1. So it begins…
my 6 months travel in Asia adventure and I wonder already if I will keep up with almost daily blogging. For sure my posts will be less extensive than the ones for the first days.
FLASHBACK
But before I jump into my report of recent events, first a short summary of the past: The last time I travelled in Asia was in 2013-2015, mainly bridging the time until my visa as a permanent resident in Australia got approved. I fell in love with street/landscape photography, subsequently switched my profession and ventured into all types of photography the following years : portrait, product, food, graduation and a single wedding. It mostly meant scraping by, barely covering my costs of living but even if I could travel back in time I wouldn't change anything.
In the last 8 years I didn't have any holidays apart from a few camping trips within Queensland, ranging from 2-4 days. At the end of last year I decided to dream big and started planning for a half year trip overseas.
THE LAST DAYS IN AUSTRALIA
In the previous week my stress and anxiety levels went through the roof. I miscalculated how long it would take to pack up my belongings to store them in a professional storage unit. Even though I had help from a friend, not everything fit in the van and I had to hire an Airtasker (a service where you post a task online and people apply with quotes) with a Ute and trailer for the next morning in order to transfer the remaining load of boxes and miscellaneous stuff into storage. 42 hours without sleep with almost 26 hours of constant work: packing, cleaning, hauling stuff from A to B...probably the most exhausting move out of my life.
START OF MY JOURNEY:
Day 1 (19.08.2023):
18th of August – 9:30pm. My boardgame buddy and friend Gil drives me to the airport, dropping me off with luggage just shy of 20.3kg pushing the limits of the permitted 20kg for checked baggage plus my backpack cramped with cameras, lenses, laptop, tablet and other electronic gadgets. Take off is scheduled for 00:30am . I am told at the check in that I can only stay 14 days, not 30 unless I get a visa extension. Furthermore I need to show a flight or bus trip out of Vietnam or I am at risk of been sent back at the airport in Saigon. I quickly buy a bus ticket from Saigon to Phnom Penh in Cambodia for 30 days later. The check-in girl is now insisting the trip needs to be within the next 14 days. What else can I do than buying a second bus ticket. Apparently my brand new passport is also causing a problem which needs to be resolved with a phone call to a higher-up. I get referred to another guy confirming that I can only stay for 14 days due to laws that have changed. It's getting late. The check-in closes with me as the last passenger together with another dude that ran into trouble. I quickly make my way to the security screening. Of course I trigger the alarm. I have no metal on me. The security staff tells me the paper tissue in my pants was potentially the problem – really? I endure a manual security check and get finally waved through. My flight is delayed by almost 2hours and our plane is the last to leave Brisbane airport that night.
ARRIVAL:
The VietJet Air flight is alright but nowhere near what I would call comfortable. An AUD $250.00 + AUD $50.00 for checked luggage flight doesn't buy you any perks like a meal, a drink, a blanket, earphones or a monitor in front of your seat with entertainment apps. This is a flight as bare bones as it gets. I have the seat near the aisle and fortunately the middle seat between me and the guy at the window is unoccupied. I rest my head on the tray in a myriad of positions trying to trick my body into falling asleep. Not really working but better than nothing.
Getting through security at Saigon Airport takes ages. Once again, I am almost the last person being served. I pre-emptively ask how to extend my 14 day stay to 30 days. The security officer looks confused and we go back and forth until he makes it clear that according to a very new law I can stay for 45 days! in Vietnam without a visa...needless to say he isn't even interested in seeing a booking of a bus trip or flight out of the country. Well – thank you guys at Brisbane Airport for pushing me to buy 2 useless tickets.
I am fed up and decide not to give in to any of the shouted “taxiii? Taxiii?” and “SIM card ! Sim card, Sir! sales pitches in the airport foyer. I might regret my idea but hey, I signed up for adventure, right? Instead of spending AUD $20.00-$30.00 on a taxi, I walk the approximately 4km to the hotel, immersing myself into the insanity that is Saigon's traffic. The quality of the sidewalks is ridiculously bad, forcing me to lift my bag dozens of times. Scooters block the path and I am often walking on the road close to the curb constantly checking for potential threats. I am soaked in sweat with my 30kg of luggage. Zebra crossings aren't even considered a recommendation in Ho Chi Minh City a.k.a. Saigon.
The last 30minutes of my torturous march I spend walking up and down the street close to my hotel. I ask a handful of people but their advice is either unintelligible or simple misinformation. At last I reach my final destination. An older couple speaking excellent English welcomes me. I can choose between different rooms, get offered tea and bananas – awesome! A few hours later I have a stroll to the market that is less than 150m away – hands down the best feature of the location.
Despite not knowing any meaningful Vietnamese words other than “Cảm ơn” (Thank you!), I end up with a bag of fresh herbs, salad ingredients, a small bottle of sesame oil, a 5 litre water container and a pitaya (dragon fruit). Fantastically most fruit and veggies are super affordable and in the range AUD $ 01.00-02.00. Exceptions are import products like peanut butter or oats which are sold for up to outrageous AUD 11.50/kg, about 5x the price I pay in Australia.
Anyway, I am thrilled. The prospect of being able to prepare meals for myself now and then lifts my mood. Having packed a plate, cutlery, a collapsible bowl and a cutting board has already paying off.
