🇻🇳 VN-Vietnam

22th of July – Arrival, Chaos & Bánh Mì Bliss

6:30 AM — I land in Ho Chi Minh City after 12 hours of flying, barely 4 hours of sleep (if you count half-dozing upright with a sore neck), and a bladder ready to explode.

🛃 Visa on Arrival: The Patience Test

Before I can even breathe Saigon’s humid air, I’m welcomed with a 2-hour line for the visa on arrival. I could’ve grown a beard and written a novel in that queue. But hey, when I finally made it through, my luggage was already waiting for me like a loyal old friend. Small win.

🚖 First Grab Ride & Hostel Welcome

I ordered my first Grab ride for €3 (which felt illegal it was so cheap), and zoomed through the crazy traffic toward Mobylette Sai Gon Hostel. Arrived around 9 AM, too early to check in, but just in time for a much-needed breakfast.

Noodle Soup, strong Vietnamese coffee, and a slice of hope. I was slowly rejoining the living.

📬 First City Steps

Still jetlagged and operating at 30% brainpower, I decided to explore. First stop: Central Post Office – a beautiful colonial building that made me feel like I was in a movie. Then over to Notre Dame Cathedral… which is, surprise, currently one massive construction site. Oh well.

In a burst of wholesomeness, I wrote and sent a postcard, something I’ve literally never done on the first day before.

Also tried my first Bánh Mì, and I’m convinced the Vietnamese put magic in their bread. Crunchy, spicy, savory… 10/10 would eat again.

🍺 Rooftop Beers & Saigon Nights

By late afternoon, I got lucky and was able to check in an hour early. Took a glorious 2-hour nap, then headed up to the hostel rooftop for my free beer. Of course, it didn’t stop at just one.

Later that night, I went out with some folks from the hostel and experienced Bùi Viện Street for the first time, right next door.

It’s like if Vegas and Bangkok had a neon-lit, bass-thumping love child.

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23rd of July– Culture Shock & Sugarcane Therapy

💤 Lazy Morning

Woke up at 11 AM, guilt-free. Had another solid breakfast (seriously, this hostel is feeding my soul), and jumped on a Grab Bike to start exploring.

🏛️ War Remnants Museum – Heavy but Important

I visited the War Remnants Museum, and wow, it hit hard. Photos, stories, history… it’s emotional, disturbing, and essential.

I left feeling shaken, so I headed to the 9-Story Coffee House to process and inhale something sweet.

🚶 Walking Tour & Sugarcane Juice

Spontaneously joined a walking tour, where I met Sam, the Vietnamese guide, an absolute gem.

Friendly, funny, super knowledgeable. Tried my first sugarcane juice (so refreshing!) and learned a ton about Vietnam’s culture, history, and daily life.

🍻 Another Rooftop, Another Pub Crawl

Back to the hostel, rooftop beers (plural, obviously), and then joined a self-organized Scottish pub crawl.

It was chaotic, hilarious, and exactly what I didn’t know I needed.

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24th of July – Tunnels, Trouble & Travel Plans

🕳️ Cu Chi Tunnels: History Underground

I joined a full-day tour to the Cu Chi Tunnels. It was fascinating, intense, and gave me a completely different perspective on the Vietnam War.

After 7 hours of travel and tunnel crawling, I was exhausted, dusty, and mildly traumatized.

🍲 Michelin Pho with a Side of… Surprise

To treat myself, I went to a Michelin-recommended Pho restaurant — sounded amazing until I found a maggot in my veggies.

Appetite: gone. Luckily, it was only €2.50, not €25 like back home.

✈️ Plot Twist: Phú Quốc Instead of Cambodia

That evening, I started thinking about what’s next.

Cambodia? Still felt a bit sketchy with the current border situation.

So I pivoted — island life, here I come. Phú Quốc it is.

25th of July – Sleep, Snacks & Slightly Chaotic Goodbyes

😴 Lazy Day Mode: Activated

After crawling through tunnels and narrowly avoiding a Pho disaster yesterday, I granted myself a well-earned lazy morning. No alarms. No tours. Just me, a really hard bed, and the distant hum of motorbikes and air conditioning.

🍜 Food Redemption Arc

I decided to order in some food, and thank the Vietnamese food gods — it was delicious. No mystery ingredients, no unexpected life forms. Just a solid, comforting meal that didn’t traumatize me. A major win after yesterday’s Michelin maggot madness.

⏳ Waiting… and Waiting…

Later, I was supposed to meet up with a girl who kindly offered to accompany me to the airport. I got ready, packed, mentally prepared… and then I waited.

And waited.

And waited.

After 25 minutes, she finally showed up — only to jump out of the Grab car, announce she’d forgotten something, and vanish again. Genuinely iconic behavior.

But hey, she already gave me 50,000 Dong for half the ride, so I can’t complain too much. It’s the little things.

🇻🇳 Phú Quốc Island Diaries – Scooters, Storms & Cheeky Nights

📅 26th of July – Arrival, Island Vibes & Sea Urchin Surprise

✈️ Arrived late at night and genuinely thought I’d accidentally booked a resort – the hostel was that nice. Sadly, it was pretty dead, so I called it an early night like a well-behaved traveler (for once).

🌅 The next morning (technically still July 25 in my brain), I woke up early, crushed a delicious breakfast, and rented a scooter without a single hiccup. Five glorious hours of cruising around the island – aimless, sun-soaked, and completely free. Also: worst sunburn of my life. Only on my hands. Evolution has failed me.

📖 That evening, I found a quiet spot, watched a gorgeous sunset, and read my book while the sky turned pink and gold. One of those rare, peaceful travel moments where time slows down just enough for everything to feel right.

🎱 Back at the hostel, I met three English guys playing pool, but ended up hanging out with a German-Austrian trio instead. They were all leaving the next day, but one of the German guys and I stayed up drinking beer until 3 AM. Oh – and I tried sea urchin for the first time. Spiky, salty, weirdly good.

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📅 27th of July – Rain, Mud & Cheeky Beginnings

🌧️ Woke up, finally remembered to put sunscreen on… and the second I stepped outside, the sky opened up. Beach plans: absolutely wrecked.

🧺 Declared it a lazy laundry day instead. Around 3 PM the rain let up, so I jumped back on the scooter. Destination: Khem Beach. But when the skies cracked open again, I detoured into a random mall like a true survivor.

🏝️ Eventually made it to the beach – pretty, packed, and deeply not beach weather. From there, I braved muddy dirt roads in search of a highly recommended “authentic” restaurant. Let’s just say: the journey was… scenic.

🍻 Back at the hostel, I met Helmi – my new island bestie. We invited the three English guys out and hit the Cheeky Traveller Pub, which instantly became our HQ for the rest of the trip. Live music, great vibes, and a few spontaneous midnight swims. Soul food.

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📅 28th of July – Waterfalls, Hotpots & Hostel Legends

☕ Helmi and I were just enjoying breakfast when two half-dead girls stumbled in — Sapphire and Sofia! I’d met them back in Ho Chi Minh. They took a brutal 15-hour bus instead of flying and pretty much collapsed into bed on arrival. Fair.

🌧️ The rain hadn’t stopped, but we were stir-crazy. Asked the hostel about doing a waterfall hike. Reception guy: “Absolutely not, way too dangerous.” Us: challenge accepted.

⛰️ It ended up being one of the best things we did. Slippery, muddy, probably stupid — and we laughed the entire way.

🍲 That night we said goodbye to the three English guys and I tried hotpot for the first time with Helmi of course. Too much food, not enough stomach.

🍸 Later, we met two Scottish girls for Happy Hour. Then Joe reappeared — apparently we’d crossed paths in HCM, though my memory had respectfully deleted that.

🚩 And then came the 32-year-old guy. Somehow ended up joining us. Claimed he had a 5-year-old back home, had been “traveling” since January, and talked like a life coach who’d lost his client list. Weird vibes, but undeniably entertaining.

🎶 Of course, we ended the night at Cheeky Traveller, where we were already being greeted like regulars.

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📅 29th of July – Beaches, Pearls & Scooter Logistics

🏖️ Took Helmi to Sao Beach – genuinely one of the most stunning beaches I’ve seen. Crystal clear water, soft white sand, warm waves. All the beach clichés, but real.

🛵 Confirmed that three girls can, in fact, fit on one scooter. Not legally, probably. But impressively.

🎁 That evening, we hit the night market. Helmi bought herself pearls — future grandma vibes, strong and proud. Later, she sang at Cheeky. And she was actually amazing.

🍺 Another older guy showed up — same chaotic energy as the 32-year-old from the night before. Seems to be a theme: some men in their 30s really can’t hold their liquor (or their life choices).

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📅 30th of July – New Crew & Caramelised Snapper

🥲 Helmi left in the morning, and the hostel suddenly felt a little emptier. But then a new group of three English guys moved in — and, finally, no weird vibes. Just chill energy.

🏋️‍♂️ Joe and I decided to hit the gym — in the island heat. Nearly passed out, but at least we felt semi-productive for once.

🍛 That night, we found a restaurant with the most incredible caramelized red snapper — the kind of meal that makes you stop mid-bite and stare at your plate like it just changed your life. We promised each other we’d return the next day.

🍻 Ended the night bar-hopping with the new English guys, then hit the 24/7 mart for instant noodles and crisps — at this point, basically a sacred nightly tradition.

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📅 31st of July – Bonus German & Hostel Harmony

👋 That day we met a super sweet 20-year-old German guy — my third German travel friend this trip. We met randomly at a restaurant, and I brought him back to the hostel pool to meet the crew. Instant click.

🍻 That night, we headed back to the Traveller bar, aka our second home. At this point, we basically had reserved seats. Same music, same beers, new friendships. It all just worked.

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📅 1st of August – Self-Care, Solo Time & Last Night Magic

🚿 The group headed off to finally do the waterfall hike — I skipped it. Once is enough for muddy adventures.

💆‍♀️ I treated myself to a massage, then had an actually peaceful, delicious meal. No drama. No insects. Just a plate of food and some silence.

🌙 For our final night together, we naturally ended up at Cheeky one last time. Same songs, same faces, same feeling that something good was coming to an end.

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📅 2nd of August – Early Flights & Grateful Goodbyes

⏰ 5 AM departure. Brutal and bleary-eyed.

💔 Said goodbye to Phú Quốc – to the scooter rides, spontaneous friendships, sunburns, sketchy hostel characters, and every unforgettable night at Cheeky Traveller.

Thanks for everything, island life. You were exactly what I needed.