Wednesday 7th June was a much calmer day than yesterday. I was naturally up early with the sound of the lost Casio watch at 6.45am and it was measurements day. My bust had remained the same but I had lost 6cm from my waist and 3cm from my hips. I still didn’t have any scales so I wasn’t sure how much I’d had put on from our holiday. I decided to take myself off out for breakfast, seeing as I didn’t eat well yesterday. It was back to being hot and sunny again but it was early enough for me to cycle in to town to visit the supermarket. Phong Nha now has a Winmart and I was keen to get some ‘healthy’ provisions.
Here’s what I bought with the prices in Vietnamese Dong:
I’d completely forgotten how expensive apples are in Vietnam and should have bought bananas instead. I think 54p each for an apple may be a bit much but they turned out to be one of the nicest apples I’d had. At The Villas I had a mango smoothie and a beef noodle soup for breakfast. It came to 128,000vnd (£4.22) and was very nice. I was back home working on the laptop in the afternoon and had just a cereal bar, an apple and a KitKat for lunch. For dinner I had cheese with crackers and another KitKat – the KitKat diet was going well!
It was the 12th anniversary of Oxalis on Thursday 8th June so I was expecting there might be some sort of event either today or this weekend to celebrate. Captain Caveman and I had plans at the weekend but we would have to cancel them if there was an Oxalis party. So I was surprised when Tatas confirmed we would meet this evening for wine and then go for a curry. I asked her if there was any party planned but she said she’d not heard of anything. For breakfast I had a cereal bar, a yoghurt and an apple which meant I was back on the Slimming World plan. I worked from 9am until 3.45pm stopping for a lunch break at home of another cereal bar, 60g of cheese and 2 apples. I met Tatas at 7pm at Tree House for red wine and there was still no mention of an Oxalis anniversary party. However, one glass in to the bottle, she received a call to say there would be a bit of a do at Big Ben and could she come over after she had finished dinner. We drank the wine, which had to go in an ice bucket as it was still very hot at night here.
At Ganesh Indian restaurant I ordered chicken samosa for starter, then for main a chicken tikka with saffron rice and a garlic naan. Tatas, who likes everything extra spicy, ordered an extra hot chicken vindaloo with plain naan bread. We both had a couple of bottles of Saigon beer each. My food was amazing, even though my samosas looked like a pair of boobs and I’d brought my trusty Tupperware to take half home! Tatas was upset that her’s still wasn’t spicy enough despite it making me cry when I sniffed it! Here’s the prices of what we had so you can compare how much it costs where you are:
Towards the end of the meal, while I was still eating but Tatas had given up, the calls and messages from Tatas’ colleagues increased. By 9pm she had left me to go to Big Ben for the Oxalis anniversary party. I decided to chat to the staff at Ganesh and get some photos. When I left, one of the Indian guys came out to help me put my light on my bike as I had my hands full of tomorrow’s Indian takeaway! It was great to have an Indian restaurant back in Phong Nha and, although we missed Raj at Namaste, Ganesh was certainly one of my new favourites. I cycled home, popped my leftovers in the fridge and set my alarm for work tomorrow.
Of course we were up early on Monday 5th June and it was another hot day. The forecast said clouds but we could only dream of them. We didn’t have any breakfast and I walked round the house in my bikini all morning. Captain Caveman had his Oxalis briefing tonight so we decided to cycle in the hot sun to The Villas for lunch. Our efforts were unexpectedly rewarded when we arrived, as our Czech friend, Lucie, had left us a bottle of champagne as a gift. What a lovely treat that was and we decided to drink it with our pizzas. When Captain Caveman went to work I went home as Tatas had cancelled our meeting up for Margarita Monday due to work. I was also glad of a rest as I hadn’t fully recovered from the dehydration/hot bus fiasco yesterday. When Captain Caveman returned we looked at flights for my return to Turkey and found some interesting routes which may work out cost effective. I would research more while he was in the cave for 4 days.
Captain Caveman was off in to Hang Son Doong on the morning of Tuesday 6th June. He would be back on Friday afternoon then had 5 more days off. I was very pleased that he’d managed to get a schedule that allowed for this, especially as his supervisors were in England for a couple of months. I had planned a steady day of work and not much else but, as is my life, I was in for a bit of a spontaneous surprise later. Captain Caveman wanted to eat at the noodle cafe across the road for breakfast and I agreed to go with him. I seemed to recall that the last couple of times I’d been there, the food was very spicy. Captain Caveman said it wasn’t, so I was up for giving it another try. When the food came, it was fish with rice noodles and lots of chillies so I declined breakfast and gave mine to Sexy Quang. We bumped in to Vinh of Highway 20 Homestay and we had a chat, he was selling a wooden house and was also building a new homestay near a hidden lake in Phong Nha. He showed it to us on a map and I had no idea where it was but Captain Caveman thought he knew the location. Next, we walked home and picked up our bicycles for a ride to Oxalis. Captain Caveman had a couple of errands he needed to run in the office while I had a bowl of pho ga, chicken noodle soup!
After saying bye to Captain Caveman at Ho Khanh’s homestay, I had a look around and took some photos by the river. It looked like it was no longer being used as a cafe and the daughter, who used to run the place, was 1 week off giving birth to her second child. I didn’t see any homestay guests which was a shame as, before Covid, June was a busy month. Captain Caveman called me from the village on his tour to say a storm was coming and to batten down the hatches. I worked from 10.30am to 3.30pm, taking a lunch break to watch the heavy rain that we desperately needed. As it was too wet to venture out and I was enjoying being cooler, I just had cheese and crackers for lunch. Kat and Buu had invited me to join them on a dog walk with Muc (the dog the were looking after from Dong Hoi) at 5.30pm.
Video of the rain – it was needed and I even could put a fleece on in the AC but I didn’t turn it off
I cycled Bluey to Kat and Buu’s house, opposite Funny Monkeys, and parked her up. Luckily, the rain had not lasted long, although the road was still full of large puddles. Both Kat and Buu were wearing shorts and a top, Buu had shower shoes on so I made the assumption we weren’t walking too far and that the terrain would be easy. I couldn’t have been more wrong as we took a wrong turn in search of Vinh’s hidden lake. Halfway along we had to cross a stream with leeches in which was low on our side but a steep banking on the other. I had a dress and slippy trainers on, while carrying my overfull bag. At first I said I couldn’t cross but Kat and Buu insisted I could make it and helped me, with some dithering on my part. Next, we were walking through very wet rice paddies and trying not to get out feet wet, bit by leeches or (worse) find any unexploded bombs! We eventually got to the hidden lake, only to be met by Vinh on a motorbike pulling a trailer! There was a much easier route, obviously. We took that way on the way back and it was getting dark. Instead of drinks and dinner which normal people might be enjoying on a Tuesday evening at this time, I was drinking water and being laughed at by Buu’s landlord. Needless to say Muc, the dog, loved our adventure and shot off up the stairs for a nap. I cycled home, had a Snickers and some marshmallows for dinner, then did another couple of hours work!
Sunday 4th June was a very long day with a memorable and unpleasant journey. We had some breakfast in the Emm Hotel which was very busy, then we packed and psyched ourselves up for the drive back to Phong Nha. Captain Caveman had booked us 2 seats on a minibus for the 210km which was estimated to take 4-5 hours. The pick up was from the DMZ bar in Hue so we took a Grab to there to get some lunch before the 1pm pick up. I had the local dish, My Quang, which was really good, Captain Caveman had spring rolls and potato skins. A driver arrived a little later and we were ushered in to a car with 3 European tourists. They drove us to the nearest bus station where we were crammed on to a bus and I was forced to sit on the back seat. The journey was up there in my top 10 of terrible journeys as the AC duct was broken and hot air was blowing on to me. The guy next to me had very big and open legs when he slept so I was a bit squished and far too hot to deal with it. I managed to get as far as Dong Hoi before dehydration got the better of me and I had a funny turn. We had to stop the bus and everyone had to wait for me while I found a toilet. We were in the middle of the main road but no obvious buildings, the driver pointed to what looked like a disused school but when I got there it was padlocked. I found an alternative but someone was already in and by this point passengers on the bus were calling out to try to help. I was in excruciating belly pain and spasms I’d not had since gastroenteritis in Goa! Once back on the bus feeling somewhat embarrassed, Captain Caveman realised where he was sat was not as hot as my back corner seat!
We arrived in Phong Nha at 6pm and got dropped off at Central Backpackers Hostel, we said bye to our fellow passengers and walked as far as Tree House. We passed a new bar which was called Dubai and looked really out of place in such a rural town. Captain Caveman plonked me down with the bags, had some water and then went off to go get the motorbike from Oxalis so we could get home. I was an absolute dehydrated mess so I drank a litre of water, a vanilla milkshake, a soda water with lime and a fresh coconut. It was actually hotter at Tree House cafe than on the bus but at least I had a fan.
We had no food in at home so we decided to go for an Indian and I vaguely remember being there but by this time the headache had kicked in. I drank salted lime drinks and ate some chicken tikka and rice before getting on the back of Captain Caveman’s motorbike to go home to sleep. Tomorrow would be my last day with Captain Caveman before he went back to work so I had taken the day off to do something together.
I was woken up by Captain Caveman sneezing at 5.40am on Saturday 20th May. It was going to be another hot day and I didn’t get up until 6.45am. Even though Captain Caveman had a day off today, he still had to go to the Oxalis office to sort some work related things out. We cycled there for 8am and sat overlooking the river at Oxalis Home cafe. The views were beautiful and the river was busy with boats going to and from Phong Nha cave, as it often is on the weekend. We ordered Bo Ne for our breakfast which is new to the menu since my last visit. I don’t eat the eggs so I gave them to Captain Caveman and I had some of his sausage. I found it to be really tasty although I wasn’t so keen on the bread which has sugar in here. After breakfast, we went back home and made sure Bluey, my bicycle, was popped away safely as we were off on our holidays this afternoon. We got our bags (hand luggage only) and went on Trigger, the motorbike, back to Oxalis. Captain Caveman had booked us seats on the Oxalis bus to Dong Hoi, but we actually got to share a car with 2 of the staff. It was a pleasant 45 minute drive and we got dropped off at Tree Hugger, one of my favourite cafes.
They had some new iced drinks on the menu which were made of mint, lime and soda water slushy and I loved them. There’s plenty of fans at Tree Hugger, but no AC so the drinks were very much needed. We ordered some lunch and I was trying to be healthy so had the beef and vegetable stir fry with brown rice. It’s one of my favourite dishes, Captain Caveman had his favourite egg salad sandwich and we were given complimentary passion fruit and water melon. Next we decided that it wouldn’t be a Tree Hugger visit without a White Russian cocktail as the afternoon sun got very sweaty. Captain Caveman paid so I didn’t take a note of the bill but it’s very reasonably priced.
Our next jaunt was a short taxi ride over to see Stu and the boys at their new house. My ankles were swelling up from the heat so I drank water, while Captain Caveman cracked on with Stu, drinking beers. By 3pm I had my feet in the pond, letting the fish nibble my toes. At 4.30pm we got a taxi back in to Dong Hoi town to meet a friend and ex colleague of Captain Caveman’s, who’d had a baby since I last saw her.
We met Thao at a small cafe where I had a mango smoothie and we played with baby Anh. It was lovely to see them after all this time and the cafe near her house was good and cheap. By 5.30pm we were in a taxi, on the way to Dong Hoi airport where we were flying with Bamboo airways to Hanoi, I was hoping for a bit cooler weather.
We got good exit row seats on the plane and were in Hanoi by 8.30pm. Captain Caveman had booked us a room at Aquarius Grand Hotel near Hoan Kiem Lake for 2 nights. That evening he chose a nearby Indian restaurant for dinner. Aalishan was a small Indian restaurant with mainly all Indian customers so this was a good sign. We shared onion bhajis without incident but then my chicken tikka masala was so spicy I couldn’t eat it. I ate rice and nan bread, tried my chicken dish with loads of yoghurt in but my mouth was still on fire. Back at the hotel, I had a bad stomach because of the chillies but hoped the swelling would go down because we had planned to go clothes shopping tomorrow!
I was so hot that I couldn’t sleep and was still awake at 1.40am on Friday 19th May. I got up and drank a lot of water with Oresol in, to keep hydrated. At 3.15am I was checking out prices of my return flights with Scoot and they were quite pricey. I had about 6 weeks left until I was due to go back and I wasn’t quite sure how I would survive this heat. I also remembered I was meant to have applied for my next visa as I was only allowed to stay in Vietnam on the 15 day exemption until 28th May. I dozed off around 3.40am and woke up with the loud speaker at 6am, which was irritating. Of course Captain Caveman’s lost watch went off at 6.45am then I went back to sleep, despite the room being a bit warm already. I’d arranged to meet Veronika at VRV for lunch at noon, so I got myself ready for a cycle in red hot sun. I borrowed Captain Caveman’s trousers and a T-shirt to protect me from the 38°C sun and I took a dress to change in to. I have Factor 50 sun cream with me but I find it runs off quite easily. Veronika had been looking after her eldest grandson for a whole month, while Ben and Bich were in Australia. She was eager to get out and celebrate her freedom as they were back in Phong Nha now. When she arrived she had a bottle of our favourite fizz in the fridge and she asked for it with an ice bucket and 3 glasses. Another lady, Jenny, was joining us and we decided to order lunch too. I had the courgette salad, Veronika had the duck and Jenny had a pho. All of the food was good and we were having a lovely lunch when a customer started chatting to us. It turned out that the customer and her lively young son knew the Wiringi family and had come here on Melissa’s recommendation. Captain Caveman arrived back from his Son Doong tour and came to join us around 3pm at The Villa’s restaurant before he had to go to his Gala Dinner at 5.30pm. He was a bit cross with me that I’d still not got round to applying for my 30 day visa so he did it for me, he also brought me a backlight for my cycling home in the dark. Veronika had booked to stay the night at VRV so she went for a Nannan nap, Jenny went for a swim and I started work. I only had 2 hours left to work this week so planned to work 4-6pm and today I was working on something new. At 6pm, Veronika came back to join me, as well as Tatas, Jenny had returned to the Farmstay. I decided to be naughty and ordered my favourite Villa’s pizza, the Showstopper. It had salami, blue cheese, fig jam and spring onion on and is not in the least bit Slimming World friendly. It was delicious and we had a great night. Captain Caveman rejoined us after he’d finished work. I had some work queries and corrections which needed finishing so I had to do another hour’s work from 8.30-9.30pm so that the task wasn’t left until Monday. This meant I would only work 15 hours next week which was fortunate as Captain Caveman now had at least 2 weeks off, with a possibility of it being 17 days holiday. This was great news, as he had been working a lot recently and he really was ready for a break. He’d also planned a really great holiday for the two of us, including a trip to Thailand, starting from tomorrow!
My bill for today’s food and drink at The Villa’s restaurant was as follows:
On Thursday 18th May, after not much sleep as I was finding it hard to adjust to the heat, I cycled Bluey to Victory Road Villas (VRV) again. I had an orange juice, a pot of Jasmine tea and a litre of water to keep hydrated. I decided to have the beef noodle soup (Pho Bo) for breakfast today. It wasn’t quite as good as the chicken one but still did the trick. I got on with work but at 2.45pm there was a power cut to the whole of the town. I was very lucky that VRV had a generator so we didn’t have to wait long until the electricity was back on. I took a brief look outside by the river, it was hot, there wasn’t any breeze and I was struggling acclimatising. I ordered a fruit salad with yoghurt and muesli for a late lunch, with a Bang soda. The fruit salad had banana, watermelon, mango and dragon fruit in and was very refreshing in the heat. Even in the AC dining room, it was 29°C and I was constantly too hot. I went back to work until 7pm when I decided to relax with a fresh coconut juice and check my Facebook/messages etc. Rather than go home, I stayed at The Villa’s restaurant for dinner and a glass of red wine. I chose the penne carbonara and it tasted lovely but I suspected it had a bit too much oil in for it to be diet friendly. I then completely blew the diet by having the chocolate brownie with ice cream. I gave myself the excuse that I needed to try it again to check if it was still as good as I remembered – it was!
My bill for the day at The Villa’s was as follows: Orange juice 60,000 Pho Bo 75,000 Pot of Jasmine tea 50,000 Bang soda 25,000 Fruit salad, yoghurt & muesli 95,000 Fresh coconut 50,000 Glass of red wine 90,000 Penne carbonara 200,000 Brownie 100,000 Total cost 745,000vnd (£24.72).
I thought that was a bargain considering what I’d had, and I had been there all day. I got ready to cycle home, I had no bike lights and had not realised that the power cut was still happening. I was a bit nervous cycling with it being so dark and I went very slowly. I’d not gone far when a motorbike came up behind me and was following me really slowly. I tried to look to see what was happening, only to see it was the one eyed cleaning lady from Jungle Boss. She was riding passenger with her husband, holding a baby and was shouting me. There was obviously nothing wrong with the eye that had not been lost in a bomb explosion! We both got off our bikes and hugged, it was so good to bump in to Tửu like this. She speaks no English but was trying to tell me something, so beckoned over someone she knew from a property nearby and asked her to translate for me. They said that if I cycled slowly I would be ok, and not to be scared of the dark because the power was back on at the Glass House. Tửu’s husband then followed me a bit with the light of his motorbike to make sure I didn’t inadvertently cycle over a snake or into a cow (not common but it does happen). When I got home I was so sweaty that I had a shower, luckily the water temperature was cooler again now that it was dark. The tank on the exposed roof gets so hot that we have to time when to shower, when the water is not going to be scorching hot. My eczema was not liking the heat and humidity, it was definitely starting to flare up even worse. I went to bed early and was looking forward to Captain Caveman returning tomorrow.
So much for catching up on my sleep and enjoying a lay in, on Wednesday 17th May. I was woken up by a cockerel, who sounded like it had a sore throat, from about 4.30am. I had a pee and managed to get back to sleep, but only until 6am. The loud speakers were definitely working and the propaganda that they spout early in the morning was very loud. I still have no idea what they are saying and can only guess that the Communist party are encouraging people to get up and start their day in a positive fashion. If anything, it makes me want to do the opposite and I was already considering where we could move to so that we did not have to suffer the torture of the awful music which followed! It stopped after 10 or so minutes and I was going back to sleep when I got another wake up. This time, in the form of Captain Caveman’s Casio watch which he had lost years ago, somewhere in the wardrobe/shelves. It was still going off every morning at 6.45am and that was going to happen every day until I found that watch and threw it over the balcony! By 7am, all was peaceful and I drifted back off to sleep for 3 hours!!! It was already very sunny and I could feel the heat from the roof warming up the bed. It was 27.5°C in the room and the AC was starting to struggle. Where we live, is very much in the rural village part of Phong Nha and I don’t think there are any (or many) other non-vietnamese people living in the vicinity. The Glass House, where we are staying, has 5 rooms and the other 4 all have Vietnamese families living in them now. By 2.20pm it was 28.6°C in the room and I was feeling a bit peckish. I’d almost forgotten that it was weigh day so I got my tape measure out. We don’t have any scales here, in Phong Nha, so I didn’t know my weight. Unfortunately my waist was 3cm bigger, my hips had increased by 1cm but my bust had stayed the same. I decided I would work from Victory Road Villas (VRV) in the afternoon/evening when it was ‘cool enough’ to cycle there. Tatas had also suggested that we go for a curry tonight at Ganesh, the fairly new Indian restaurant, so I planned to finish by 8pm. For a late lunch, I ordered fried veggie spring rolls, a mango lassie and some peanuts. I drank water and the staff put the AC on straight away today, which was nice. I had a Bang soda, which is just soda water in a glass bottle, as I finished my work for the day. Tatas wasn’t able to come to meet me as she had work commitments so I stayed at The Villa’s restaurant and decided to treat myself to a glass of white wine and some pasta. The food was good and it didn’t taste spicy but then I found a chilli in the bottom. I did complain because I’m allergic to chillies and it transpired that, although the waitress had told the kitchen, the chef had forgotten.
Here’s the food and drink prices, for those of you who like a look and compare to how it would be in your local restaurant.
Mango Lassi 85,000 Peanuts 35,000 Spring rolls 85,000 Bang soda 25,000 Glass of white wine 90,000 Prawn & salami spaghetti 220,000 Total price 540,000vnd (£17.82)
Interestingly the Vietnamese Dong and the Turkish lira were similar in that 100,000 dong was about 100 lira. I noticed a glass of wine here was the same price as when I last was in Dalyan. Back home, it was still hot and I looked in the wardrobe of clothes I’d left here to see what I could put on to watch a bit of Netflix in. I picked out an old vest top and popped it on. To my amazement, it fitted me like a dress, albeit a rather snug one but I was pleased with that. I was desperately in need of some new clothes but our shopping trip hadn’t happened. Captain Caveman had planned a trip away at the weekend so I was hopeful to go shopping then.
I was working on Tuesday 16th May and, as there was no home internet available, I had decided to spread my hours over the next 4 days and work from Victory Road Villas (VRV). Captain Caveman had been awake and on his phone for almost an hour when I got out of bed at 6.30am. The tap in the bathroom was already annoying me as I struggled to undo the tie and replace it. There was nothing we could do now though as Captain Caveman was off in a few hours to Hang Son Doong, the biggest cave in the world, for a 4 day trip. We both went to VRV for breakfast where I had my first bowl of pho ga (chicken rice noodle soup) which I love and had missed, a lot! Captain Caveman had Eggs Benedict with bacon and we both had juices/hot drinks. It’s not the cheapest breakfast in town but it’s certainly got the quality ingredients and the staff are lovely.
I worked from 9am until 12.30pm then had a 30 minute break where I had some green tea and a fruit salad with yoghurt and muesli. I was conscious that tomorrow was weigh day but we had no scales so I was still noting a food diary and taking measurements. I got back to work and was glad of the fan in The Villas but, as there was only me there, they didn’t have the AC on. The staff did keep bringing me free filtered water though so I was doing ok. It was still cooler here than at home, where the sun heats up our top floor room pretty well and the AC struggles to cope. When it got to 2.30pm I was hungry again, a guest at the hotel had come in to the restaurant for lunch so the receptionist put the AC on. I decided to take an hour’s break and ordered a hot tea and a Margherita pizza – The Villa’s restaurant does excellent pizzas!
By 6pm, I’d finished work and was about to have an impromptu night with Tatas, who was on her way for a margarita! I’d already got a cold beer when she arrived but we got cocktails as well. She was looking good and was pleased to see me after 9 months away. Tatas ordered a Caeser salad as she was being healthy but it was covered in sauce. I had more food with a Nem Lui, a traditional Vietnamese pork dish from Hue. The dish has pork on skewers of lemon grass which are eaten in rice paper rolls with rice noodles and veggies, herbs and salad. It tasted really good too, as we ate and chatted then ordered a bottle of red wine. It was a good night and I was looking forward to seeing more of Tatas now that she had a day job in the office and wasn’t in the cave quite so much.
My bill at VRV for the whole day, with prices in Vietnames Dong (vnd) for those of you who take an interest…
1 Pho Ga 75,000 2 Fresh orange juice 120,000 1 Eggs Benedict 165,000 1 double espresso 60,000 1 fruit salad, muesli & yoghurt 95,000 1 green tea 30,000 1 jasmine tea 30,000 1 Huda beer 35,000 1 Margherita pizza 180,000 1 Margarita cocktail 180,000 1 Nem Lui 180,000 1 bottle of red wine 400,000
Total spent 1,550,000vnd (£51.15)
I didn’t think that was bad for the poshest place in town!
Back home the room had cooled to a more acceptable 29°C with the AC on at 11.20pm. I went to sleep for the first time in a while without setting an alarm – I decided I was having a lay in tomorrow!
I had kept some of my last full day in Saigon free on Thursday 25th August. There had been no further contact about the taxi driver but I decided to be extra cautious when leaving the hotel, and not to order Grab taxis in case he picked up the job. I asked the receptionist if I could get a photo of the security camera footage with the 3 guys waiting for me in reception, just in case it was needed. I got food from the Microboulangerie next door and the important meeting I had missed yesterday was rescheduled to lunchtime today. One of the places I really like to eat at, in Thao Dien, is Lubu, which just so happens to have Beth’s son, Jay, as the new manager. I chose this to meet Mr H, a friend of Captain Caveman’s, for the first time. There were 3 of us sat at a central table in the light an airy restaurant. We enjoyed a delicious 3 course lunch each; the green salad starter was lovely and the roasted vegetable bruschetta looked good. I loved the steak and chips while Mr H had the healthier option of fish skewers. There was a choice of panna cotta or fruit with yoghurt for dessert. The lunchtime set menu is great and comes with tea or coffee so I still had a pot of green tea when my fellow diners had to leave to get back to work. One of our discussions had lead on to whether Captain Caveman and I liked whisky. We do and I was asked if I would like to try one of 2 bottles. I chose the one I had not had before and it was for me to take back to Turkey – it would be delivered this afternoon which was very kind of Mr H. I got a taxi back to the hotel and was busy on my laptop all afternoon except for when I got a call from reception to say a gift had arrived for me. I went down to collect the bottle of Craigellachie 17 year old single malt whisky – Captain Caveman and I would look forward to sharing that in Turkey!
In the evening Beth and I shared a taxi to Bandido’s, a Mexican restaurant in District 1. They had amazing Margaritas which we ordered a couple of while we waited for everyone else to come. We were lucky because we had arrived just before the heavy rain but Andrea got caught in it, who was next to arrive and insisted on jugs of margaritas – a great idea. Next to arrive was Quyen, Trang was a little later and Hoai had to message to say she would have to wait for the rain to pass. The rest of us ordered food and it was very tasty, the service was good and I particularly enjoyed the pork tacos. We weren’t planning on a late night because Andrea, Quyen, Trang and Hoai all had work in the morning but someone (possibly me) suggested we go for one more drink in Thao Dien. Quyen lives near to the Mexican restaurant so we said bye and she walked home. Trang and Hoai set off on their individual motorbikes and the remaining 3 of us got a taxi. We arrived at Soho wine bar and had some very nice wine. Andrea walked home but then Trang took Beth, and Hoai took me home. As we rode through the empty streets of Saigon it started to rain. Back at the hotel I was a little sad that I was leaving Vietnam tomorrow especially as I didn’t know exactly when I would be back again.
I really did not want to get up so early on Wednesday 24th August but Captain Caveman had booked the Oxalis car pick up for 6.30am. I didn’t have to check-in for my domestic flight until 8.30am but we had decided that breakfast at Mr Bull’s would be a good way to send me off. Dung, our nice driver, was early and we got in the car. Captain Caveman had to carry my big suitcase as I couldn’t lift it. We had our usual Bo Ne at Mr Bull’s, mine without eggs, and I really enjoyed it. Captain Caveman had time for us to pop to the WinMart for him to pick up some essentials and I got some mints for the journey. Captain Caveman came with me to Dong Hoi airport and we got checked in straight away for my 9.30am flight to Ho Chi Minh (aka Saigon). I was flying with Vietnam Airlines, I had an aisle seat and was due to land at 11.10am. We said goodbye and I had a few tears, mainly through tiredness I suspect. I was looking forward to landing as I would have time to check-in to the hotel and get ready to meet friends for dinner tonight. The flight went smoothly but I wasn’t prepared for the absolute fiasco that was about to happen once I arrived in Saigon!
I landed at the domestic terminal of Ho Chi Minh airport, before midday. There were no taxis outside so I decided to walk to the international terminal where I knew there would be. I’d already been forewarned to make sure I only get in to the My Linh or Vina Sun taxis as they are the official ones. I’d read on social media about the potential for scams so I was alert to making sure I didn’t fall foul of this. As I approached the taxi queue there were 2 women who were taking the locations and hailing the cabs for customers, they wore lanyards round there neck and one of them was very efficient in getting me a taxi. I checked the car that had pulled up and asked her how much it was to Thao Dien. She said it was metered but I should check with the driver, which I did and he said he didn’t know but it was metered . They put my 25kg suitcase in the boot as I took my hand luggage from the trolley and pushed it out of the way. What I hadn’t noticed was that the car I was about to get in was not a My Linh or Vina Sun. The car had pulled up alongside the taxi I thought I was getting in and the driver told me to get in the front seat. I declined and I got in the back where I noticed the car wasn’t as neat and tidy as it should have been. The driver asked me for 10,000vnd (£) for the toll to get out of the airport, this is normal but I said I would pay at the end and took the ticket for 9,000vnd. I didn’t realise it at the time but it had his car registration number on it, which would prove to come in very handy. The driver asked if he could take me to an ATM to get more money out, that’s when I noticed that the meter was reading higher than it should. As we drove the meter was whizzing round far too quickly so I decided to call Captain Caveman, he didn’t pick up. I called the hotel and asked them how much the fare should be and to advise I was on my way. The receptionist was very helpful and told me that it should be half what it was already and suggested I might want to get out. I couldn’t because I was on a multi lane dual carriageway, I decided to continue the remaining 16 minute journey but asked the receptionist to meet me outside the hotel when I arrived. When we arrived there was a lot of discussion between the two in Vietnamese and the driver blocked me from getting my suitcases out of the boot. They had been put in very awkwardly with both handles away from the open area so I really had to push to get them out. The receptionist was confused and told the driver it should be a maximum of 250,000vnd but after more discussion he said he would accept 325,000vnd instead of the 2.6 million on the meter. By this point I already knew I would be reporting him to either the police or the airport so I paid with a 500,000vnd note which he only gave me 170,000vnd back because he said he had no 5,000vnd note. We got inside the hotel and I thanked the receptionist for coming to my aid, she was shocked at the driver’s behaviour. I checked in, went to my room and called Captain Caveman. That taxi driver had really cheesed me off by thinking he could take advantage of what looked like an older western woman who had, seemingly, just arrived in Vietnam. Captain Caveman has very good connections so I knew he would have the number of someone who would be able to do something to stop this driver ripping off tourists again!
My taxi incident had taken up so much of my time that I missed an important email inviting me to a meeting. Instead, I got a snack from the bakery next door for lunch and then tried to have a nap and forget about the taxi fiasco. That evening I had arranged to meet up with a few Saigon friends at a place called Eddie’s Diner, in District 1. It was a place that Annette had suggested because of her bad knee and it was all on the ground floor. Beth, was staying in Thao Dien, so she got the taxi to me and we were the first to arrive at Eddie’s. Annette came straight after work, Beth and I were already having a cocktail and thinking of sharing a main dish. Keith, from Grimsby, and the 2 Irish girls also joined us and more drinks were had. On a Wednesday Eddie’s has an offer on so 4 of us had the burger which was absolutely delicious. There was lots of chat and laughter but the Irish girls had to leave first because they had their flight home to catch tonight. We all wished them well and it was good to have seen them one last time in Vietnam. After goodbyes to Annette, the remaining 3 of us decided we might go for one more drink on the way home! At this point we were blissfully unaware of the saga that would finish off my evening!
Keith, Beth and I found ourselves in an area of bars somewhere between D1 and Thao Dien. The first bar we went to was Captain Phook, where Keith knew the owners and they had rosé wine on draft. Keith had a beer, Beth and I had the wine and we were chatting when my phone rang. The caller had some news on the taxi driver who had overcharged me earlier. He was being held at the airport and was calling me a liar so I explained my side of the story then went on with my evening. Next, we went to Khoi 89, another recommended one from Keith, where I was pleasantly surprised by their sparkling wine from Moldova. We had a wander down the street, checking out the numerous bars in the area, then walked back to the beginning of the bar street. We passed Truc Mai Music House where a young student was having a lesson on the bamboo xylophone. The 3 of us went closer to listen and ended up in there, having a go ourselves. It was brilliant, however, the highlight was having the teacher play us ‘Jingle Bells’ and she was very talented. We were thinking about heading home when I got a WhatsApp message from the hotel receptionist to tell me that the taxi driver, and his 2 bosses, were at the hotel demanding to speak to me. Apparently, he had been fined 5 million dong (£185.50) for his greediness earlier and wanted to iron out our misunderstanding. I told Beth and Keith who suggested we go back to Khoi 89 and ponder my next move. I called Captain Caveman to let him know and he suggested I didn’t go back to meet them. Beth was all for coming with me and was even on the brink of asking her son to meet us there. I messaged the hotel and told them to inform the driver and his 2 colleagues that I would not be meeting with them. It was already 9.30pm and they were there to intimidate me and it wasn’t appropriate. They said they would wait until I returned because the driver had insisted he had not tried to overcharge me and couldn’t speak English. He was insisting there must be a misunderstanding and they only wanted to talk to me. I did not believe this and insisted the receptionist get rid of them, even tell them I wasn’t coming back if necessary. It took her a while but messaged me to tell me the coast was clear. When I arrived at the hotel there was no sign of the taxi company waiting for me. I got to my room slightly relieved, and still sceptical of their motives for coming to see me, late in an evening. I let Captain Caveman know I was safe, as he had waited up to check I got back ok, and he said he would let his contact know. A less confident woman would have been more scared, I’m sure, so I was even more glad I’d reported him. I did notice that the driver who had tried to say I mistook 2,600,000vnd for 260,000vnd had not come to the hotel, with his colleagues to leave the 70,000vnd he overcharged me ‘by mistake’ and a sorry note! I was very grateful for the support from friends and the hotel in what could have been a bad situation, luckily it all worked out ok in the end.
My last day in Phong Nha had finally arrived; Tuesday 23rd August was my 64th day here. Tomorrow I would start my journey back to Dalyan, Turkey, where Captain Caveman would join me 1 week later. Captain Caveman went to Oxalis in the morning and he got a message from Tatas to say she wouldn’t be able to come to see me off because she was still hungover. For lunch I asked Captain Caveman to bring us both a roast pork banh mi from The Pork Shop and gave instructions to make sure no chillies or chilli sauce were on it. Obviously when they arrived, they had chilli sauce on, despite his explanation in English and Vietnamese, so I was ill after eating it. We had the last of the fruit salad and we weighed my luggage. I was just under my 25kg hold allowance and over on my hand luggage, which weighed 10kg but would take the risk. In the afternoon we went in the pool, it was a sunny last day and this would be my last time in our own private pool this year. At 5pm, as planned, Stu and the boys came over to join us in the pool to say farewell. We had a few shandies and it looked like a storm was coming. We chatted about films and I got some recommendations of what I might want to watch on my journey. I had lots of time as I wouldn’t arrive in Dalyan until after 9pm on the 27th. Captain Caveman invited Stu, Max and Jack to stay for dinner but they decided to get back as they had a busy day tomorrow. Captain Caveman cooked pasta for dinner and we toasted my leaving with some wine – I might come to regret this when the alarm goes off at 5.30am tomorrow!
I made Captain Caveman and I some chicken fried rice for breakfast on the morning of Monday 22nd August. We discussed where I would stay in Saigon and I decided The Common Inn, Thao Dien, because we had stayed before and really like the place. I finished all my packing and we got the cases very full. I was quite concerned that I would not be able to lift the big case and I would definitely struggle to get all my luggage out of a taxi or up any steps, should I need to. The cleaners came to make up the bed in the spare room and they also returned the pillows but we didn’t need them for much longer. They even put a full complement of towels in the spare bathroom too. Floating in the pool we found a glow in the dark ladybird and we rescued it from drowning. That afternoon Captain Caveman had to go to Oxalis for something important and left me to plan my journey to return Bluey to the Glass House. I was not relishing the 13.5km cycle and, predictably, the sun was now shining. Captain Caveman had advised me to wait until 5pm when the sun might be starting to go in and we deduced that it might take me an hour. He was booked in for a haircut and shave at 5pm so we agreed I would head towards the hairdresser’s for 6pm, as he would have the keys. I left the house at 5pm and it was almost five past by the time I cycled on to the road beside Elements. I’d drank lots of water and was ready to endure the heat. I cycled past René’s Greenfield Homestay within 7 minutes and by 5.15pm I was as far along as the old Bomb Crater bar. The next section was harder than I remembered and I missed the shortcut turn off to go via Sy’s Homestay. At 5.25pm I had reached Magic Fingers massage place and was feeling very hot and saddle sore. As I turned on to the main Phong Nha road I was tempted to stop for a sugar cane juice on the roadside but decided to go to Coffee Station. I got there at dead on 5.30pm, which was impressive, but they were closing. Bluey was not phased and I got back on after a swig of water, which was now the temperature of how I drink my hot tea. Bluey continued to be super whizzy and I decided, as I was earlier than expected, to stop for a smoothie at The Villas. I must’ve looked a sight for sore eyes because all of the staff, who were eating dinner, stopped and looked at me. Hong came to serve me and I had a mango lassi, which was great and it didn’t touch the sides! Back on the bicycle I made it to the hairdresser’s, via a quick chat with Phuong at Little Leaf. There was now a huge Catholic church being built next to the hairdresser’s. Captain Caveman was in the chair getting a shave so I sat down and waited. He was impressed that I had got there before 6pm and, quite frankly, I was too! This was definitely a sign that my bad leg was back to normal again, after 2 years and 4 months! I cycled on to the Glass House, Captain Caveman drove Trigger and we popped Bluey inside. Captain Caveman put her up on the first floor ready for any winter floods which might come while we were gone. We had hoped to hear from Tatas to possibly meet to go to the Jungle Boss Pub. Captain Caveman had messaged her but she already had plans to go out with her customers instead. We went anyway as it was going to be my last chance before I left Phong Nha in 2 days time. Tatas said she would see us both tomorrow and Captain Caveman suggested we invite Stu and the boys round to say bye too. We really enjoyed the Jungle Boss Pub, I had 3 beers and we shared some of the stringy cheese and 2 portions of pork scratchings. We didn’t really want to leave but Captain Caveman was driving so we had to go. We were home before 7.30pm, had a beer and went to bed early. Tomorrow was my last day in Phong Nha and we hoped to make the best of it.
On Saturday 20th August I had fruit for breakfast and it was rainy again. I had less than 1 week until I was back in Turkey and I started to think about packing. Tatas was due back from her 2 day trip today and I had expected to hear from her so that we could plan to see each other before I left Vietnam. Unfortunately, she didn’t reply and I knew she had another 2 day trip tomorrow so I may not get chance to see her. In the afternoon I finished watching Trainwreck on Netflix and made popcorn. I had a nice shandy with Huda beer and Schweppes Ginger Ale around 6pm and spaghetti bolognese for dinner. It was a quiet day spent at home.
Sunday 21st August was another welcome quiet day at home. I started sorting more of my stuff out for packing and getting ready for 2 days in Saigon before my flight, via Singapore to Istanbul. As the weather in the south of Vietnam was typical for the monsoon season, I was conscious it was a good idea to get there early so that I wouldn’t risk missing my international flights. I organised with Annette, who lives in District 7 of Saigon, to meet up on the 24th for dinner. I messaged other friends in Saigon to check their plans too. For lunch I had chicken fried rice (again) and waited to hear from Captain Caveman. He was due out of his last Son Doong trip today but, with it being a film trip, I expected he may be later than usual. When he did get back to the Glass House, in Phong Nha, it was late and he had been the bill for a full month’s rent even though he was leaving in a couple of weeks. What we hadn’t realised when he paid rent recently is that we would be charged for a full month regardless. With hindsight, what we should have done is check out 2 weeks ago and then rented daily or weekly, as it would have saved us money! We now had a 2 bedroom villa, paid for (over a Vietnamese national holiday week), which would be empty for over a week when he left. While Captain Caveman went to his gala dinner I had chicken pasta and wasn’t too well. Tomorrow was my last day in Phong Nha and I was hoping to be able to say bye to a few people, including Tatas. I was aware that I still needed to cycle Bluey back to the Glass House too so I hoped it wouldn’t rain but I also hoped for it not to be too sunny either.
My weekly measurements on Friday 19th August were: Bust -1cm, Waist +2cm, Hips -2cm, Thighs no change Right calf -0.5cm, Left calf -1cm. Eating and drinking whatever I liked was definitely not helping the waistline. I had passion fruit, mango and strawberries for breakfast and pottered about a bit. Caroline had left early for Hoi An and Tatas had gone on a 2 day tour so they were both going to miss out on the fun tonight. I had the remaining chicken fried rice for lunch and watched the rain as it came down quite heavily. I then got on with organising how I was going to get to Phong Nha later, I certainly wouldn’t be cycling Bluey in the rain, despite it still being warm. The new Jungle Boss Pub was having their grand opening tonight from 6pm and, of course, I was keen to go. Everyone was invited and I hoped to see a few friends there. Trang was in Dong Hoi, from Saigon, but was going to be there with Trinh, the owner of Buffalo Home and Chill bar in Dong Hoi. I was cheeky and asked if I could get a lift with them and Trinh, who was driving, very kindly agreed. The rain stopped but I still decided to wear jeans and my jungle inspired top – I even had my hair down.
After my chaperones got a bit lost in Khuong Ha, we were on our way and we were even bang on time for the party. As we arrived there were masses of flowers to wish Jungle Boss luck for the opening. We were met by Dung, the owner of Jungle Boss, and said hello and congratulations for opening the much needed Phong Nha bar.
When I walked inside, I was impressed – the place looked amazing! It was very modern and different, with some great soft furnishings. The seats were very comfortable and we chose a table next to the stage. We ordered drinks from some familiar faces, it was nice to see Quan and Nga working as bartenders again. Food was ordered from the snack menu and it was great to see a mix of Vietnamese and western style choices. I was particularly excited to see they had pork scratchings on the menu too, Captain Caveman would love them.
We had a few drinks and listened to some amazing live music, there were more and more familiar faces and I got to catch up with lots of old friends, mainly from Jungle Boss. I managed to get up dancing and joined in on some singing, it was a superb opening night and I hoped the Jungle Boss pub would continue to flourish after I’d left Phong Nha. Trinh kindly dropped me back off and when I got in I decided to make myself a hotdog to finish off the night.
Photo credit – some photos from Jungle Boss Pub, Trang & Trinh
I still had 10 days left on my Vietnamese visa on Tuesday 16th August but there were certainly signs that my stay was now coming to an end. Captain Caveman went to Oxalis while I had my usual teacake loaf for breakfast, then he went to the Glass House to get me a suitcase and drove it back on his motorbike. I already had the suitcase, which I had borrowed from my parents, but Captain Caveman wanted me to utilise the whole of my 25kg allowance, so I needed a bigger case. He would bring back 2 cases, including my parents’ one as he had a bigger allowance than me. Captain Caveman had picked up the sausages from Viet Ha so he made me a 2nd breakfast. It was lovely too and I was impressed with the sausages. I also ordered some strawberries but they would be available to pick up tomorrow. Just before lunch time the cleaners came and stripped the spare bed down to everything except for the mattress protector and took all the remaining towels. I thought they were going to replace them but maybe because of the rain, and the Dong Hoi bedding woman saga, they didn’t have enough to cover both rooms. Captain Caveman had invited Stu and the boys round for beers, dinner and a dip in the pool so they arrived at 5pm. Caroline had already drove over and we had some pool beers. It was a fun evening for us and we carried on drinking and swimming, even after everyone had gone home and the spaghetti bolognese had been eaten.
Wednesday 17th August was super exciting and I was sworn to secrecy about most of it! You will find out more about the secret shenanigans eventually but, for now, I have to keep it under my hat. What I can tell you is that Captain Caveman and I took Trigger, the motorbike, in to Phong Nha to meet Tatas at Coffee Station. She had missed out on enough fun and celebrations already, due to being underground, so she was keen to meet up. While Captain Caveman went to Oxalis, she and I caught up and ate an English style breakfast with smoothies (and coffee for her). She had enjoyed her last Son Doong tour of the season and one of her guests was Turkish, I suggested I could meet him but she didn’t seem keen. In fact, after our meeting, she was off to meet her tour group for lunch and drinks at Len Con Peak but I didn’t get an invite. Stu and the kids arrived, with friends, as we were eating breakfast and we said hello. They ordered breakfast, then Captain Caveman arrived and he had coconut coffee and a mango smoothie. I made the mistake of ordering a second mango smoothie and then had a terrible stomach, due to too much fibre at once. Caroline arrived shortly after, as we had arranged to meet her for a ‘secret squirrel’ mission. She had failed to realise that the intended plans could not include taking Vee, the dog, so she had to go back to drop her off. Our secret mission involved Captain Caveman driving us both in to the Phong Nha Ke Bang National Park on Trigger, who really struggled on the steep hills but we managed it. Captain Caveman, Caroline and I spent the morning in the national park then met Harry, Linh and Chuc for a cold drink at the Botanical Gardens before riding back in to town. Our strawberry delivery had arrived so we called at Phong Nha Vegan to collect them from Chung. I was peckish and suggested we go to The Pork Shop for a Banh Mi so we met back there for a late lunch. While eating, Captain Caveman got a call from work saying that he had to go to Dong Hoi for a police check. I, luckily, had Caroline there to give me a ride home on her Royal Enfield motorbike and I had my own helmet with me already. It’s a really nice bike and so comfortable, Caroline rides it well too. Back at mine it seemed really warm as I said bye and arranged to meet for beers at ours later. It turned out that there was a bit of a to do with Captain Caveman’s paperwork which resulted in him having to go straight to his briefing instead of coming home to join me for a swim. It did work out well for me and my mom though, as he had time to nip to the phone shop to get my mom a new phone. By 4pm it was raining in Phong Nha and I wondered what I might have for dinner. I had a makeshift beans on toast but then had a bad stomach again. Captain Caveman was late home after his briefing so we cancelled the beers with Caroline. Although Captain Caveman would be in Son Doong tomorrow, Tatas had a rare day off and I was looking forward to doing something with her.
Captain Caveman brought me a pot of Yorkshire tea in bed, before 7am on Thursday 18th August. He left for his last Son Doong trip of the season and would be back on Sunday. I was looking forward to having Tatas and Caroline round for an afternoon in the pool with some beers. I made myself some chicken fried rice for brunch and got through all my tasks so that I would be free for frivolities later. Captain Caveman called me from the village on his way to Son Doong to ask me to ride Bluey from Elements to the Glass House. This was a distance of 13.5km and the heat was too much for me to do this, but he said if I didn’t do it, it would only be another job for him to have to do when I left. I decided to wait until a cooler day, or maybe even cycle to an event in Phong Nha tomorrow evening, after the sun had gone down! Tatas was the first to cancel this afternoon’s plans because she had to go to Dong Hoi at lunch time. At first she said she would come to mine on the way back but then said she wouldn’t have time as she needed to tidy her room and pack for her next trip tomorrow. Caroline was next to cancel when she found out she had to be back in Hoi An earlier than expected. She decided to spend her last night, tonight, at Ho Khanh’s Homestay but did invite both Tatas and I over there instead. I wasn’t fancying getting a taxi there and back so I declined. Tatas didn’t answer any texts to ask if she wanted to go to meet Caroline, which was nearer to her house than mine. My afternoon involved watching Trainwreck on Netflix, a documentary about a Woodstock style festival in 1999 which gets completely out of hand. That evening I chilled out and had French onion soup for dinner.
joloyolo 