September 2019 – JE United

September 27, 2019October 21, 2019

Hello, South Korea: Busan

Our flight to South Korea departed at 1 am and arrived at 7 am which felt like 5 am to us, so our first day in South Korea was a pretty sleepy one. Luckily, being in South Korea felt like a welcome return to our normal life. Despite the fact that everything was in Korean, it felt very familiar. We took the subway from the airport to our apartment (Airbnb) in Suyeong-Gu. There were pedestrian lights, and cars (mostly) stopped for red lights. Everything felt a little bit calmer, and we realized that for 29 days in Vietnam we had been carrying a little bit of extra tension. We checked into our Airbnb using a keypad and opened the door to a cute studio apartment with a bathroom and small kitchen. Our first kitchen since we left the US a month and a half ago!

September 24, 2019October 16, 2019

Goodbye, Vietnam

We spent 29 days traveling in Vietnam from south to north and really enjoyed it! We visited many beautiful places. The food is delicious, the people are nice, and it is surprisingly easy to get around. We learned some useful tips for traveling in Vietnam along the way:

September 24, 2019October 14, 2019

One Final Stop in Vietnam: Hanoi

We had been told that of the two biggest cities in Vietnam, one was the economic capital and the other was more vibrant. For our entire stay in Vietnam we had mixed them up, thinking Ho Chi Minh was the vibrant city and Hanoi was the economic powerhouse. We discovered how wrong we were as soon as we arrived in Hanoi.

September 21, 2019October 9, 2019

Trekking in Sapa’s Rice Fields

We arrived in Sapa the day before our scheduled two-day trek in the rice fields and local villages. The trek description suggested we would be hiking for a total of 20 miles over two days on moderate to challenging terrain, so we wanted a day to rest up. After our whirlwind tours of Phong Nha and Ninh Bình, and another night bus, we were tired.

September 18, 2019October 3, 2019

Biking around Ninh Bình Province

Needless to say we did not sleep well in our threesome bed seat in the bus from Phong Nha. And despite leaving late, the bus arrived early! Even though the sign for the bus said it dropped off at a particular address in Ninh Bình City, we were dropped off at the Long Hotel in Tam Cốc at 4am.

September 15, 2019October 1, 2019

Phong Nha

Caves! Oh my! A trip to Vietnam is not complete without a visit to Phong Nha-Kẻ Bàng National Park and its caves. The park has 300 caves and grottoes and was created to protect the karst region which is one of the largest in the world and the oldest in Asia at 400-450 million years old. The park also boasts the largest cave in the world, Sơn Đoòng, which was discovered in 2009 and is big enough to hold a New York City block with 40-story skyscrapers. We have visited a few caves before, but we have never seen anything like this before.

September 14, 2019September 29, 2019

Culinary Exploration in Central Vietnam

Hội An, Đà Nẵng, and Huế

Central Vietnam is known for its food in addition to having some historical sights. We made it a mission to try as much of the local food as possible while also visiting the main attractions.

September 6, 2019September 22, 2019

Getting Scuba Certified in Nha Trang, Vietnam

All the bus company posters for Nha Trang show pictures of people snorkeling and scuba diving, so we knew it was the place in Vietnam to get scuba certified. Someone had recommended we do our Open Water Diver certification in Vietnam because it would be cheaper. Eric did some research and found a reputable company in Nha Trang, Rainbow Divers, so we plowed ahead. Jess was not so sure about scuba diving. She gets a little anxious in enclosed spaces she is not sure she can leave (although you would not know it from the number of mines, tunnels, and caves we have explored this year). Even though the ocean is not exactly an enclosed space, she was a little concerned about the idea of not just being able to ascend if she wanted to, but she agreed to give it a try.

September 1, 2019September 18, 2019

An Adventure to Cần Thơ in the Mekong Delta

In researching how to visit the Mekong Delta on our own, we came across a blog that described a homestay at the Nguyen Shack in Cần Thơ that offered a variety of tours. It sounded so easy, we booked two nights immediately for the weekend and went in search of bus tickets.