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Showing 1-25 of 28 results
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Don’t Tread On Me
Blog: Nilikuta Shani - 19 December 2010
Travelers coming through Vietnam either love or hate the place. While I was in Cambodia I’d met several people who’d just crossed the border and couldn’t have been more thrilled—“escaped Vietnam” was the term they used. After several weeks here … Continue reading →Don’t Tread On Me is a post from: Nilikuta Shani
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The Prettiest Train Ride I Slept Through
Blog: Nilikuta Shani - 19 December 2010
Vietnam is a bigger country than most people expect, and backpackers will at some point find themselves traversing from one length to the other on some form of time-quickening transport—plane (for those who didn’t go bust in Hoi An), or … Continue reading →The Prettiest Train Ride I Slept Through is a post from: Nilikuta Shani
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Memorial Day on China Beach
Blog: Nilikuta Shani - 19 December 2010
Hoi An, Vietnam, is known internationally for several things—cheap, made to order tailoring (there are well over 100 bespoke clothing stores here); it’s famous noodles, said to be made out of the local well-water; and for being a World Heritage … Continue reading →Memorial Day on China Beach is a post from: Nilikuta Shani
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Vietnam Pictorial
Blog: ContemporaryNomad - 3 December 2010
Quite literally some of the fastest moving people on the planet, it is a miracle that I could get anyone to stand still long enough to capture them on film. That said, the chaotic frenzy known as Vietnam also has a serene side. Both extremes work to create a photographer’s paradise – check out our [...]
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South and Central Vietnam
Blog: ContemporaryNomad - 9 November 2010
A few weeks into our trip, we’ve enticed you with photo after photo of life in Vietnam. But still images of a country as lively as this only make up half the story. To get the full (motion) picture, follow us as we travel from vibrant Ho Chi Minh City through the fun beachside town [...]
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Trapped
Blog: ContemporaryNomad - 6 November 2010
When we first came to Vietnam, we had committed ourselves to a relatively low-maintenance trip focused on food and fun. Somehow, the adventure just seems to find us. Mere hours into our overnight trip from Hue to Hanoi, the train unexpectedly stopped on the tracks outside Donghoi. For hours, no movement. Although the train was [...]
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Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner
Blog: ContemporaryNomad - 5 November 2010
“What was that sound?” I asked Thomas as I took another serving of caramelized pork. Thomas reflected and savored his last bite of river eel with green banana, “I think the electric fan is rusty. It’s just squeaking.” “Oh, OK.” I responded. I was eying the last bit of mustard leaves sauteed with garlic when [...]
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Meet Mr. Cu
Blog: ContemporaryNomad - 4 November 2010
During a Hue evening stroll, we happened to walk by Mandarin Cafe near the Google Hotel and were immediately invited in by Mr. Cu, the friendly owner. As soon as we entered, we realized this was no ordinary cafe. Mandarin is a restaurant and photo gallery rolled into one. Dozens of photographs adorn the walls [...]
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Google Expands Business in Asia
Blog: ContemporaryNomad - 3 November 2010
Google seems to have expanded its empire with the new Google Hotel line.
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Taking to the Streets
Blog: ContemporaryNomad - 2 November 2010
Before coming to Hue, we had heard that the city was the perfect place to partake in imperial-style banquets featuring a range of specialty foods linked to the city’s regal heritage. We were eager to splash out on one of these royal feasts in the name of “research,” but once we started talking to locals [...]
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Monsoon Tour
Blog: ContemporaryNomad - 1 November 2010
What do you do when the rain just won’t stop? Well, our answer was to throw on our rain ponchos and just keep going. Turns out, the rain gods didn’t like us challenging them like that, so they decided to put us in our place. We biked way out to the royal tomb of Tu [...]
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Weasel Coffee, Schmeasel Coffee
Blog: ContemporaryNomad - 31 October 2010
How far would you go for a good cup of coffee? Would you get yourself a pet weasel, feed it coffee berries, dig through the weasel droppings to get your precious coffee beans back, and then grind them for a tasty cup of coffee? Well, if you are a true coffee connoisseur and want to [...]
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The Citadel of Hue
Blog: ContemporaryNomad - 30 October 2010
Hue, the city of imperial palaces and tombs, is on most travelers’ itineraries when they visit Vietnam. The city’s most famous attraction is the ancient Citadel and the Imperial Enclosure within. Having done a semester course in Vietnamese history and being an architecture nut, I had set my expectations pretty low for our visit to [...]
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Vietnamese Salads
Blog: ContemporaryNomad - 29 October 2010
What I really love about Vietnamese food is the integration of fresh, uncooked fruit and vegetables into many of the dishes. If you like light and fresh, it doesn’t get much better than Vietnamese salads. Although famous beyond the borders of Vietnam, we had a hard time finding restaurants which offered them here in the [...]
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The Best Service Ever
Blog: ContemporaryNomad - 28 October 2010
We don’t normally recommend hotels because everyone’s expectations of a place and how much they should pay are so different. This time, however, we have to make an exception. Almost immediately after entering the Hoang Trinh Hotel in Hoi An, we knew this place was different. Exhausted after an 11-hour bus ride from Nha Trang, [...]
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Beach Treats
Blog: ContemporaryNomad - 26 October 2010
With over 3,000 kilometers of coastline, nothing in Vietnam is really far from the beach. Between exploring Hoi An’s old town and sampling local cuisine, we took an afternoon out to relax at An Bang Beach, a long, nearly undeveloped stretch of sand a few kilometers outside of town. What seemed to be an almost [...]
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My Son – This Ain’t No Angkor Wat
Blog: ContemporaryNomad - 25 October 2010
“Angkor Wat is much better,” the girl complained as she puffed on her cigarette and held her head, “God, I have such a hangover.” She took another puff and dropped her butt amid the ruins. Sometimes, I really miss the days when travel was hard and the clueless rarely found their way past their front [...]
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Les Desserts
Blog: ContemporaryNomad - 24 October 2010
Baguettes, croissants, home-made country pâté, fine wines and a love for strong coffee, French colonists definitely left their mark on Vietnam. And while the Vietnamese fought long and hard for independence, they were more than willing to keep a few culinary memories of their colonial oppressors. Traditional French cuisine is widely available in Vietnam’s larger [...]
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Illumination
Blog: ContemporaryNomad - 23 October 2010
Sometimes, you just need to stop and see the light.
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Hoi An for Foodies
Blog: ContemporaryNomad - 22 October 2010
After wandering through Hoi An’s atmospheric back lanes and along the river-front promenade, it’s time to buckle down and start eating. For most visitors, a sampler of classic Hoi An specialties is on the menu. Virtually all the restaurants offer their own version of the classics, some better than others. In a massive generalization which [...]
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Hoi An
Blog: ContemporaryNomad - 21 October 2010
In a country that has seen its fair share of war, Hoi An is a small miracle. Through the chaos and destruction of World War II, the French Viet-Minh War, and the American War, this tiny town and its architectural treasures somehow survived intact. Declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1999, little Hoi An [...]
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How (not) to blow your budget in Hoi An
Blog: Nilikuta Shani - 13 July 2010
In my regular life—my life outside being a flashpacking, dorm-sleeping, mosquito swatting intrepid traveler—I love fashion. I can’t help it. But as a broke grad student, then as a broker law student, I never got to fulfill my dreams of … Continue reading →How (not) to blow your budget in Hoi An is a post from: Nilikuta Shani
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What to expect in a Vietnamese Restaurant
Blog: Ottsworld - 16 June 2010
Going out to eat at a restaurant is easy, right? …not always. Often when you find yourself in other countries, even though there’s a waiter, a table, you are putting food in your mouth, and there’s a bill – there are many things that can be vastly different. As I lived in Vietnam there [...]
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Island Life
Blog: The Heather Report - 11 March 2010
Okay, so it's not Hawaii...but I live on an island….in Vietnam. How did that happen? What I know for sure is that I love the simplicity of it all. I live in one room that has a beautiful view of the bay. I have a job I truly enjoy. I'm able to rock climb in some of the most pristine settings on earth. I’m quite sure it’s the most beautiful place I’ve ever hung my hat.
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Vietnam for Foodies
Blog: The Heather Report - 1 January 2010
Hoi An boasts some of the best food I've eaten on my trip thus far. For whatever reason, this little town claims a few delectable dishes as unique to their town alone. The first is White Rose, a simple but outstanding meat and shrimp dumpling steamed in a rice dough that somewhat resembles a white rose.
