bus, with no issues at all. We should have took the taxi when we had the chance. The driver took all of our individual hotel addresses and said he would drop each of us off. I was dubious about that and said I wanted dropping off at the Hoi An bus station. Captain Caveman had specifically booked my hotel within walking distance of the bus station and marked it on my maps to be able to use offline. We drove almost an hour to Hoi An and the driver dropped me first. It wasn’t at the actual bus station and I didn’t have a working phone to know where I was so I took a photo of the Dutch girl’s phone. Then the driver decided he wanted to charge each of the other passengers 50,000VND (£1.58) to continue to their respective hotels. The Aussie ladies got out and said no at first but then realised another Grab would be more. I left and started walking in a direction I thought might be the right one. I passed a Gioi Di Dong phone shop and realised I might be able to get a SIM card so turned back. Around 4.30pm I had paid for my SIM and given my passport and all was going well until the staff member took my photo. Once again, many attempts were made but my photographed face did not match my passport face so they were unable to give me a SIM card. They returned my passport, refunded me the money and pointed me in the direction of Hai Ba Trung street, where I was staying. When I arrived at Hoi An Old Town Hostel at 5.40pm, looking like I’d been through the mill quite a bit, the receptionist upgraded me to a lovely room with 2 double beds. I got the WiFi password and, of course, had messages from Captain Caveman and Caroline wondering where I’d got to. After a quick call to both and the fastest shower ever, I was back outside the hotel ready to meet my Grab motorbike.
At 6pm Caroline had sent her motorbike Grab driver to get me and he was ready and waiting to take me to meet her at Le Cabanon. It’s one of my favourite restaurants in Hoi An and does some lovely french food and wine. When we arrived the driver gave me a SIM card for free, as he was helping me out. How nice of him! Caroline was excited to see me and looked well. She had already got a bottle of Saint Joseph 2020 red wine on the go and so I joined her. It was weigh day tomorrow but I was about to overindulge after not eating all day, aside from 2 apples and a mushroom flavoured cereal bar, so I was hungry. We shared a baked camembert with bread and salad, french sausage and potatoes with mustard and a beef stew. We couldn’t eat it all but we did manage a second bottle of wine. I was conscious of the prices but Caroline had insisted this was her treat, which was very kind. We finished the night with a soda water and she dropped me off at the hotel in a Grab car after a really lovely night. Tomorrow, I would move in to her’s and it was about to be a hectic week!
Captain Caveman went to Oxalis on his day off on the morning of Monday 25th March, while I did more of the free Canva training course. I’d managed to get most of the way through it but I found it quite difficult and my brain couldn’t cope with it all. I didn’t have any breakfast as we had a special lunch arranged for Captain Caveman’s day off, and our last day together for 5 days. Captain Caveman drove Trigger, the motorbike, with me on the back to another one of our Phong Nha favourites. It wasn’t far to East Hill and we were there by midday, ready to order the BBQ chicken combo which comes with sticky rice, peanut salt and cucumber. The chicken is always so tasty and the place is picturesque and peaceful during the weekdays. I noticed there were quite a few cats around, for the first time, and they wanted food. We researched some flights for when Captain Caveman and I go to the UK for a family wedding and he got his flight confirmed for the beginning of July. Unfortunately, his flight back to Turkey in October was an extra expense for us to worry about as he’d definitely have to carry back more than hand luggage! I also still needed to book my flight out of Vietnam and hadn’t got the cash to do that just yet. This was a concern as, for now, Captain Caveman was giving me the money required to remain resident in Turkey. We even transferred some and I paid off my Turkish credit card and paid our pool and garden management company while we sat at East Hill. Our lunch with drinks (water for me and beer for Captain Caveman) was 380,000VND (£12.01) and was as amazing as I remembered it. As we were about to leave, I saw a very strange and hairy caterpillar, apparently harmless.
Our next stop was just a quick one to see René at Greenfield Ecostay. He’d been napping and we disturbed him but got chatting a little. After popping back to Diep Le Homestay where there was a bit of confusion over where our laundry had got to and whether I was booked on the 7am or 9am bus tomorrow, we were off out again. We cycled for a quick beverage at Lucky Homes, where we received a box of biscuits as a gift from the owners, which was really kind.
We carried on by bicycle to Tree House as I’d not eaten there yet and I wanted to try it. I’d worked with the owner a few years ago and it was good to see how his business had grown, since then. Captain Caveman had beer and a pasta dish and I had a Strongbow cider and ordered pork fried rice. I hadn’t realised my meal would have bacon instead of pieces of actual pork so it wasn’t as I’d expected. Captain Caveman’s had a few mushrooms in his, which he doesn’t eat, so I had those in my rice. We noticed it was happy hour between 6 and 8pm so we ordered a margarita cocktail each. Captain Caveman paid the bill by QR bank transfer (popular in Vietnam these days) so I didn’t take a note of the exact costs but it came to something like 450,000VND (£14.21) in total. We didn’t plan on staying out late as tomorrow I had to be up very early for my trip, however, we ended up in The Villa’s, yet again! We had 2 glasses of white wine and 2 Huda beers at a total cost of 200,000VND (£6.34). Even though it felt like we had really splashed out for Captain Caveman’s day off, we had still only spent a total of less than £33 for the 2 of us and it had been such a great day.
It was a busy day on Sunday 24th March, also my mom’s birthday. Being 7 hours ahead of the UK was proving somewhat difficult, though, to have regular calls as it meant I’d have to wait until at least 7pm to call England. This was generally our dinner time and the time my mom was coming round of a Sunday morning. Or I could get up at 5am to call her at 10pm but then would have missed her birthday. We arranged 5pm our time (10am Ma’s time) and could only talk for an hour as she was off out for her birthday. I already decided it was best not to worry her about Captain Caveman not working for Oxalis after this season. We had not had chance to think of what he/we might do yet and I didn’t want to dampen her birthday plans with any worries. The weather was very humid and I thought it looked like it might rain as I took the wine glasses back to The Villa’s. Captain Caveman had gone to Oxalis and I was going to log on to my next bit of Canva training and have breakfast. I had jasmine tea and my favourite pho ga and got stuck in. Captain Caveman and I had arranged to meet a friend of his, as well as Chung and Uy at Phong Nha Vegan for the all you can eat buffet at 11.30am but only Captain Caveman and I made it, Chung was helping out in the kitchen because it was so busy. The food was excellent and Captain Caveman got a child to look after, temporarily. It was good to see so many people and I had trouble recognising a few of the locals. I never tire of watching the buffalo either, as they mosey along the river. After delicious Vegan food, we had a last attempt of getting a Viettel SIM card as I still didn’t have a working phone. We failed again but I didn’t need one unless there was an emergency situation. I spotted there were plenty of sweet potatoes for sale outside the phone shop and wished I had a kitchen and my airfryer.
We cycled to Tree House, I was convinced it would rain, Captain Caveman said we would be fine. At 1.30pm he had a Huda beer and I had a Strongbow, knowing I had been quite bad on the syns this week, already. Then the rain came but it didn’t last too long and we managed to cycle back to The Villa’s for me to call my mom to say Happy Birthday. I went in the back room so that I didn’t disturb anyone but I needn’t have bothered, as a girl on the next table had a very loud video call to England with her family.
That evening, Captain Caveman fancied an Indian so we went to Ganesh. I made 2 mistakes there and ordered a chickpea dish, which was not to my taste and then asked the staff to take a photo of us, when the food came. This makes Captain Caveman angry as it slows down the start of his race to snaffle his dinner. After he’d stopped being annoyed with the need to pose for photos we had a lovely meal. We shared a bottle of red wine, lamb samosas, onion bhajis, garlic naan, saffron rice and a chicken tikka starter. Captain Caveman had a dahl which he enjoyed but we left most of the chana masala. The total bill came to 887,000VND (£28.25) which wasn’t bad considering what we had.
Captain Caveman had a bit of a woolly head when he woke up before 6am on Saturday 23rd March. Even though it was his day off, we still went to Oxalis, as is customary for him to run some errands at the office. We both ordered a bacon sandwich and a drink and I was very impressed with the crispiness of the bacon. The price is 60,000VND (£1.90) for a bacon sandwich with salad items in, I had mine without. I spent part of the morning doing my first free course on how to use Canva while Captain Caveman did work related stuff and sorting out his laundry.
I walked back to the homestay and we met at Lucky Homes for a light refreshment by the river while watching some buffalo. For lunch we went to an old favourite which we call The Pork Shop. It’s actually called the Thang Nhung, but pork shop is easier to pronounce and describes what it sells. Captain Caveman had a Banh Mi (a pork sandwich) which I love but I just can’t ever get one without chillies or chilli sauce in it, so I have stopped trying. I ordered BBQ pork with steamed rice and morning glory with garlic. It is so cheap and really tasty – an average meal is about £2 and the pork fat is crispy.
Afterwards, we called at the phone shop to be unsuccessful, yet again, in being able to get me a Viettel SIM card so I still didn’t have a working phone. The sun was pretty hot today so I needed a fresh coconut at Bamboo cafe. It was nice to be welcomed back to Phong Nha by Little Ha and all the staff there. On our way back we called at The Villa’s and sat with Ben and his son, Howie, with another beverage. We paid 185,000VND (£5.88) in the fanciest place in town, for a soda water, 2 Huda beers and a glass of white wine.
Unfortunately, our plans to meet Tatas and eat at Phong Nha Vegan that evening were cancelled as she had to tidy her room and get packed for her 2 day Hang En tour tomorrow. We went back to Diep Le Homestay for a short time before returning to The Villa’s for more food and drink. Here’s what we had on our bill this time, and the food was excellent ;
1 soda water 25,000 1 red wine 90,000 2 white wines 180,000 1 Son Doong pizza 190,000 1 Duck with lentils 250,000 Total 735,000VND (£23.34)
It’s obviously not the cheapest place in town, in fact it’s one of the most expensive, but it’s good. With us being neighbours and friends, they let us borrow 2 wine glasses to take back to Diep Le when they closed. As I only had the 1 glass of red wine with dinner, when we got back to the room we opened a bottle of red wine and I had 2 more glasses. The diet had strayed a little again and I was on 266 syns already this week, but still less than last week at this point.
Captain Caveman was due out on the afternoon of Friday 22nd March and I was looking forward to seeing him. It turned out that Aussie Pete was looking forward to seeing him more, though, as he had lots of questions to ask that only the expert would know the answers to. I did a quick calculation on how much money I had spent while Captain Caveman was away, this last 4 days, and it came to 1,805,000VND (£57.56) which was definitely more than I’d have spent in Dalyan. The disadvantages of not having our own kitchen and having to eat out all the time were definitely going to make budgeting more difficult. I’d only been gone from Dalyan for 2 weeks but I was already missing making my own meals and I wasn’t thrilled about going back to having a random dodgy stomach. For breakfast I had an apple, some cheese and 3 cream crackers. For lunch I just had a cereal bar, and noticed one of the 3 I bought were mushroom flavoured. Around 3pm, Captain Caveman was back in Phong Nha but he had a busy agenda. They were a little late after dealing with a guy who had a motorbike accident, he was showering and doing washing at the Glass House but had to hurry to get to a porter party. He invited me but I’d already said I’d be at The Villa’s to meet Aussie Pete. Captain Caveman went straight to his gala dinner at Chay Lap while I had fresh spring rolls and a cup of Lipton tea at The Villa’s. I was still peckish a bit later so I had the tasty vegetarian spaghetti for main and more tea. Aussie Pete was getting twitchy and more merry while waiting for Captain Caveman’s arrival so I even texted him to ask him to hurry along as Aussie Pete wanted to pick his brains. At 8.55pm Captain Caveman arrived, rather drunk, and ordered a pizza and a beer. The 2 men caught up for all of 8 minutes before Aussie Pete nodded off, just temporarily. We left before the 10pm closing for a change but Aussie Pete was still finishing a beer. The bill came to 396,000VND (£12.58) which I thought was reasonable. Captain Caveman and I were now celebrating him having 10 days off, with some adventures away from Phong Nha planned.
joloyolo 