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Vietnam: What a Dollar Can Buy You
Blog: ContemporaryNomad - 24 November 2010
Vietnam would be a dirt-cheap country – if visitors could only pay the local prices. But more often than not, tourists are charged inflated rates for pretty much everything. With this in mind, we had to really kick it up a notch and work the Vietnamese with our superb bargaining skills. And even with that, [...]
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A Feast On The Table
Blog: Ottsworld - 24 November 2010
It’s Thanksgiving and that means Americans all over the world are giving thanks and stuffing their faces with turkey. Every time Thanksgiving rolls around, I fondly reminisce about the time I was in Sydney Australia for Thanksgiving and was treated to an amazing turkey and stuffing feast. Plus the strange and inexplicable dinner entertainment of [...]
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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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Hoi An is Pure Travel Porn
Blog: The Travel Project - 8 November 2010
Okay I'm going to say it, go out on a limb and just be done with it, no embarrassment or blushing... Hoi An is pure travel candy.Hoi An is Pure Travel Porn is a post from:
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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 Hoi An Cyclo Challenge, Vietnam
Blog: The Travel Project - 27 October 2010
Niki was scrambling for her life, I was trying to think of another game show saying...the adventures of riding a rickshaw through the streets of Hoi An, VietnamThe Hoi An Cyclo Challenge, Vietnam is a post from:
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Fabulous Pho
Blog: ContemporaryNomad - 14 October 2010
It may be totally obvious, but TnT’s Excellent Vietnam Food-Venture would not be complete without a posting on pho. If one dish were chosen to represent the entire nation of Vietnam, it would probably be pho (pronounced like “foot” without the “t”). Pho is a tasty noodle soup with a flavorful broth of stewed veal [...]
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The Art of Crossing the Road
Blog: ContemporaryNomad - 13 October 2010
We thought we had it all figured out. In a previous blog posting about the challenges of crossing the road in Nepal and China, we talked about the run-jump-and-roll approach to safely walking across a busy street. As it turns out, this strategy does not work in Vietnam. The traffic here moves at lightning speed. [...]
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Market Sweets
Blog: ContemporaryNomad - 12 October 2010
Saigon’s Ben Thanh market is the ideal place to get a first glimpse of some of Vietnam’s food specialties. As we entered the indoor market, my eyes went right by the tropical fruit to a double row of tall glasses filled with fruity looking things. I’m big into desserts, so when I inquired what che [...]
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The American War
Blog: ContemporaryNomad - 11 October 2010
Most Americans have probably never stopped to think about what the Vietnamese call the “Vietnam War.” Well, it turns out that they refer to it as the “American War.” Modern-day Vietnamese view the conflict as major episode in their much longer struggle for independence and celebrate their victories with monuments and museums much as Americans [...]
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Banh Xeo
Blog: ContemporaryNomad - 10 October 2010
Since we’re in Saigon, we are starting TnT’s Excellent Food-Venture with one of mankind’s greatest creations: banh xeo. A savory pancake made with rice flour and turmeric, banh xeo, which literally translates as “sizzling cake,” is a southern Vietnamese specialty. Basic forms of this delectable dish are filled with bean sprouts, egg, green beans, pork [...]
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Saigon Rocks
Blog: ContemporaryNomad - 9 October 2010
Saigon blows me away! Everything is moving at an Energizer Bunny-esque speed. From insane motorcycle traffic that never seems to stop flowing to constant Vietnamese chatter to ceaseless sales-pitch bombardments from vendors offering anything from tours to marijuana to souvenirs. It never stops – and I love it! Although Saigon’s streets always seem to be [...]
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TnT’s Excellent Vietnam Food-Venture
Blog: ContemporaryNomad - 8 October 2010
Adventure comes in many forms. We trek, we kayak, we scuba dive. We go spelunking one week and swim with whalesharks another. We climb mountains (or at least try) and cross deserts on camels (even if we sometimes fall off). We hang out with exotic tribes, overnight in lost monasteries, and explore the world’s most [...]
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Good Morning, Vietnam
Blog: ContemporaryNomad - 7 October 2010
We hate arriving in any big city in the middle of the night, so when we realized that our flight was arriving in Ho Chi Minh City at 12:30 AM, we were less than thrilled. This enormous city, which most locals still refer to as Saigon, has a rather bad reputation as one of the [...]
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Top 10 Tips for Crossing the Road in Vietnam
Blog: The Travel Project - 20 September 2010
Dont risk your life travelling in Vietnam! Top 10 Tips for Crossing the Road in VietnamTop 10 Tips for Crossing the Road in Vietnam is a post from:
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Saigon III: Expect the Unexpected
Blog: Nilikuta Shani - 16 June 2010
My original plan was to spend three nights in Saigon, cramming my tourist activities into that short period of time: I’d complete all of the historical museums and sights around town, plus the day-trip out to the Cu Chi tunnels, … Continue reading →Saigon III: Expect the Unexpected 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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Tunneling into the deepest recesses of Hell: Cu Chi
Blog: Nilikuta Shani - 13 June 2010
Descending into the black, airless, and stiflingly hot tunnels at Cu Chi is like climbing into a filthy, claustrophobic coffin—movement is severely restrained, all is dark, you cannot breathe. Continuing deeper is like moving from one circle of hell to … Continue reading →Tunneling into the deepest recesses of Hell: Cu Chi is a post from: Nilikuta Shani
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Saigon II: Oh, the food that you’ll eat!
Blog: Nilikuta Shani - 9 June 2010
Vietnam is on just about every serious travelling foodie’s “must visit” list—this country produces some of the best food in the world, and it can be found everywhere.
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The Capital of the South: Saigon
Blog: Nilikuta Shani - 7 June 2010
Saigon. The name conjures up images of the exotic and other-worldly and once you’re here, you can expect to experience just about the same. Vietnam’s financial capital has experienced explosive growth in recent years—many international banks and businesses now work … Continue reading →The Capital of the South: Saigon is a post from: Nilikuta Shani
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Photo of the Week – Vietnam
Blog: Ottsworld - 28 May 2010
Hard Hat – Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam While on a cyclo ride in HCMC, I encountered this guy hanging out of a little motorized tuk tuk in HCMC. I found his choice of helmet funny – a throw back from the war. Granted, sometimes I felt like driving in Saigon was similar to going into [...]
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The Reunification Express
Blog: Travels with a Nine Year Old - 26 May 2010
We flew from Manila into Saigon last week, the day after Ho Chi Minh’s birthday, and rode the Reunification Express 1600km or so upcountry to Hanoi to pick up our journey through mainland South-East Asia from the north. Vietnam is one of Z’s favourite countries. And not just for the pho (we had our first [...]
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Saigon
Blog: Some Travel Required - 16 April 2010
Unfortunately, due to our schedule we were only able to stay in Saigon (now named Ho Chi Minh City after Uncle Ho) for one day, but what we saw of it made us want to come back for more. We arrived in the evening after a 5-hour bus ride from Mui Ne and the streets were bustling with all sorts of activity. Saigon has a pretty cool vibe with tons of bars and restaurants to fit every budget and taste. The night we arrived we actually ended up having some pretty good Mexican food at a place called Cantina, just off of Pham Ng
