Exploring Northern Vietnam

After over one year of traveling around the world, I had to choose my last stop. I thought about where I would want to go. I thought about what I had learned over the past year. I thought about how I had changed. I thought about how I learned to value people and relationships over places and things. I learned to travel not for the destination, but for the journey.

Instead of traveling to a country for some place I had read about, I traveled for a friend. I decided to travel to Vietnam to meet someone I met while volunteering in Nepal. I met Van one day at a goat pen close to the school we were building. We struck up a conversation which eventually led to agreeing to run together. Our run turned into a hike, which turned into a walk, which turned into us sitting on the side of a hill talking. I had so much admiration for her that day as she told me stories of her travels. How she quit her job so she could travel the world, just like me. She overcame many difficulties in her life. And I liked listening to her stories.

Although we hadn’t seen each other since, we kept in contact for over a year. So I was excited to see her again. We had a week to work with, and weren’t quite sure what we were going to do. But I knew that we were going to visit her hometown and stay with her parents. And maybe go on a motorbike road trip. Whatever happened, I was excited to see my friend again. But I had to get there first…

Misadventures in Travel

Flying from Christchurch to Hanoi, with an all-night layover in Singapore, was no short trip. And arriving at the airport, I was already ready for the long-haul. I separated my belongings into checked and carry-on luggage. Which, for me, meant taking my smaller bag out of my bigger bag, and filling it with my important items. I was ready. But after talking with the nice attendant at the check-in desk, I realized that I didn’t yet have my confirmation letter to gain entry into Vietnam. I was waiting on a response from Vietnamese immigration. But, they couldn’t let me fly until I had my letter.

Before my year of travel, I would have panicked. But I was surprisingly calm. It was at this moment that I felt a bit of pride in my growth over the past year. But that quickly faded as I realized I needed to find a solution to my current dilemma. In addition to contacting the immigration department, I reapplied for the confirmation letter with a "super-urgent" request. That could still take up to four hours. I waited patiently in the food court. My flight was in one hour, and I didn’t receive any response. I went back to the staff and begged for them to let me fly. They gave me permission to fly only to Singapore. But I would have to have the confirmation letter ready to be checked-in to my next flight. I’ve never been so happy in my life. Backpacking New Zealand for the past month was tiring. I wanted my travels to go smoothly for just one time.

Arriving in Singapore was like a trip through time. I visited the city for a few days once. I spent three nights in this airport on layovers. And I used Singapore as a port to get to the volunteering I did in Indonesia. Anyways, I just mean to say that the Singapore airport was starting to feel like home. Spending my fourth night there was almost comfortable. Except for the fact that I still slept on the hard floor, and still awoke to armed police officers asking for passports and papers.

Hanoi

Once in Hanoi, I took the public bus into the city, and checked into my hostel. While walking around Hanoi, I was reminded of the time I was last here to visit a friend, almost four years ago. People crowded around to eat on tiny plastic tables and chairs out in the street, motorbikes zooming by while honking incessantly, and smells of deliciously sweet food reminded me of my past adventures.

I was going to meet up with Van the next day. So I had plenty of time to take a nap. But she arrived in Hanoi that evening. And I wanted to see her. We had coffee with her good friend late at night. As I walked up to the coffee shop, I was so nervous. Was I really meeting Van after a year? It didn’t seem real to me. We had a casual conversation with her friend. And then walked around the city in the rain for a couple hours. We had ice cream and walked around a lake. It was really great to see her after such a long time. The next day we met up for lunch and met more AHAH volunteers for a frog hot pot at night.

Haiphong

After our Hanoi shenanigans, we took a bus to her hometown, on which we both slept. When we arrived, we met up with a friend of Van’s so we could borrow her motorbike. After driving to her parents’ house, we ate a special lunch that her father made: pork cooked with many spices and vegetables. Shortly after, using the motorbike, we explored the city. We ate many different foods at a market, but sadly I can’t remember the names. After deciding to travel by motorbike to Ninh Ninh, a beautiful area three hours South, we walked around the area close to her home.

In the morning, Van took me to a local breakfast place to try Bánh Cuốn (rice noodle sheets, pork, vegetables, and sweet fish sauce). We went to a local coffee shop, where the coffee cup was kept in another cup of warm water. Previously, I had casually mentioned that I loved coffee and that I wanted to try special Bánh Cuốn. I admired Van’s thoughtfulness when she thought to find these places for me. And after having a talk about her previous experience with a motorbike road trip through Vietnam, we set off on our own.

Ninh Binh

As we drove our bike out of the city, the noise and traffic slowly receded. We drove through more rural lands for about three hours. I much prefer the rural areas to the city any day. The city is stressful, chaotic, and polluted. Comparatively, the rural areas are relaxing, peaceful, and refreshing. The weather wasn’t too cold, but your hands went numb easily while driving. So Van and I shared the load. I had never driven this type of bike before. It wasn’t an automatic, but it wasn’t a manual either. It didn’t have a clutch, but it had a foot shifter. For the longest time, I didn’t realize I wasn’t shifting properly. Regardless, we eventually made it to our destination.

Once we got there, we chose a seemingly random homestay in Trang An. It turned out phenomenal. It was right on the water, with bamboo walkways leading ever deeper. We walked around the ancient capital, which was quite relaxing compared to the motorbike trip.

Over the next few days, as we explored the beautiful lakes and caves, Van and I became even closer. What was once a good friendship turned into something more. We went on a boat tour, tried to find stars during the cloudy nights, and just walked around the area. Although we only had a few days together in this magical place, it seemed like a lifetime. It was one of the beautiful moments in my life.

We rode our bike back to Hanoi for an early dinner with a friend, and just relaxing for awhile. Because I had to fly home in the morning, I treasured every moment of the evening. And although it seemed to last forever, the morning did eventually come. And she drove me to the airport for my early flight.

Right when I thought my travels and misadventures where coming to an end, we nearly ran out of gas. We drove around trying to find somewhere to fill up. And we eventually found a shop that sold gasoline by the liter out of bottles. This instantly took me back to my times motorbiking around in Indonesia. Nothing like a good scare at the end of your travels.

But we eventually made it to the airport. And the goodbye was easily the most difficult of goodbyes I’d ever experienced while traveling. But now I’m flying home. And she is staying in Vietnam. But we will meet up somewhere around the world later. I am quite sad, but also incredibly happy to have met her. She changed my life more than I thought anyone could have.

Going Home

I have a lot to look forward to coming home. I haven’t seen my family or friends in a few months. And I’m starting my dream job soon. The present is delightful, future is bright, and I can’t wait to see what it holds. But I’ve learned to not have any expectations, and just go with the flow.

Over the past year of travel, I’ve become so much happier with myself. Because I have been able to improve my social skills, expand my perspective about the world, and organize my priorities in a manner more aligned with my beliefs. What an incredible year it has been. I can’t wait for the next adventure.