Hue, Hoi'an, Ho Chi Minh City

After the first three stops, half of my time in Vietnam had already passed, and I realized that I had less time than I had planned for the places I wanted to visit. I also decided not to take a bus ride from Hoi An to Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) as it would have taken me over 24 hours...

My first remaining stop was Hue. I had a full day there and used it to visit the ancient Imperial Palace. It reminded me a lot of the Forbidden City in Beijing. It was incredibly hot that day, so I spent most of the afternoon in a café and at the hostel before treating myself to a cocktail at sunset and some local food in the evening. Besides spring rolls, shrimp in a slimy, semi-transparent tapioca paste steamed in banana leaves (Banh bot loc), or crispy filled rice pancakes are specialties of the region.

The next morning, I headed to Hoi'an in the rain. Other travelers had advised me to allocate more time there, as Hoi'an was supposed to be a very beautiful city. And it is! The beautiful old town was decorated with numerous colorful lanterns, creating a romantic atmosphere. The night market was somewhat disappointing, as it mainly offered souvenirs, but I did manage to find a delicious banana pancake.

On the following day, I took a bike ride again. I visited a fishing village, skipped paying an entry fee for the coconut village and the coconut forests, and instead, I explored one of the beaches and the local vegetable and spice gardens. In the evening, I participated in a "cooking course" organized by the hostel, where I learned how to roll authentic Vietnamese spring rolls and had interesting conversations with other guests during the dinner.

Finally, my last stop in Vietnam was Ho Chi Minh City, also known as Saigon. I arrived just in time before a typhoon hit the city, flying in from Danang.

However, the typhoon prevented me from seeing much of the city. The only place I managed to visit was the Vietnam War Museum. It was a very educational and emotionally moving experience. The museum presents facts, atrocities, and individual stories of the war. I had to take breaks between the rooms to process what I had seen.

As soon as we left the museum, we found ourselves in modern Saigon, where numerous hotels, restaurants, and spas in the city center seemed to have erased the dark history. Since there wasn't much else to do in the rain, my Swiss acquaintance from the hostel and I treated ourselves to a pedicure and sought refuge from the rain in a café, where I had the best chocolate soufflé of my life. It almost felt like being back in Europe: it was wet and "cold" outside, and we sat indoors enjoying chocolate. On our way back, we had the chance to witness a Vietnamese motorbike parade. Despite the rain, hundreds of Vietnamese people hopped on their scooters, waving flags and celebrating their national team's victory in the Asia Cup.

Back at the hostel, I had just enough time for a hot shower before the power went out - including our dinner... With the rain, no one felt like going out, and delivery would have taken too long or might not have come at all. So, we had one last Vietnamese beer by candlelight and then went to bed. The next morning, it was time for my next adventure: Thailand.

After the first three stops in Vietnam, I had less than one week to see the other places I had planned to visit. This made the rest of my journey through Vietnam a little bit less relaxed. (Note: You definitely need more time than two weeks to see all of Vietnam!) I also decided against a bus journey to Ho Chi Minh City or Saigon, since it would have cost me 24h or more...

The first of my three last stops was Hue, the old capital of Vietnam. I spent the whole day I had there visiting the Emperors Palace which is also named the Purple Forbidden City. And indeed, the structure of it reminded me of the Forbidden City in Beijing. In the evening I allowed myself a cocktail at sundown and tried some local food. Besides spring rolls, a dish with shrimps in Tapioca root steamed in banana leaf (Banh bot loc) as well as crispy stuffed rice pancakes are famous for the region.

The next day I made my way to Hoi'an through the rain. The city is a three-hour bus ride from Hue, and other travelers had advised me to plan some more time there. And indeed, I was glad to have almost two days there. The old town, with its beautiful old houses, was decorated with colorful lanterns and gave it a very romantic touch in the evening. The night market was a little disappointing, after the ones I had seen in Taiwan, since vendors sold mostly souvenirs and no food. But I found some delicious banana pancakes with chocolate sauce.

On my second day, I rented a bicycle once more and visited a fishing village, where they use, among others, round boats to fish. For a change, I was one of only a few tourists, which was nice. After that, I refused to pay an entrance fee for the Coconut Village. Instead, I visited the local vegetable and spice gardens and went to the beach, even though the wind made it a little hard to enjoy. In the evening, I joined a spring roll 'cooking class' in the hostel, where I learned how to roll and eat (a lot of) Vietnamese spring rolls. The trick is to roll the deep-fried ones in salad and fresh rice paper. That way, it tastes healthier, and you can eat more! After dinner, I had time to engage in some interesting conversation with other guests.

My last stop in Vietnam was Saigon. I reached it by plane from Danang shortly before a typhoon and heavy rain hit the city. The rain stopped me from seeing a lot of the city. The only thing I saw was the Vietnamese War Museum. It was an informative but most of all very touching experience for me. The museum informs its visitors about facts, cruelties during the war, and individual fates of people during, but also after, the war. After each room, I had to take a break to digest what I just had learned.

Once on the street again, we were back in modern Saigon with its many hotels, restaurants, and beauty parlors in the city center, where the dark past of the country almost seemed to be forgotten. And since there was not much else to do in the rain, we (my Swiss friend from the hostel and I) went to one of the pedicure places and afterwards, we sought shelter from the rain in a café where I ate the best chocolate soufflé in my life!

Back in the hostel, I had time for a hot shower before a blackout that lasted most of the night. For dinner, we had a bottle of Vietnamese beer in candlelight, since none of us, including the hostel staff, was keen on going back into the rain to get dinner.

After that rainy day in Saigon the next day it was time to dive into my next adventure: Thailand.

Gate to the Forbidden Purple City

The Forbidden Purple City

Artful column

Art at the Citadelle

Gate at the Citadelle

Hue at sunset

Hue

Sundowner

Crispy rice Pancakes

Banh bot loc

Old town Hoi'an

Fishing village

Round fishing boats

Hidden Beach Hoi'an

Herb garden Hoi'An

Spring Roll cooking class

Saigon by night in the rain