A Solo Travellers Mind

The first stop on the Hi Van Pass is Hue. The journey here was yet another cramped night bus, this time was five of us squeezed into the back of a bus, luckily for me though it was only for 5 hours, and entertainment was provided by the couple in front of me that couldn’t quite survive the journey without multiple displays of public affection (at one point squeezing into eachothers bed). Once checked in it was straight to bed for me, with an early rise to see all the sights in the morning. 

Jumping on yet another bicycle, this time with a friend from my hostel, Amanda. Our first stop was the abandoned watermark, which was a 10km bike ride and provided us with some interesting experiences with the local traffic… The watermark was very cool, and gave big misfits vibes. Me and Amanda let our inner child out, climbing on everything possible and even going down a slide (which burnt like hell). The next stop was the Mausoleum of Emperor Tu Duc, which honours the 19th Century emperor. Although a very spectacular sight, I would say feeding the fish in the pond was the highlight. And finally we went to the Imperial City, a huge space of land with gardens and a Palace and old theatres. It was rather impressive. On the way home we stopped for some salt coffee, a local delicacy. I opted for a yogurt mango drink, however I did try the coffee. I still don’t like it. Our evening was a big one, starting with a meal with friends (where my tongue was set on fire by a pork and eggplant dish), followed by drinks at a local bar. Described as “trashy and for tourists” we fit right in. With games of jenga and truth or dare providing entertainment to all around. The night was a bit too large for me, with no sleep had intill 5am. 

The following day was a right off, but luckily for me I had a comfy ride to Da Nang planned. On arrival in Da Nang the weather was rather awful, but I must say this was a blessing. The official go ahead from the big guy upstairs (god), to do nothing with my afternoon and order my first takeaway! Opting for a burger and chips, something I’d not had in nearly four months!

My original reason for coming to Da Nang was to see the Golden Bridge, however if the weather is poor or its cloudy its really not that impressive, and as its thirty dollars to enter, I decided to cancel this plan with the sky looking pretty naff. Instead my day was spent at The Marble Mountains, a set of mountains containing multiple temples and caves, and I managed to get on for free. On my travels I met a couple locals who told me all about the sights and where to go in Hue An. My second stop was the Fresco Village. A selection of streets with murals and street art. 100% one of my favourite things to do, since visiting Madrid at the beginning of the year, is to find all the cool street art, something that seems to be skipped by most tourists. The street tells a huge story, along with showing some incredible talent. I also stumbled across a gallery, with various different photography and paintings on display. My final stop was seeing Dragon Bridge, which you’ve guessed looks like a dragon! Again the rain started in the evening, so with dinner and desert purchased I bunkered in for the night. 

My arrival to Hue An was a wet one, followed by the wettest bicycle ride of life! I did however see lots of sights with minimal tourists due to the rain. 

My evening was alcohol infused and chaotic and subsequently resulted in an incredibly sore head in the morning. 

Refusing to succumb to the hungover, me and Jay were up and straight in the pool to try and kick it (it didn’t work). Not letting this defeat us, we, along with Tom, hired bicycles for the day. First heading to the coconut boats so see some amazing scenery and some very interesting boating skills. Next stop was the most famous Banh Mi shop in Vietnam for lunch (an incredible Banh Mi, potentially the best one yet). We then cycled up through the whole town, stopping for some wine at a rather fancy establishment, before going on the lantern boat trip. Finally we sat down for dinner, with it all going down a treat (minus my cocktail which I did have to send back because it was actually undrinkable and tasted like soap). An incredibly wholesome and lovely day, one we truly grasped with both hands! 

The final day in Hui An was spent on the beach, once again the three of us jumped on our bicycles and were away. The beach gives Dubai vibes, with the city visible in the distance which is kinda cool. I was clever and wore sunscreen, the boys however paid the price and looked like wee tomatoes by 3pm. 

The evening was spent on a night bus to Mui Ne, the bus itself was absolutely fine, taking a total of 15 hours, however getting on the bus was absolute faff, however you can’t focus on this when the rest of the journey was smooth sailing and 2 hours quicker than expected!