While traveling this is all too common, but its often not talked about! Lets talk about mishaps while traveling, problem solving, and thinking on your feet while traveling. I am a solo traveler, remote worker, and have lived abroad in two countries as well as traveled to around seven countries. Recently, I have arrived to a new country and it is a personal one for me as it is Vietnam. Will discuss more about this in another post, but this one is all about the mishaps of travel and the mishaps that have happened since I have been in Vietnam solo traveling.
Vietnam is not a super touristy country, compared to Thailand. Luckily I am an experienced traveler, however I feel living in Thailand for about three years spoiled me a bit. I have forgotten some things that are super easy in Thailand, but everywhere in the world you must be a bit more prepared ;). I arrived first to Vietnam in the huge city of Saigon (Ho Chi Minh). The international airport was super empty, no shocker here as Vietnam has been closed for two whole years. That meant that an abundance of food shops, restaurants, SIM card sellers, tour companies, and all of those things that a huge touristic destination would have they did not have. I found a place to exchange my Thai baht for Viet Dong. I couldn't find a SIM card seller... I did thorough research on what company and for Vietnam Viettel is the winner. I found a seller finally, but it was a dodgy SIM card as she didn't ask for any information at all and inserted it within seconds. This really was not a big loss as I paid only 100,000 dong which is about $4.30 and it included 10 GB of data. I knew what I was buying wasn't worth it, but I needed data right then since I didn't remember exactly where I was staying;) Later, I checked if the SIM was registered and I was sold an old SIM. The data worked, but once the data has ran out topping it up does no use. Buying a new SIM with Viettel is my next priority, whenever I can find a place.
Like I said, I was spoiled in Thailand. The convenience in Thailand really is amazing, they make it so extremely easy for tourists to get settled. In Thailand go to any 7-11 for snacks, fresh food, SIM cards, adding data, all amenities pretty much, and its easy to understand what you are buying. When at the airport they are very organized on where you need to go for your entrance into the country. You get stamped and enter a huge floor with many SIM sellers, tour companies, food, taxis, car rentals, and more. So far the entire time I have been in Vietnam, there is a huge language barrier here. Everyone here is far more helpful and kind compared to Thailand, however not speaking Vietnamese really makes it confusing. My observations is that Vietnam has many small business sellers, fruit stands, juice stalls, streetside caphe's, small streetside banh mi or other Viet food which is all amazing!!
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The thing is to order you will have to muddle through in your terrible Vietnamese accent :/. Looking up basic phrases will more than help you out! I love the atmosphere and all the small shoppes everywhere. Learning to speak to the sellers is a work in progress. I learn something new everyday. Everything here is run much more on a small scale and businesses are generally ran independently. When in Vietnam support the small sellers, the fruit stands, and street side restaurants. I love this feeling of that everything I am buying is local from here. This is really the true feeling of travel though that I have missed.
Chaos of Ho Chi Minh
When I arrived to Ho Chi Minh the first thing you notice is how crowded it is with motorbikes. It is quite the thrill! But, always watch out. The motorbikes come on the sidewalks and will go whichever direction on the road they like. It is fun to watch while on a terrace with a "ca phe sua" (milk iced coffee.) For safety while traveling having travelers insurance is a good idea as you cannot predict accidents while abroad. For coverage abroad as a nomad or a traveler I recommend Safety Wing. I get a small compensation for your signing up for Safety Wing, however I support this company and use them myself as I am living the nomadic lifestyle and need coverage while abroad. The fun thing I noticed is Ho Chi Minh is a lot like France (per opinion of a friend of mine who has been to France and Ho Chi Minh). It has such a charm! I love that Viet people enjoy their drink of choice such as, coconuts, coffees, juices, beer, smoothies, and teas chatting with their friends, with a book, drawing, smoking a cigarette, or people watching. I spent my time in District 1 of HCMC. This is a rather touristy spot, but really I saw almost no travelers. While exploring in HCMC I wandered through small alley ways, sitting on street side cafes, and going to some sightseeing. I was in HCMC for 3 days and luckily was in the middle of everything, but tucked away in a small road where it was quiet enough from the sounds of traffic. In HCMC, I wanted to stay in a hostel to meet people and I arrived at the place, but no one was around. The reception were nowhere. I had so much stuff too, as I have all of my things with me from Thailand, all of it... and anyways a super kind neighbor called them for me and then the reception arrived. I got checked in using google translate and got my dorm. The hostel was very nice, clean, and so many people staying there from locals to international travelers. I learned advice on how to navigate HCMC, good caphe's nearby, general advice, and made some friends. Some were into the nightlife scene, and I had no desire to go out. There is a Bui Viehn night life street and I checked it out early in the night to see if I wanted to check it out, walking it was enough for me.
Fast forward to the end of my stay in Saigon, my data still wasn't working properly. The rainy season has started, which caused the wifi at the hostel to stop working. I needed a taxi to the airport like now. I had three hours until my flight and thought surely I will make it in time, in plenty of time. Wrong.. the complications kept coming. I was so late to the airport, that I made it only 45 minutes before the flight. To my surprise after all this chaos of trying to find a taxi, I arrived to the airport and it was packed. It was chaos. People running around everywhere, yelling, and cutting in front of you. It was so unclear even where to check in. Lines work differently in this country, everyone just goes. No waiting, just going.
I missed my flight, but didn't panic. I knew I could get a new one as there were around 8 happening to Danang. I got one immediately and only had to pay a 200,000 dong fee (8.60 USD) to change. Definitely this could have been avoided, but this is travel sometimes. Granted, I was prepared to leave three hours before this flight. What could I have done to avoid this? Who knows. But, really all of this chaos is just a part of travel. I got a flight easily. Checked in my bags, waited for about 40 minutes at the gate and boarded my flight. I had an entire row to myself and was seated by the window. While this was stressful, I wasn't stressed after I got my flight. Even when I was in the taxi knowing I would miss the flight, I was enjoying my life.
The taxi driver was speaking in broken English to me and welcoming me to this country. Asking me about my father who is Viet and how I got here. Extremely kind and asked if I had been eating good while here and more. It felt as if we already were friends. Even when I was waiting for my grab taxi that never came, a local guy on a motorbike said hello to me and we had a full conversation. Very similar to the taxi guy. This guy was celebrating that I arrived to Vietnam and said I will learn to speak Vietnamese in no time. After all of these years of wondering how Vietnamese people would perceive me as being half- Viet, I was surprised at their kindness.
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Overall, the chaos of being in a new country is ripe, yet thrilling. Wandering through small alleyways, enjoying the coffee's amidst the bustling traffic and motorbike dodging it is an adventure that I am enjoying. Understanding the pace of a new country, what the people are like, and just how to be in a new country is an adventure in itself for me. It isn't a luxurious travel, but an authentic travel story of the raw travel. The feeling of traveling and getting a glimpse of the local life. I understand you might be expecting more of a tourist guide on what to do, what to see, and all of the aesthetic photos of traveling, but this is not the kind of traveler that I am.
Thanks for coming along with me in my journey.
Cam on :)