Around the World in 70 Days

After tearing ourselves away from the beautiful Cat Ba island, we headed back to the chaos of Hanoi to stay the night and leave the next day for Ho Chi Minh City, otherwise known as Saigon. We were so ready to be out of Hanoi. If you ever make a trip to Vietnam, you can go ahead and skip this city. We made it to the airport successfully (finally a transportation that went smoothly) only to embark into hell.

I won’t make you listen to me rant about our day in the Hanoi airport so Ill spare most of the details. Basically, we missed our flight. Being the ignorant Americans that we are, we thought that 1:30 meant 1:30 PM. Well, outside of America, we use the 24 hour system. So 1:30 is 1:30AM. We waited and waited, trying to get on another flight that day. Well, no one in the airport could speak much English and there were no flights available for three more days. We felt that all hope had been lost. We were exhausted and frustrated and it really got the best of us. We were tempted to buy a flight to come home, but luckily my dad was able to talk us out of that stupid idea. 13 hours later, after lots of tears and frustration, it was a miracle we got on a flight. We wasted almost $400 but we were so thankful to get out of Hanoi. Plus our new tickets were first class. Our flight left at 1:30AM (the same flight we were supposed to be on, but the next day) so we got into Ho Chi Minh City at 3:30. Buses don’t run until 7 and we knew that hotels wouldn’t be able to take us until then anyways so we hunkered down in the airport. We got a thirty minute nap in, cocooned in our sheet sleeping bags to avoid the hundreds of mosquitoes, before a guard basically kicked us out. We waited for the bus and thankfully made it to a hotel where we were able to sleep the hours we had missed the night before. It was hell, but we made it through. Things can only go up from there, right? So. Right.

Ho Chi Minh City is charming and exciting. Driving down the street is an adventure in itself. The overwhelming amount of motorbikes mix with the cars, both winding around one another like there are no lanes. Crossing the street is quite the task; just walk and hope that they won't hit you. The city has changed so much since I was here two years ago, showing how much this city is developing. We’ve been able to experience the War Remnants Museum, a brutal explanation of the atrocities of the war with America , and took the bus ride out to the Cu Chi tunnels that were used during the war. The tunnels were used to literally house the Vietnamese while they were bombed. We got the chance to go into them ourselves, but we both chickened out due to how small they are. It’s an incredible thing to imagine what went on here, and terribly sad.

The food has gotten better and better and the Tiger beer cheap cheap cheap. We’ve loved exploring this city and all that is has to offer. There’s a great backpacker area with everything you could want. We’ve met a lot of fun travelers along the way and the locals are extremely hospitable. So many smiles amongst the persistent salesmen. Our hotel receptionist and I have become fast friends.

TO MY SEMESTER AT SEA'ERS:
Wow has HCMC changed since we were here two years ago! I made Nelson walk over to the Rex hotel area we spent so much time in just to humor me and it is so different than what I remember. There are a lot more people, a ton of new construction and it is much louder. Construction has even taken over Tutti Frutti! The War Remnants Museum has been remodeled, but still just as brutal. We went to the restaurant that we went to so many times for dinner (remember?) and I swear it’s totally different. Nelson thinks my memory is just failing me like it always does but I have pictures to back it up. It was so weird. No, I didn’t make it to Apocalypse Now. I couldn’t do it without it filled with SASers and “Welcome Semesters at Sea” on the TV’s. The only American we’ve met so far recommended it to us saying it was the “trippiest thing he's ever experienced". I was proud he enjoyed it so much. Nelson wanted to go to the Cu Chi tunnels since I'd told him so much about it and I was really upset to find that Chandler's woman statue that he so lovingly caressed during the tour was no longer there... yes, I was looking for her. But Julia's gorilla sandals were and that made me happy. I've avoided all coconuts, at one point having to act like I was throwing up to a persistent seller to explain that I could not have any.

It's so weird to be here without yall, you know who you are. It's changed so much but it has brought back so many amazing memories! I miss yall terribly and hope things are going well back home! Just wish you were here to do it with me all over again!

Welcome to Vietnam! We've been here five days and I think we're finally settling into the travel mode. The first few days were pretty rough on us. The language barrier has made for difficult travelling and a lot of unknowns. Although we've never felt unsafe, we have been extremely uncomfortable. A lack of comfort in the hard beds (although our rooms have been very nice), in the food (although neither of us has been sick, thankfully) and in our place in the culture. The people have been very welcoming and friendly, though, which has made up for all of it.

Hanoi was a handful. Two days and we were definitely ready to leave the big, crazy city of chaos. The highlight was probably the spur of the moment stop to eat on the side of the road in kid-sized plastic chairs with an old woman who spoke no English. She cooked our noodles right there, threw in some herbs, broth and beef for a traditional pho dish. It was the best pho we've had here and the attempt at communicating with no words in common made her laugh and laugh.

The trek to the island of Cat Ba took a toll on both of us, but luckily the town was beautiful enough to wipe that all away. It's small, intimate and extremely quiet. It's paradise... Think of Jurassic Park and you've got Cat Ba island. We decided to stay here an extra day because we love it so much. For $5 a day we can rent a motorbike to explore the amazing terrain, which we've now done twice, and spent a whole day on a boat exploring the majestic beauty of Halong Bay. Even with a rough start to the trip, things are really looking up! Tomorrow we head back to Hanoi before taking a plane south to Ho Chi Minh City... back to the heat! We miss you all!! Check out our pictures!

We have arrived in Hong Kong after a 14 hour flight, little sleep and the longest day known to man. Although we left at midnight on Monday night, we got here at 6:45 AM on Wednesday morning, so it has completely thrown us off. We made it to our guest house, which we have now termed our guest closet based on the size, took a nap to recover a little and set out to explore the city, overrun with jet lag. We had a few bumps throughout the day, at one point getting so overwhelmed by the lack of comfort we turned to one another saying "I just wanna go home". Not exactly how you want to begin a 2 and a half month trip. I blame it on sleepiness. We took a bus to the peak of the city (Hong Kong is a beautiful mix of skyscrapers and natural beauty, rivalling that of San Francisco) and relaxed with a cup of coffee overlooking the stunning skyline. We were exhausted, but after a shower, which is a shower head that falls over the toilet, no actual space for a shower, we felt a little more refreshed and managed to pry ourselves out of bed to go to dinner in our neighborhood of Kowloon. And we were so glad we did. The food has been nothing short of amazing and we managed to find a place filled with locals and some of the best Chinese food we've ever had. We stumbled back, full and half asleep, and were completely passed out by 8:30. It felt like the never ending day.

Today, Thursday, we woke up after nearly 11 hours of sleep with a renewed sense of why we were here. We went to get coffee (and somehow managed to get it and breakfast at McDonalds... nothing else was open, I swear) and walked to the water just a few blocks from our guest closet to find a gorgeous view along a promenade. And of course a Starbucks. It was a great walk to start our day.

We are so so thankful to have internet, it is everywhere around the city (so much more advanced than the US). The people are so friendly and helpful and Nelson is heads above them all. It's smoggy but the weather has been great and we are going to head to the southern coast of Hong Kong Island (Stanley Market) for a relaxing day. We miss all of you and hope things are going well back home!

About this time last year, during spring break of our last year at Pepperdine, Nelson and I pulled out a world map and spent days making dots and marks on where we wanted to go. Although the route has changed often in the past year, beginning with an around the world ticket, full of stops and journeys (which we soon realized was impractical with the amount of money we could make in 6 months), then we dropped Australia and New Zealand and added in Europe, further cutting and adding countries. Only two days ago did we decide that Croatia just wasn’t going to work. The two countries that have stayed the same throughout the process: Vietnam and Thailand. I knew from the start this is where I wanted to return, only getting a small taste of the two on my trip two years ago. With just a week to go before we depart from San Francisco, plans are still altering, but we are finally ready.

After a full month of Ashleigh packing, believing it was impossible for me to get 2 and a half months worth of clothing and toiletries into a single backpack, we somehow managed to squeeze both of our clothes into one. How this happened, I am still perplexed.

On the night of the 31st, or really the morning of the 1s t (12:05 AM to be exact), we will be saying goodbye to the comforts and luxury that come along with a blessed existence in America: a comfy couch and hours of TV with no interruptions, straight hair (or hair that looks good for that matter) and any beauty products other than the bare essentials for Ashleigh, long, hot showers for Nelson, the Warriors and the Longhorns, the Super Bowl and March Madness, chips and salsa and almond butter, and technology at our finger tips. And instead saying hello to: hostels and unknown bugs, wearing the same clothes for days on end, communicating through gestures, having plans and yet having no plans at all, feeling completely out of our comfort zones, and eating foods we can’t even pronounce. But through all of this comes the excitement of travel and the fun that somehow joins with the unknown.

In February, we’ll stay in Asia, first stopping over in Hong Kong and battling jet lag for a couple of days, and then spending two weeks in a country where the ghost of war is mixed with a promising future of hope and hospitality known as Vietnam, and two weeks in the land of smiles (seriously, that’s what it’s called), Thailand. In March we fly to Munich, with five weeks to go where we want before our flight leaves from London on April 11th. We have a temporary itinerary in Europe but have no reservations except for our first two hostels in Munich and Prague during Mardi Gras. From there, the Eurail takes over and we decide day-to-day where to go, more or less.

We are going to try to update our blog as much as possible, pictures included, without giving up time we could spend exploring wherever we may be. Keep us in your thoughts and wish us the best, and please send us emails to keep us up to date with what is going on back in America! We love you all!