Vietnam – Travel Younger

Chapter 304: The Challenge of Just “Being” (from my newsletter)

Norm Bour — Sun, 05 Apr 2026 07:30:04 +0000

04.05.26

Relaxing can take a lot of effort, which is ironic in itself, but sometimes you just need to be somewhere else. A change of scenery can do wonders…

I think I’ve always been a restless guy. Easily bored. And though the term ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder) was not used in my early years, I was definitely that. In second grade I recall my teacher writing on my report card, “can be distracting and not focused.” That sounds pretty much like the definition of ADD! A few years later, early in my seventh-grade social studies class, I remember the teacher saying to me, “can’t you just focus on this one thing?” and the answer appeared to be a “no,” and this was just a simple project of creating multi-level views of a map of Europe with overlays on top.

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After high school graduation I knew college was not my thing, especially since I had no focus or field of study. That didn’t stop a lot of kids from going to college, and “Liberal Arts,” was the collective bucket they slid into. And college was cheap in 1972; less than $3,000 for a state school in Pennsylvania, which was still affordable back then, based on cost of living. My mother, born in Hungary, for years offered and begged for me to go to Hungary with her to visit. See Budapest, visit her hometown of Miskolc. I never did, wasn’t that interested, and was too arrogant to “travel with Mom,” who was overbearing in my youth since I was an only child.

Sorry, Mom…

To this day one of my life’s Biggest Regrets.

Even though college didn’t call me, I tried Junior College for a semester, was bored to death, didn’t stay, so entered the workforce in the car industry, which is where I stayed until August of 1975, when I was 21 years old. My restlessness was hitting its peak, so when my cousin Michael, same age as me, invited me to visit him in California; I said yes.

The plan was to drive 3000 miles cross country by myself, and fortunately I had a nice newer car, and felt that it would be a safe trip. And fun. I was pretty sheltered until then, so driving WEST of Pennsylvania for the first time opened up new horizons. I had never camped, never set up a tent, cooked on a portable stove, or any of those fun things that many kids do with their parents. This was all new to me—and I loved it. As an only child I had no problem being alone for days on end, and I had all those hours each day in my car, all that time, so what else was there to do, but think.

Yellowstone. Cold. Pristine, Beautiful. 1975

And that was one of the first times I had serious conversations with me about what I wanted to do with my life.

I loved California and ended up staying for a year, worked in a ski town, then drove cross country again, to Florida, where I stayed for two years, then moved to Canada for the summer with my (then) Canadian love. In 1977 I drove back again to California via the TransCanada Highway, and lived there for forty years.

Fast forward fifty years, uh, that’s half a century! and here we are. Today. Wherever that is at any given time, but currently, for me, here in Southeast Asia.

As a retired guy, I theoretically have “all the time in the world,” but sometimes it’s hard to fill that space, and I find that sometimes it’s hard just BEING. Not doing, not planning; just doing. Nothing.

The idea for this stream of consciousness came about a few weeks ago while Kat and I were in Sanur, Bali. Like I’m wont to do, I decided to scout out some other places to visit or live aside from Sanur, and took a few days to visit the much smaller towns of Sidemen and Candidasa.

Sidemen was a small village, in the hills, and heard it represented the way Bali used to be, since it had few tourist attractions aside from rice fields, some waterfalls, and places to hike. The 90-minute ride was surprisingly pleasant, and as I approached my homestay (hotel) down this gravel driveway, I recognized that I was in a much less civilized and commercialized part of the island. I dropped off my bags and went off to explore the town. And I found no “town” to speak off. There was a main road, another road that intersected it, and that was “downtown.” That’s it. No McDonalds, no restaurants to speak of, not much of anything to interest me. I Googled restaurant selections and found a great one on the edge of a rice field and had a delicious dinner for just a few bucks. I had a tentative list of “things to do,” and that would require a scooter since nothing was close, so planned that for the following day.

The next morning I enjoyed a breakfast on my patio, and since it was overcast with a chance of rain, I thought it wise to postpone the scooter since I don’t enjoy getting caught in the rain.

How could you NOT stop, and just…be?

I started my walk with no specific destination and sauntered down the street. I found this beautiful bridge with a river just as pretty, quite pristine, and just enjoyed that for a few minutes. I continued on and found a really cute little hotel on that river, so wandered into the back yard where there was a deck overlooking the water. A few feet away was another view area, covered from the sun, and there was not a soul there, so I stopped, grabbed a comfy chair, and just sat watching the water. And I sat there for almost an hour, mesmerized, hypnotized, and reflecting on HOW I got there, at that time and space. And I had an abundance of Gratitude, to be able to DO those things I never even dreamed of in my youth. Living in Bali?? NOT on MY radar!!

I inquired about the rooms and took a peek, and they were only about $20 night, so saved it in my Maps, and made a point to return sometime in the future. I walked on and came to one of the few attractions IN Sidemen; their famous rice terrace. For $1.50 admission I decided to go in, and I just followed the path as it skirted the perimeter of the fields. I’ve been through rice fields before, like them, and this was especially beautiful. Between the overcast skies that let out a few little droplets, and warm sun, the wind never stopped blowing and I walked for an hour. And it was heavenly. Imagine my surprise when I came upon a little waterfall flowing into the irrigation canal, so stopped for that picture worthy moment, and then around the next corner was a little stand, run by a solitary woman selling coconuts. Coconuts are incredibly healthy, especially when you’re dehydrated, so how could I not support this local woman? Once again I had to stop and just be. Sitting in the middle of a rice plantation in Bali, once again I drifted off into Lala land. Here I was in Bali for the third time in two years. How many people can say that??

The path continued, a few raindrops fell off and on, but nothing to make this saunter through my life troublesome. Finally I came to the end and found a little warung, which is Indonesian for “café,” a place to grab some food or a drink. It started to drizzle more heavily so I grabbed a stool and just sat, mesmerized by the rain droplets falling onto the rice field paddies. Three times over a few hours I had reflected upon my life and how I got there. So, is that doing “nothing?” or is this something we don’t do often enough?

This little side trip taught me a pretty valuable lesson, a simple as it was. So much of our lives– so much of my life—has been spent going and doing, and sometimes we forget to just stop all that bullshit and just be. So this day which had no specific plan or agenda, ended up being a magical one.

No matter where you are in life–physically, spiritually, mentally, or emotionally– I think it’s healthy to occasionally just stop and do nothing. Reflect on WHERE you are, what you’re doing, and ask yourself, “Is this what I want from life?” Some of us have less time left on our clocks that others, but maybe my experience will give you pause and allow you to just—

Be.

If only for a minute.

Chapter 303: Road Trip part III: Nha Trang

Norm Bour — Thu, 02 Apr 2026 06:58:21 +0000

04.02.26

I offered a brief preview on my last post, but here’s where the rubber meets the road…

As I mentioned…I guess the one word I use to describe Nha Trang, Vietnam, is: Interesting. And that one word can have so many connotations, some good, some not so good, but overall I enjoyed Nha Trang, but it did not displace Da Nang as being the Top Dog of places to stay/ visit in the country for us. First, the train ride.

The 4.5-hour train ride from Quy Nhon was quite pleasant, and the “soft seat” I had was adequate for that length trip. Nice views from both sides, and the train station in Nha Trang is just a few blocks from the beach, so if you landed there from the train without a plan, you could just walk down to the beach and start hunting for rooms. I actually booked a hostel before I got there, and for $7.00 night in a 4-room dorm, it was perfect for what I wanted.

One of my biggest issues of Quy Nhon was the limited selection of “western food” options, but in Nha Trang, that was NOT a problem! Every ethnicity was there, from Italian to burgers; from Armenian to Greek, and I was shocked at something I was not prepared for. There is a HUGE, and I mean huge, disproportion of Russians in the city. I felt like I made a wrong turn and ended up in Moscow, and the majority of the signage was in Russian along with Vietnamese, and English was third on the list. When I did hear English spoken on the street, most of it was the Queen’s English, and there were far more Brits and Aussies than Americans. Most of them were under 30, or even mid-twenties, and it seems that THIS is the party spot for the young Brits. Historical note: The Russians used to have a military base there during the cold war, and many Russians stayed after that ended. So their history goes back a long way, and from Russia they offer almost a dozen direct flights into Nha Trang.

I was also shocked at how many businesses did NOT accept credit cards, and it seems to be a very “cash only” city, surprising with a town of half a million people (10th largest in the country). In Bali they took credit cards almost everywhere, but charged a 3% premium: in Vietnam they’re going 5%. Ouch! But the town itself was quite lovely, pretty clean, with a gorgeous—and very long—beach, with nice sand. There were at least two malls, another surprise, even movie theaters, a rarity so far. Those were the goods, but there was some not so good, too.

The Friendliness—or Lack of—Factor. The merchants were noticeably unfriendly in my brief three days there, which was disappointing considering it is such a tourism heavy town. We definitely got spoiled in Bali, and that paradise may be pulling us back harder than we expected. I also ran into some issues renting a scooter, and two shops were VERY particular about what is known as the “International Driving Permit” (IDP). I’ll not dive in the particulars, but the IDP is issued from the country where your driver’s license originates and verifies its validity. But there are TWO types, each ratified in different years, The US IDP is NOT, I repeat, NOT recognized in Vietnam, and without it you (theoretically) cannot rent anything larger than 150 cc. BOO. One of the vendors said that the fine to the rider who gets caught is steep, but the fine to THEM is even worse, about $350 USD, so they don’t want to risk it.

I also learned a valuable lesson about carrying my passport when I go on these side trips, since I usually DO NOT. My hostel wanted to see a copy of my entry visa AND the passport page that was stamped, which I did not have. In over eight years of travel, we have not had that issue, but we have noticed that Vietnam DOES have a militant, rules heavy side. I ended up doing a video call with Kat who shared it with the front desk and got me in.

Those are all mechanics and I hope might offer some insight, along with this; my 10-hour train ride back to Da Nang on the Sleeper train. I was not able to book a lower bunk, but I was OK with being on top. I’m not the agile monkey I once was, but I highly recommend the Vietnam train over the buses. Get the lower bunk, and there are several online sites you can do that with

Chapter 302: Road trip #2: Nha Trang, Vietnam, But first, there’s my first train ride in Vietnam…

Norm Bour — Sun, 29 Mar 2026 03:16:47 +0000

03.29.26

So what happened after Quy Nhon, Norm?

Well, funny you should ask, and to kind of wrap up my review of that town, as I said, for US it’s not quite “ready for prime time” yet, but it has a lot of potential. So I figured since I’m this close to the city of Nha Trang, another city on the “check it out” list, that’s where I went. And since the six-hour bus ride down TO Quy Nhon was fresh in my mind, I didn’t want to do that again, at least right now, so opted for the train. And I have to say, having ACCESS to a train as an option IS a nice treat.

The price of the 4–5-hour train ride was all of about $14, and as I scouted around for a room in Nha Trang, I came across the FUSE hostel, which I was familiar with it since we had one in Hoi An, and it looked like a pretty cool place to stay. I usually get private rooms to myself, but since I could get a bed in a four-bed dorm, I figured I could handle that for a few nights. At least we had our own bath, which is convenient, and it was just a 10-minute walk to the beach. Oh, and the price was $7 a night.

I booked the train ticket, got to the station, which was MUCH nicer than I expected, and looked new. I admit, I was a bit confused trying to read a Vietnamese train schedule, which was more of a learning experience and a confirmation that I WAS at the right station. I actually did a one-minute video that might be helpful if you plan to use a Vietnamese train. There are several different options for seating:

> Hard seat

> Soft seat

> Sleeper beds for 4

> And sleeper beds for 6

For a four-hour ride I didn’t see the need for a sleeper bed, so opted for the soft seat, which was actually pretty nice. The seat was comfy, it reclined, and the most important thing missing from the BUS was plentiful: bathrooms. There were several there, most were full baths, but one had only a squatty toilet, which is doable in an emergency. The ride was comfortable, nice views along the way, and they offered different refreshments on the train. I passed on that since I had a decent meal beforehand and looked forward to having a more conventional meal when I got to my room. No question, this train couldn’t compare to a European one in Italy, Spain, or most of Europe, but knowing that you can cover almost 1100 miles from Hanoi to Ho Chih Minh city is a HUGE benefit in Vietnam. By the way, if you did that ENTIRE ride, it would take 31-35 hours, so keep that in mind if you consider such a thing. Kat and I have talked about training from Da Nang to Hanoi, which is just under 500 miles, and takes 15-17 hours. Definitely a sleeper car!!

My time in Nha Trang will be a whole new post since there’s a lot to share, but I can say that SO FAR, of all the places we’ve checked out as far as settling down spots in Vietnam, Da Nang is still Numero uno. Finding that elusive Goldilock’s Zone—and I know most of you know what I’m talking about—is really hard and time consuming. Where is not too hot? Too cold? Too big, or small; too this or that? Goldilocks had to muddle through only three beds to find the one that was “just right,” but finding a place to LIVE is much more difficult. We went through the same process in the Balkans, and concluded that Albania, specifically Tirana, is OUR sweet spot. At least in the non-winter months. The low winter temps were the deal killers for us. But ASIA has many more options to choose from—even just in Vietnam—but half the fun is the searching!

Chapter 301: Road trip: Quy Nhon, Vietnam

Norm Bour — Fri, 27 Mar 2026 03:09:26 +0000

03.27.26

We find that sometimes when we get to a new location, we put together a list of places we want to go for fun or possibly other places to stay or to live, and invariably we think we have plenty of time– until we don’t! It seems the time goes by, and many times we get to the end of our stay and recognize that we did not do everything that we had planned. Well not this time!

A short while back I tapped into my network of fellow Nomads and AI and asked about places in Vietnam that were coastal, midsize, non coral beaches, and mild surf. I got about a half a dozen suggestions, and decided to start my search. Since I am the Scout, I am always looking for places that I think Kathleen would like, and sometimes it is quite obvious that it’s a thumbs down, sometimes it’s a big high five, and many times it’s in between.

I started with the closest one to Da Nang, called Quy Nhon, but even so, that is a 6-hour overnight bus trip, but it’s not as bad as it sounds … they have sleeper buses in Vietnam that are pretty darn nice. The VIP model only has 22 seats, reclining beds, USB jacks, and privacy curtains. When it leaves at 10:00 at night, it gets in early morning, so the whole next day is available.

But what sounded like a good idea, efficient and quick, in hindsight, was challenging. As comfortable as my pod was, and it really was, it was custom-made for a 67-in tall frame, but there was an awful lot of lateral movement along the way. That meant not a solid night’s sleep, at least not for me. We made two pit stops literally in the middle of nowhere, and arrived at 0300 the following morning. I must admit that is an unsettling feeling, getting off a bus in a strange town in the middle of the night with totally empty streets except for a bunch of taxi drivers plugging for a ride. Fortunately I checked the map beforehand and saw that I was just a few blocks from the beach, so thank God for Google maps. I headed that direction and started investigating possible rooms. I found lots of options, and booked a room for that night for all of $11 USD, which is even cheap by Vietnam standards. For the next several hours I hung out at the beach, laid down, grab maybe a few winks, and already at that time there were people at the beach, and in the water! No question, the Vietnamese people love the water and they come down very, very early to exercise, swim, and just hang out.

You have to love the internet and AI, and the amazing access we have to information at our fingertips. During my downtime I started looking into things to do while I was in town, places to go, and recognized that I would probably need a scooter since some of the places where 30 minutes or so outside of town. One of the things that Quy Nhon is known for is an amazing Beach called Ky co, which they claim is the Maldives of Vietnam. I also asked the host of the room where I stayed if I could at least drop off my bag, and just before 6:00 a.m. I did that, so that left me much lighter to trek around town. I found a little cafe that was highly rated and had some breakfast, and by 9:00 I was on two wheels heading to the beach.

I don’t you use the word stunning very often, but Ky co beach was incredibly stunning! It was a bit pricey to get in at about $7, and you had to leave the main road and wind around about two miles until you got to a shuttle stop. There you left your vehicle, and they shuttled you down to the bottom of the hill and the beach. And rightfully so, since it’s very steep, and could be tricky for automobiles and bikes!

Smooth white sand, and cliffs on both sides of the bay made this extraordinarily inviting! There were a handful of restaurants down there in different price ranges, plus hammocks to relax on. I was there for about an hour, tried to catch a few winks of sleep, and then left to go to the next place that people said I should go: Eo Gio, which means “Windy Strait,” and it’s actually a little village just a few miles from that beach with a large mountain which generates a lot of wind. It didn’t that day that I was there, but it was a very peaceful town, so I sat and had some fresh coconut and just enjoyed the view and the quiet.

I had no specific time table as to how long I would stay in town, but I recognized that I would need a second day so contacted the host of the room and booked a second night. The city of Quy Nhon is truly beautiful, and it has something that many towns in Vietnam don’t have: beautiful open air parks. I saw several of them, plus it has one of the most pristine beaches I have ever seen that goes on about 4 miles. What was notably missing was restaurants or bars along the beach, just a lot of beautiful public artwork and people hanging out. There was another significant distinction about this town, and that was the traffic. Or the lack of it! Many Vietnamese cities are challenging to walk in, and certainly difficult to ride a scooter in, but traffic was not an issue at all, and even crossing the street was effortless without putting your life in danger.

I looked into potential residences for long-term stays, plus for some variety in restaurants. Unfortunately there was not a lot of Western type restaurants in the town, and that’s mostly because it is not that well known to visitors. The tagline for the city is, “Da Nang 10 years ago,” and I think that’s true. I think I can concluded that as much as I would love to love the town, it will take another handful of years before it feels comfortable for us to live in. It sounds a little bit weird to say, but as much as I love the Vietnamese people and culture, it can get a little overwhelming.

So my final decision here: no thumbs up or down, just sideways, since it is a gorgeous town to visit, and probably stay for a short visit, but not for a month or more

Chapter 250: Asia: One Year Later (Part II of III)

Norm Bour — Thu, 13 Mar 2025 12:40:29 +0000

03.13.25

And here’s our past years’ itinerary:

(Nov 2023) Bali #1, Indonesia (4 mo total, two visits)
Philippines (1 mo)
Vietnam #1 (4+ mo total, two visits)
Malaysia #1 (5 mo total, two visits)
(summer, 2024) Vietnam #2
Thailand (2 mo)
Malaysia #2
Bali #2
(now) Cambodia (2 mo)

WOW. I had to review my calendar to properly remember, but that’s a lot in 17 months.

Stops #4 & #7: Malaysia

Our initial incentives to visit Malaysia were twofold: I’m a sucker for tall buildings, and they have some of the best medical facilities in southeast Asia. And we took advantage of both of them! On our first trip, Kat and I both got full body scans from head to toe, for about $500. Our experience was over the moon and we thought it money well spent, for peace of mind, as well as for the results, which were all good. Things to be watchful of, but nothing to worry about.

We visited the tallest twin towers on the planet, Petronas, and that was a great time. I have been in the Burj Kalifa in Dubai, currently #1, tallest on the planet, but Petronas is hugely impressive, especially since there is a walkway on the 41-42^nd floors, and that is a trip, standing above the street between the two towers. The KL (Kuala Lumpur) Tower (yet another tall structure) is all vertical, with no offices and such, but affords a nice view as well. We also went to Batu Caves, just 20 minutes from town, plus took a few train side trips to the northern towns of Ipoh and Penang. We left Malaysia wanting more, and since we can stay for 90 days with NO paperwork or visa, that is a huge incentive, as is the English usage, which is quite high, since it is a true second language there.

Towards the end of ’24 we did return for our second visit, stayed for (another) 90 days, and continued with exploration of their medical services. Some voluntary, some not. Kat primarily wanted to return for cataract surgery, which was great, and she got both eyes done at one time, which is not that common in many countries. I had a little blood pressure scare and had a complete heart exam, with 3D, full color, diagnosis, along with scans and blood tests. The results were good, nothing going on other than aging…So I stay on meds and that keeps everything in alignment. We spent most of our time in KL, plus had a trip up north to a primitive “jungle resort,” and also down south to a town called Malacca, which we both agreed to return to. I was also able to use my press access to gain access to the SECOND tallest structure in the world, the Merdeka 118 (118 floors), and that was amazing, especially since it won’t be open to the public for a year or more.

Our conclusion. The “goal” in Asia was to find places where we could stay long term. Malaysia passed the test, and we will be back.

from left to right: Merdeka 118/ KL Tower/ Petronas Towers

Stop #5: Vietnam (our second visit):

We landed in the central city of Da Nang the end of April with the intention of “checking it out” for three days to determine if we wanted to return the following month. We did. It was Love at First Sight for both of us, and since we stayed at the nearby city of Hoi An for 30 days, we got two for the price of one. It was clean, friendly, affordable, and had a great beach and generally good weather. Hoi An is an Ancient City with lots of history, and is situated on the Thu Bon River, which gives it a lot of character. It’s fairly small and the city itself is insane to scooter through! But everyone drives carefully, slowly, and still only ride with head face forward, but it all works.

After our 30 days in Hoi An we moved all of 30 minutes north to Da Nang. Our incredible room (about $400 USD/ mo) was large, new, and only four blocks from the beach. We could walk to dinner in a dozen different ways and not be disappointed in any of them. I did a three day motorcycle ride to the interior and was blown away at the green foliage and scenery. Brilliant.

Conclusion: So much more to share, which I can by referring you back to our Travel Younger blogs, which covers much more detail. Again, Vietnam also offers a 90 day visa, easily extendable, so between that feature and the costs and beauty, Vietnam also passed the test. We will return to Da Nang, but also have many more unvisited places to try.

Hoi An is a trippy place with a lot of character!

Stop #6 Thailand: Pattaya

Our first stay in Thailand in 2020 soured me on the country, and Asia in general, so we had to go back to see if first impressions were wrong. They were. Our two mo stay in Thailand was lovely, as we lodged in front of the water in Pattaya, a town with a bad rep, somewhat unjust. It has been known as the “party capital,” as well as the place where old western men hang out for their lenient prostitution laws, easy and convenient marriages with young Thai women, and legal cannabis. We saw all the above, but, like always, it depends on what you SEEK and what you look for.

We were able to stay 60 days no questions asked, no visa required, and the prices were similar to our other places. Overall, our lodgings while in Asia ran $400-$800 MAX per month. In Pattaya we rented a scooter for a month, about $45, and the traffic was very non-threatening, unlike treacherous Vietnam! We truly did not go anywhere special, but used the time to relax, read, write, and our 60 days between July and September were uneventful—which is just fine by us! As full time travelers we find it important to just BE, be there in the MOMENT, in the PLACE you/ we are. And that is what we did. The last few weeks we did visit some islands, including Koh Samui, but didn’t get down to the hot spots of Phuket and Krabi. Our train ride from Bangkok to the Malay border was a fun experience, and allowed us to enter a new country without flying in—or having to worry about packing or weight limits!

Conclusion: As much as we liked Pattaya, and we also liked Chiang Mai on our first visit there in 2020, I haven’t felt led to stay in any particular part of the country. There is a pull since Thailand is one of the most popular destinations for tourists and nomads in Southeast Asia, and I get it, but so far Kat and I agree the jury is still out.

we stumbled upon this hotel in Ko Samui and had a room with this view!

End of Part II

Part III will cover Bali for the second time, and Cambodia, our last stop, numbers 8-9, so that will be our next letter. Please subscribe and share if you can.

Chapter 217: Goodbye Vietnam; Hello Thailand!

Norm Bour — Fri, 26 Jul 2024 03:58:30 +0000

07.26.24

We left Vietnam after utilizing almost all of the 90 days available to us on our visa, and it was absolutely time well spent- probably the best overall visitation stop we’ve had in a long time.

We got to Da nang the end of April, and spent 2 days there contemplating if we wanted to return; we loved it and decided that we would come back for 30 days, so looked around and found a great unit which we ended up renting for almost 60 days. But first, we went down to Hoi An, a much smaller city, very mellow, and we spent a bit of time in what they call the Ancient City. After 30 days there, we looked forward to going back to Da nang, and we adored our location, which was just 5 minutes walk to the beach (never crowded), plus more restaurants that we could ever visit in several months time!

We reconnected with and made friends there in a short period of time, both Americans, and other nationalities as well. Kathleen found a great coffee shop, I found a great gym, and we are definitely planning to return. That took some pressure off, since we did not visit all the attractions that were available, so it gives us one more incentive to return.

Next?? You can take this for what it’s worth.

Thailand supposedly needs proof of “onward travel” before you can depart the country you are leaving from, so we got an “onward ticket”. Come to find out it was a waste of $32; no one ever asked anything, nor did they inquire how long we planned to stay. We read these rules and regulations, and many times it freaks us out, but we have found most of the time they really don’t get followed

Chapter 215: Some UNIQUE and very Vietnamese visuals

Norm Bour — Mon, 24 Jun 2024 04:19:26 +0000

06.23.24

We’ve been in central Vietnam for about 2 months, so I put together a collection of what I call unique pictures of things you find in this country.

(1) Grab is a service that carries people, like Uber, and you can take a bike ride with them or they can deliver food. These Grab drivers virtually live on their scooters, and sometimes sleep!

(2) It’s almost a cliche of what people carry on their motor scooters, but these (mostly) female vendors are a vision of coordination and balance.

(3) YUM, we have SO enjoyed our coconut coffee!!

(4) If it wasn’t for the word “Kentucky” you would never know it was KFC, the first one we saw here

Chapter 214: Exploring Vietnam on Two Wheels

Norm Bour — Mon, 10 Jun 2024 05:02:23 +0000

06.10.24

We have been embedded in Da Nang for about 10 day now, and it truly feels like “home,” as much as anyplace does in our nomadic life! Our unit is superb, with plenty of space, and incredibly located within walking distance of almost anything we want. I found my gym about 10 minutes away, and Kat is experimenting with various coffee shops to find her “sweet spot,” one that combines good coffee with ambiance, quiet, and not too far a walk. In our local area we have food options galore, including sushi, Mexican, Greek, Chinese, German, Thai, burgers, and poke, along with more Vietnamese places we couldn’t visit in a year. It’s like living in New York City, but without the crowds, noise, and prices.

Last week we visited a local landmark, the Lady Buddha statue, all 220 feet of her, and the grounds are just beautiful. We kept our small scooter for the first week we were here and were able to check out the city. We found a great optometry shop and each got new prescriptions and frames–actually sunglasses, too–for about $130 per set. That’s about as inexpensive as any glasses we’ve ever had.

This past weekend I got to truly explore Vietnam from the inside out via a rented 150cc “adventure bike,” which is much different than the billion scooters that constantly flitter around here. This bike is a manual transmission and is made for going places that scooters–and most bikes–might not be able to go. It was my first adventure bike, and the first day broke me in, with 283 km and almost 10 hours of riding–with breaks, of course. The bike surprised me and had good power for what I needed, handled well, and the seat was also quite pleasant, even after that many hours of sitting! It was the longest ride I had been on in a long, long time, and the most off-road riding ever.

The inland part of Vietnam is pretty spectacular, full of streams, rice fields, amazing mountains, and hills, along with a few waterfalls and lakes. Oh, and lots and lots of cattle, oxen, and goats, all leaving their remains out on the back roads we were riding on! Da Nang has a local riding group and I met two of the members who have lived in Da Nang for many years and are serious, avid riders! They know the routes and Ronald created this video which shows the one we took: https://photos.app.goo.gl/FYRTuDbcKkBNojrFA

After that many hours it was time to find a room, and we spent the night in a RUS-TIC homestay about 23 km from a very cool town called A Lưới (pronounced A-Louie), which I saved to my map for us to revisit again before we leave. Our room was alongside a river and at night it was peaceful except for the insects outside. Fortunately, we had AC, and got a good dinner and a light breakfast for a reasonable price.

The second days’ journey home was not as exhausting, even with the 90 degree plus heat which never let up, except for when we were in the higher elevations. Only 191 km back to the home front, but we did stop in one of the places I have heard so much about–Hue–but because it was Sunday, and because it’s such a tourist magnet, we didn’t go downtown. Another time as well.

BUT, the last leg took me over the Hai Van Pass, which is a pretty awesome mountain road with half a dozen switchbacks and terrific ocean views.

It seems that Vietnam is a favorite for expats and travelers worldwide. We’ve met our share of Americans, plus Canadians, lots of Russians, and scores of other places. I think they all have the right idea

Chapter 213: After 30 Days in Hoi An…We LOVE It!

Norm Bour — Wed, 05 Jun 2024 04:49:22 +0000

06.05.24

After 30 days we left Hoi An, Vietnam, but it left such a feeling that we are sure it will not be for the last time. Why we liked (loved?) Hoi An:

– Such intimacy in the town! It’s large enough that you can find most things, like food, clothes, etc…, but still feels like a small town—which it is. The Ancient Area (what we used to call “Old Town”) is charming to walk, horrendous to drive, and there are food vendors on every corner, along with a) coffee shops, b) massage parlors, and c) motorbike rentals, and d) custom clothiers. They have all in abundance.

– It took us about a week to venture down to the beach, and even then, we never really laid out in the sun! But it was great to go for a sunrise, or catch dinner with an amazing view, and not pay a lot of money. We also found this great breakfast/ coffee shop called Sounds of Silence and went there several times, just to sit on the bluff, drink coconut coffee, and watch the water.

– Speaking of food, because there is SO much fresh fruit and veggies, you almost have to make a strong effort to eat junk food! No McDonalds, no Burger King, and a mango smoothie, my fave, was about $1.38 and a coffee (including coconut coffee, avocado coffee, egg, and salt coffee) was about the same. I enjoyed eating my own version of fresh food for breakfast, including a red pepper, tomato, cucumber, crackers with cheese, and tea. Yum.

– Along with that, except for the carb factor, we ate a lot of noodle and rice dishes, and I was amazed how much I enjoyed chicken or beef noodle soup for breakfast!!

– We were invited to an amazing hotel called Hoiana Beach Club, which was an opulent city sized resort on the beach, where they gave us a tour and dinner, including the rooms. Incredible what you can get for such a reasonable price! I am setting up a Meet up with local expats to introduce them to this very cool place.

– We also visited a unique show called Teh Dar, which was a combination of Cirque de Soleil and a Chinese acrobat show. It was a bit pricey (for Vietnam, @$45 approx), but was one of the few “touristy” things we did, even though there was a decent number of options to tempt us.

– We also visited the largest cat shelter/ café ever, called Jack’s Café, home of 100+ cats in need of a home. They were extremely friendly and as much as it was fun sitting with them and playing, it was heartbreaking all the same, and the people behind this have such giving hearts, getting little in return. Many of the cats had been there for years and would probably never leave.

Hoi An left a mark in our memories, as well as on our bodies, as Kat and I each got tattoos. My Unalome is only my second ever and will always be with me, and of course, it will bring the town to mind as well. Kat got a Tree of Life on her back, quite gorgeous, so to say the city left an impact on us is quite literally, true!

Now we’re in Da Nang, 30 minutes north, and we’ll see if we like this town as much

Special Supplement: Some Recent Publications That Interviewed Me

Norm Bour — Tue, 28 May 2024 04:36:24 +0000

05.28.24

Besides writing for several travel sites, some times I get interviewed by other writers as a source.

Here’s one from Conde Naste Travel, where we spoke about trains, one of my favorite ways to travel:

https://www.cntraveler.com/…/family-travel-caledonian…

And here’s one from US News, when we spoke about places that retirees can still buy properties for less than $100K.:

https://money.usnews.com/…/where-retirees-can-buy-a…

Let me know if you like either, or both.