On Sunday 26th Captain Caveman and I cycled up to The Villas for breakfast with Veronika and Deborah. It turned out that Deborah was disappointed not to be able to visit Australia because she had thought that she couldn’t get a visa. Within minutes, Captain Caveman had put her straight and she was applying for her visa, which she didn’t think she was entitled to. Unfortunately, the application needed a photo of her against a plain wall and The Villas no longer had walls which were not brightly painted. I took the photo for her in Veronika’s room and she was done in a few minutes. It would take 3 days to process but it looked like she was off to Australia, thanks to Captain Caveman. While he tucked in to one of his favourite breakfasts, Eggs Benedict, I had a Pho Ga (chicken noodle soup). I love the breakfasts at The Villas and the portions are substantial. Our bill came to 232,000VND (£7.21) which included a hot drink each. I also drank 2 litres of water then said my goodbyes as I was off to Phong Nha Vegan.
Captain Caveman went back to the homestay to play Bridge. At the vegan it was hot and muggy but I did manage to eat a mushroom fried rice and a tomato, tofu and spinach soup for lunch. I left the Vegan about 1.15pm and went back to the homestay for a shower and a rest.
That evening, with it being a night off for Captain Caveman, we met Tatas at Tree House for cocktails. I tried the Singapore Sling, a Hurricane and a Tom Collins, Captain Caveman had 3 Long Island Iced Teas and they were all really good – if a little strong. We paid 450,000VND (£13.98) for 6 cocktails which was an absolute bargain!
For dinner the 3 of us headed over to another one of our favourite places to eat in Phong Nha, Ganesh, for a feast of an Indian meal. Here’s what we had and the prices in Dong; Plain Naan 45,000 Saffron rice 49,000 Garlic Naan 60,000 Onion bhajis 85,000 Daal Takka 98,000 Chicken tikka masala 115,000 Chicken Vindaloo 120,000 Chicken tikka starter 120,000 2 bottles of red wine 540,000 Total spent 1,232,000VND (£38.27)
We even got a vegetarian starter for free to try and everything was so good. It’s not the cheapest place to eat in town but £13 each with wine was very reasonable to what we would pay in other countries.
We were up so early for breakfast on Saturday 25th May. Captain Caveman had decided on Tree House so I took my own Yorkshire tea bag and they gave me hot water and milk for free, which was kind. I went for a fruit salad which are always great at Tree House and Captain Caveman had a breakfast sandwich (which I don’t recall the contents of) with chips and a coffee. We paid a reasonable 225,000VND (£6.98) and then we cycled towards the Vegan.
Captain Caveman needed to pop in the office on his day off but he’d been invited to Phong Nha Vegan for lunch. He tried the Thai noodle soup and I had a Bun Tron, both of which were really tasty. Captain Caveman left me at the Vegan practicing my Vietnamese and English with the staff. The water delivery guy came and had a chat – surprisingly he spoke English perfectly well.
Captain Caveman had gone home to play Bridge and it was getting pretty hot by 1pm, as I lay in the hammock. I cycled back and called in to the pharmacy, who had a promotion day. I messaged Captain Caveman with the deals and to ask him if he needed anything but he never answered his phone. It was so hot that I didn’t bother waiting more than 5 minutes and cycled back to the homestay. Captain Caveman was so engrossed in his Bridge that he had stopped taking any notice of messages. I had a shower as I was a red hot sweaty mess and then a lay down. Captain Caveman had fallen asleep with his noise cancelling headphones on.
At 6pm we got to The Villas just in time as the rain had started. We were having dinner with Veronika and her friend, Deborah. Veronika had brought in a bottle of fizz for us all to share, which was really lovely and we had a fabulous meal at The Villas. I chose one of my favourites, the Duck Confit, Captain Caveman had a pizza. The rain poured down and it was pretty atmospheric. I really enjoyed the night out and Captain Caveman bought another bottle of wine for us to share. Veronika fancied a dessert so I also joined her with a really good sticky date pudding. Captain Caveman paid by bank transfer so I didn’t take note of the total bill but my duck dish was 250,000VND (£7.74) and a decent bottle of wine was 450,000VND (£13.94) so pretty reasonable for one of the nicest places in town.
Captain Caveman was due out of Son Doong on Friday 24th May and I had not done much while he’d been gone. Obviously, being ill had helped on the weight loss this week but it had certainly helped with the budget too. I totted up that in the last 4 days I’d only spent 300,000VND (£9.24) so far, which included drinking water too. I cycled to Phong Nha Vegan where little May, the dog, was waiting for me and seemed a bit fed up. Hoan made me a Banh Canh, a vegan noodle soup, which was so good. She was working on a new dish that she had seen online and was happily cooking away in the kitchen. Her new dish was to look a little like duck but was made from tofu and mushroom. I couldn’t wait to try it as it looked so tasty but, as is common in Vietnam, she doused it in chilli sauce so I couldn’t have it. As I watched everyone else enjoy it, I tucked in to boiled pumpkin leaves and steamed rice. Ha got me a fresh coconut to go with it which was lovely.
I left the Vegan at 1.30pm to go back for a shower, arranging to be back again at 6pm. When Captain Caveman got back we went to Tree House, where he was getting picked up for his Gala dinner. I decided to treat myself to the falafel and hummus dish which comes with greek salad and pitta bread. I was still not feeling well enough to eat meat or drink any alcohol and the thought of meat was making me queasy, which was odd. Captain Caveman ordered the smoked salmon and scrambled egg which came with chips and rye bread. He had an espresso martini and I had a passion fruit juice. Unfortunately, I thought my falafel tasted a bit odd and asked Captain Caveman if he wanted it. We deduced it was made from peas, not chickpeas, and I hate peas so he finished it off.
Captain Caveman went to Chay Lap at 5.30pm and I cycled back to the Vegan where it was incredibly hot. We met afterwards and called for a drink in The Villas. I went mad and ordered a ginger beer without checking the price, Captain Caveman had a normal beer. He also decided to wind the staff up by telling them that, due to the brightly coloured redecorating job that Ben had undertaken on the whole place, they were going to have to wear new uniforms to match the walls. We paid our bill of 145,000VND (£4.50), left at a reasonable 9.15pm and cycled back to Phong Nha Homestay to go to sleep. Tomorrow we had a busy day planned as Captain Caveman had a couple of days off.
I woke up after 8am on Thursday 23rd May and had messages from Chung and Hoan asking how I was. I felt loads better and actually felt hungry, which was a good sign that I was getting over the sickness. I got to the Phong Nha Vegan at 11am, said hello to May, the dog, and got on the scales. I’d lost a whopping 3kg (6.6lb) since last week and I could tell. I was also surprised to find that the entire kitchen had gone through a total deep clean. Chung, once she had heard I may have food poisoning, had got everyone scrubbing the place down. I was sure it was nothing I’d had at the Vegan but it can’t hurt to give them an excuse to exercise a bit of hygiene awareness. Hoan made me a vegan pho which felt like the best meal I’d ever had. I also shared a pot of licorice and ginger tea with Chung and Hoan. I wasn’t going to stay long but it started to rain and I got talking to a couple of English holiday makers. As we sheltered, Hoan cooked up some jack fruit seeds which I absolutely love. They taste like chestnuts and are also great in a vegan curry so we looked at some recipes. Chung worked on her laptop at the Vegan as it lashed it down around the edges of the open building. There was Vegan condensed milk at the Vegan which costs 100,000VND (£3.10) per tin – very expensive, I thought. I didn’t leave until the rain eased at 3.30pm and then called at the shop, where I bought the following;
I got in the room to find it had been cleaned and the rest of my fruit cake and cheese had been thrown away, my tupperware had been washed out and was drying on the table. I ate the KitKat and felt ok, then had a shower before getting ready to go back to the Vegan at 6pm. May, the dog, was gadding about with the dog from next door and he came to say hello. Ha made me an iced kumquat tea and Hanh made me a tofu and tomato noodle soup which was extremely good, she even gave me steamed rice to go with it to keep my strength up. I was very grateful of the vegan restaurant right now as they fed me very well. I didn’t stay long as I didn’t want to overdo it and I had a video call booked in with my parents. Ma & Pa were in good spirits as Dad had been checked out following a poorly ear and all was good. They had decided to fly back from Turkey especially for the appointment so, although it turned out to be nothing to worry about, for the price of the flights it was worth doing. It did mean they could now go back to Turkey again when they wanted and hopefully would be there when I got there. I only had 28 days left in Phong Nha and would be in Dalyan in less than 5 weeks time. I went to bed late and hoped I’d not kept the people in the next room awake with our call. Tomorrow, Captain Caveman was due back from the cave and I was probably going to be practicing my Vietnamese at the Vegan at both lunch and dinner times.
Captain Caveman was of course on his phone playing Bridge before 6am on Monday 20th May and I was up and about at 6.30am. We decided to go back to Green Point restaurant for breakfast and I was excited to see croissants on the menu. I obviously broke the healthy eating regime and ordered one with an orange juice. Captain Caveman had some concoction of mashed avocado on bread with a poached egg on top. He said it was good and shovelled it in while I realised my croissant had a sweet custard-like substance inside it. I didn’t like that part of it and scooped it out but the croissant was very nice.
By 9am we had cycled to the Oxalis office so that Captain Caveman could do some work related tasks and I did some writing with a fan on me. It was very humid and I thought it felt like rain as we called at the shop for some peanut M&Ms. Back at Phong Nha Homestay, Captain Caveman played Bridge all morning and at 12.30pm I suggested we go out as the sky was looking quite moody.
Another first experience for me happened when I ordered a pizza with broccoli on it, as we had returned to Green Point, yet again. The pizzas were a bargain at 139,000VND (£4.31), I had the Sorrentina and Captain Caveman had the Diavola. Both were really good and the base was one of the best in town and, surprisingly, broccoli on a pizza was a winner! I even had a beer with Captain Caveman as he was off to his briefing tonight again. It rained in the afternoon which I was glad about, as it cooled down a bit.
Photo credit – some by Captain Caveman
Video from Green Point restaurant with some much needed rain
By 5.45pm Captain Caveman had gone to Oxalis and I was at Phong Nha Vegan where there were a lot of mosquitoes. Little May, the dog from down the road, came for belly rubs and after getting tired of doing it with my hands I resorted to tickling him with my barefoot. I decided I didn’t feel like eating dinner as I was too hot, by the time Captain Caveman came to meet me at 8.30pm, I felt a bit unwell. We started to cycle home but we had to stop at The Villa’s. I had a cup of jasmine tea, he had a beer and I needed to use the toilet. I also felt a bit queasy, like I might throw up or faint and I wondered if I had overdone it on the gluten today. By the time we got back to the room, I was in pain and it made me cry. I was also conscious that Captain Caveman needed sleep because he was on tour tomorrow.
After only a couple of hours sleep, I was awake before 6am on Sunday 19th May. Captain Caveman offered no apology for wearing his grumpy trousers last night, only the reason of being in pain with his shoulder which I made worse by touching him. I was not in the mood to continue arguing and left to get to Phong Nha Vegan. I’d been asked to help with the local charity event which Hoan, the owner, had organised with donations to the Love Foundation. They actually had asked me to get there earlier but I thought a 6.30am start was early enough for me. When I arrived, there were lots of helpers and I don’t think they really needed me, but perhaps having a white face there is lucky or something. Lots of mushroom congee, like a porridge, was dished out or sent by delivery to anyone in Phong Nha who wanted free soup for breakfast. This included me and Laos Quang who popped in to say hello to me. He ended up having a huge bowl of the steamy hot soup and they made him take 3 lots home. I loved it and could easily have had another bowl. A total of 200 bowls had been given out and there was still a little bit left.
The soup is transported from the kitchen
Preparing the soup bowls for delivery and take away
At 8.15am Captain Caveman arrived and took some photos for us while I decided I was going back to the homestay for a rest. He didn’t have soup as he can’t eat mushrooms. Captain Caveman had a day off today so it was unfortunate that I was busy all day, but at least it meant no time for falling out. He obviously went in to Oxalis and sorted out some stuff etc as a day off here is never a complete day off. I was back at the Vegan by 11.30am and Hoan was grateful for my help. She made me a Bun Tron for early lunch, which is one of my favourites, then we practiced some English and my Vietnamese with the staff. I was still quite tired and the heat was getting to me as Chung arrived with jack fruit. We shared it, drank tea and I noticed the man walking by. There’s a skinny Vietnamese man who looks homeless and unwashed, he walks past a few times a day and collects cans and plastic bottles. He’s clearly mentally challenged and doesn’t have a full set of teeth. I mentioned to Hoan that she should offer him some soup, even though we were finished with that charity activity. As he sat down and took his wellington boots off to reveal terrible socks with massive holes in, I went to get a photo of Hoan and the man. It then turned in to a bit of a farce as I became the person in the photos and he wanted to chat with me in Vietnamese. He was very grateful as he slurped it down super fast, he was clearly very needy. I left to wash my hands and when I returned he’d taken off with the bowl and the spoon! One of the girls ran after him and took it back, the poor man!
In the afternoon, Captain Caveman and I bumped in to Hawk, an English motorbiking tour guide from Hoi An. He was arranging dinner for his tour group tonight and asked us to join, so we agreed. Before dinner, we had time to call in to another new place in town, just to see what it was like for a drink. We met the owner, Tien, of Green Point restaurant who was super friendly and he wanted to invite us for dinner. Unfortunately, we didn’t have time that evening so we said we’d be back. We had a beer and a very refreshing watermelon juice, the food menu also looked good and reasonably priced so we wanted to try it out.
We met Hawk and his all-Australian male tour group at 6.30pm, we were early and had to wait for the upstairs table at Bamboo Chopsticks restaurant to be ready. I had a glass or 2 of the red wine which was decent, Captain Caveman had Huda beer. To make it easier we had agreed to go in on the group set meal which was 200,000VND each (£6.19). As I was the only girl with more than 10 hungry guys, I would say I didn’t quite get my money’s worth. I had mainly steamed rice and a tofu dish which was lovely. Captain Caveman and I shared a bottle of wine and when the bill came everyone paid and left to go to the rooftop bar. Captain Caveman, Hawk and I went downstairs to finish off our drinks and say farewell to a couple I’d met at the Vegan. Captain Caveman had accidentally miscalculated the bill so we got lumbered with paying an extra 90,000VND (£2.79) which was missing. Here’s our part of the bill and what we paid;
Bamboo Chopsticks 1 Beer 20,000 2 glasses of red wine 160,000 2 Set meals 400,000 1 bottle of red wine 450,000 Extra 90,000 Total spent 1,120,000VND (£34.79)
I enjoyed it but it was definitely expensive compared to other places. As we were leaving, I started to feel a bit unwell, even though I knew I’d not eaten any chillies. I was in bed by 9.30pm as Captain Caveman caught up on his daily dose of Bridge.
While Captain Caveman toddled off to Dong Hoi at 8am on Saturday 18th May, I’d agreed to meet up with Hoan and Chung. I arrived at Phong Nha Vegan just after 8.30am, there was no electricity and we were told it would be back on by 1pm. Hoan made me a passion fruit juice with soda water. Chung didn’t arrive and later said she wasn’t coming if there was no electricity as her homestay had it. The electric poles were being replaced in sections so not everywhere was out at once. I had one of my favourite dishes, the Bun Tron and lots of water in the 5 hour 15 minutes I managed to endure the heat for there. I agreed to join in on a charity mission tomorrow which involved a sort of vegan soup kitchen. I also had a bit of a to-do with the pool and garden guy back in Dalyan. My parents had been to check on the state of the complex and found it to be a disgrace so I’d asked him to clean the sunbeds. His response was that he wanted to charge me £80 to use a steam cleaner. I decided I’d get a woman in to clean them, then booked our usual cleaner through the agent – she would give it a good scrub.
Captain Caveman returned from Dong Hoi and I met him at Tree House for lunch. We shared some french fries with salt on as I was definitely dehydrated and I drank lots of water, Captain Caveman had a beer or two. That evening, I was off out with Captain Caveman and we decided to eat at Ganesh, the Indian restaurant, which we both love. Captain Caveman had a chicken madras, I had a chicken tikka masala, we shared saffron rice and a garlic naan bread. We also took full advantage of their wine and here’s what we paid in Dong;
Ganesh 1 saffron rice 49,000 1 Garlic Naan 60,000 1 Chicken Tikka Masal 115,000 1 Chicken Madras 120,000 1 bottle of red wine 270,000 Total paid 614,000VND (£19.03)
The food is really good there, at a reasonable price, and we both enjoyed it. Once back at the Homestay, though, Captain Caveman had a bit of shout at me when I said I’d massage his sore shoulder. By the time I’d cleaned my teeth he was snoring away, fully clothed, on the spare bed, leaving me unable to get to sleep. This was a pain as I’d agreed to help out with the soup kitchen that Phong Nha Vegan was doing tomorrow from 6.30am.
Of course I didn’t get the extra sleep I’d hoped for on Friday 17th May and at 7.30am I was in the Wide Awake Club. I took myself off to nearby Tree House for breakfast. I had a really good fruit salad with yoghurt, nuts and seeds and a pot of green tea, which was ultra strong. My breakfast cost 120,000VND (£3.66) and I really enjoyed it.
Back at the homestay I did a bit of writing and then decided I would try somewhere new for lunch. The Rice House is a fairly new place in Phong Nha, where Underground used to be. One of the owners, Hung, who also owns Karst Villas, was there and I decided to have a fresh coconut and a beef Luk Lak. Captain Caveman was due out of the cave today which meant he’d probably head to the The Villa’s for pizza and I wanted to try to avoid being tempted. Although my lunch came to a total of 180,000VND (£5.50) the quality of the meat was great and it melted in my mouth. I was about to leave when I got a message from Captain Caveman, he was on his way back to Phong Nha.
Captain Caveman had a couple of hours spare before he needed to go to the Gala dinner so we went to Tree House for a pizza, I had one slice to try it and it was good. When the pick up car came, we said farewell and I went to Phong Nha Vegan. It was mega busy with lots of tourists, quite a few of them English so I helped with any questions and recommendations. I accidentally ended up with a vegan curry for dinner, which I’d not tried before. A customer had been trying to order Korean Sushi rolls but had hesitated over the first couple of syllables a couple of times. They got Korean Sushi rolls and curry which I took to the table of the confused customers. As it had been too busy for me to get any dinner yet, I had the curry they didn’t think they had ordered. It was amazing and I’d definitely have it again. After around 3 hours, I went to meet Captain Caveman and his group who were drinking beer at Dangerous Corner. I didn’t have a beer but I did help one of his guests buy a fruit juice at the Thien Duong stall. He looked Vietnamese, the stall holder is Vietnamese but I was the one speaking Vietnamese between the 2, as the customer was American and didn’t speak the lingo. Hung, Chung’s brother-in-law was part of the porter team having a beer too and I got a selfie with him. Back at Phong Nha Homestay, we set the alarm for the morning as Captain Caveman was off to Dong Hoi on the first of his 2 days off, for a medical check.
I found Thursday 16th May to have more disappointment in it than I would have liked. I got up early and cycled to Oxalis to pick up the laundry. The 4kg bag cost 120,000VND (£3.71), I noticed it was badly folded and pretty creased. I cycled back to The Villa’s to get some breakfast and I was hoping for a relaxing day. Unfortunately, I was met by a disgruntled Manu who told me there was no food available today. All of the female staff, which includes the chef had gone off for a spa day in Dong Hoi. Manu told me he had been hoping for an easy day, as I drank a soda water and contemplated where I might get breakfast. Ben, the owner, arrived with a young apprentice and started eyeing up walls. He looked like he had big plans as he mentioned moving some furniture. As I decided I would cycle back ‘home’ with the laundry and go to Tree House for a fruit salad, Chung messaged Hoan and I to say she couldn’t go to the Vegan, as planned, because she had to deal with customers at work. She asked if I could be there to help the staff with English speaking customer queries so I had to take the laundry back in the direction I had already come. When I got there I ordered and scoffed the delicious vegan pho down, made by the owner. It was lovely and I started to feel a bit better for eating, especially as it was already late and very hot & humid. Hoan treated us all to a mixed fruit juice from her friend’s stall near the market and it was very refreshing. May, the dog from down the road, came to take shelter from the sun and insisted on some water and belly rubs. I cycled ‘home’ in heat and managed to squeeze in a call with Ma & Pa who were now in Dalyan. As the time difference was only 4 hours it was easier for them to accommodate and they told me about their recent trip to Istanbul. It sounded like they had an amazing time with my sister and her husband on a tour with our Dalyan friend, Murat. I rode Bluey back to Phong Nha Vegan at 6pm. It was very busy, so many customers with lots of questions and requirements, which I helped with. I also managed to wolf down a very tasty and hearty Banh Canh, which is a veggie noodle soup. After a change in the weather, I hurried back to the homestay for another video call, this time with Adele. We were on the phone for well over an hour and we even spoke of a celebration ladies only boat trip for when I was back in Dalyan. I finally got to bed at about midnight and I decided not to set an alarm for tomorrow.
Wednesday 15th May was weigh day again and I was still trying to keep an eye on my weight and measurements. As Captain Caveman was off back in to the cave today, I hoped I could limit the alcohol syns a bit over the next 4 days. After saying bye to Captain Caveman, I took my measurements as follows; Bust +1cm, Waist +2cm, Hips +1cm. Having had 3 times the syn allowance in a week it was no surprise that I was over target on waist and hips now. On my way to Phong Nha Vegan I called in to the pharmacy to buy some medication and use their iffy scales.
Pharmacy Gofen 400mg ibuprofen 38,800 Total 38,800VND (£1.20)
According to the reading I was 1kg (2.2lb) heavier than last week so now I was 4kg heavier than my target. I still had 6 weeks left in Vietnam so I could hopefully achieve it. Captain Caveman and I were due to be in Sheffield in 9 weeks time too, for the first time in 2.5 years for me. When I arrived at the Vegan, which opens at 10am, everything was locked and no one was about. I messaged Chung and Hoan but neither of them were available and there was no shade. I went to The Villa’s for breakfast where I had a fresh passion fruit juice, chicken noodle soup with extra lettuce and a pot of Jasmine tea and paid 120,000VND (£3.71). My next stop was to meet Chung at Phong Nha Vegan for lunch and a chat, as she was now available. After sharing a Banh Xeo (Vietnamese rice flour pancake) with Chung and trying the fresh carrot and orange juice, it was time to cycle back, in the hot sun, to my homestay for a shower and a rest. I called in to the shop and got some treats;
WinMart Supermarket Chupa Chups jellies 11,300 Peanut M&Ms 12,900 Snickers bar 19,400 Total spent 50,100VND (£1.55)
The new Snickers was a bit different but it wasn’t terrible. When I arrived back at Phong Nha Vegan around 6pm, Hoan was there but there was no sign of Chung. She eventually arrived with a pizza box from The Villa’s which she had collected for us to share for dinner. Hoan had decided to treat us as a thanks for helping her. There was a vegetarian pizza with a half cheese on and half not – genius, vegan pizza for Hoan and veggie for the rest of us. It was delicious and we also enjoyed some hot herbal tea and some fresh spring rolls for good measure. I left the vegan about 9pm and cycled back to Phong Nha Homestay for a much needed rest. I was looking forward to a chilled out day tomorrow too.
As Captain Caveman was off back in to Son Doong on Tuesday 14th May, we were up early. Our last breakfast at Greenfield Ecostay was had together, Captain Caveman had omelette and I had pineapple pancake. Ngan also gave us mango and dragon fruit to eat and, of course, I had my last Yorkshire tea for a while. I said bye to Captain Caveman and sat by the pool catching up on some writing. On his way in to town he dropped my bag at my next accommodation and messaged to say I could check in from 11am. Around 10.30am I decided to say my farewells and thanks to René and Ngan, it had been one of the best stays we’d had. I’d already written a quick note of the things I would miss most about Greenfield Ecostay;
1. The owners, and their amazing hospitality. 2. Being in such a relaxed and tranquil place. 3. Mina, the extra shy and timid dog. 4. The delicious food that is so well prepared, varied and plentiful. 5. How clean the place is despite it’s closeness to nature. 6. The feeling of being so welcome and relaxed. 7. The swimming pool, probably the cleanest and best in Phong Nha. 8. The attention to detail that the owners and their staff make to ensure the most comfortable stay; from making sure the pool towels are ready to tidying and cleaning. 9. The wine/beers with René of an evening. 10. Being away from any stresses and feeling like we are on holiday in Captain Caveman’s home town.
I arrived in Phong Nha town just before 11am and decided to go to Tree House for an early lunch. I had a bottle of water, a fresh coconut and a cream cheese & salami sandwich for 150,000VND (£4.64). There was rather a lot of salami in the sandwich and the bread was a bit clumpy but I managed it, with the lettuce from the salad too.
At 11.50am I checked in to Phong Nha Homestay, for the second time of my trip. I was given the same room as the last time but this time there was no kettle in the room and 2 less pillows on the bed. I’d found out recently that some Vietnamese people believe that if you have a second pillow in bed you are inviting the dead ancestors to come to sleep with you! I chilled out in the room for a bit and the weather forecast predicted rain that never came so it was hot and humid. I had fruitcake and cheese for lunch which was nice but a bit rich. More news came from Turkey which meant that if I wanted to go for long-term residency, it would be a few more years yet as I no longer qualified. The pool pump and filter had been fixed which we all had to pay our share of and would have been cheaper if we’d had it done last year.
I spent about 2 hours at Phong Nha Vegan in the evening and I had the fake pork with rice, vegetables and tempura Oyster mushrooms. It was delicious and I cycled back to the homestay for a much needed early night. Tomorrow was weigh day again and I knew it wasn’t going to be a good result, I’d had 331 syns this week, 130 of which were on alcohol. I needed to get back on plan while Captain Caveman was away and I was back to being on a strict budget.
We were awake before 6am on Thursday 9th May but we didn’t have breakfast until gone 9am. Ngan offered us some traditional Vietnamese food called Banh Tet which is made from pork and rice. Due to overindulgence once before, I can no longer stomach it but Captain Caveman had some with fried eggs and tomatoes while I stuck to my mango pancakes and Yorkshire tea. For afters we had some of the watermelon from yesterday and bananas.
Captain Caveman drove us both in to town and I met Hoan at Phong Nha Vegan around 10.30am. She was keen for me to borrow one of the conical hats to keep the sun off me, it was red hot so lots of locals were busy harvesting and drying rice. I was given some watermelon to keep me hydrated and it was so sweet and juicy. Hoan and I had a good chat and then she made me a delicious Bun Tron, the rice noodle vegan dish which is one of my favourites. I took some photos of the Sen flower, the petals of which are used to make tea and left about 1.30pm to cycle back to Greenfield.
The sun was intense and I’d overestimated that I’d be able to do it in one go. I had to stop at Lotus, a hot and drippy mess, for a passion fruit juice and a bottle of water. It was 2.45pm when I got back and I was a mess, hoping for a sleep in the AC. That was not to be as René gave me the heads up that Multi and his daughter, Ella, were at the pool with Captain Caveman. I did the decent thing and got changed in to my swimmers, had a cold shower by the pool and got in for a swim.
It was absolute bliss just to feel a bit cooler and then I messed about in the water with Ella, doing forward and backward rolls. When I got out, Captain Caveman, Multi and Ella did holding their breath competitions and Captain Caveman won every time but pretended Ella had won. It was just at this time that I got another update from Dalyan – the garden and complex was not looking good (again). I was beginning to wonder how hard it could be to just clean and tidy the complex. I messaged the agent and the pool and garden people who had already been paid to be doing this. It was very frustrating dealing with it from far away and with the time difference. René poured me a glass of wine, Captain Caveman got the fruitcake and cheese out and we shared it around. Ella was polite as she didn’t like the cake but Multi loved it, she loved the red Leicester cheese, though. We remembered to save some for Veronika as I’d promised her some. While the locals brought their rice in at the end of the day, we watched the sun set from the pool. After a shower and change it was time for dinner where Captain Caveman and I had a rather tasty spaghetti with meatballs and I polished off the rest of that bottle of wine.
At breakfast on Wednesday 8th May, Captain Caveman asked René if we could stay until the 14th so we had another 6 days of staying at Greenfield Ecostay. I was very happy about this as the place is beautiful with everything we need. The only downside is that it’s is so far away from Phong Nha Vegan and I’m not insured to ride a motorbike. Fortunately, René and Ngan could fit us in and we could keep the same room. As it was yet another weigh day, I took my measurements expecting to have put on weight, due to us being on holiday and eating such lovely food every day. My bust was still the same but I’d put 1cm on my waist and 2cm on my hips. Nevertheless, I was still under and on target for bust and hips with only 1cm over my waist target so I was happy with that. While Captain Caveman stayed at Greenfield playing Bridge, I cycled the 8km in to town in the heat. I decided to call at the new Pharmacy in town and get on the scales. I had lost 1kg (2lb) so that was good news, if the scales were correct. I also tried to buy Cerazette pills as I now didn’t have enough to last me until the end of June but the pharmacy didn’t have any. Here’s what I did buy and the prices in Dong;
Pharmacy 1 pack antihistamines 2,000 2 packs Himalayan salt sweets 13,000 Total paid 15,000VND (46p)
The antihistamines I got were the drowsy ones, which they warned me about, but I find they are good as well as cheap. My next stop was the Vegan where I met My Linh for the all you can eat buffet. It was so busy and we had to share a table inside. The food was incredible, as always, and for 49,000VND (£1.50) it is an absolute bargain. The buffets are only held on the lunar full and half moon dates, or thereabouts, but I try my best to attend so I can try any of the new dishes too. My Linh invited me to her homestay afterwards so I went to Green River Cosy Homestay 2, just around the corner from Phong Nha Vegan. She wanted advice about some changes at her already popular homestay which mainly caters for backpackers in dorm rooms. The place was nice and I sat and chatted for quite some time. I also saw the place next door called Cherish Homestay which is owned by a family member of her’s.
It got quite hot in the afternoon so I went to The Villa’s for a pot of tea instead of cycling back to Greenfield. I stayed there most of the afternoon and ended up having a Margherita pizza which was great. While I was sat having a peaceful afternoon, a Scottish woman came in, ordered a drink and proceeded to watch Baby Reindeer on her phone at a very loud volume. What is wrong with people!? I moved outside as far away as I could get and enjoyed chilling on a sun lounger until it was time to leave. Here’s the prices from the menu, in Dong;
The Villa’s 1 soda water 25,000 1 pot of tea 50,000 1 Margherita pizza 150,000 Total 225,000VND (£6.91)
I cycled back to Phong Nha Vegan, Captain Caveman and Tatas arrived and had food together. Tatas had a passion fruit juice and some fresh spring rolls, then ordered extra chillies. Captain Caveman ordered a mango & coconut smoothie with a vegetable tempura and also asked for fresh chillies to go with it. I didn’t eat anything with them as I had already had the pizza earlier. As I was chatting with the staff, Tatas and Captain Caveman left before me and I met up with Captain Caveman at The Villa’s around 9.30pm for a quick cold drink; 1 Coke was 25,000VND (77p) and 1 Huda beer was 35,000 (£1.08). Manu, the manager, invited us to have a drink with him but as Captain Caveman was driving we said to do it another time. Phong Nha was no longer like the old days where we would be drinking until late, most places close by 10pm and locals were in bed very early. I left Bluey at The Villa’s and got a lift back with Captain Caveman, I’d have to come get her tomorrow.
On Tuesday 7th May Captain Caveman and I decided we needed to get planning some stuff. After one of our usually tasty breakfasts and my Yorkshire tea we sat in a shady area with a breeze and got my diary out. We knew we were booked in at Greenfield Ecostay for another 2 nights but we were already thinking it wasn’t long enough. We had no plans of where we would stay next and I still had no flight out of Vietnam booked. It felt a bit disconcerting not knowing where I would be staying once I left Vietnam, and I couldn’t return to Captain Caveman’s apartment until 1st October. What I did know is that I was joining Captain Caveman on his trip in the UK for his cousin’s wedding in Penrith in July and that I needed a new passport. Our plans revolved around me getting the passport in London on the same day as I arrived. My passport doesn’t actually expire for another 4 years but a lot of South East Asian countries take up a lot of room with visas and stamps so it was very nearly full We decided to look at flights and get booking some things in. We also still didn’t know where Captain Caveman would be working next year so I needed to take as much of my stuff back to Turkey as possible. I booked my flight from Dalaman to London on the 8th July which was €44 (£37.50), hand luggage only, going with easyJet and landing at Gatwick airport at 3am. I would then take the train to Farringdon and walk to an Italian 24 hour cafe where I would meet Captain Caveman at an unspecified time. He would have arrived from Vietnam the day before and would have stayed at his parents’ house in London. We could then get my new passport and stay in London for a few days before going North. Looking at Captain Caveman’s schedule, it made sense for us to have a short break together in Vietnam at the end of June when he had time off. We decided on Danang where I could then start my journey back to Dalyan from. Captain Caveman’s Son Doong tour finished on the 21st of June and there was a train late that night which would get to Danang early in the morning the next day. This meant we could have the weekend in Danang before Captain Caveman had to be back in Phong Nha the following Tuesday and I would go to Turkey. It was decided and Captain Caveman booked my flight from Danang on the 25th, stopping briefly in Saigon, Bangkok and Istanbul before I reached Dalyan. I felt happier knowing it was booked and we knew some plans, I was still concerned that I didn’t have a clue where I would be after Captain Caveman came back to Vietnam at the end of July and for all of August. I’d banked on being able to to do house and petsitting in August and most of September in Dalyan but I couldn’t do that any more, due to the new rules there. I also needed to be in Dalyan around the 23rd August which was when I could apply for my Turkish Residency Renewal appointment. I was about to get in the pool when Chung and Hoan arrived, with fruit and snacks. Hoan brought a watermelon and Chung brought Banh Hoa which is like a doughnut mix in a crispy snack, shaped like a flower and rather moreish. Our friends had a soft drink and a look around the pool area, Chung picked a fruit from the tree near the pool and ate some. That evening, I got a lift with Captain Caveman to Phong Nha Vegan where I tried the Mushroom Congee. I was not expecting to like what they called mushroom porridge but it was amazing. Captain Caveman had taken himself off to the Indian restaurant, Ganesh, and he brought leftovers back too. Back at the homestay we went to bed early (again) and I fell asleep very quickly.
As it was the weekend and I’d only had 60 syns so far this week, I chose pineapple pancakes for breakfast on Friday 3rd May. Captain Caveman had already eaten earlier as I felt under the weather and had a little lay in. He was in the pool when I got down but he had a plan that he needed to go back to Phong Nha. I took that as a good opportunity to call in at Phong Nha Vegan so Captain Caveman said he’d give me a lift on the motorbike and off we went. Just before 11am, we had to stop at the pork shop and take shelter as a downpour came. It didn’t last long and I soon was at Phong Nha Vegan where I only stayed from 11.30am to 1pm. May, the dog from down the street, was there getting some attention from a customer as he loves some fuss. On our way back, we called at Lotus restaurant and met Multi who I shared Lotus tea with from a cute tea set and Captain Caveman had a shandy. Captain Caveman and I shared a beef Luk Lak which was very tasty for our lunch as I’d not eaten at the Vegan today. We couldn’t stay long as Veronika was on her way to Greenfield as she had some time off from teaching the grandchildren. It stopped raining long enough for us to get back and have a swim, Veronika arrived and the 3 of us had a beer. She decided to get a room and stay over when the weather looked a bit wet again and we opened a bottle of white wine. Ngan and the team had arranged an amazing dinner for tonight- a BBQ chicken with accompaniments; 2 different types of rice, pork, peanuts, chips, fresh spring rolls, green beans and salad. It was really good and one of the best BBQ chicken platters in town. We had a really lovely evening and a few frogs joined us to shelter from the rain. Guests from York and Peterborough had become our new friends and we enjoyed sharing some great laughs together before they had to move on to their next destination.
joloyolo 