Good Morning Vietnam and Hi Chiang Mai - New Year, New Continent, 6 Months in

Welcome to Asia!

The end of 2018 brought forth a new phase of my adventure - arriving in Hanoi, Vietnam a few days before New Years' Eve. This was my first time travelling East of Europe and I was prepared to be shocked (perhaps awed?) and amazed as I ventured into the unknown.

I knew that I'd be in for some very real culture shock upon entering Asia, but as our group filed into airport shuttles to our apartments I somehow felt a sense of comfort and familiarity as the shuttle van ducked and swerved around the sea of motorbikes in a seemingly endless, chaotic flow all around us. As we crossed the Long Bien bridge (designed by Gustave Eiffel) I observed sprawling public banana fields transforming suddenly into ramshackle suburbs.

I suppose that I was somewhat prepared for Hanoi by the busyness of Marrakesh. That said, I was pleasantly surprised by the passion and welcoming nature of the Vietnamese people. Hanoi was an exercise in contrasts; on our street a pop-up fish market where fish heads were being lopped off on a wooden block placed on the sidewalk - a few blocks East a pristine Starbucks. During the winter months people light small campfires on the sidewalk - a few kilometers away from Tay Ho, or the West District, where fancy condos, high-end restaurants and golf ranges abound.

We arrived under a cloudy sky (which would become a trend - we wouldn't be seeing the sun again for an entire month) to an absolutely freezing-cold apartment. Huddling under blankets, Cait and I ordered some mouth-watering takeout and got our first taste of what would be a delicious month.

Fresh off a month without drinking a drop of alcohol in Marrakesh (which was a sharp contrast to excessive beer consumption in Split, Prague and Lisbon), I opted out of the New Year's Eve rooftop-unlimited-booze party and headed out into the hills East of Hanoi with a handful of like-minded people. We spent the evening walking in the wilderness (where we encountered a gang of wild cows), eating some delicious home-cooked Vietnamese food then gathering around a fire to write down then throw away all of the things we wanted to get rid of from 2018. We agreed to start 2019 fresh-faced and ready for adventure. Shortly after midnight we collapsed into our freezing-cold beds. Apparently house heating is not typically used in Vietnam as it rarely gets that cold!

Upon getting back into town the following day, Cait and I promptly signed up for a month of unlimited hot yoga at Bikram Yoga Hanoi (https://bikramyogahanoi.vn/en/) and sweat our butts off almost every day! I really can't recommend this place enough.

2019 was off to a solidly good start - a deep cleanse of the mind and the spirit.

My spirit (as well as my waistline) would be much further nourished by the food! Hanoi is a street food Mecca: Pho Bo and Pho Ga, Banh Mi and Bun Cha. Cheap and delicious. We made a very pathetic attempt to buy groceries during our first week here but after seeing how cheap and plentiful the street food was, we gave up trying to make grocery runs. Almost every morning I had a big bowl of Pho Ga for breakfast - for about $2. We'd have our best meals this month at tiny street-side tables with little chairs (seemingly made for children) where you sit down and they ask you how many you want (there's no menu; they just make that one thing).

The Vietnamese love their coffee and I drank my fair share! This stuff is no Starbucks; it's rocket fuel, thick as sludge, deep black and strong as hell in a wide variety of assortments including egg, coconut and yogurt. My personal favorite was the egg coffee, dairy-free and sweet with a thick head of whipped, creamy egg and sugar.

Train Street

Getting Around

Hanoi traffic is totally wild. Most people drive mopeds and they are everywhere - flowing in a seemingly chaotic stream through the streets, over sidewalks and down tight alleys (often going against the traffic). They are creatures of opportunity, using the smallest space to squeeze through traffic. Sidewalks become largely impassible as scooters are parked willy-nilly taking up all of that valuable walking space. This means that as a pedestrian you've got to be hyper aware, and you can't rely on traffic lights. If you wait for a break in the traffic to cross the street you'll be there all day. I realize this sounds reckless but you have to take a leap of faith and step into traffic. Be decisive and just keep walking forward. Traffic WILL flow around you. Don't start running or stop suddenly; that makes you unpredictable as a pedestrian.

Getting around town was so very easy! Forget Uber - Grab Bikes were so very inexpensive and fun! Once you'd ordered the Grab Bike through the app, after 2 or 3 minutes a moped would pull up at your door. The driver would pass you a helmet and you'd hop on the back and hold on for dear life as you zipped through town.

Ninh Binh

Cait and I also spent a week in Ninh Binh, a short train ride south of Hanoi, where we stayed in a quaint eco-lodge with a room overlooking the Bai Dinh pagoda. We were treated to fantastic, elaborate, home-cooked breakfasts and dinners each day.

I opted to embrace the local culture and rent a motorbike (my first time driving one! No license required). I was on vacation that week so while Cait was working I whipped around the countryside on my bike. The wind stung my eyes as I whizzed by farmer's fields, temples, jagged limestone cliffs and happy children.

During that week we also visited Trang An by bamboo boat, floating through innumerable caves and stopping at remote temples to pay our respects. This was a place of intense beauty and gravitas.

No trip to Hanoi would be complete without a Ha Long Bay Cruise

Kayaking in Ha Long Bay

Hi Chiang Mai!

From Hanoi we traveled to Chiang Mai, Thailand: a tropical hot spot for expats and digital nomads. I was particularly excited as the temperature would finally rise to a very comfortable heat; Thai food is one of my favorite cuisines and I was looking forward to eating my way around the country.

This month we'd hit the official halfway point of our 12-month journey so it marked a particularly poignant milestone; after this month we'd be on the home stretch. We'd have to think very carefully about our plans for the end of this journey. Where would we all end up?

Chiang Mai is an ancient walled city, with much of the wall still intact, surrounded by a moat. It definitely has beach town vibes and is very Westernized with chic bohemian restaurants, pristine shopping malls, movie theaters and of course, no lack of Starbucks (it's a damn pervasive chain). That being said, there is no lack of history here, within the old walled-in city, temples and traditional street markets abound. Thai Buddhist temples have a larger-than-life, fantastical, magical look and feel - replete with two-headed elephants, snakes, dragons and massive golden Buddhas.

By the end of the month I would attempt to walk the entirety of the ancient wall and moat surrounding the original city. I managed to choose the hottest possible day to do this and only managed to get three-quarters of the way around before I caved and biked the final distance.

Getting Around

Sadly, I only discovered the Mobike bike sharing app halfway through the month but after that point I used these bikes everyday. Super convenient, reliable and cheap! I don't know why they don't have these everywhere. Public transportation came in the form of red trucks - you'd flag one down and tell them where you were heading - if they were going the same way you'd hop in the back and holler at the driver when you wanted to get out. Pretty cheap and convenient! If you really wanted to splurge you could hop in a tuk-tuk style taxi and ride in comfort.

Elephant Freedom Project

This was one of the highlights of my time in Chiang Mai - visiting with, feeding, bathing and generally frolicking with elephants!

She was telling me a pretty good joke.

Pai

Cait and I bought a couple of very cheap bus tickets and hit the road to Pai, a hippie haven a couple of hours north of Chiang Mai. A party spot for backpackers and hostelers, it's home to a giant white Buddha. We stayed at a very quiet and low-key resort in our own stilt-cottage on the river. We immediately rented a motorbike and began exploring.

Thai Islands - from Ranong, Kho Chang and Kho Phayam

Vacation time! For some reason I didn't take a single picture during the 5-day trip. I'll just have to use my words to describe. We took a flight from Chiang Mai to Ranong, then got on a speedboat ferry out to Kho Phayam. After disembarking from the boat we had a short walk to our paradise - a small thatched shack within sight of the beach. Picture paradise. Dogs roamed around the very basic but picturesque resort, called Sabai Sabai (I don't think they have a website). We ate several delicious meals at the on-site, open-air restaurant (which had drinks and snacks available on the honor system).

When I say that this was paradise I'm being completely sincere. Picture any postcard you've seen of a tropical beach. Crystal-clear, warm waters, lush greenery and a profusion of palms. Truly an off-the-beaten-path hidden gem with lots of friendly folks and expats from all over the globe. The scent of cashews fills the air as the ripe fruit falls from the trees and is squished on the narrow roadways by pedestrians and mopeds alike.

Life moved a lot slower on the islands; on Kho Phayam there were no cars, only bicycles and mopeds. We spent the first afternoon relaxing in a hammock by the beach and eating some delicious fresh local Thai dishes. The next day we decided to rent a couple of bicycles and explore the island. However, after tackling a grueling hill just past the resort we were exhausted and drenched in sweat (it was hot, really hot) so we opted instead for the more expedient but less environmentally-friendly option of renting mopeds. For the next two days we zoomed around the island, checking out the best beaches and restaurants the island had to offer. This included a very-hippy ewok-style cafe/nightclub/restaurant (seemingly made entirely out of driftwood) with labyrinthine wooden walkways connected small private seating areas with ample cushions.

When we needed to refuel our moped, we bought gasoline in plastic bottles from roadside stands, a full tank for about a dollar. You could live like a king here for a few dollars a day.

A few days later we boarded a speedboat bound for Kho Chang, an neighboring island which would prove to be even more remote. After disembarking the boat we found ourselves having to walk about an hour in the sweltering heat to our "resort", actually a collection of small cottages built into the hillside of a rough and rocky shore on the West side of the island. To get back to Ranong to catch our flight a few days later, we had to rely on the once-daily speedboat leaving from several possible locations around the island. We were a bit nervous on the morning of our departure as we packed up and headed to a neighboring beach to await our fate. Luckily, the boat arrived and we were able to make it back to shore and catch our flight.

After another week in Chiang Mai we packed up our luggage with much chagrin and piled into our airport shuttles; we were headed to Japan.