HOI AN I didn’t spend much time in Da Nang aside from the airport and later, the railway station. I had high expectations for Hoi An, but I ended up enjoying the place for all the unexpected reasons. The picturesque Hoi An Ancient Town, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is packed with tourists at night, much like a carnival. The city seemed to depend solely on the tourism industry, and the sheer number of tourists and inauthenticity destroyed most of the city’s charm. Although the main streets of Hoi An are busy enough that it isn’t the safest for biking, I biked everywhere—eastward to Cam Thanh and halfway over Cua Dai Bridge, westward back to Hoi An, and northward past Tra Que Vegetable Garden to An Bang Beach—sunburn and dehydration probably caused my fever. Within the Ancient Town, aside from visiting the Japanese Covered Bridge, the Old House of Tan Ky, the Museum of Trade Ceramics, the Hoi An Fine Art Gallery, the March Gallery, and the Fukian Assembly Hall, I discovered Réhahn, a renowned French photographer, at his Precious Heritage Art Gallery Museum and the Couleurs d’Asie Gallery. The friendly, genuine, and deeply passionate people of Hoi An, captured in many of Réhahn’s photos, define my memory of Hoi An: from Phin Coffee, a quaint, tranquil, outdoor coffee shop with a playful little puppy and an enthusiastic barista, to Phi Banh Mi, an unassuming family-run banh mi stand and a cozy place to escape the bustling streets and chat with the owners, to Golden Bell Homestay, whose receptionist evidently noticed my upcoming birthdate when I checked in three days ago and rushed out to wish me ‘Happy Birthday’ as I was leaving on a GrabBike for Da Nang. HUE Hue, the former capital of Vietnam during the Nguyen Dynasty, is home to the ‘Complex of Hue Monuments’, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. I arrived in Hue during Hue Festival 2018. For about $16, I bought a combined ticket for entrance to three tombs and one citadel. From my hostel, I took a GrabBike to the Tomb of Khai Dinh. However, once away from the city center, I was left with no phone signal and only tour busses available. I ended up walking over two miles to the Minh Mang Tomb. From there, it was about five miles to the Tu Duc Tomb. As much as it was calming walking alone on a simple road, the sun was unrelenting and time was running out. An idle taxi parked on the side of the road, but the cost of a taxi ride was much higher than that of a moped ride. My negotiation with the driver caught the attention of a local couple across the street, and the elderly husband offered to give me a ride for 50,000 VND or about $2. We ended up stranded on the street without fuel before a woman came by with a fuel-filled water bottle. Upon arriving at Tu Duc Tomb, an extra eager woman noticed and offered a moped ride for after my tomb visit. By then, it was almost dark and it would be another four miles to my hostel. Realistically, walking was not an option, but I couldn’t show that as her offer price was 600,000 VND, stressing that my hostel was very far and refusing my counter-offer of 50,000 VND. As I continued walking away, she lowered her price little by little, until a local man overheard and joined in with a single offer of 50,000 VND. I agreed immediately. It was too late to check out the abandoned waterpark at Thuy Tien Lake. The next day was much more laidback, beginning with a visit to the Pagoda of the Celestial Lady, Hue Citadel, and Truong Tien Bridge, which was designed by Gustave Eiffel, the engineer behind the Eiffel Tower. Sheltered from the heat, I waited at The One Coffee and Bakery for my overnight train to Ninh Binh. NINH BINH I arrived in a storming Ninh Binh at around 3:00am, eventually catching a $5 un-metered ride with a self-proclaimed taxi driver to the Tam Coc Bungalow. Ninh Binh was the most rural destination of my trip. At this hour, I was greeted only by a waddling puppy. After showering in the dark with tiny insects crawling about, I watched as daylight coyly revealed the limestone karsts surrounding the area. After breakfast, I rented a mountain bike for $2 for the day and made my way to the Trang An Grottoes. The boats seated four people plus a rower, so I was joined by three foreigners who met just a few days ago; one worked at a hostel where the other two stayed. After three hours on a boat through nine caves and three temples, I bid farewell and biked to the Mua Caves. Here, I fell victim to a parking scam. The road to the entrance was lined with vendors offering parking for 5K to 10K VND or about $0.25 to $0.50, however, parking was actually free right at the entrance. Later, as I was leaving, I saw two girls on mopeds hesitate when told to park despite their guide telling them to ignore the scammer. As a fellow tourist, I thumbed them onward to skip the parking and shared a good laugh with the scammer as I told her that I respected her audacity. The hike up to the peak was moderate, but the view was almost spiritual. There is something about sharing a sunset with people you don’t know from all over the world. This was unexpectedly a defining moment and the height of my time in Vietnam. CAT BA After experiencing the debilitating drawbacks of overly touristic spots, I decided to forgo the famed Ha Long Bay for now, in favor of Cat Ba Island. With the same few popular attractions, I frequently ran into people originating from Ninh Binh with whom I shared the bus-boat-bus journey to Cat Ba. Among others, I shared the dorm room with an Australian couple who’ve been travelling in Vietnam for over a month and a solo traveler recovering from a motorbike accident due to loose gravel at a construction site. At this point, I was fairly exhausted and spent most of my time in the hostel and at Yummy Restaurant tasting dishes and playing with their puppy instead of on snorkeling, kayaking, and island-hopping tours. The next day, I caught a ride to Cat Ba National Park and hiked up to Ngu Lam Peak for an expansive view of the treetops followed by a short visit to the Hospital Cave. As Cat Ba is known for its cheap yet fresh seafood, I had oysters and garlic squid at Quan Family Restaurant before hiking up to Cannon Fort at sunset. Despite deciding not to book one of the many cruises through Ha Long Bay, I originally wanted to get to Yết Kiêu to hike up to Bai Tho Mountain for an expansive view of Ha Long Bay. However, getting in and out of Cat Ba Island was too time consuming and getting through the entrance of the hike was logistically questionable. HANOI Hanoi, an interesting mix of grand streets and tight alleyways, bustling with life in every corner, was best explored on foot. In my two remaining days in Vietnam, I walked my way to various attractions and food places: Banh Mi 25, Pho Gia Truyen, Cafe Giang (home of the original egg coffee), Den Ngoc Son and Hoan Kiem Lake, Bun Bo Nam Bo, Hoa Lo Prison, St. Joseph’s Cathedral, Cong Café, Hanoi Street Train, Lenin Park, Flag Tower of Hanoi, and the Temple of Literature. On May 8, after visiting the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum and stopping by Banh Mi 25 one last time, I took a GrabBike to the airport for my flight back to Singapore. SINGAPORE Upon returning to Singapore, I spent the remainder of May 8 and the entirety of May 9 reviewing for my Accounting Information Systems final exam on May 10. May 11 was my last full day in Singapore. Previously, my mentality was always that there would be another time to explore Singapore. However, the end of studying abroad came faster than I expected, and there was still so much that I wanted to do in Singapore. At this point, I probably did more sightseeing in foreign countries than in Singapore. As a last-ditch effort, I sought to make the most out of my last day, kicking it off with a visit to the Cloud Forest, Flower Dome, and Supertree Grove at the Gardens by the Bay. Don’t forget to show your NUS matric card and/or Student’s Pass for heavily discounted ticket prices. After grabbing some chai tow kway (carrot cake) at the food court in The Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands, I visited the ArtScience Museum. Partnered with Google, Lenovo, WWF, Panasonic, and Qualcomm, Into the Wild: An Immersive Virtual Adventure included an augmented reality tour of the Southeast Asian rainforest. For every virtual tree planted accompanied by a pledge to WWF, a real tree will be planted in Rimbang Baling in Indonesia. Art from the Streets, the second main gallery I visited, showcased the progression of graffiti and street art with artists expressing individuality through design and technique and making relevant and powerful statements for the social and cultural movements of their time. Personal favorites from the gallery include JR, Tarek Benaoum, Futura, Vhils, FAILE, Blek le Rat, Banksy, Tanc, Sten Lex, and Shepard Fairey, with Rero and Zevs as artists with some of the more simply distinct and recognizable styles. From the ArtScience Museum, I walked across the Helix Bridge and passed through Esplanade for a view of the Merlion before continuing to Suntec City to check out the Fountain of Wealth, the largest fountain in the world. Passing by the historic Raffles Hotel, which was unfortunately under renovation, and Singapore Management University, I walked to the National Museum of Singapore. Among a few smaller exhibits, the Singapore History Gallery was one of the most interesting and by far the most comprehensive, detailing history spanning from pre-colonization to present day. After about two hours in the museum, I made my way through Orchard Road to Basilico in the Regent Hotel for a final dinner with family friends. I learned later that on the same level of the hotel is Manhattan, which is widely considered the best bar in all of Asia. By now, it was already around 9:30pm. From the Somerset MRT Station, I decided to head down to Marina Bay Sands for a final look from above of Singapore’s skyline. Coincidentally, the exchange students were throwing a farewell event at CATO, which was fairly empty when I dropped by. Although I heard the crowds came in later, I ended the night at the nearby Blu Jaz Café where there was a live jazz band playing mostly 70’s and 80’s jazz-funk and soul pieces. It was a Friday night, so the place was packed; the striking ambiance of people singing and dancing together seemingly without a worry on their minds was unforgettable. For me, Hawai‘i was at the very top of my mind. TAIWAN
At 10:25am on May 12, I flew from Singapore to Taiwan. When I was younger, I would visit Taiwan at least once a year, but now, I would only visit about once every two years. The last time I visited was in December 2016, and two years before that, I learned to drive, ride a moped, and bike (finally) in Taiwan. This time, the only agenda was to spend much needed time with my grandparents, aunts and uncles, and cousins. In the evening of May 16, I left Taiwan for home. Comments are closed.
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ABOUT ME
Keng-Chia Chao BBA Candidate in Finance, Accounting, & Management Information Systems Shidler College of Business, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa Archives
May 2018
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