By 9am on Thursday 11th August I was eating teacake loaf and drinking orange juice for breakfast. I caught up with some blogging and other chores, the weather was quite dull and a storm threatened but never came. I made bruschetta for lunch, using Captain Caveman’s tomato sauce and cheddar cheese, and had it with a beer. I was ill straight after and had to have a lay down on the bed. Later I ate some crisps but was ill again so I got in bed. I did lots of Turkish Duolingo and our friend, Caroline, had arrived at Karst Villas with her dog, Vee. I couldn’t meet her as I was still so ill with my stomach. I went to bed without any dinner and slept, a lot.
I was feeling much better on Friday 12th August when I got up. It was measurements day and here were my results: Bust & Waist no change Hips +4cm Both thighs +1cm Right calf +1cm Left calf +2cm After having such a bad stomach yesterday I’d hoped for better. I had toasted teacake loaf and orange juice for breakfast and my stomach was fine. Even my Bolognese lunch and a glass of wine had no reaction. In the afternoon I had some disappointing news from my friend, unfortunately her plans for her forthcoming holiday to Marmaris didn’t match with my plans in Dalyan and we were no longer going to be able to meet up. In the afternoon, I decided to cycle Bluey to the Farmstay for happy hour to cheer myself up and thought I could leave her there if I didn’t come home before dark. Caroline was also thinking she might meet me there but she had to go to celebrate prayer day. Most of the locals were celebrating the relatives who have died by getting together to pray, eat and drink. When I got to the Farmstay, Michael told me that Caroline had been there looking for me but she must have just missed me. I had a couple of 2 for 1 rum and cokes then ordered the pork clay pot for dinner. The Farmstay was quite empty tonight compared to usual so it was nice to enjoy the peace and quiet. Caroline never reappeared but Cameron did and he joined me for some drinks. I had red wine, he had Pina Colada and we had a good chat. Bich joined us for a little while and Long brought me over some mushroom skewers from his visit to Phong Nha Vegan. It turned in to a pleasant evening, I locked Bluey up in the car park and got a lift home with Long at 10pm, as we had no Duyet.
I had a woolly head when the alarm went off at 7am on Sunday 7th August and I wasn’t fit for anything! Captain Caveman had to persuade me to get up and get ready as we were off to Dong Hoi on a shopping trip. We haven’t had the shopping trips with the Phong Nha Farmstay this year, which I used to like as they rarely left so early! The weekly trips had stopped running during the pandemic and never restarted, I guess because there were no other monthly renters so it didn’t warrant just taking us. While Captain Caveman had been working so much he didn’t need to go as often and I made do with whatever we had in the freezer. Captain Caveman had booked an Oxalis car and driver and he was here early. Rain had been forecast so we hoped to get some shopping done, meet a friend and get back before any predicted stormy weather. We got our usual driver, Dung, who’s always nice and friendly but professional. He also keeps the car clean and has the AC on, so we had a comfortable drive to Dong Hoi. By 9am our Bo Ne from Mr Bull’s was ordered and we were sipping the free tea, I was feeling somewhat delicate. I had my steak breakfast without eggs and it actually sorted me out a bit, until I started with a bad stomach.
We went to the Co-op Mart where we spent about 1.4 million vnd (£50) on groceries, including 4 bargain bottles of Merlot. Our next stop was the WinMart where we spent 666,000vnd (£24). For those wondering how we had managed to spend £74 on shopping (and we weren’t finished yet), here’s what we had bought in the supermarkets;
Co-op Mart 1 white carrot 7,134 1 lemon soda 8,500 Tissues 13,000 Hand sanitizer 14,900 3 carrots 15,667 Pasta 23,000 2 red peppers 26,733 Passion fruit 28,106 2 packets of crisps 36,000 3 mangos 64,326 Mushrooms 64,900 6 soda waters 105,000 3 cartons orange juice 132,900 4 bottles of red wine 612,000
Total spent 666,100vnd (£24). Butter seemed to be a similar price to the UK and Turkey and airfryers were now all the rage. There had not been any white wine in either of the supermarkets so I suggested we try the Wine Plaza, at the back of the Vincom centre.
Our next stop at the Wine Plaza was a bit unusual; we walked in to a birthday celebration of the owner. They had us join in the photos in front of the flowers and then gave us both a glass of red to join in. They were lovely people and we ended up in there for much more than the 5 minutes we told the driver. We left having bought 3 bottles of nice white wine, one of which was 900,000vnd (£32.40), the other 2 much cheaper. This was all before lunch time and we were meeting Thao at 11.30am for Banh khoai, crispy pancakes. Before that we went to QB Casa where Captain Caveman had a juice and I had a peach tea.
It was great to see Thao as we had not seen her for a while, we all ate the same thing and it was a little bit of a wait for the food because it’s so popular. After lunch we went around the corner for fresh coconut, sat opposite the market. Back home we watched a bit of tree moving from outside of Elements and chilled out by the pool. We finished off a lovely day with crisps, fresh sandwiches and white wine. I got a message from my mate who arrives in Dalaman airport 3 hours after I do to say we could meet up and we pencilled in Ölüdeniz or Fethiye for the 29th.
We had a great day on Saturday 6th August, it was a hot sunny day and ideal for a bicycle ride, according to Captain Caveman. We had been invited to René’s Greenfield Homestay to celebrate his 59th birthday with free cold Huda beers. We decided to have lunch first because we needed to line our stomachs. I said I would make us a chicken and rice dish but we nearly ended up in a big row as Captain Caveman thinks he knows best on how to cook things in the kitchen. I had put chicken in with the rice, in the rice cooker to steam, with a plan to slice it and make a kind of stir fry with a BBQ sauce. Of course, Captain Caveman took over and we ended up with boiled carrots a piece of chicken with BBQ sauce on and steam rice with corn in. The rice hadn’t come out well because the chicken had been too watery so it didn’t really taste too good. Bluey was out for the first time in so long that she was super whizzy, she didn’t even stop when my sun hat flew off so I had to catch it and put it in my basket. I thought she might struggle on the up hill after the bridge but she was fine and my legs were doing really well. I even thought that Bluey could do with her seat raising a bit as she felt a bit low for me after riding other bicycles in Dalyan. When we arrived at René’s I was a sweaty mess and very hot, Captain Caveman was dry as a bone and couldn’t understand why I was so hot, he took Bluey and rode her to the parking spot while I walked up the little path to the homestay. It was the first time I’d been here and it was really lovely. René was already drinking beer and chatting with 2 other guests, who I didn’t realise at the time had been invited by Captain Caveman. Harry and Linh work for a charity organisation, Animals Asia, who rescue, care for, rehabilitate and release wild or endangered animals. Captain Caveman had met Harry before so we were all introduced and had a bit of a laugh at the rumour that there had been a sighting of a tiger in the jungle. René gave us cold beers and we chatted about animal rescue related stuff and tourism. Of course, I had so many questions about the animals but I managed to get on to the subject of droppings – did you know wombat poo is cube shaped!? Harry is looking after some tigers at the moment so he told us about them. In the National Park, Harry and Linh are working with lots of other animals too but mainly different species of rescued monkeys. We were thinking about making our next beer our last when I decided to have a wander around the grounds of the homestay. They have a working farm and it is beautiful, I met Mina, the dog, and she seemed really shy and hot – she loved the fan. A group of customers returned from their day out and we got talking to them. One of them, Max, was from Bristol and worked at a Wetherspoon’s pub which then lead to all of us Brits talking about Wetherspoon’s, possibly for a bit too long for the foreigners’ liking. I think Captain Caveman could have stayed there all day but I was conscious of me having to ride Bluey home drunk and we do have to go along the road where there is some traffic every now and again. I also did not want to be going back in the dark as Bluey has no lights. After 1 last birthday beer, we decided to go home for dinner, we rode home around 5pm and I actually was quite quick. I felt the incline after the bridge but I made it without contemplating getting off. I think it took me less than 10 minutes to get home so I was pleased with that progress.
Seeing as it was Saturday night and Captain Caveman wasn’t working, we decided to go to the Farmstay for dinner. By 7pm we were sharing a bottle of red wine and had ordered some starters to share. This time we ordered things we both liked; chicken quesadillas and pitta bread with artichoke and olives – a couple of our favourites. For mains, Captain Caveman surprised me by ordering a Vietnamese dish, and one I often choose, the pork clay pot with rice and vegetables. I had something I don’t usually have but Lottie had really loved it on Monday, the tofu curry with steamed rice. I also thought it was really good and is great value for money. Of course we ended up drunk and I don’t even remember getting a lift home from the Farmstay. I’d also completely forgotten that tomorrow we had to get up early, as Captain Caveman had arranged for a car to pick us up at 8am!
Of course we were awake extremely early on Sunday 31st July, Captain Caveman was going in to the cave for another 4 days. This time when he got out, he would have 5 days off, which was amazing! I didn’t have breakfast with Captain Caveman as I wasn’t too hungry and went back to sleep for an hour after he said bye. I had a late breakfast of fruit and toasted teacake loaf and I spent most of the day by the pool, or swimming. I messaged Tony, from the Lake House, to see if we could arrange to go there for dinner and wine with him, Tham, Andrea and family. I was surprised at the response as he and the family were at the airport and were off back to Australia for a bit – we’d not even had chance to say goodbye. For lunch I had chicken with steamed rice, lettuce and gherkins which was healthy and tasty. Andrea, Nick and Lottie had gone to explore Phong Nha cave and then walked to Victory Road Villas for a cooling swim in the pool. I got a car at 6pm to meet them and it cost 200,000vnd (£7.20)from Elements to The Villas, which is just over 10km away, where the 4 of us would dine this evening. Again, we were too busy chatting for me to remember to take any photos but we all ordered a pizza and shared. I ordered The Showstopper, Andrea the Momma D, Nick chose a Classic and Lottie the Vegetarian – a great mix. Cameron, the consultant chef, was there and I introduced him to my friends. He joined us for a chat and was very welcoming and friendly, he gave us a complimentary new salad to try which was delicious. We had a few margaritas each, then a couple of bottles of red wine between us. The pizzas went down well but I had a couple of slices left which I had to take home. Cameron came to see how we were doing and asked if we would try the new brownie. We didn’t want to let him down and I’m glad we said yes as it was delicious.
While I stayed in bed with a hangover on Saturday 30th July, Captain Caveman was off to Phong Nha. He went to see Darren off at Oxalis and go to the phone shop to get their Vietnamese phones to work abroad. I managed to finish lesson 17 of my Turkish homework and was also doing a bit on Duolingo for practice. When Captain Caveman got back he was delighted with the discovery that texting CVQT to 138 enabled the abroad function, on his phone, which meant he could get OTP codes whilst in Turkey. He made us bacon sandwiches for brunch, which turned out to be breakfast. For lunch we had a chicken sandwich which was very nice, then Captain Caveman had to go back to work. His Oxalis briefing was at 6pm and would last an hour or so because he wasn’t eating with the group on this tour. Our friend, Andrea, was due to arrive at Phong Nha Farmstay at 8pm with her son and his girlfriend. Captain Caveman and I had arranged to meet them there for drinks. I had 2 slices of buttered teacake loaf to line my stomach, as I knew we might have a few drinks. When Captain Caveman returned we got invited to Khanh’s (one of the owners of Elements Collection) birthday drinks in the garage area, with all the Elements Collection staff, family and friends, including Ben & Bich. There was food but I was already full and found it easy to turn down a dunk in the blood soup dip. We got a lift up to the Farmstay, Andrea was delayed so Ben had informed the kitchen to stay open, which was nice. By almost 9pm Captain Caveman was peckish and ordered a pizza to share, Andrea submitted their orders via email while in the car from Dong Hoi airport. As we were waiting for our friends to arrive, Bich told me a funny story (she has loads of them) which was actually pretty tragic. The bedding woman in Dong Hoi had been threatened by gangsters, because her son is a gambling addict and they wanted money. That’s the short version, but it meant the bedding shop, where Bich buys all the bedding from, was no more and she was concerned where she would be able to buy bedding for her accommodation from now on. Could this be the reason our pillows had gone missing? Just as Andrea and her family were arriving a massive downpour came and the staff went to greet them in raincoats and with umbrellas. They didn’t bother checking in and came straight to the bar (our kind of friends) to meet us. Andrea introduced us to her son, Nick, and his girlfriend, Lottie, both of whom seemed lovely and I liked them straight away. We’d already polished off most of our pizza but it wasn’t long until everyone got there food and we shared some wine. We were so busy catching up that I completely forgot to take any photos but we had a great evening. Captain Caveman was going in to Son Doong tomorrow so wouldn’t get to see our friends after tonight but I agreed to meet up with them during their 3 night stay.
I wasn’t too impressed when my alarm went off at 5am on Wednesday 27th July. I got ready quickly and made sure I had everything I needed. I had given Captain Caveman some of my stuff to make my bag a bit lighter but I made sure I had snacks, spare clothes, a travel towel and pillow. I hoped I would get some more sleep during the journey and was pleased we had paid 1,000,000vnd (£35) for the sleeper bus, rather than the 850,000vnd for the mini-van. I arrived at the Lynn Visa office, the Danang pick up point, in plenty of time and saw people getting in the mini-van. No one checked who I was or spoke to me but, as Lynn herself got in the mini-van, she shouted to a group of us that her husband was on his way. Within a few minutes Lynn’s husband was there, as well as a bright yellow bus. I was the second person to get on and I chose the second seat, bottom deck, behind the driver, hoping to avoid sunlight on the way there. The bus wasn’t full but there were still plenty enough passengers and I wondered how quiet it would be. By 5.50am I was comfortably reclined in my seat and as ready as I would ever be for the journey. The bus itself was comfortable, it wasn’t the spangly new blue bus depicted on the Lynn Visa Facebook page but it was no worse than the usual sleeper buses around. It could have done with a bit of a clean in between trips as there were bits of food on my window ledge but there was a blanket provided for each passenger and the AC was wonderfully cool. We were due to set off at 6am and we did so exactly on time, Mr Lynn Visa had us all check that we had our passports and that our visas matched the details on the passports. He didn’t check any of our names or count us so I wondered if anyone may have missed the bus if they were late. I had a little nap and then woke up at 7.20am for the toilet stop and to see we were almost half way to Hue. I let Captain Caveman know my progress and went back to the bus, remembering to remove my shoes (it is expected to take your shoes off on sleeper buses) then more napping. We didn’t stop at Hue to pick anyone else up so I wondered if that may have been the (logistical) reason to charge Captain Caveman so much for a drop off there on our way. By 9.40am we had another toilet break at a nice service station then were passing through Dong Ha, making good progress to be at the Lao Bao border before lunch.
At 11.30am we were minutes away from the border crossing when Mr Lynn Visa announced that we would be stopping for our lunch break. Now, I know we are in Vietnam and it is customary for Vietnamese people to eat lunch early, but I wasn’t bothered about a stop for lunch. Everyone got in the queue and it looked like a meal of chicken, rice, veggies and tofu was on offer but I can’t comment on the price or taste of it as I had a banana which I brought with me. I took advantage of a toilet break, which weren’t bad at the restaurant and they had soap. I got back on the bus before the others to find one of the passengers was noisily eating crisps so I had a cracker and a GF chocolate cookie. Once everyone was back on the bus, we drove 2 minutes and got off again. It was hot as we walked with our passports and visas to the immigration desks. I got chatting to a couple of passengers as we waited inside the main building, which was very hot. After about an hour, we were sent to exit Vietnam in small groups, once we had been stamped out of Vietnam and had our passports back. There was a bit of a wait and I was one of the last to do the walk in the hot sun to the Laos entry point. One of our group had bad legs and really struggled, plus the sun was relentless and no shade at all. The walk was only about 10 minutes but I wish I’d brought a hat and suncream as I felt my face burning.
As I walked in to the small immigration office on the Laos side, Lynn Visa was at the counter assisting people. We had to show our passport and give $45 in clean notes to the official. We also gave Lynn Visa 100,000vnd for the Vietnamese exit stamp. It was hot and there was a second fan which had the plug cut off. Everyone was extremely sweaty and there were not enough chairs for people to sit down while they waited. For those people who didn’t have their passport-sized photos, as requested by Lynn Visa, you could pay $5 to the immigration and they would take one for you. This would have probably been a cheaper option for me, given that I got a taxi to and from a photo shop to get mine, but sometimes it’s good to just be prepared and means we weren’t waiting as long. When I gave my dollars the $1 and $2 notes were not new, so they wouldn’t take them and I ended up giving a $50 note for my Laos visa. If you don’t have dollars or they aren’t in good enough condition, they will allow you to pay in Vietnamese Dong and Lynn Visa did inform me of this before the trip. After waiting a while, we were again given passports back in various batches and were told we could take the walk back to the Vietnam immigration point. We were also told a few times not to put any money with our passports or visa and, if asked, not to give any money and to say we were with Lynn Visa for the visa run. Again, I was one of the last and I got chatting to a couple of the other passengers. We noticed a golf buggy vehicle outside and discovered for 10,000vnd (£0.35) we could get a ride between the immigration points. Well, I was pretty surprised that we weren’t told about this, considering Lynn Visa does this trip once or twice per week. When we asked Lynn Visa about it, she said she hadn’t recommended it because her preference is to walk. A few of us got on the golf buggy and went back, shocked that the lady with the bad leg had struggled when she could have had transport so cheaply. Once back at the Vietnamese entry/exit point we had another wait for our entry stamp, the one which was going to allow us to stay in Vietnam until 26th August.
By 2.50pm I was finally through immigration and back on Vietnamese soil for another 30 days. I checked my passport and visa stamp to ensure they were correct then walked to the bus. I decided to go look for a place to get a cold drink and a toilet break and found a lovely cafe hidden behind a big lorry. It was clean and only 15,000vnd (£0.53) for a cold green tea. While I was there I saw 2 English passengers from our bus who had not been able to complete their visa run so they were going to be trying again tomorrow. It was not long after 3pm when we were all back on the bus, except for those 2 passengers, and heading back. Everyone but me and 2 Irish girls were going back to Danang, I’d asked Mr Lynn Visa if he knew where in Hue we would get dropped off, so that I could ask Captain Caveman to arrange a taxi for me. He said he didn’t know so when Lynn Visa herself got on our bus, to travel back with us, I checked with her. She said they weren’t able to drop off in Hue city but it would be near by. I couldn’t get the exact location from her but I explained I didn’t have access to Grab and wanted to arrange for my other half to sort out my lift. At 4.50pm we were back at the nice services again and making good progress to be back in Hue before 7pm. I asked again about the location of the drop off but I still didn’t get to find out where it was, just reassurance from Lynn Visa it would be as near to Hue as possible and there would be taxis available from there. At 5.40pm I let Captain Caveman know I was 28km away from where he was and looked like I would get dropped off shortly. Unfortunately, the bus suddenly stopped 22km away from Hue on the main road and dropped us off outside a phone shop at around 6pm. There was me and the 2 young Irish girls with all their luggage, I messaged Captain Caveman with our location and he would get us a taxi. There were 2 old guys on motorbikes telling us they could take us to Hue for 200,000vnd (£7) each and it would be about a 30 minute drive. They had no spare helmets and we had too much luggage between us so I politely said ‘no thank you’. Captain Caveman called me to say he was having trouble getting us a car and to go in to the shop to ask them to call a taxi, I could hardly hear what he was saying because of the noise of the busy road. None of us were too happy that we had been dropped off so far away, with no real plan of how to get to Hue but eventually Anna, one of the Irish girls, got us a Grab taxi and we went to their accomodation. It cost another 250,000vnd to get to the centre of Hue from where Lynn Visa chose to drop us off. None of us were expecting the extra expense but we were glad that there was 3 of us to share the cost. The motorbike drivers continued hassling us quite a bit and it was stressing me out.
Captain Caveman decided to get a taxi to come to meet me, and my new travel buddies, at Hue Backpackers. By 8pm we were in the bar having a (much needed) cold drink and laughing about the whole fiasco. I was definitely glad I had not been alone at the drop off point, somewhere not that near to Hue. We were also fortunate that it was still light and the weather was incredibly dry and hot. Captain Caveman and I were meant to be going out for dinner but I no longer had time to go back to our homestay to change and had to do so in the toilet of the restaurant. I was hot, sweaty, hungry and tired as we got to La Jardin de la Carambole and we finally got to eat (my first meal of the day) at 9pm. We both had the French onion soup to start and the duck for main and it was very enjoyable. We had a nice bottle of white wine and it was good to have done the visa run successfully, despite the 14 hours it took from start to finish. After our meal, we got a taxi to our accommodation, The Purple Hue Homestay, where we had a ground floor room with a separate bathroom outside of the room and adjoining the communal kitchen. The place was nice but I hadn’t brought pyjamas and the bath towels were not big enough for Western women to cover everything up at once. The shower was very good, with toiletries provided and it felt good to finally be clean again. The bed was comfy with great pillows and I was fast asleep in no time. Tomorrow we would go back to Phong Nha again, where we’d be until the end of August.
Sunday 24th July was the day that Captain Caveman and I had chosen to celebrate his 50th birthday, in style! We were booked in for the Sunday Champagne Brunch at Citron restaurant, part of the Intercontinental hotel in Danang. For those of you who have not experienced it, or heard about it before, the place is gorgeous and the food exquisite – we love it. For 3 hours it is an all you can eat buffet with free flow champagne, beer, wine, cocktails, water and soft drinks. The package we go for is 2,999,000vnd (£105) each but is totally worth it if you go hungry and don’t waste time talking to each other (you can see why Captain Caveman loves it)! The last time we went, was the day before it was closed down due to a guest at the hotel testing positive for the Corona virus, just as the lockdowns were happening everywhere. I took a risk and wore one of those baggy outfits which looks like a dress but it’s a trouser suit thing. I accessorised with my blue Hermes purse and red, handmade in Dalyan, sandals and I even had my hair down. I looked tired so I put my lovely Clinique eye cream on which Linda had bought me. Captain Caveman had brought a nice shirt to wear and a pair of trousers (he still had trainers on though). Captain Caveman also discovered that he had not packed enough trousers or shorts for our trip, but there was a washing machine in our kitchen at Camellia Hotel. We took a Grab taxi across Danang to the venue but we arrived too early. There were some building works so the lift to the beach wasn’t working, we took a 5 minute walk through the grounds and went to sit in the Citron outdoor entrance area. Unfortunately, there was a Vietnamese family who were scared of us foreigners so they put their masks on straight away and moved to all sit together. The mother of the family had the volume of her phone on very loud and proceeded to play a game or watch a repetitive sounding cartoon. This was very annoying and we tried to ask her to turn it down but she ignored us. I couldn’t take it any more and we went to sit in the foyer of the restaurant. It was only 12.15 (the Sunday brunch starts at 12.30) but the staff showed us to our table straight away. We never book one of the fancier outside tables, which are just too far from the buffet. We were pleased to get a good indoor table between the buffet and the band. By 12.20 our waiter was pouring us our Billecart Salmon Brut Champagne and making polite, welcoming chit chat. I instantly warmed to the guy and asked if I could take a photo and a video of him with the champagne.
By 12.30pm, Captain Caveman and I were selecting food from the antipasti and salad section of the buffet. The choice was massive and I wish I had taken more photos but I didn’t want to waste precious time. I also knew I could use ones from the past visits or the Facebook page as the Sunday Champagne Brunch at Citron is reliably consistent. The prawns were fantastic and the waiter was finding topping up our champagne glasses a full time job. He delegated our topping up to another waiter and we never had to wait for champagne, wine or water again. The meat station was great, I loved the pork, the duck too and we had a lot of steak. Captain Caveman had lots of oysters and some sashimi which he loved. I think we had about 3 servings of the beef fillet, which Captain Caveman had with fois gras and the chef put a face on it.
When we still had over an hour left to go, Captain Caveman went off piste and said yes to a flambéed crêpe. I thought I’d have the charcuterie and cheeses first, with red wine but then I had no room for crêpes. We left it a bit late for desserts but Captain Caveman managed to squeeze in a lemon meringue pie which he forgot to save me a bite of. I loved the macaroons but couldn’t finish the sweet stuff. At 3.25pm we were absolutely stuffed and quite tiddly. I noticed the band had just finished a rocked up version of Leona Lewis’s ‘Keep Bleeding Love’ which was very good. As the band played more tranquil songs we finished the last of our red wine and champagne before it was time to leave.
We got the shuttle to the main reception and then ordered a taxi to go back to the hotel. We always think we will be able to manage to go out on the evening after the Sunday brunch but, of course, we were fit for nothing and had an early night.
Photo credit – some by Captain Caveman, some from Intercontinental and Citron’s Facebook page.
We were in the car at 9am on Saturday 23rd July ready for our 6 hours (ish) drive to Danang. Captain Caveman did not have to be back at work until 6pm on the 30th July and he was super excited to be off (you can tell by the photos)! I had a very bad stomach and had to dose up on Imodium before I could leave the house, while Captain Caveman had made himself a hearty breakfast to keep him going until lunch. I took my travel pillow from Chung and Uy, I rarely travel without it now. Our driver was Dung, who I really like as he is careful and keeps the car at a good temperature. The journey, as far as Hue, was pretty uneventful and after 3.5 hours driving we were stopping for lunch at a cafe. Hue was super hot, no breeze at all and I didn’t want to eat too much because of my stomach. We had chicken and rice with cabbage, I think Dung had pork. It was very nice and the place was clean and hygienic.
Our next part of the journey was exciting for Captain Caveman because we went on part of a new road. So new, in fact, that it wasn’t actually officially opened and Captain Caveman, the engineer, got a bit giddy. The La Son – Tuy Loan road even had some squeaky clean tunnels on it which we went in and I joined in taking the photos. After we had finished with that road and got closer to Danang, Captain Caveman fell asleep and was snoring loudly. He was knackered from working so much recently so I didn’t wake him up.
We arrived about 3.30pm and checked in to the Camellia Hotel in Danang. Originally our idea had been to go to one of our favourite places in Tam Ky but the pricing didn’t work out in our favour and I had a trip to Laos to do. Instead we got an apartment in a nice area for 4 nights at a cost of 1,400,000vnd (£49). It was near a WinMart so we bought water and beers (which we drank) and then had a walk to a pub.
Dirty Fingers is a place we really like in Danang, I call it Sticky Fingers. It’s a sports bar with cold drinks and good food. We had quite a few beers and then ordered some food to share. I didn’t realise but they are a fan of sprinkling (unnecessary in my opinion) spicy powder on the food so I had trouble eating some of mine and gave it to Captain Caveman. I ordered more brisket which was amazingly delicious. It was so good that I forgot to take photos of the food on account of me being hungry and having sticky fingers from my pork ribs. We had another beer each then walked back to the hotel for some much needed sleep. On the way we passed a dried squid establishment, The Muc Shop, which had sold out of their product a while ago.
Photo credit – some of these photos were taken by Captain Caveman
It was rather muggy, but sunny, on Friday 15th July as we ate a fry up for breakfast together. Captain Caveman was going back in to the cave so he would miss the final catch up with Veronika and Ross this lunchtime. By 8am I was swimming in the pool and then I got ready to go to the Phong Nha Farmstay. Duyet was not about so I had to wait for awhile for a pick up. I chatted to Sox, the squirrel, for a bit, he seemed to be getting more friendly, then Dung arrived. I never get tired of seeing the cows and today we disturbed a family of them so I took a cute video. At the leaving lunch for Veronika and Ross there were Bich, Ben, the kids, Stu, Max, Jack, me and Saoirse. Most people ordered Aussie pie, chips and gravy but Ross had fresh spring rolls, Saoirse had bun cha and I had beef in bamboo. The Vietnamese meals always take longer to come out because they are cooked fresh but are definitely worth the wait and I really enjoyed my lunch. By 2.30pm there was just Veronika, Ross, Saoirse and I left and we ordered a chocolate fondant cake, each! Well, it’s not every day you get to celebrate with such a nice family. Saoirse had a couple more days left before she left but Veronika and Ross would be in Saigon tonight, then Paris tomorrow. The chocolate fondant cake is amazing and very filling, they’d got chocolate ice-cream with it today but it often comes with vanilla. I had 2 beers, the beef dish and a dessert for 405,000vnd (£14.18) which now included tax and service charge. We said our goodbyes and arranged to meet up with Veronika in Turkey, later this year. When I got home I was so full that I decided to have a little rest on the bed. I woke up after it had gone dark, I had taken a meal out of the freezer to defrost, luckily. At last it was the butter chicken from Baba’s Kitchen in Saigon and it was going to easily last for 2 decent portions. I had it with steamed rice and opened a bottle of Australian Chardonnay. It was a lovely meal, with leftover curry and wine for tomorrow. In the news the Corona virus numbers were high again in England and my friend, Vanessa, was just recovering from it since returning from Dalyan. Her and a lot of my friends and family were also struggling with the rare heatwave in the UK right now. I don’t see a lot of British media over here but it was evident from my Facebook feed who probably wouldn’t be much good in Vietnam during the summer. As I got in bed I realised I hadn’t taken my measurements today but couldn’t be bothered to get back out of bed, I would do them tomorrow.
There was quite a bit of rain on Monday 11th July. Captain Caveman had left for his Son Doong trip and this time he was doing 3 tours in a row, working for the next 12 days. He’d given me some spending money so that I could go for a drink with Veronika or Tatas if the opportunity arose. I had cornflakes for breakfast and caught up on some admin tasks. I’d attempted to get out another mystery freezer meal for dinner and made myself a cheese sandwich for lunch. It wasn’t quite the Monday I’d been used to but I did indulge in a vodka, lime and soda with my evening meal. It turned out to be a satay sauce which I had with chicken, vegetables and steamed rice. After the hectic Hanoi trip it was nice to have a day of not doing too much, just staying at Elements again.
More bad weather was predicted and storms were due on Tuesday 12th July. I saw on Facebook that the newly finished villa next to where we stay in Dalyan was up for holiday rental and it looked very nice. I had a buttered crumpet for breakfast which Captain Caveman had brought back from Hanoi. My lunch was leftover satay chicken with rice and I did some Turkish lessons in the afternoon. Veronika had invited me over to share some fizz so I got a lift up to the Phong Nha Farmstay with Dung, a new driver. Veronika and Ross were staying in one of the Jungalo private pool villas so I went over to their place. We had a lovely glass or two of sparkling white wine, before walking to the Farmstay poolside bar for dinner. Veronika ordered a Shepherd’s pie (the Tuesday special), I had the chicken and cashew nuts which was really tasty. I’d eaten mine by the time Ross got his food and was sat talking to Bich under a fan. It got incredibly warm as her cook showed her the prawns she had bought. Ten minutes later we had a downpour of rain so we opened another bottle of fizz, the Lindeman’s which is a firm favourite. Bich was telling me they have changed the pricing at the Farmstay now, with immediate effect everything would be subject to 8% tax and 5% service charge. They were also reviewing the prices of items on the menu which had not seen an increase in some time. It reminded me of Turkey in that prices were increasing to allow for the new tourist season. When I got my bill it came to 1,000,000vnd (£35 for dinner and mainly wine) which wasn’t bad when you compared it to Western prices. I tried to wait for the rain to stop to leave but in the end we just had to go for it. I was easily home and in bed by 10pm but I didn’t sleep much, as the thunder and lightening was right overhead and kept me awake.
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
It was only just Tuesday 5th July, as I stood at a phone charging station in Changi airport, Singapore, at 12.05am. I’d found a currency exchange shop where the woman was finishing her shift and she swapped me five $20 notes for one of my $100s. She also told me that all the places to get food and drink will close and not open until morning so to stock up on anything I needed. She was helpful and it was nice. There is so much to do in Changi airport, but not after 10pm at night. I was eating plain crisps and dairy milk chocolate while trying to ignore the ignoramus next to me. He was watching very loud and violent clips on his phone while laughing. I’d not been able to have any sleep yet so I’d decided to come to make sure my phone battery was at 100% before my attempt to check-in. Given that my ticket had my surname spelled incorrectly, and I couldn’t change it, I was genuinely worried. All helpful posts on the internet gave the same answer that I wouldn’t be allowed to travel with it. I was situated right next to the Scoot automatic check-in machines which were open for flights to Australia, South Korea and Indonesia but there seemed to be a bottle neck of customers. This proved to be very useful as I overheard a member of staff who had come to help people get through quicker. It seemed that the Australians had more discrepancies than the South Koreans, who still needed PCR tests to enter their country. I decided I would try my luck and wandered slowly towards the queue. On the way there, I bumped in to a lovely older Australian lady, heading for Sydney, and we got chatting in the queue. She couldn’t work the machine and I noticed her passport was upside down and I copied her. Because we were causing a jam, the Scoot staff member sent both of us over to the in-person check-in, giving us both a slip of paper to say we required manual check-in due to a fault! That was the first hurdle. I let the Aussie lady go first and I waited behind a large South Korean family who were half way through repacking their bags and arguing at being denied check-in. This Scoot staff member looked stressed so when it was my turn I smiled and tried a bit of sympathy. As she was checking my passport and printing the ticket I asked if she needed to weigh my hand luggage (I knew it was under) then proceeded to pop it on the scales. I was through to departures just before 1am!!! I had just 8 hours to kill before boarding my flight so I was heading straight to do some damage in a lounge for 3 of them!
Once through security at Changi airport, I trotted off to the SATS Premier Lounge, Terminal 1, and I was so excited. It had 24hr food and booze and should have been even better than the one I was in last month, at Terminal 3. The guy on the reception desk was super friendly and informative and told me that he would remind me when my 3 hours was up but if I wanted to do another 3 hours after that, I could! This would mean paying on my Priority Pass for an extra visit but if the food and drink selection was good and it was a nice place to relax I would do that. I didn’t even sit down first, I went straight to the booze selection and poured myself a prosecco in a wine glass, who cares if they had no flutes! I took a couple of selfies so I could ‘brag off’ to Kate and Mark, who also have a Priority Pass, that I was in a lounge and then I went to check out the food options. There were some delicious looking curries with hardly any left but the staff seemed to be replenishing the containers. I grabbed a pumpkin and spinach sandwich, some cheese and turkey ham and another prosecco. I told one of the staff that I would need another bottle of prosecco and handed him the empty bottle. Despite the sandwich selection being the only choice available I had 2, they weren’t too bad and I poured myself a third glass of fizz. There was still no hot food left so I asked the bloke who was in the kitchen area if I could get some chicken curry and rice, he said yes. It never appeared and so I asked the reception staff why there was still no hot food. They said they would find out what was happening but after twice of me checking nothing appeared. By now, all that was left of the cold food was a bowl of cucumber and tomatoes (which I don’t eat) and I was very hungry. I got some nuts but they had wasabi peas in them and I didn’t chance eating any more than the first mouthful. I got out my own crisps at one point and told the staff this was not acceptable. I was now quite tiddly but soldiered on with more prosecco and kept asking how long the food would be. After another 2 hours of waiting and asking I was told my time in the lounge was up and there was still no food, I was flabbergasted. I complained, asked the reception guy for a solution and he told me they were changing from dinner to breakfast food hence the delay. I could not believe my ears when he suggested I go to find the 7-Eleven shop to buy some food in the airport. Outrageous! Incidentally, it was closed. I spent the next 3 hours just wandering around the airport, drunk, looking for snacks/food (in shops, not in bins) but had to eat the rest of my crisps. I found an empty seating area and made a bed from my travel pillow and towel, took my Volleys off and tried for a nap. It was still only 5am!
By the time I was boarding my flight from Singapore to Hanoi, I was exhausted and pretty hungry. Although not hungry enough to have eaten the Bounty and a Dairy Milk fruit and nut bar, which I was saving as a treat for Kat. Between us, we had completely got the details of when I was staying at her place, in Hanoi, confused. She had thought it was yesterday and I’d obviously known it was today but may have not corrected her on our messages. This meant she was busy when I intended on arriving but was still happy for me to stay over and sent me a video of where she lived in Hanoi. The least I could do is take her some chocolate! I was nervous because I still had to show my boarding pass and passport to the staff at the gate – what if they noticed the name error? I got to the front of the queue to board and, as the staff checked my documents, I asked if the plane was full. She looked up and told me it was, but if I needed to request a seat change I should ask once I got on the plane. And, just like that, I was through! We waited on the air bridge for quite a while and when I got on I was feeling hot and a bit jittery. I put it down to having been wearing a mask and my eczema flaring up, a lot. I sat down in row 7, in the window seat allocated to me, but I really wanted an aisle seat. I started to feel unwell so I asked the guy in my row to swap. As luck would have it his wife was in an aisle seat 5 rows back so I then swapped with her and I was very grateful of their help. I was lucky to not have anyone sitting next to me and we took off on time. On Scoot airlines they have free WiFi and you have to order any food or drinks online. At first it didn’t work but eventually I ordered a red wine and some fried rice! It cost 19 Singaporean dollars, which was good as I had 20 left, about £11.50. I was so hungry I would have eaten anything, despite any allergy warnings and I expected the worst! The mixed fried rice was great (I left the crab claw) and I enjoyed the appropriately named wine before we landed at Hanoi. It was not long after midday when I got into the lengthy immigration queue to re-enter Vietnam.
I was very tired as I waited, then got moved to another queue. After what seemed like too long I was allowed back in to Vietnam! It was 24 hours since I’d taken off in Danang, but 35 hours since I had left Phong Nha. I felt it was a bit of a chore for a visa run and wouldn’t choose to do this journey again in a hurry. I was meant to get the number 86 bus to Hanoi train station, where Kat would send a taxi for me. Considering I was knackered, and I’d not spent hotel or extra lounge money, I splashed out on a taxi to Ba Dinh. It cost 400,000vnd (£14.40) and took less than an hour to get there. I got out of the taxi at the WinMart, Kat came to meet me and I bought a couple of cold beers to celebrate being back in Vietnam. Kat was very welcoming and her studio apartment was a delight – I loved it. She told me to help myself to anything I wanted as she had an appointment she needed to get to. I unpacked, had a shower and then tried to sleep. I woke up a few hours later to a horrendous noise. It was a monsoon style storm and the thunder and lightening was right above me. It went on for several hours and when Kat eventually got home, she’d had to push her broken down motorbike through thigh deep water to get to her place. I was so lucky to not have had to leave the room and we planned to get a takeaway for a late dinner. It was around 10pm and we struggled to get a delivery with the flooded streets. Our burgers arrived at 11.30pm and we were so hungry that mine was snaffled quickly. I was so excited to be safely back in Hanoi and was grateful to have a safe, dry, friendly place to relax after a very long day.
Our best intentions to stay awake until my car came at 2am on 4th July fell flat! We had both fallen asleep but, luckily, I had set an alarm. I said my goodbyes to a very snoozy Captain Caveman who offered no words of ‘good luck’ or ‘hope to see you soon’ as I kissed him, and he barely woke up. The driver, who I booked with the receptionist at the Phong Nha Farmstay, was early and the car was nice and comfortable. On the way to Dong Hoi train station, the driver had the windows open and was doing a strange tapping on the side of the car with his left hand – probably to try to stay awake. The journey cost 500,000vnd (£18) which is standard for the 50km distance and I was very early for my 3.15am train. The trains are very busy at this time of year so the booking had shown I had the last seat available, there were no sleeping berths left but I didn’t mind too much. When I got on the SE11 train it was dark inside the carriage and I could not see to get to my seat, which was in the middle somewhere. It was very busy with people sleeping, some were even on the floor with blankets over them. I found an empty couple of seats with a broken back which was reclined to almost horizontal – ideal! We left on time and were scheduled to arrive in Danang at 09.08am. By my calculations I probably had 2-3 hours of sleep before passengers started to get up and make a noise as the Vietnamese like to wake up early and eat breakfast. I got my trusty neck pillow and travel towel/blanket out and managed to nod off. By 5.25am the carriage was practically a party with the amount of toing and froing for ablutions, nose/throat clearance and smoking in the vestibule. I could see that my booked seat had people in it so I stayed where I was and was lucky enough to not get kicked out, unlike the old woman in front of me did, the conductor was pretty shouty at her too. When Captain Caveman woke up he checked on my progress and we worked out I was running about half an hour late. I still had time as my flight wasn’t until 1.15pm. I declined a banh mi breakfast baguette from the trolley, having seen them sneezed on at least twice. Masks were no longer compulsory on trains, most passengers wore them but pulled them down to sneeze! I didn’t bother wearing my mask, mainly because I knew I would probably have to wear one for a long time once I got to the airport and it makes my eczema worse. When I got off the train I was planning on going to the noodle shop opposite the station. It was now a Korean BBQ place and next door was a craft beer place so I decided to walk towards the supermarket, Big C. I had the directions which Captain Caveman had given me and I followed them. After 11 minutes I realised I was lost so I flagged down a taxi and went straight to the airport. I couldn’t check in until 11.15am so I found a Big Bowl cafe and ordered a bowl of overpriced Pho Bo and a beer. The lady serving me kept saying I should have the more expensive wagyu beef version because it is better for foreigners. I stuck with the cheaper version which was still expensive. Even the drinks were twice the usual price for a can of beer, which definitely confused the server and the waitress that I was having beer for breakfast. So far, Plan B was going well and Captain Caveman was walking his group through the jungle towards Hang En right about now.
When I got to check-in, it was just starting to get busy but I was at the front of the queue. I’m not sure why I didn’t expect the check-in staff to be as thorough, but she did ask for proof of everything; • vaccines and booster evidence, • registration on Singapore site and email confirmation of that, • onward/return flight within 30 days, • a hotel booking in case of quarantine if testing positive on arrival I almost forgot to ask for an aisle seat in all the paperwork checking. I had nothing printed out and all on my phone because we don’t have a printer. She didn’t notice that my hotel booking was just a photo of the link to the place Captain Caveman had sent me and she didn’t spot the mistake on my ticket back in to Vietnam for tomorrow. I was through security relatively quickly but then the airport was pretty busy at the gates with not much seating. I wasn’t sure what time I would eat again today so I decided to go to Burger King which was fairly empty. I’d just placed my order and sat down when I noticed my ticket from Singapore to Hanoi tomorrow had an error on it, one that meant I couldn’t travel without amending it or buying a new flight. Captain Caveman had spelled my surname wrong on my ticket back to Vietnam, and it was with one of those low cost airlines where the check-in is done by a machine, meaning my passport and ticket with booking reference wouldn’t match up. Obviously, I could still leave Vietnam as the ticket to Singapore was fine but now I was stressed over what to do about this cock up! I decided I might be able to log in as Captain Caveman and try to amend my booking. I got all the way to where it wanted another $40 from his existing card and that’s where I failed, I didn’t know his 3 digit number on the back of his card. I let the transaction time out and it gave me a picture error message which I took a screenshot of. I’d just started eating a cheeseburger and fries when Captain Caveman rang from the little village on day 1 of his tour. He neither had his card nor knew the numbers I needed. He wasn’t as upset, or apologetic, as I thought he’d be and just said he was sure I would figure something out because I used to be a travel agent! That was about 25 years ago, it’s not like I had connections in Singapore and they were pretty strict. Now, not only was I worried about getting back in because of a potential visa issue, I was very concerned I would be stuck in Changi airport with no solution. I had $300 cash on me but I didn’t want to buy a new ticket and have no money left. I decided I would chance it and see how things were once I got to Singapore, after all, I had 15 hours or more to work it out.
My Danang to Singapore flight was delayed very slightly so we landed about 5.15pm at Changi airport. My flight tomorrow was at 09.55am, that’s if I could even get on it because of the name mistake on my ticket. I was tired but prepared to have a mini adventure in Singapore. I was wearing my volleys, some loose trousers and a vest top but I had not thought of bringing any clothing for if there was a storm. I looked outside of the airport and there was monsoon type rain. I’d intended to get the MRT (subway) but then walk to some accommodation, which I hadn’t booked yet. I would be soaked. Instead, I decided I would go to the terminal I was flying from tomorrow and investigate the automated check-in machines at Scoot. I walked around the airport for an hour and established that the Scoot check-in was a bit chaotic so I kept on walking. I found the Jewel which is a massive mall type area with amazing gardens, fountains and lots of designer shops over several floors – it was massive. Changi is one of the best airports for this kind of thing so I decided I would just stay in the airport. I had spent longer in airports overnight and I was sure I’d be fine, plus I would try my luck at check-in in the early hours of the morning and hope to get through to one of the lounges on my Priority Pass – the one landside didn’t include alcohol. I walked for 2 hours non-stop then watched the fountain and light show. I walked some more and tried my best to change my three 100 dollar notes which most of the exchange shops couldn’t do. I got myself $25 worth of Singaporean dollars with the intention of getting an alcoholic beverage, or two. Unfortunately I didn’t realise that by 10.30pm the airport had already closed most of the shops and alcohol was not able to be purchased until I was airside – it was going to be a long night. I asked a member of the Scoot staff if there was any way I could check in early to go through to a lounge and she said there was no chance. She said I couldn’t check in until 6.55am but I wondered how the automatic machines could tell that. I bought some chocolate and almost thought seaweed crisps were salt and vinegar flavoured. I found a quiet area upstairs near the prayer room and tried to have a bit of a rest, I’d started to have a sea-sickness feeling which I get when I’ve had no sleep. I would wait until after midnight then try to check-in again when the staff changed.
Captain Caveman was on day 2 of his tour and I was expecting rain, the skies were cloudy and it felt a bit cooler on Friday 1st July. I decided I’d been a bit slack with not taking my measurements or getting weighed each week and would reintroduce it. In Phong Nha we don’t have any scales but Captain Caveman had previously brought over a tape measure. The last time I had taken measurements was the 6th May, so almost 2 months ago and I was shocked by the results. I’d had a good month of going out in Dalyan and then a quieter month with less drinking in Phong Nha. These were my results this morning; Bust -3cm, Waist -5cm, Hips -6cm, Right thigh -0.5cm, Left thigh -2cm, Right calf -2.5cm, Left calf -3.5cm. Wow, I wish I knew my weight. My calves had lost a lot, probably from not cycling, walking or dancing like I was in Turkey. Both calves measured the same but my thighs had a 1cm difference still and I was sure the swimming was helping my overall measurements. I treated myself to a breakfast of buttered teacake toast and then got to moving Captain Caveman’s winter clothes in to the spare room. I also noted while tidying up his stuff that he had in excess of 10 pairs of sunglasses including 1 pair of mine that I had given him last year when he said he didn’t have any to wear – they were my only spare pair. For lunch I took a Snickers out of the freezer and it defrosted naturally within minutes. In the afternoon the cleaners came, so I chopped fruit in the kitchen. I put mango and passion fruit in the fridge and freezer and ate an orange. The rain didn’t come and the humidity level was very high, I heard thunder nearby. At 6.30pm I got picked up for pizza night with the Le Mitchell family at The Villas. When we arrived it was very busy so Veronika wanted to sit by the river, I find that it’s easier to get served nearer the bar so I joined René who was sat at a table outside but near to the door. I ordered a beer and said yes to the all you can eat pizza for 180,000vnd (£6.30). Veronika, Ross and the grandchildren came to sit next to us and went for the same deal. We chatted on about the visa extension debacle and the pizzas were great, as always. The company was lovely and I had a really good evening. René and I exchanged phone numbers and told me he was happy to come pick me up on his motorbike to go to his, while Captain Caveman was away which was really kind. Veronika and Ross also said they fancied a trip out to see his homestay and we could perhaps cycle there together. It wasn’t too far and I quite fancied doing that.
When Captain Caveman goes in to the cave I’m not usually one for being down about it, I always have a list of things to do to keep me entertained. On Thursday 30th June, though, I did feel a bit out of sorts and I wasn’t entirely sure why. It could have been that I had only 5 days left in Vietnam, potentially. It could have been that my family and friends in Dalyan were having a DBL (Deep Blue Leg-Ends) reunion today and I really wished I was able to be there. The day started super early, obviously, as Captain Caveman was awake about 5.30am and we were going to have ‘McMuffins’ for breakfast. Before 7am I was tucking in to a bacon and brown sauce muffin, Captain Caveman was devouring his bacon, fried egg and cheese (with mayonnaise) muffin. I said goodbye and decided I would go to pump up Bluey’s tyres. It was hot but a little cloudy so today just might be a good day to cycle to the Phong Nha Farmstay. I’d already said I would meet Veronika and Ross, Tatas was hoping to join us later too, as she had a day off. My Vietnamese was never brilliant but I’d noticed, since learning Turkish, that I had forgotten a lot of the Vietnamese I had learned so I ended up causing a bit of a misunderstanding with Duyet. Bluey’s tyres were completely flat and the small bike pump, which Captain Caveman had at home, was next to useless, mainly as the valve wouldn’t fit properly. I tried to tell Duyet this but I wasn’t sure if he understood and he gave me a lift in the jeep instead.
Veronika and Ross had already had breakfast so I didn’t bother ordering anything and we got reacquainted. They had spent the last 9 months back home in Australia and were staying at the Farmstay in the Jungalo Collection, on holiday for just 2 weeks. Stu and Jack came to join us and when I told them all my bike pump translation issue they were laughing at me for inadvertently propositioning Duyet. We decided that when I got back I should go check the bicycle first and if Bluey’s tyres were still flat, I should be concerned I’d said the wrong thing! Tatas arrived and we had a draught beer each while chatting to everyone, she concurred that I had probably given Duyet the wrong impression. After Stu and Jack left, the rest of us ordered lunch. Both Tatas and I had the Nem Lui which is one of my favourite Vietnamese pork dishes and it was very tasty. Tatas bought a bottle of wine and we managed a swim in the Farmstay pool. We’d got out and we were getting down the wine when there was a sudden downpour. There was only one thing for it, more wine! I spent 950,000vnd (£34.20) on food and (mostly) drink but it was a brilliant day, ending with a pint of draught beer. I got home late and forgot to check Bluey, but there were no surprises from Duyet so I think all was well. The coming weekend would be my last one in Phong Nha before I left for Singapore, I really hoped it wouldn’t be the last time I saw Captain Caveman for a while.
joloyolo 