Bus to Phong Nha

Morning came way too early.. I packed up my bags and met the group to catch a bus to Phong Nha. I slept the entire bus ride for which I was very thankful as our one group leader has far too much energy and when combined with a microphone in a bus led to 4 hours of singing... Glad I can sleep anywhere when I'm that tired ;)

When we arrived at the hostel, Easy Tiger, we checked in and were given an overview of the area. This is a very new town for tourists with the first accommodation for international persons being opened only 3 years ago. So there aren't any people on the streets trying to sell you things or offer you drugs which is a really nice change. This area is one of the most heavily bombed areas in Vietnam because it's the narrowest part and crucial for the trade routes. Actually, the owner was telling us that just last week another bomb washed up onto the river less than a km away... They of course were able to disarm it without it going off but had it exploded it would have cleared an area 5km in radius. Crazy stuff! I guess there are bombs all over here that they still haven't found. Mostly because the bombs were meant to hit concrete buildings not the soft jungle floor.

After hearing a bit more about the area I decided to try to find an atm since I wasn't able to withdraw cash in Hue, the ATM's just weren't working for me. And neither was the one here! I went there and back three times after calling TD twice to try and resolve the issue. By the third failed attempt I gave up and decided to try calling again in the morning because the internet connection was so weak with all the people in the hostel the call kept getting dropped. The biggest issue with the three trips to the ATM was the 10 minute walk each way to get there lol. So quite the ordeal... But on the plus side the town is really cute! There are lots of french style buildings and the mountains are phenomenal. It reminded me of Laos, which makes sense as the highway here will take you directly into Laos... Absolutely beautiful here. So natural still and not touristy I love it. So even though I didn't get my debit card working I had a nice little city tour in the rain ;) I actually like it though, nice change from the instant sweat that we've been dealing with the last few weeks.

We stayed in at the hostel for the rest of the evening enjoying the incredible happy hour specials and lively atmosphere. There was a live band that played great music and there were people up on the tables dancing by the end of it. Lots of fun! The bar here shut down at 11 and a few people ventured out to an after bar, but I needed sleep and just went to bed instead. That's my priority today!En savoir plus