Danang, Saigon & Bangkok (airports) – 25th June

On Tuesday 25th June Captain Caveman was heading back to Phong Nha as he had a briefing in the evening. I was saying bye and flying back to Dalaman via Saigon, Bangkok and Istanbul. We ate the rest of our Mangosteen from Hoan for our breakfast and Captain Caveman decided he would come to Danang airport to see me off. We got a Grab taxi and went to check-in but, unfortunately, the woman on the Vietnam Airlines desk was not my friend.
My allowance for all my flights was 25kg hold and at least 7kg for hand luggage. The domestic flight from Danang to Saigon didn’t specify that my 25kg had to be in 1 case but that rule was enforced as I tried to pass my 2 cases through. Captain Caveman came into his own when she refused them and instantly went in to ‘super-packer’ mode at top speed! I tried to hastily move my lacy red knickers and random dirty washing as he squeezed the contents of a case at 18kg and one at 7kg into the one case, with the laundry from my hand luggage. He triumphantly set it back on the scales and I thought he looked like he wanted a badge in recognition for it weighing 24.9kg. I managed to get an aisle seat so I was happy but I would struggle to carry that case at the other side. My international tickets both allowed me to take 25kg over 2 pieces so I could do a repack in Saigon.
We said our goodbyes and Captain Caveman went to get a taxi to the train station for the 10.22am train to Dong Hoi. I went through the passport control and stopped at a shop to get a snack. I bought a croissant for 35,000VND (£1.09) and a pack of pomelo for 70,000VND (£2.18).
The flight departed a little late and we landed in Saigon at gone 11am.
I retrieved my bags and then rationalised the space a bit better by splitting the 25kg case back in to 2. I was meant to be getting a taxi to Kim’s house to go to eat pho, made by her mother. Keith (from Grimsby) was on standby to meet for a farewell drink too. The left luggage queue was chaos and it took me a long time to get to the front of the queue. When I reached the front there was a sign, pricing left luggage per item and a few ‘at owners risk’ notices displayed – and now I had 4 bags, 3 of which I wanted to leave. The cost of leaving luggage at the airport plus 2 taxi fares, teamed with having to check-in for the international flight in less than 4.5 hours, made me reluctant to leave the airport. I didn’t have a great track record with Saigon taxi drivers so I messaged Keith (from Grimsby) to ask his opinion. He had flown from Saigon recently and advised not to do it, the queue to leave Saigon had been long previously and had took over 2 hours to get through. I wouldn’t risk it for a delicious bowl of pho and a cheeky beer so I also messaged Kim to cancel. In the end, I had done the right thing as it didn’t feel long in the airport at all.
I checked out the cost of a Burger King; a regular cheeseburger was 120,000VND (£3.74) so I didn’t bother. Instead, I spent 125,000VND (£3.90) on some cherry throat sweets and a pack of Mentos.
At 4pm, I was peckish so I treated myself to a pack of crisps and a vegan baguette for 105,000VND (£3.27) from Puro Gusto and thoroughly enjoyed it. Once through security, which did take quite a while as Keith had warned, I splashed out on some Clinique moisturiser for $32 (£25) which I had been waiting to buy in a Duty Free. My next extravagance was a glass of red wine in Saigon Cafe, an airport bar, which cost a whopping 315,000VND (£9.82) and was the cheapest wine on the menu. It was very nice and I savoured it as I waited for boarding time.
On the plane to Bangkok I had an aisle seat, the in-flight meal was a rather tasty chicken with veg and rice and a glass of red wine. I didn’t bother with any TV as the flight was ready to land as soon as we had eaten.
We landed in to Bangkok an hour later than scheduled, it was raining outside and it was cold as we disembarked on to the shuttle bus. I only had 1 hour to get on the next plane, bound for Istanbul, which was quite a rush. I had a bad stomach so I had to go to the loo while in Bangkok airport and I was lucky to arrive at the gate in time. On the 3rd plane, I had a middle seat and I coped for quite a bit of the flight until the chap next to me, wearing a sunhat and earplugs, became more difficult to get past for toilet visits, so I moved to an aisle seat at the back of the plane. We were due to land at 5.25am tomorrow, Turkish time, where I had several hours to kill in Istanbul airport.

Danang – 23rd June

The Sunday Brunch at Citron restaurant, Intercontinental, on the Son Tra Peninsula in Danang was booked for 12.30pm on Sunday 23rd June. It’s one of our favourite food experiences when we are in Vietnam and is a real treat. Captain Caveman had been working hard but had caught up on his sleep ready for today’s feast.
We arrived by Grab taxi just before 12.30pm and took a seat outside. I tried to get some good photos of us but it never works out well. Captain Caveman is not a fan of taking excessive photos and we agreed that I wouldn’t take photos of my food this time. Inside, we were seated and given a glass of the Billecart Salmon champagne. It retails at about £50 a bottle and we certainly get our money’s worth. The brunch lasts for 3 hours and is a buffet style where you can help yourself to so much seafood, sushi, salads, charcuterie, cheese as well as ask the chefs to prepare meat, prawns, pasta and fois gras. The cost is 3,199,000VND (£98.74) each plus tax/VAT but we were given a 20% discount. The service is always impeccable, the food delicious and there is good music and a spacious dining area. I kept my word and didn’t take any food photos or selfies while dining but I remember what I ate; I started with prawns to go with my champagne while Captain Caveman sampled the sushi. I had a mix of salt and pepper with a squeeze of lime juice to make a paste to dip my prawns in. They were delicious so I had some more and a little of the prawn sushi. I had a bit of the salad to make it healthier and more champagne while Captain Caveman had lobster and oysters. I went on to the lobster and couldn’t help myself get 2 more portions, as my champers got topped up. Next, I went on to cooked prawns in a garlic butter with some steak but I skipped the carbs for salad with chickpeas and lentils in. After a few more champagnes we went on to red wine to go with the steak, more was ordered and Captain Caveman was on the fois gras while I went back to lobster and steak with a couple of bits of pork. I didn’t have potatoes or pasta this time as I didn’t want to fill up too quickly. I also left plenty of room and time for the cheese, charcuterie and fruit. I snuck in a cheeky Cosmopolitan and dodged the desserts but that cheese board with only a couple of bits of bread was truly amazing! More red wine was had and back to the champagne for final drinks, of which we had a couple of top ups and we were stuffed.
By 5.20pm I was in bed and didn’t get back up that day.

Photo credit – some photos by Captain Caveman

Phong Nha & Dong Hoi – 20th June

I woke up to my alarm at 6.30am on Thursday 20th June and got on with my packing. I had already started it and had separate piles based on final destination of each item. This was confusing but I was on it and needed to be done by 8.30am as I was booked in to have my hair done. During the night, Hoan had taken a bus from Xa Lai to Phong Nha and had arrived early this morning. She was back for the Phong Nha Vegan buffet and to see me off. She had already asked Chung to delay me so that I could eat a last lunch at the Vegan before my taxi to Dong Hoi.
I had a lot to thank Chung, Hoan and the girls from the Vegan for, so I agreed. It was down to them that I was leaving Phong Nha only 1.3 kg (2.9lb) heavier than when I arrived in March and I was grateful for all the amazing food I’d eaten because of them. I was only 1cm over my hip and waist target measurements, which I was pleased with. I still wasn’t a vegan convert but I was definitely a strong advocate of vegan dishes and eating less meat. These girls had become such good friends, especially since I’d become the only female Western woman living in town.
Once I’d finished packing, I took photos of each bag and started to move them to the Glass House, ready for Captain Caveman to do his thing with them tomorrow. I took my motorbike helmet, 3 bags and a rather heavy suitcase (with a patched up wheel) the few hundred meters to the house. By 8am, I was walking back to Son River House Homestay and it was incredibly hot and sunny. It was not the best day to have a hair appointment and an all you can eat vegan buffet but, I soldiered on. Chung moved the taxi from 11am to 1pm and we called ‘Onion’ to check she was definitely there today. I wasn’t bothered if she cancelled now as it meant I could go back to bed but she was going to meet me there. I let Chung know I was all packed and brought my bags down to reception. As is usual in Vietnam, when a friend goes away, she saw my full bags and gave me 4 packets of Banh Ep, a fragile pork, shrimp and spring onion cracker type product, to take with me. She had even had her ex boyfriend put them on the bus from Hue for her as she knows how much I like them. How sweet!

Once at the hairdresser’s, she cut my dry hair first while I sat in front of a fan. I was not entirely optimistic it would turn out well but the heat meant I barely cared about anything else but staying alive. Just 1 hour 15 minutes later I had the hair dye on and was told to wait an unknown amount of time for it to take. Next I got a hair wash, conditioner, face, head and shoulder massage and the blow dry I’d said I didn’t need in this heat. Onion was having none of me walking out of her establishment with wet hair! By 10.30am I was finished and my hair looked good.
I headed back to check-out, where Chung had prepared our bill for the 9 day stay at Son River House Homestay. Captain Caveman was going to pay the 3,352,000VND (£101.79) by bank transfer when he returned from the cave. This included 400,000VND (£12.15) for the meal last night which was absolutely delicious. We did get a friend’s discount which was much appreciated and I would definitely stay there again.

Our next stop was the Phong Nha Vegan which was amazing for my last buffet and farewell to everyone. I sat with Kim and her daughter while trying to get a blast of the cooler which was set to 39°C. The food was so good and plentiful but it was so hot I could barely take the heat. Kim recommended I try different dishes which was really nice and we even arranged for me to visit her in Saigon in a few days time. Back at the homestay, I said my goodbyes and Hoan arrived to give me going away gifts of a knitted mobile phone case, some sweets and a big bag of mangosteen. In the end, Chung moved my taxi for Dong Hoi to pick me up at 1.45pm as we were running late, and she promised to take Bluey over to the Glass House tomorrow. It was a sad, sweaty goodbye as I got in to the car and drove through Phong Nha with tears in my eyes.

The drive from Phong Nha to Dong Hoi on that afternoon was comfortable and cool. It took about 45 minutes and cost me 500,000VND (£15.26). The Minh Quang Hotel had already been booked up but the owner had very kindly recommended the Dolphin hotel as a nearby and suitable alternative. It was only 280,000VND (£8.54) per night and located really close to Tree Hugger. The driver couldn’t find it at first but once I was checked in and was in the room, I realised why it was called the Dolphin Hotel. It was located bang opposite the Dolphin statue on the river front. The lady who checked me in was really lovely and the room had the best display of tourist information, I’ve seen in a while. Unfortunately, it was a little wasted on me as I was only there until very early in the morning. I had a shower and a little rest, plus a bit of a repack to get the gifts in, before going out for a stroll.

I called in at Tree Hugger where I had a mint and lime iced drink and some veggie spring rolls while admiring the view with a fan on. It was really lovely and cost just 90,000VND (£2.75) which was definitely good value.

In the evening, I met up with Jack, Stu’s youngest son, for a last leaving drink and meal at Oregano. We drank a Huda beer, ate potato wedges and a Bolognese pizza, which we shared. We had 2 video calls with Stu who was in Ha Tinh doing a summer teaching job and was disappointed he couldn’t join us. The food, as always, was excellent and I’d learned they had wedges on the menu. I couldn’t eat it all so I took a couple of slices of pizza with me and Jack dropped me off at Dolphin Hotel on his way home. The cost of dinner for both of us was a very reasonable 250,000VND (£7.64).
Back at Dolphin, I finished the half bottle of red wine I’d brought with me, from last night, and got ready for bed. My alarm was set for early tomorrow morning as I was getting the train to Danang.

Phong Nha – 19th June

Wednesday 19th June was not only weigh day, but it was my last full day and night in Phong Nha. I had arrived in Vietnam 15 weeks ago and would be leaving after 4 months in the country, longer than I’d expected. I was up early so that I could be ready for an appointment before work and I did my measurements. My bust was the same as the previous week, I’d lost 1cm from my waist but had put 1cm on my hips. I made a note to get weighed later when I went to the vegan.
I cycled down to see ‘Onion’ the hairdresser as Captain Caveman had booked me in for a cut and dye at 8.30am. She is actually called Nghien but it’s kind of pronounced like onion and that’s what a couple of the older cavers had called her. When I arrived, it was already getting hot, there was no sign of her. I bumped in to a young girl who was wearing sunglasses, a mask and a hooded long sleeved coat. This ninja-looking female spoke a little English and told me her mom was in town having coffee with friends. I’d also messaged her to say I was there but the reply came to the daughter to return at midday. There was no way I could take the midday heat while being in the hairdresser’s building so I asked for the same time tomorrow. The daughter didn’t understand so I just left and said I would message. Tomorrow I was leaving to go to Dong Hoi before lunch so that might be a bit of a squeeze, anyway.
Disappointed, I cycled down towards The Villas and as I arrived Onion turned up saying I could cycle back to the hairdresser’s. By this time I’d already rescheduled my work and confirmed lunch with a friend. We agreed on tomorrow at 8.30am so I would just have to get up early.
I worked from The Villas for the rest of the morning and drank a lot of water as the AC wasn’t on yet. At lunch time I logged off as I had invited Khanh Linh to join me for a catch up. We shared a Momma D’s pizza and a garden salad which was very filling. A member of staff popped the AC on and looked confused as to why it wasn’t already on. I had to try the Pina Colada as it was 50% off those on Wednesdays. It was very nice and I had a lovely time with Khanh Linh, who bought me a gift of a pair of jelly shoes. When I tried them on I was surprised to find they fit very well, too. Khanh Linh, who works at Jungle Boss, had to get back to work and it was very hot and humid outside.
I also went back to work but finished before 5pm so that I could hurry back to Son River House Homestay for a shower. The plan was to be back at The Villas to meet anyone who was coming to help me celebrate my last night.

When I got back to the homestay, I decided to chance a full shower with a hair wash – this was a mistake. I was lathered up like a soapy meringue when the water went off! It took a while to get all the bubbles off me and, of course, Vietnamese hotel towels are rather small. I was 10 minutes late to my own leaving party and Chung, who was going to give me a lift, was busy so I cycled back down. René was already there and was a bit concerned he was going to miss me as he had guests back at Greenfield Ecostay who he had to get back to. Ngan, his wife, was in Hanoi and couldn’t join us. René had a drink with me and then left with arrangements to come back if work allowed. Maxime and his 2 daughters joined us, then Bich and Luc came for a drink and food and it was so lovely to catch up. I had also arranged to have a drink and some food at Son River House Homestay with Chung and Uy. It was also their 7 year anniversary. Manu from Victory Road Villas and the girls from Phong Nha Vegan were also meant to be coming to join the small party.
Manu saw René drive past on a motorbike so I cycled back after paying my 1,200,000VND (£36.45). This included breakfast, lunch for 2 of us, 2 smoothies, 4 cocktails and a bottle of red wine to take away.
Back at the homestay, I arrived to an empty seat where René must have been sat, a fresh beer with ice and a 100,000VND (£3) note under the glass as payment. He had obviously got tired of waiting for me and left – I was surprised not to have passed him as I cycled my little legs as fast as I could on Bluey. Manu didn’t arrive as he couldn’t find it, and the Vegan girls were too busy with customers to leave early. Chung was apologetic that the local chicken with sticky rice that I had ordered for us all to share, had been boiled instead of barbecued. I wasn’t, as it was so delicious – Ms My had done a lovely job and I opened the bottle of wine to share with Chung and Linh Giang. Once again, I was the only non-Vietnamese person at the table and we had so much fun. Eventually, Uy noted the date and redeemed himself of forgetting his anniversary with a romantic speech but I was more enthralled by Motthew IV. Chung had chopped up a couple of pineapples for us to share so a big, thirsty moth came to sample it. There was a cake, more cheers and drinks but I was in bed by 10.30pm. I still hadn’t packed for Danang, Dalyan or the UK. Tomorrow was going to be a bit disorganised and rushed.

Phong Nha – 18th June

We were awake early on Tuesday 18th June as Captain Caveman was off in to Son Doong and I said I would see him off before I started work. It was probably the last time I would see him this year in Phong Nha and I was feeling a bit sentimental about that. Captain Caveman doesn’t do emotional stuff so it was just another day to him but at least he posed for a photo while we waited for a coffee and a watermelon juice at Son River House Homestay. We agreed that I would travel by car to Dong Hoi on Thursday, he’d booked me a room at the Dolphin hotel for that night and a train for Friday morning to Danang. He would get the overnight train after his gala dinner on Friday night and see me in Danang on Saturday morning. We would have our final celebrations in Danang before I flew back to Turkey on Tuesday. We were all organised so that it would go smoothly. Captain Caveman took himself off for spicy fish noodle soup for his breakfast, probably to escape my emotional goodbyes and me still being upset about May, the dog. Chung could see I needed a bit of support and told me to come back to the homestay once I’d seen Captain Caveman off on tour from Ho Khanh’s.
I saw Mr Nghia who works on the porter team and is Ha’s (from Phong Nha Vegan) dad. He was holding Ai’s baby who is super cute and so I took photos. I also found a creepy crawly to match his Oxalis shirt which turned out to be poisonous and had a twin nearby! Luckily I moved one to the shrubbery but then it got moved again to further afield. We said bye and Captain Caveman got on the bus with the next tour group, who also didn’t get off for a photo.
Back at the homestay, I waited for Chung so that we could go to Phong Nha Vegan for brunch. I took photos of the Son River House Homestay menu which looked very comprehensive.

At Phong Nha Vegan, Chung had spicy noodle soup, I had Banh Canh and we shared some fresh spring rolls. Ha made me a mango and coconut smoothie which was so good. I would miss this a lot when I left. I decided to work in the AC of my room at the beautiful and peaceful Son River House Homestay for today.

That evening, after work, I cycled down to Phong Nha Vegan again. Tatas came to meet me and had to wait a while until I could leave to go out for dinner. We went to The Villas for our farewell drinks and meal. We had to make do with mojitos with it being a Tuesday as they were half price. We shared a veggie pizza with a bottle of red then took the wine back to mine so that we could finish off the night. Tatas paid the total bill as a farewell gift and we had a lovely night, it was a bit emotional as I had no idea when I would see her again, although we were hoping she could get a visa to come visit us in Turkey this winter. Tomorrow was weigh day and my last full day in Phong Nha, I’d had 303 syns this week so it wasn’t looking great and I had leaving drinks planned for tomorrow evening.

Phong Nha – 16th & 17th June

On the morning of Sunday 16th June I packed a lot of my stuff. Captain Caveman was due back later and would only have a couple of hours today and some of tomorrow for us to get organised for my departure. As we still didn’t know when Captain Caveman and I would be back in Phong Nha after this season, or what job either of us would be doing next year, I decided to take almost everything. I would have one suitcase to take anything I had still in Vietnam so I decided to put all the things I could live without in to a bag to give to Chung and Hoan. They could keep anything which they could make use of and give the rest to charity. It felt a bit weird not really knowing what would happen next year but I felt confident things would find a way of working out.
I worked from The Villas again and had a treat of beans on toast with a pot of tea for breakfast. For my lunch I had fresh veggie spring rolls and I was still working when Captain Caveman arrived at The Villas. He’d had a good trip but it had been incredibly hot, meaning the group had been out a little later. I updated Captain Caveman on my new job, he was pleased but we didn’t have long to chat as he was off to Chay Lap for his gala dinner. After finishing work for the day, I treated myself to a bottle of wine and some peanuts while I waited for Captain Caveman to return. When he arrived he ordered a pizza as the food at Chay Lap is still below par and he never eats there. I decided to try the ‘new to the menu’ cheeseburger, even though I’m not a massive burger fan.
Captain Caveman devoured his dinner and half the bottle of red wine, he was very hungry after his tour. My burger tasted very good but it was a bit chewy with it being beef. I let the manager know and she did say the Victory Road burger was better as it’s mixed with pork so that might have suited me better. Our total bill came to 890,000VND (£27) which included carrot cake. The Villas had started doing fresh cakes again and it did not disappoint! Maxime and his family were back in town to renovate the Nguyen Shack and had waited to say hello to Captain Caveman. It was almost 10pm when we cycled home, Captain Caveman was very tired.

Captain Caveman had the day time off on Monday 17th June but he still had some work tasks to do, of course. We were awake by 6am but his alarm was set for 6.30am anyway. The weather forecast said it was only 28°C but 83% humidity so it definitely felt hot and muggy. It also said it was going to be cloudy all day but the clouds had definitely not got that memo and it was scorching!
By 8.30am we had cycled to The Villas for me to crack on with work and later have brunch. I had my usual Pho and a smoothie but Captain Caveman had his favourite Eggs Benedict washed down with a Bloody Mary (which are usually 50% off on Mondays). Our bill came to 372,000VND (£11.30) and I didn’t notice at the time that the Bloody Mary was charged at full price of 180,000VND (£5.46). I said goodbye to Ben, as he was off to Mongolia tonight and would be away until the 29th June, when I would already be in Turkey.
While Captain Caveman got prepared for his next tour and his briefing tonight, I was thankful for a rest in the AC back at Son River House Homestay. By 3pm the humidity levels had dropped considerably but it still felt unbearable outside.
After work, and while Captain Caveman was at the Oxalis briefing, I went to Phong Nha Vegan. I was chatting with Ha when something truly awful happened. We heard a commotion down the road, towards town and, when I looked, I saw a woman in the street, a motorbike, something white on the floor and a few people gathered around.
I knew it as soon as I saw the white, it was May, the dog. He had been hit by a motorbike and the owner was trying to save him, I called Ha and we ran down. What happened next was quite upsetting so I won’t go in to too much detail. I felt for a heartbeat and little May was still alive. I called Chung and asked her to call Bom’s dad who is a farm vet and tell him to come quickly. She did and he said he was coming. The owner picked up May and was very distressed about the whole situation so we took him inside the gate. We both kept stroking and talking to him and willing him to pull through. Other dogs in the area were coming to check on May and I nervously kept them at a safe distance. The vet was really taking his time and I called several times for Chung to chase him. Ha and the others left me with the dog’s owner, who spoke no English and then May could fight no more. It was terrible and it looked like he had some bleeding from inside. I consoled the woman and we used Google translate to talk to each other and later her daughter. We lay May in a quiet spot in the garden and waited for her relative to arrive. Eventually, I left and having been strong for the owner, I had a little cry. The Vegan girls wanted to feed me but there was no way I could eat and I was conscious that I’d been holding May. I had a good wash but didn’t want to touch any of the tables at the Vegan and decided to call it a night. Our friend Dung was there having dinner and I asked him to come back and help me talk to May’s owner, which he did. It turned out her husband was a vet and there had been nothing we could have done to save May but at least he knew we loved him. I cycled to The Villas to meet Captain Caveman, with a takeaway snack of vegetable tempura which Hanh had insisted on making me. Once I’d calmed down and was getting through the shock, I ordered a Spaghetti Bolognese and shared a bottle of red wine with Captain Caveman. We paid 472,000VND (£14.33) which I didn’t think was bad. Our last night in Phong Nha together wasn’t the celebration it could have been, though.
Back at the homestay, I got some news to cheer me up; my friend, Briony, was going to be in Sheffield when I was, and had booked her flight from America. I ate the veggie tempura and then went to bed, still sad about little May, the dog.

Dong Hoi & Phong Nha – 11th June

It was an early start on Tuesday 11th June as we joined Stu and Max for a final Mr Bull’s Bo Ne breakfast. It would probably be my last in Vietnam for this year and that was sad. I was going to miss Dong Hoi, our friends there and the cute dogs who were now our friends. Our lift to Phong Nha with Oxalis and Dung arrived 30 minutes early and we said goodbye in a bit of a hurry. Captain Caveman had booked me a train from Dong Hoi to Danang for in 10 days time so I hoped I’d get to spend one more night in Dong Hoi before I left Vietnam.
We picked up 4 customers from the airport, Captain Caveman had a coffee for 30,000VND (91p) and then we got back in the minibus for the drive back home. Less than an hour later, after dropping the guests at Son Doong Bungalow, we were dropped off at our new and final accommodation for my last Phong Nha stay. We had decided to try out Son River House Homestay, which is near to the Glass House and Ho Khanh’s, right on the river. It is being managed by one of my best friends, Chung, so I was also looking forward to spending time with her. Check-in wasn’t until 2pm so we had already agreed to have lunch at Phong Nha Vegan with Dung as I had really missed eating there. We dumped our bags at reception, Captain Caveman got the motorbike from the Glass House and we rode to the Vegan.

I was desperately craving a vegan pho so I ordered that along with fried spring rolls and mushroom La Lot skewers to share. Dung had fresh spring rolls and Captain Caveman had the curry with steamed rice. It was all lovely and I enjoyed my iced kumquat tea to wash it down with. It was good to see Ha, Cuu, Hanh and Yen again after being away for so long.
We checked in to our upstairs room at Son River House Homestay after lunch and unpacked our stuff.

After bringing more of my stuff over, we cycled to The Villas for Summer cocktails. Today was Long Island Iced Tea, one of Captain Caveman’s favourites and we had 2 each, paying a total of 360,000VND (£10.92) as they were 50% off.

For dinner we decided to cycle to Ganesh for Indian food. We had a bottle of red wine, lamb samosas, onion bhajis, chicken tikka starter, garlic naan, saffron rice, chicken tikka masala and a daal for 798,300VND (£24.22). The food was fantastic but we did get a message from Chung to check if we were ok. The owner of the homestay was worried it was after 10pm and we weren’t back yet. We cycled back and put leftover Indian food in the fridge along with fruit and a bottle of wine as we didn’t have a room with a fridge. Our room was clean, tidy and comfortable with lovely views and good AC.

Dong Hoi – 10th June

Captain Caveman had an appointment at the ultrasound clinic on Monday 10th June, first thing. I popped to the chemist to try to get contraceptive pills but none of the 3 pharmacies I tried, had them.
We went in to town afterwards and, while Captain Caveman went to the Gold shop, I went to another pharmacy. I had to settle for a different kind of pill, which I know gives me side effects but I had no choice. Here’s what I bought, prices in Dong;

Pharmacy
1 Diclofenac 27,000
1 Loperamide 27,500
5 Ibuprofen 194,000
6 Contraceptive pill 898,800
Total 1,147,300VND (£34.80)

At the WinMart Captain Caveman bought bread, crisps and 2 bottles of cheap Italian wine for when Stu and the boys arrived later. They were due back later than expected so we tried the Banh My place next to the gold shop, as recommended by Duc at Cang’s vintage clothing. It was cheap and tasty and didn’t have all the pâté in, that I don’t like. After the sandwich, we ventured in to the market just as it was starting to get quite sweaty. Captain Caveman wanted to get something specific for his cousin’s wedding which we were going to in July. Our next stop for a bit of light refreshment was our favourite coconut stall and coffee shop. The man there is super friendly and hard working so we have been going to that particular guy since we were recommended him by Thao a few years ago.

Back at the house, Captain Caveman was in charge of kitchen cleaning and feeding the dogs while I had the sweaty job of hoovering up. We cleaned the house as best we could before having our cheese sandwiches for lunch. I told each dog (separately) that their family was coming home and I think they understood. Over the 10 days we had been looking after them I’d gained their trust by telling them short stories about dogs who were scared of the people looking after them.
Stu and the boys were due in around 5.30pm but I couldn’t wait to open the wine and had started celebrating their return without them. Rodger had always listened to my stories but Terror was having none of them, until today when I told him a story about a dog who’s owner had returned from a holiday and was very excited to see his pets. Terror jumped on to the sofa and licked my face and he knew his family was coming back.
When Stu and Max returned (Jack had gone straight to meet someone at the airport), they took it in turns to greet the dogs. Rodger was first and was so excited he did a wee while Terror whined to be let out of Jack’s room. When Jack returned briefly they got excited again and were very pleased to have the boys back.
The boys drank beer, I had a bottle of red wine to myself and we ordered takeaway from Oregano, of pizza and potato gratin. It was a good welcome back, we decided to stay over one more night and Max gave us his room again. Tomorrow we would head back to Phong Nha where I had just 10 nights left before I started my journey back to Turkey.

Phong Nha – 26th May

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.

Phong Nha – 25th May

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.

Phong Nha – 19th May

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.

Phong Nha – 18th May

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.

Phong Nha – 14th May

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.

Phong Nha – 13th May

Breakfast on Monday 13th May was quite a feast, Captain Caveman had his usual and I had Yorkshire tea, pineapple and honey pancake, a banana, dragon fruit and jack fruit. We made the most of our last full day at Greenfield Ecostay and I was sad to be leaving. We swam in the pool, watched a risky rice harvest and some cows settling a dispute.

Video of the motorbike being loaded

A push to get done before the rain started

The cows were a bit restless

Another attempt

Our last lunch, prepared by Ngan, was a squid fried rice for Captain Caveman and a prawn fried rice for me. There was more dragon fruit and jack fruit and then some stormy weather in the afternoon. Mina, the dog, was scared of the thunder and hid behind the bar. Instead of going to Phong Nha with Captain Caveman, I packed my bag for leaving tomorrow. He went to his Oxalis briefing as he would be going in to the cave tomorrow.
I had a couple of white wines but no dinner, as we hadn’t ordered it for tonight as I’d planned to go to Phong Nha Vegan. Instead, I nibbled on the Banh Hoa which Chung had given us.
Back in Dalyan, the pool was finally fixed but a little too late for our dissatisfied tenant who had flown back home to the UK, having not even been in the pool. They were returning to Dalyan soon and hoped it was sorted by then. I messaged our agent to check she had spoken to the tenant in person to straighten things out and give assurances. They had not met up at all but had corresponded via text. It was hard not having any control over what was going on there, but I would be going back to Turkey at the end of June for a quick visit.
By the time Captain Caveman arrived back from his briefing, I was already in the room ready for bed. Captain Caveman had got the cash out to pay René tomorrow and I was very pleasantly surprised to hear that our total bill for 15 nights’ accommodation, food and drink came to a grand total of 15,000,000VND (£464). We could not fault the place and I was sad that I might not get to come again – it was one of my new favourite places!

The rain was welcome

Phong Nha – 12th May

We had a bit of a mini adventure on Sunday 12th May after we had our breakfast, of course. Captain Caveman had omelette with a coffee or 2 and I had Yorkshire tea with my mango and honey pancake. I’d asked a few friends to join us on our outing but most people were busy. Luckily for us, Veronika, Chung, Uy and the kids were free and would join us for lunch at the Pub with Cold Beer. Captain Caveman was toying with the idea of cycling but I reminded him how much he hates me moaning I’m too hot and it’s too far. He drove us there on Trigger and we decided to stop off at the Duck Stop. This is a brilliant tourist attraction where you get to feed ducks and get a natural massage from them. It’s really good and when a fellow caver came to visit she said it was one of the best days of her life (she’s only young)! We only stopped for a drink, not to see the ducks as we have been before and it was already getting busy with customers. We got to say hello to Quynh, the owner, and chill out a little before getting back on the motorbike to the Pub with Cold Beer.

There, Captain Caveman dropped me off so that I could order 2 chickens with rice, morning glory and peanut sauce before our guests arrived. He went to see Cuong at the Wild Boar farm just up the road. The pool at the Pub with Cold Beer was being cleaned and Quy told me it would be about 15 minutes until it was ready. Just 5 minutes later the French guests from Greenfield Ecostay arrived and I managed to tell them in French about the pool. It was ready in 10 minutes and everyone got in while I sat and chatted to Huong, their tour guide. Captain Caveman returned, Chung and family arrived closely followed by Veronika. We had a wonderful day, chatting with our friends, eating the delicious BBQ chicken and playing with the kids in the pool.

Back at Greenfield Ecostay we joined some German and Lithuanian guests who were very interesting and we had a really lovely dinner. Ngan had made cabbage rolls, pork, green beans, carrots and steamed rice and I washed it down with a glass of wine. Our Sunday had been great but tomorrow was our last night at Greenfield, Captain Caveman’s holiday was coming to an end.

joloyolo

The ramblings and observations of a fortysomething lady of leisure

Tag: wine