My next stop on the trip was Vietnam, and I was once again joined by friends (yay!). Here’s a little recap:

Vibe(s) of the moment: vacay with friends, trying not to get hit by cars in Hanoi, being extremely annoying in a canoe, drinking egg coffee.

Kelsey and I flew from Chiang Mai to Hanoi (which was surprisingly fast) on Valentine’s Day. Hanoi is quite chaotic – and we were impressed with our Bolt (their Uber) driver’s traffic navigation skills. He cut about twenty minutes off of our arrival time from the airport to our hotel. Our hotel was also a delight, and we were greeted by some of the nicest people ever. When Kelsey booked the hotel, it asked if we were celebrating any special occasions. Both being unemployed, I suggested something like ‘career changes’ and the note from the hotel with chocolates congratulated us by saying “change is the start of something new, and we are delighted to celebrate this milestone with you! May this exciting chapter be filled with success and wonderful opportunities!” Indeed. 

When we started to roam around the streets of Hanoi, we were alarmed. There were few crosswalks, and when you were lucky enough to see one – there would be hoards of motorbikes that would not care about said rules of the road. We asked for advice on how to cross the road, which is notoriously…difficult…in Hanoi, and the hotel peeps said that we should just cross the street with our hands up and hold hands. It worked. None of us were ever hit by cars, and we got better at it as the days went on. Staying in the Old Quarter was also great because we almost never had to take a taxi anywhere. Everywhere was within walking distance, and we sure got our scary steps in. 

Snack of the moment: egg coffee – obviously. I had heard about egg coffee prior to arriving in Hanoi. However, the thought of it gave me the ick. Especially in the year of our Lord 2025, rife with bird flu and expensive eggs. 

On our second day in Vietnam, Kelsey and I made the treacherous walk through the Old Quarter to go to The Note Coffee, which might be the coolest cafe that I’ve ever been in. We decided to try egg coffee and wander around. You order at the front entrance, take a number, then find a seat somewhere up the what seemed like dozens of flights of narrow stairs. The entire cafe is covered in sticky notes written by patrons. Some are sweet, some are sad, some are hilarious, and some are all three. We also saw one that was racist and covered it up like the good socially conscious girls we are. 

The history of egg coffee is interesting – and we actually heard a local talking about it at the cafe. Back in 1946 during French colonial rule, a Vietnamese bartender named Nguyen Giang, who worked at the Sofitel Legend Metropole Hotel in Hanoi, sought to come up with a cheaper way to create a creamy coffee drink like a cafe au lait that could be made without milk. Milk was scarce during this period of resistance against the French. He came up with the egg coffee, which uses frothed egg yolk in the coffee to create a uniquely delicious flavor and texture. There are many variations on it, and it often includes condensed milk as well or other spices. One that we tried had cinnamon, and that was Kelsey’s favorite. My favorite was the more traditional one at the Note Coffee. You can also see the French influence all throughout Hanoi, in the architecture and in the food – and also in the prevalence of cafes and street-side outdoor eateries. 

Here’s some photos from the Note Coffee (and a couple of other egg coffees from other cafes for good measure):

Another highlight of Vietnam was the food – and the very low prices of the food. My new travel friend Jenn was in Hanoi at the same time as us as well, so the three of us went out to a Michelin star restaurant (my first one) on Valentine’s Day for a good ole’ Galentines feast. We ordered approximately eight dishes (too many) and some beverages and it was approximately $55. It felt criminal. We also ate at the ‘Obama restaurant’, a hole in the wall spot specializing in Bun Cha where President Obama and Anthony Bourdain once shared a very cheap meal. It was quite good, and all of their shrines to Obama everywhere were quite funny. 

Here’s some more food/restaurant pictures from Vietnam (I thought that I took more, but alas):

Vietnam is rich in history, and one of our days in Hanoi we all went to the Vietnam Women’s Museum. Although we thought it would be more war-related than it was, there was still a lot to learn about women in the country and there was a really great exhibition on women in the war, which in Vietnam they call the American War. Fair. Women were key to Vietnam’s win – they held high-ranking positions, were generally respected in society, helped out as doctors, fighters, spies, and scientists. 

Another day during our trip, we took a guided trip to Ninh Binh. We visited a temple (which we all agreed was too long of a temple visited and we were a bit ‘templed out’ at that point), then went to canoe around the limestone rocks and through some cool caves. We also sang ‘Get Low’, the Capybara song, and the Dayman Song from The Nightman Cometh for all of the fellow tourists and locals to enjoy. It was hazy out, a mix of mist and poor air quality, but it was still beautiful. Finally, we went to a spot with rice fields, a view, and a climb of 500 stairs that you can do for a view. Kelsey did the hike, while Jenn and I got foot massages and wine. Oops. 

Here’s some photos from Ninh Binh: 

Some miscellaneous thoughts and musings: 

Vietnam was a lot colder than I expected it to be. I was not pleased about that, but luckily Hanoi is riddled with street clothing vendors with faux fancy outdoor branded clothing (think North Face, Lululemon, Patagonia, etcetera). I got some goods for the time being and for my snowboarding trip to Japan, which was my next stop after Vietnam. 

I always thought that I was more of a winter girlie. I was talking about that with Kelsey and Jenn, and Jenn said, “well, maybe that was because you were miserable all the time.”

We all laughed because it was probably true. Anyways, I’m looking forward to more summer time here soon after a brief brat winter stint in Vietnam and Japan. Anyways, here’s some miscellaneous photos from Vietnam:

An ode to friendship: Kelsey is one of the most kind, loving, hilarious, and brilliant people that I know. I am so lucky to have known her for almost two decades now. She is like a second sister to me, and I feel like I can tell her anything. Being with her these past couple of weeks has reminded me how important it is to have friends like her – and to keep them close. She has stuck by me through so much shit and she means the world to me. Highly recommend travelling to foreign countries with your best friend whenever you can (spoiler alert: she is coming to Costa Rica with me too!!!).

One of the greatest things about travel too – and I touched on this in my last post – is how you can really make meaningful friendships and connections while travelling around. That’s what happened with Jenn, and she is lovely. I’m so glad that I met her. After Kelsey left, Jenn and I spent a few days in Ha Long Bay. 

Ha Long Bay: This is a big touristy spot, but more so in the summer. We were able to get a really nice hotel for quite cheap during the off season. We wandered around the small town, ate good food, relaxed, and went on a canoe tour to see the bioluminescent plankton. The views on the tour were stunning, and while it was cold – it was still a really cool experience. The plankton did indeed glow, but it isn’t like the pictures you might see. You also cannot really capture the glowing plankton on camera. We also had to google what plankton were at the end. Every time I got water on me, I exclaimed that I was “covered in plankton.” Probably not accurate. We were also not aware of how much a workout canoeing in the dark for ninety minutes would be. Our guide was a bit all over the place. At one point, he was taking a nap in his canoe. They should really make these tours shorter. 

We drank wine, local beers, and talked about the state of the world and life and men and careers and other bullshit. We sang more of the Nightman Cometh. Overall, it was a great time. I’d like to return in the summer. 

Here’s some photos from Ha Long Bay: 

Song of the moment: Dayman Song – It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia

Why? Because this is what we sang for all of the Vietnamese people (lucky them) while on a canoe in Ninh Binh in rural Vietnam (remixed by us with Get Low and the Capybara song, coming soon to a theatre near you).

Featured lyrics:

Dayman, dayman, ah-ah-ah

Fighter of the nightman, ah-ah-ah

Champion of the sun, ah-ah-ah

He’s a master of karate and friendship for everyone

DAYMAN

Watch the video!!!!