Manila, Philippines

Couch Surfing!

I decided to make the Philippines my first place to try couch surfing. Couch Surfing is amazing! I sent one message and instantly I had friends and family in Manila. Even though I didn't have friends or references I sent a link to my Facebook and blog. 

Shengs Street

I ended up on a super interesting local alleyway. Shanty-houses lined the outside of a construction site on the left. An intricate weaving of passageways, steps, and concrete pieces were filled with little streams of water from lady's hand washing clothes. Kids ran around playing games, elders sat outside to talk with their neighbors and have fresh air, the rats and roaches were even welcome and run freely in the alley. Everyone in the neighborhood knew each other. In fact almost everyone was related. Some were cousins or second cousins or friends of sisters of husbands or whatever! Everyone knew each other. The neighbors shared each others refrigerators to save energy and washed each others cloths. All you have to do is open your door and stand in your doorway to talk to the neighbors, sometimes someone will just poke there head into the window and start a conversation or just make a statement. I can only try to put the emotion of the connectivity of this street into words but you have to be there!

The Family

In the morning I was greeted by the entire family and instantly fed delicious home cooked food. The family was huge and members would just pop in and out of the house. I was pressured into eating twice in a row! We eat with our hands and it makes everything more delicious. The bathroom has a toilet without a seat and a big bucket of water with a little pale. With no toilet paper you use the water in the bucket to wash yourself after number 2 and the same bucket is used to pour water over you in the shower. This is such a smart way to conserve water. I had my own room and it was frequently bombarded by all the adorable little kids. I would run around the house playing games with the kids only stopping to let the sweat dry so I could play again. I really felt like part of the family and I know I will go back to visit everyone in Manila.

(in my room)

Sheng, my host, showed me around the malls and taught me Tagalog which is the Philippino language which is mixed with spanish and english worlds. 

Shengs Sister

We had an early morning at Shengs sisters house who has a successful business landscaping certain types of stones. She has a really nice house with a lot of space on the floor so I offered to teach them yoga in the morning. After an intense yoga session we played with the dogs and kids and ate meal after meal. 

I am so grateful to Sheng introducing me to her family. Now I have a family in Manila where I always feel welcome!

(the kids of the house)

(The chef of the house)

(The dogs of the house)

Hanoi, Vietnam

Hanoi is a big city and hub similar to Ho Chi Minh. From my experience Hanoi was a more cloudy, rainy, cooler, and more relaxed than Ho Chi Minh but this could be the time of year of my visit. My favorite thing about Hanoi was the Coffee and the food!

(Yup, I had a lot of cappuccino. I even got a free one from the nice barista)

Many travelers pass through here and it’s a nice a nice place to hang out and explore with friends. Take a walk around Sward Lake and ask someone the legend behind its name. This is also a good place to go for a run if you are a running traveler like me. Stop by Hanoi Central Backpackers from 7:30 til 8:30 for free beer happy hour regardless of weather or not your staying there. This is an easy place to meet people and start your night out even if you are alone you will leave with a group to go pub crawling with.

Water Puppet Show!

This is worth seeing even though its flooded with tourists and they are all taking pictures during the show. I didn't want to be a hypocrite so I waited until the show was done. I would still recommend as its only 100,000 dong (5USD)

This is where my Journey through Vietnam ends and I catch a flight to Manila in the Philippines! 

Sapa, Vietnam

Sapa is a small city in the far northern mountainous region of Vietnam near the Chinese border. Sapa is famous for the beautiful rice terraces and the many hill tribes that farm them. The majority of the ethnic minorities that make up the hill tribes are H’mong. 

Amazing Views!

                                     

Clash of the cultures

These ladies hike from there villages (often a few hours one way) every day to sell handmade goods and find tourists who want a guided tour of their village sometimes including a home-stay or home-cooked food.

Children Playing

Children working

 Our friend we met going through the villages

She told us to call her Crab

 BBQ at the market

 (Pork BBQ and Sticky rice cooked in bamboo)

Realizing where the pork BBQ comes from. This makes you think.

Sorry I threw this in here I'm just sharing the entire experience

Cat Ba, Vietnam

The bus ride there

(The bus to Cat Ba was full but no worries, thats what these little plastic stools are for. 4 hour bus riding coach in the middle lane)

Cat Ba is a beautiful more quiet alternative to Ha Long Bay, which is one of the biggest tourist attractions in Vietnam. Cat Ba is a large island and rests along side the famous islands and rock formations jutting out of the water in Ha Long Bay.

Cat Ba isn't the place to be for crazy parties or nice beaches, but the natural beauty, nice locals, national park, kayaking and rock climbing make it pretty awesome!

Kayaking

Kayaking around the rock formations gives a dreamlike feeling especially setting off with a small group of friends instead of a tour.

Landing on the random beaches to explore islands gave a strong sense of freedom and adventure.

For such a beautiful landscape there was an awful amount of trash washed up on the beaches :(

(Ben picking up trash on the beach)

Rock Climbing

I was so happy to find awesome climbing partners to rent gear and set out for Butterfly Valley.

(me posing)

I did the last climb of the day as the sun disappeared behind the mountain and the moon came out. 

First time climbing in the dark!

Eating

One of my favorite places to eat in Cat Ba was the bakery which sold giant egg sandwiches for only 15,000 dong! I ate at least 6 of them in the 3 days I was there. 

Currently I just arrived in Sapa this morning so I will fill everyone in on those adventures later!

Phong Nha, Vietnam

Phong Nha has only recently opened up to tourism with the discovery of 300 caves including most recent discovery of Son Doong, the largest cave in the world. Aside from a few hotels the area around the national park gives you genuine experience of jaw dropping Vietnamese countryside.

For travelers the days are full of beautiful driving through scenic farmlands surrounded by magnificent rock formations, crazy fun and breathtaking adventures in the many caves, and relaxed afternoons of delicious food and a cold beer. 

(In the national park deciding which way we should go)

Phong Nha Cave

(Outside the entrance)

(Helping the tour guide)

Can you find the person in this cave?

(He is just on near the orange glowing light on the top of the beach)

Dark Cave!

(Kayaking to he entrance)

(believe it or not, this is before we got muddy)

Mud fight in the cave made this picture almost impossible

The swim toward the back of the cave in the dark was incredible and we all left the cave with soft skin

Paradise Cave

(The entrance is so small)

butt, the cave is so big

and beautiful

Tu Lan full day of treking, swimming, and caving

(our tour guid Yum yawning)

After a week of adventure in Phong Nha I hopped on a late night motorbike taxi for a 70 kilometer drive to the train station for a night train to Hanoi. 

Stop by soon to hear about more adventures in Northern Vietnam!