My first trip into a communist country. I feel global travel trends move in waves. One year the social feeds are full of people visiting Iceland to see the Northern Lights, another year it is all about Bali and recently it seemed to be a lot about Vietnam. People inspire others to do the things they enjoy doing. Not a bad thing. I have always heard of Vietnam as a country which won a war against the US in the 1970s but had no idea about the look and the feel of the country. With limited perception, I had always imagined Vietnam to be a small isolated non touristy place in the world with a lot of nature and innocent people. I thought I would be one of the very few fellow travelers getting all the share of their travel resources. Clearly I was so wrong. I was surprised to see Vietnam to be a big country with a flourishing emerging economy, heavily touristy and rich in geographical diversity. The country is one thirtieth of the size of the US and roughly 100M in population. A sea facing country with a long coastline bordering China, Laos, Cambodia and Thailand. Being the easternmost country in SouthEast Asia, it takes only 4 hours of flying time from Delhi to reach Vietnam.

The country can be geographically grouped into three main centers - North, Center and South. Each of these centers had culturally played a historical role in the evolution of Vietnam. Hanoi is the capital city in the North, Ho Chinh Minh (or earlier Saigon) in the South is the financial capital (and the biggest city), and DaNang is the more modern cultural city in the center. The North in the past had seen the influence of the communist powers, the South was promoted by democratic countries like the US and the Center acted as the entry point of French colonial powers in the early seventeenth century. The intermix of these external influences in this beautiful country had a strong influence on how Vietnam evolved in the last couple of centuries. Most of the architecture and culture in South East Asian countries like Bali and Thailand originate from the influence of elaborate Hindu temples and strong religious and spiritual practices. In that essence Vietnam differs. Being a communist country, religion is pretty much absent even though you see influences of Buddhism in various parts of the country and few temples and Pagodas centered around it. It is unique to see and meet people at such a large scale without any religion and still doing well. Colonised by Chinese, French and Japanese - you see the influence of all the three cultures in Vietnam. Agriculture and more recently manufacturing and tourism are the topmost economic drivers in Vietnam.

I visited three cities - Hanoi, HaLong Bay in the North and Hoi An in central Vietnam. Hanoi is the capital city and full of buzz and young energy. Ha Long Bay is a group of thousands of small islands which also houses one of the longest caves discovered in the world. Hoi An is one of the most romantic cities I have been to in recent times. It’s a small city with a mix of French and Japanese architecture and gets lit with beautiful lanterns as the evening unfolds. A perfect place for honeymooners. Coffee culture is big in Vietnam and I was surprised to see so many cafes in the capital city. People are one of the healthiest as the diet is prominently based on vegetables, nuts and healthier sea food. Obesity seemed non-existent in Vietnam. Vegan culture is catching up pretty fast and I was amazed at the number of vegan cafes all around. I had some of the most amazing local Vietnamese food in some of these vegan places. The availability of good vegan cafes have completely redefined the travel experience for vegetarians like me in many of these Asian countries. The traffic is chaotic. Initially, I thought India was worse in traffic but over time Hanoi traffic is no better.

A country for its own people

All the pains and struggles of a country in day to day life are meant for its own people and only the good things on the surface are typically experienced by people who visit it. And that is why travel tends to be so much more fun and romantic for people. There is a sanskrit phrase in India - “Atithi Devo Bhava”, a guest who comes to your home should be treated like a god’s angel. This has been a common theme for all the countries I have visited outside the US in the recent past, and more so in Asian countries. People are warm, curious about you and go the extra mile in making you feel welcome in their country. While the big cities and touristy places don’t specifically give you this feeling as they are getting overburdened with tourism but if you go to slightly more remote places, people truly open doors for you. Most people I met and talked to in Vietnam were very proud of their beautiful country and culture and treated you really well. They love their culture and country so much that they want you to have a beautiful perception of it. They want you to take it outside and evangelize it.

Roughness in solo

I chose to stay in hostels and went backpacking after a long time. When you are doing solo travel, it becomes easier to find fellow travelers and socialize. I could have afforded a little bit more luxury but roughed it out. I found it more challenging to travel like this and I feel the experience is a bit more raw and personally more fulfilling. The spontaneity and unplanned meet ups with other travelers brought the fun out even more. Most of the people I met were probably in their twenties and taking a break and have been backpacking for many months at a stretch. Travelers can be bracketed in the two categories. The first ones go to well known places, do mostly sightseeing, get things checked off from their list, put things in their mental map. The second set wants to experience more and feel high by facing and navigating challenges. The first set covers all the sightseeing touristy things and the second set takes an off beaten path and try to do something different. In this age of internet and hyper connectedness even though very few things can qualify and come in the off beaten path but I did observe a distinct difference in the approaches to both travel. Both work based on your personality and at times you strike the right balance between the two when you travel based on the time and patience you have.

Hundred and eight shades of experiences

When I travel to a new place, there is a huge tendency for me to stick to a certain type of travel I have done in the past. I derive comfort and predictability out of it. And when I go explore a new country, I always try to fit the same activities in that bucket. I try to compare my current travel experience with my past experiences and define if it’s fun or not based on that pre-biased conditioning. It can be counter productive as each travel has its own unique flavor. Comparison with your past experiences only limits the diversity in experiences you can potentially have. Also, if you choose yourself to do the type of travel you have done in the past which gives you comfort then you end up giving up on the opportunity of diversifying your experiences to something new and different. A lesson for me: Travel doesn’t need to be bucketed with pre-travel biases. Approach each travel with a sense of uniqueness and childlike wonder.

The present that becomes past

Another thought that was constantly circulating in my mind during my trip was to see if I am optimally using my time. There was a conflict on why am I pushing myself out of my comfort zone and what am I gaining out of it. Why waste time just bumming around and why not utilize this time to do something more concrete and intellectually stimulating activities that contribute to your future? Why wander aimlessly? What additional value am I getting by seeing a piece of architecture and moving on the next one? Haven’t I already done it enough and what is the incremental value I am adding from it in my life? Is it not the same drill every single time I travel to a new country? And if I am so curious about some culture why can’t I just read it on the internet and be theoretically done with it. The logic prevails. These are the moments and thoughts which pull you back but then you stay on and you push. Travel stories in the real present moment don’t bring that much excitement as you are busy living them but they become very charming and fun when you look back and think about it. Each moment as it moves in the past becomes romantic and the whole trip combined makes so much more sense in hindsight. It always brings a smile to your face when you think about it in future. The discrete dots connect at some random moment in the future.

Building the bridges

In the past, I have met many people with Vietnamese roots in the San Francisco bay area. I always took them as another set of Asian people but never thought more than that. There was no differentiation in my mind. Post this travel now each time I will interact I will have a little bit more context around them. I will be affectionate and curious about their life as I have physically touched their land and walked on that beautiful piece of land where they come from. I will feel extra close to them. Such is the beauty of travel that it provides a bridge to you which can travel and come extra close to people and connect at a more personal level.

Seeking out - externally or internally.

Travel can be metaphorical. There is a whole world out there inside you. And then there is a whole world outside you. The meditation and spirituality pushes you to experience things inside you. This journey is pretty addictive and easily accessible if you have those leanings. You can pretty much be anywhere in the world and still experience and travel the places inside you. Then there is travel in the outside world. The world is full of beautiful natural and man made landscapes. On top of that, evolution has ensured that there is enough diversity in people and the culture. Even though it comes with few limitations, travel in the outside world can be enriching and rewarding in many other ways. The type of travel you do is your choice.

Travel tips for people planning Vietnam Travel

It’s a big country. The cities you want to cover will correlate with the number of days you will spend in the country. It’s fair to give 2-3 days/ city and enjoy them at leisure.
Avoid too touristy places in Vietnam. The unfortunate part is that they are super touristy for a reason but then the experience can be overwhelming. There is some very beautiful nature that can be explored without the mad tourist race. If you want to explore nature more, then choose places and cities that are talked about less and you will have an amazing experience.
Most people travel either north to south or south to north. So be strategic around planning your In and out of the country. There are three international airport cities - Hanoi city in the North, Da Nang in the center and Hoi Chinh Minh (or Saigon) in the south. Hanoi is the capital city, Hoi Chinh Minh is the financial capital and Da Nang is modern.
The country is vegetarian friendly as vegan places are all around. Do explore the local food through these vegan places.
The country is overburdened with customized tours for your travel. Use tours only if you are hard pressed for time or feeling lazy to plan your travel. Tours are expensive and don’t provide the experience you are looking for. Or if unavoidable, choose the right ones. Research online and book in advance. The price is not related to the experience as I found out there.
The country has some amazing cafes. I don’t drink coffee but people said they had some of the best coffee there. Try spending cafe
Hanoi - Stayed in the Old quarter. Most travelers stay there as it is easily accessible to the places you want to see in Vietnam. Some places I visited and wasn’t disappointed - Palace of Literature, Hoan Kiem Lake, Om Hanoi Yoga Studio and the vegan cafe there, Ho chi minh mausoleum, Post it Note Cafe, Buffet Chay Huong Thien
HaLong Bay - I did a day round boat trip from Hanoi. I paid $79 (overpaid). The regular price for a day trip is ~$40. All tours are standard with a visit to the largest cave Hang Son Doong, Kayaking in HaLong bay and a trip to a few islands on the way. I felt visiting Cat Ba island and taking a boat from there would have been better. I struggled with the food here on the boat, if you are vegetarian do suggest carrying your own food here.
Hoi An City - Not to be missed unique city experience. It's a small city and the only thing you can do is chill, get massages and walk around and just enjoy the beautiful mix of French, Japanese and Vietnamese architecture. Amazing Vegan place - Minh Lien, Cafe - Hoi An Roastery, Party place - Tiger Bar.

My Solo Travel in Vietnam