Good Morning Vietnam

A 17-day adventure by Emma & Sam Read more

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Good Morning Vietnam
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Day 3
Friday, January 12, 2024 at 9:33 PM
⛅ 25 °C
Altitude: 13 m
Vietnam Rạch Cầu Bông 10.781477, 106.69730810°46’53” N 106°41’50” E
Concert
January 12, 2024 in Vietnam ⋅ ⛅ 25 °C
On our walk home after dinner we came across some interesting places with the locals enjoying their Friday night, especially in one club.
We found what we think must be buskers in the street but had amassed a massive crowd even out onto the street with people on their bikes!Read more
TravelerSo cool 💞
1/12/24Reply
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Good Morning Vietnam
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Day 4
Saturday, January 13, 2024 at 9:20 AM
☀️ 27 °C
Altitude: 7 m
Vietnam Kinh Cầu Bông 10.922707, 106.56057310°55’22” N 106°33’38” E
Reststop + Handicap Market
January 13, 2024 in Vietnam ⋅ ☀️ 27 °C
We're off on a tour to the Cu Chi Tunnels with our tour guide Joe. This is where a lot of the locals in the area had to live during the war.
We had a quick rest stop for refreshments and a look at the Handicap 😬 Market. A lot of the people working there have been affected by Agent Orange making art out of egg shells.
I tried a local coffee. It was very sweet!Read more
TravelerCoffees usually made with condensed milk over there may be why it tasted sweet
1/14/24Reply
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Day 4
Saturday, January 13, 2024 at 10:13 AM
☀️ 28 °C
Altitude: 11 m
Vietnam Xóm Bà Thiên 11.062705, 106.52968311°3’46” N 106°31’47” E
Cù Chi Tunnels
January 13, 2024 in Vietnam ⋅ ☀️ 28 °C
A great tour around the Cú Chi Tunnels learning about how the local people lived during the Vietnam wars under the ground. Living in complete darkness and building tunnels with a simple flax basket and a trowel. Many children were born here and didn't see light for 3 years all while the war was going on above them

The tunnels are tiny! Made bigger for tourists and they had lots of traps and sneaky ways to take out the enemies. We made our way through 2 different tunnels on our hands and knees. First tunnel was overwhelming and we got out at the first chance but then went in for more. The last tunnel was about 40m metres, much smaller and you had to go up and down at points. It's honestly unbelievable that people lived in there, at least we had some light!!!
We ended the trip with tea and tapiocaRead more
TravelerWow that's amazing
1/14/24Reply
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Day 4
Saturday, January 13, 2024 at 11:46 AM
⛅ 31 °C
Altitude: 19 m
Vietnam Xóm Bà Thiên 11.059214, 106.52822911°3’33” N 106°31’42” E
Shooting Range
January 13, 2024 in Vietnam ⋅ ⛅ 31 °C
Throughout the tour all we could hear was guns going off.
We got the chance to fight some guns!
Sam an M60 and me an M16.
Awesome once in a lifetime experience
TravelerCool!!!!!
1/14/24Reply
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Day 4
Saturday, January 13, 2024 at 2:49 PM
☁️ 32 °C
Altitude: 10 m
Vietnam Cho Ben Thanh 10.773727, 106.69930610°46’25” N 106°41’58” E
Egg Coffee and too many beers 🍻
January 13, 2024 in Vietnam ⋅ ☁️ 32 °C
We got back to Saigon City and Joe told us where to find the BEST Bahn Mi in the city. He put it into Google maps and we were on our way.
Sam felt he needed something to keep him going and we saw a sign for Egg Coffee so we thought we'd stop for a quick pitstop.
The egg coffee was delicious and we got talking to a Kiwi family currently on a cruise around Asia. The dad was from Palmerston North of all places! They were all drinking beer so we thought we'd join them. The cafe workers were great, happy and celebrating their customers especially when beer was ordered. The family had to head back to their cruise so we thought we'd better make a move. Then Anita joined us.... A Lebanese Australian currently on holiday with her family. She'd taken a couple of days away from them, travelling back to Ho Chi Minh and was 'having some time to herself' with a grab driver she met a week ago ..... The beers went down too quickly and 2 and a half hours later, with more people joining our group, and never making it to the Bahn Mi we had to head off for our walking tour.Read more
TravelerGo half way around the world and meet someone from palmy of all places. Enjoy your trip.
1/13/24Reply
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Day 4
Saturday, January 13, 2024 at 6:07 PM
☁️ 28 °C
Altitude: 8 m
Vietnam Nha Tho Huyen Sy 10.76926, 106.68901510°46’9” N 106°41’20” E
Walking tour
January 13, 2024 in Vietnam ⋅ ☁️ 28 °C
After a mad dash from the beers we quickly made our way to the start of our street food walking tour. But not before Sam met Enreco the Italian and invited him and his girlfriend to stay with us if they ever come to NZ! Swapping phone numbers in the street....
We met up with Bihn and the rest of the group - A German couple (the guy was nearly 2 metres tall), a German lady volunteering for 2 weeks amongst her holiday, 2 American girls (1 called Emma who's just graduated as a nurse) and Dan who lives in Thailand.
We made our way around the city trying many different types of food - Beef rice paper wraps, coconut sticky rice noodles, pancakes that I couldn't eat because of the prawns, rice paper pizza, pork skewers, sugarcane juice, sardine Bahn mi, and coconut icecream. We weren't down to eat the fertilised egg...... Even Dan explaining his experience made my tummy feel uneasy....Read more
TravelerYum!!! (Except the egg!)
1/19/24Reply
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Day 4
Saturday, January 13, 2024 at 9:22 PM
☁️ 25 °C
Altitude: 6 m
Vietnam Quận Mười 10.76497, 106.67648310°45’54” N 106°40’35” E
End of the tour
January 13, 2024 in Vietnam ⋅ ☁️ 25 °C
We finished the 3 and a half hour tour with a walk through the flower market.
We had an awesome group and loved sharing all the experiences we've been having and plans for the rest of everyone's holidaysRead more
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Day 4
Saturday, January 13, 2024 at 9:56 PM
☁️ 25 °C
Altitude: 10 m
Vietnam Kinh Đôi 10.757808, 106.67808610°45’28” N 106°40’41” E
Start of the bus trip
January 13, 2024 in Vietnam ⋅ ☁️ 25 °C
We're now on an overnight bus to Da Lat. This is luxury compared to the old Naked Bus overnight buses in NZ!
I'll let you know how luxury it feels after 6 hours!
TravelerLush 💞
1/13/24Reply
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Day 5
Sunday, January 14, 2024 at 5:45 AM
☁️ 12 °C
Altitude: 1,492 m
Vietnam Da Lat 11.941032, 108.438511°56’28” N 108°26’19” E
Welcome to Da Lat
January 14, 2024 in Vietnam ⋅ ☁️ 12 °C
It's 5.45am. We both got a little bit of sleep and we were greeted with these stunning views on arrival.
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Day 5
Sunday, January 14, 2024 at 6:22 AM
☁️ 12 °C
Altitude: 1,488 m
Vietnam Da Lat 11.945035, 108.43319711°56’42” N 108°25’60” E
Egg Coffee
January 14, 2024 in Vietnam ⋅ ☁️ 12 °C
I searched for the best coffee in Da Lat and this was one of them. We wandered down little alley ways with beautifully painted buildings and because it was so early it felt like we had them all to ourselves. When we arrived we had to wait for the Barista to arrive which felt like forever but charged our phones, booked our adventure for the day and sipped in delicious Vietnamese Egg Coffee when it finally arrived.Read more
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Day 5
Sunday, January 14, 2024 at 8:26 AM
☁️ 19 °C
Altitude: 1,445 m
Vietnam Ấp Xuân An 11.92817, 108.43753111°55’41” N 108°26’15” E
Start of The Easy Rider Bike Tour
January 14, 2024 in Vietnam ⋅ ☁️ 19 °C
We booked a last minute Easy Rider - Motorbike Tour around Da Lat Country side. After coffee we got a grab to our hotel and utilised their WC to transform ourselves.
Before we knew it our tour guides arrived on their bikes... We joined the motorbike gang of Dragon and Hung for the day and had the time of our lives!Read more
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Day 5
Sunday, January 14, 2024 at 8:46 AM
☁️ 20 °C
Altitude: 1,483 m
Vietnam Da Lat 11.95703, 108.42875911°57’25” N 108°25’44” E
Linh Quang Temple
January 14, 2024 in Vietnam ⋅ ☁️ 20 °C
The first stop on our tour was the oldest pagoda in Da Lat, Linh Quang. It was a very peaceful place but we both felt it was a lot more flamboyant than a lot of other temples we've been to with gold dragons, Phoenix's, turtles and lions around the grounds amongst the all the buddhas and pagodas.
Dragon explained to us about symbolism within the Buddhist religion and why Buddhists practice Buddhism the way they do.Read more
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Day 5
Sunday, January 14, 2024 at 9:15 AM
☁️ 20 °C
Altitude: 1,508 m
Vietnam Ấp Đa Thành 11.970213, 108.42755911°58’13” N 108°25’39” E
Bahn Mi Breakfast
January 14, 2024 in Vietnam ⋅ ☁️ 20 °C
Dragon knew as soon as he picked us up that we didn't have full bellies from breakfast so he took us to a great spot on the way out of the city.
Cheaper than chips and absolutely delicious!
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Day 5
Sunday, January 14, 2024 at 9:26 AM
☁️ 21 °C
Altitude: 1,499 m
Vietnam Ấp Man Ling 11.978705, 108.41177411°58’43” N 108°24’42” E
Lookout
January 14, 2024 in Vietnam ⋅ ☁️ 21 °C
Not too long later we pulled over onto the side of the road to check out the valley below. At this point we were about 1500 meters above sea level.
The locals in the past used to grow vegetables but these were often affected by the weather until someone cottoned on to the greenhouse. Now the valley is full of them! Most of the houses are full of flowers but some of them even grow strawberries from a plant bought over from New Zealand!Read more
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Day 5
Sunday, January 14, 2024 at 9:49 AM
☁️ 22 °C
Altitude: 1,590 m
Vietnam Ấp Man Ling 11.982092, 108.40421311°58’56” N 108°24’15” E
On top of the World
January 14, 2024 in Vietnam ⋅ ☁️ 22 °C
Dragon and Hung dropped us off on the side of the hill and told us to climb the hill, turn left, and meet them at the bottom or they'd see us tomorrow. It's common for Vietnamese people to get up early and do exercise so this was our turn.
The climb was hard with a dusty and slippery (pine needles) path leading to the top.
We made it and the view was awesome! There was a scrub fire at the top which confused us a bit but apparently it is very common here to avoid big fires from long grass. No lawnmowers or weed whacking here just fires 😬
The view from the top was pretty surreal though. Worth the climb!Read more
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Day 5
Sunday, January 14, 2024 at 10:39 AM
☁️ 24 °C
Altitude: 1,495 m
Vietnam Cam Ly Airport 11.952268, 108.40002911°57’8” N 108°24’0” E
Flower garden
January 14, 2024 in Vietnam ⋅ ☁️ 24 °C
The next stop was a local flower garden with Lillies, daisies, vegetables and roses amongst other things with all the colours of the flowers representing something different.
Dragon talked about how hard the farmers used to work to grow the flowers now a lot of it is all automated with big sprinkler systems and steel glass houses instead of bamboo ones which didn't last that long!Read more
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Day 5
Sunday, January 14, 2024 at 11:21 AM
☁️ 26 °C
Altitude: 1,037 m
Vietnam Teurnoum 11.898771, 108.34813511°53’56” N 108°20’53” E
Waesel snd Coffee Farm
January 14, 2024 in Vietnam ⋅ ☁️ 26 °C
We made.our way further into the jungle and mountains. We stopped off at a Coffee Farm. Prior to 1975 the area was dense jungle but a lot of people from North Vietnam moved down following the war and settled here. They started by growing coffee with 3 different types of coffee grown here - Arabica, Robusta and Moka. They were having issues with the Weasels coming out from the jungle and eating all the ripe coffee beans Southey decided to use their poop to make coffee! They now have a 'Weasel farm' where the Weasels live, eat only banana and the coffee beans to make Weasel Coffee! Hung explained the process that goes into making coffee ready to be drunk for millions of coffee lovers around the world!
After looking around we sipped on Weasel Moka Coffee and Moka Butter Coffee whole admiring the view. The coffee is so strong here and we both felt the effects of the caffeine afterRead more
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Day 5
Sunday, January 14, 2024 at 12:22 PM
☁️ 28 °C
Altitude: 930 m
Vietnam Hoat 11.82419, 108.33408411°49’27” N 108°20’3” E
Linh An Tu
January 14, 2024 in Vietnam ⋅ ☁️ 28 °C
While driving around the small country lanes a massive, and I mean massive Buddha appeared out of nowhere. Another stunning Buddhist Temple full of sculptures and a calming presence.
Dragon explained to us about the circle of life and levels of hell in the Buddhist Religion, as well as the significance of incense for sending messages to the GodsRead more
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Day 5
Sunday, January 14, 2024 at 1:10 PM
☁️ 28 °C
Altitude: 909 m
Vietnam Hoat 11.822988, 108.33492411°49’23” N 108°20’6” E
Elephant Waterfall
January 14, 2024 in Vietnam ⋅ ☁️ 28 °C
Right across the river is the Elephant Waterfalls. This massive body of water is stunning in the surroundings and is such a serene place. We explored the area though still feeling a bit jittery from the earlier coffee!Read more
TravelerThe falls look amazing.
1/14/24Reply
TravelerWow
1/16/24Reply
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Day 5
Sunday, January 14, 2024 at 1:36 PM
☁️ 28 °C
Altitude: 925 m
Vietnam Hoat 11.824027, 108.33669811°49’26” N 108°20’12” E
Lunch
January 14, 2024 in Vietnam ⋅ ☁️ 28 °C
We made our way up the road to a local restaurant. Dragon ordered us the fried rice with chicken with pickles. So simple but soooo delicious. Also sooo cheap - less than $7 for both of us for lunch...
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Day 5
Sunday, January 14, 2024 at 2:17 PM
☁️ 27 °C
Altitude: 933 m
Vietnam Hoat 11.824168, 108.33855411°49’27” N 108°20’19” E
Cuong Hoan Silk
January 14, 2024 in Vietnam ⋅ ☁️ 27 °C
After Dragon told us we had an hour's ride to the next stop we suddenly turned into the Cuong Hoan Silk Factory less than a minute from lunch.
Here they use cocoons from the silk worm to make silk which is then shipped away to buy coloured and made into works of art.
The process is amazing with machinery doing a lot of the work these days.
We even tried pupae which is commonly eaten when drinking beer or wine at the end of the day. They tasted kinda nutty to me, best not to think about it too much. Sam seemed to love them and kept going back for more!
We couldn't leave without buying something so Sam got a tie and me some sick pants. First souvenirs of the trip.Read more
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Day 5
Sunday, January 14, 2024 at 2:58 PM
☁️ 26 °C
Altitude: 1,009 m
Vietnam Thôn Hai 11.87474, 108.34146211°52’29” N 108°20’29” E
Rice Wine
January 14, 2024 in Vietnam ⋅ ☁️ 26 °C
On our way back into Da Lat we stopped at a Rice Wine Maker. This man produces rice wine, snake wine, dead bird wine, coffee, honey and so much more!
The process of making the wine was explained and then we got to try....70% alcohol and it tasted like it too 🤮 they distill it 3 times and mix it which brings down the alcohol content to around 20-35% in the final product.
This is a common drink around here with the producer drinking about a litre a day. Work hard, play hard!
He also has a 50-55kg python as a pet!Read more
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Day 5
Sunday, January 14, 2024 at 3:38 PM
☁️ 25 °C
Altitude: 1,156 m
Vietnam Thôn Bốn 11.92226, 108.34505411°55’20” N 108°20’42” E
Minority Village
January 14, 2024 in Vietnam ⋅ ☁️ 25 °C
The last stop in the mountains before heading back to Da Lat was where the Minority People now live.
They are used to living up in the mountains and being self sufficient but have made a life down here. They still often head up into the mountains and live off what they can find and hunt.
Their houses are very simple mountain houses and Hung explained to us how the government is trying to work with these people to improve their lives including free schooling and healthcare.
This family caught a monkey up in the mountains so bought it home to be a pet 🤪Read more
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Day 5
Sunday, January 14, 2024 at 4:12 PM
☁️ 22 °C
Altitude: 1,516 m
Vietnam Da Lat 11.934416, 108.43086711°56’4” N 108°25’51” E
Crazy House
January 14, 2024 in Vietnam ⋅ ☁️ 22 °C
We made our way back into Da Lat and the final stop of the tour was the Crazy house. This was designed by a Vietnamese Designer who wanted to create something from her crazy life and creativity.
It really was crazy with many intertwined structures and staircases. You could spend hours here and still not see it all.
It is now also a hotel with many themed rooms. A very popular tourist destination.Read more
TravelerWow that's so cool
1/17/24Reply
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Day 5
Sunday, January 14, 2024 at 4:55 PM
☁️ 20 °C
Altitude: 1,451 m
Vietnam Hồ Xuân Hương 11.928407, 108.43707311°55’42” N 108°26’13” E
Myrtle Hotel
January 14, 2024 in Vietnam ⋅ ☁️ 20 °C
Our accommodation for the night. Out of the city, nice and quiet, clean and a comfy bed!
We quickly showered... Finally! Changed, washed some clothes and headed out for some dinner and exploring.
TravelerOmg the corgi 🥰
1/15/24Reply
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