The journey to Vietnam

My flight to Vietnam turned out to be a bit longer than expected.  The ticket prices for direct flights were beyond my budget for a last minute traveler like me.  Thanks to mom, I was able to get a pretty decent flight however the catch was in the details - aka: layovers.

After completing my 5 you flight from Toronto to  Vancouver, facing me was a 10 hour layover.  It would not have been too bad if it wasn't for lack of heating and bench space starting from 1:30am. According to the guy at information, they have received many complaints about the cold temps....however, in Nov they were still in summer mode. Fine, I can do this...just by cosuming something warm from Tim's every two hours. Started with tea....then chilli at 5am.  Once through customs, I got some Viet pho ...just to get my taste buds fired up..by noonish we were off to Seoul.  

The flight took just over 11 hours to Seoul. Immediately in the terminal I walked through with an amazement. Large convex TV screens, classical music heard from the distance, and later I walked by a group of people dressed in traditional Korean clothes playing music and walking the entire distance of the airport. But never mind, my flight was in less than an hour to Hanoi and I still needed a boarding pass.  As I ran upstairs where I was directed....lady checked my visa letter and then hesitated to issue my pass.  She called her manager over the they proceeded to tell me that I have to enter Vietnam on Nov 19 and not on 18 (even though I knew I had my visa for 17th).

What?!

I panicked...did not checked the letter..... Called my agent to double check.  Sure enough, the lady read the wrong person's visa date (since 6 people were listed) and thankfully I got on the flight without further issues, arriving to Hanoi in another 5 hours.

Arrived to Hanoi at 11:30 or so with customs...and traffic to my hostel was as interesting as my first morning in this city.

More of my first day in Vietnam to  follow in another post.

Cheers 

- R :-)


Here is my anticipated travel itinerary through Vietnam:
https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=zck55BDy0Q0E.kZYE88cpEojk

an Eastern Euro's views on backpacking Western Euro - Uganda (post #2)

Not so fast, before my Euro trip...awaits Uganda ....it is time for monitoring and evaluation of Thrive. Our Uganda project is due for an audit and a thorough assessment of the progress made thus far.

This nearly 3 week journey starts off with Jenny and I arriving in Entebbe very late and driving another hour to Kampala on the same night. We drive for an hour or so in the pitch dark, lit up only when cars come in the opposite direction.  I get anxious driving this long stretch of semi-paved road in the dark as drunk-driving is a common pastime activity for the locals ....while rules of the road seldom exist.

Once in Kampala, Jenny and I get our stuff organized at our host and grab a hot tea to settle down from our travels.  The house is quiet as the children are fast asleep and we are also ready for bed.

The morning starts off with children bursting through the door greeting Jenny and I.  They have been eager to see us and hug us, and play with us, and quick to ask what we brought to them as gifts. While I am a huge fan of teaching children manners, I let this one slide and just enjoy meeting everyone at the home of our host.  Morning breakfast is similar to what we ate the night before, toast and tea however, Uganda toast seems to taste a whole lot better once other options are set out in front of you.  But we are still fresh off the plane and find most things exciting to try out.

We spent a few days in Kampala, meeting with stakeholders, getting some admin work done, and buying all that we will or think we need in Masaka.

Once in Masaka our options become very limited in purchasing most things, but converting money is the major one.  Jenny also hooks me up with doxycycline (made in India) and this will become a key 'culprit' in the first few days in Masaka.

Just in a few days, we get ready to head to Masaka. Our driver is arranged through connections and friends which saves us from the crowded public transport we usually have to endure on these journeys.  Though we aren't totally convinced this is a good idea, it gives us the flexibility to stop wherever we want to ....which I requested at the start of our journey.....the Equator!

On this trip, we also bring along a young male translator who is from a smaller village himself but currently resides in Kampala.  At first I was skeptical about using a young city boy to translate for us in the village but for now, I was not fully voicing my concerns.

Since I have been taking the doxy, the last 2 days or so, I have been feeling extremely ill.  During the days I felt fine, but each night I was sweaty, with chills and crazy stomach ache.  Nausea, followed by crazy diarrhea.  Hmmmm, 2 nurses on this trip, yet neither of us can figure out what is going on with me.  Once in Masaka, Renata gets worse.

We hold our staff meeting and develop our plan for the next 14 days.  I try to remain focused and take notes along the way, but my body wants to get horizontal. After the meeting we make a group decision to stay at a friend's place in the village however, I became extremely ill, and this time, we are off to the closest hotel.

Since we have planned to do 7 days of simultaneous visits to each of our micro-finance groups, deciding to stay at a hotel was probably the smartest move. After about 2 days of walking, meeting Thrive group members, and feasting on delicious jack-fruit and local meals, the nurses come to an educated guess, aka, diagnosis: Renata was reacting to the Doxy.  I have never had an issue with taking doxy however, a dear nursing friend once warned against taking Indian made doxy (or any medication for that matter) in Uganda.  However, this same nursing friend, bought me doxy (made in India) ....and let me suffer for 3 days.  I blamed Jenny for my suffering....but at least it is confirmed that generic brands for medications do not work for everyone ...

Oh well.  We realized that after 14-15 hour days of walking and meeting people, and consuming large amount of feasts which were prepared for us, having a hotel room was key to sustaining our momentum and give us the 4-6 free hours to recharge. While the shower and toilets worked, they were bare minimum.  However, by day 3, we got bumped up to the executive suit, because staff decided to burn garbage next to our window. We woke up in distress from the fumes and choked by the black smoke entering our room. Feeling better from stopping the doxy, but now inhaling carbon monoxide from burning garbage.  Run! And this is why we were upgraded.

Before I explain our 7 day village visits, I must give a little more detail of our executive suit.  It was big, lavish, and yes, the shower was broken, and the mozie net did not protect me, the one without malaria protection.  I guess we were both unprotected against malaria since Jenny cannot take any of the malaria meds.....this meant we had the best room in this hotel, and wished that we still had our old room but without the fumes. Never mind, we had a lot of work ahead of us. (But it is important to note that staying in a hotel.....still drains our energy, in a way)

By Day 2 of M&E, we had the routine down.  Though we have realized that by the afternoon our energy fades to bare minimum, we still had to continue on with the show.  Each morning we started fresh, but by the final visit we had to force our smiles to the eager crowd.

It was wonderful to hear each participant's testimony.  The stories were telling of the successes and challenges which come with the savings groups.  But most importantly, tears of joys were common in each story as it was filled with gratitude for Thrive and the project's commitment.  It was both exhilarating and also difficult for us to hear the systematic limitations which has cursed this country.

Day 3-4-5 seemed to mold into one long day with a nap between each. Getting home each night was pure exhaustion, and each morning, brainstorming and documenting new ideas and plans.  The food was ok at the hotel, but much more AMAZING in the villages.  We both tried to not offend anyone by refusing to eat, so our bellies were exploding by the end of each day.  Also, as we walked through each village, we gathered gifts given to us by the thankful Thrive participants.  We had kgs of fruits, baskets and mats to carry with us.  Of course, transportation remained our worst nightmare.  After the morning rush hour, finding rides home was nearly impossible. But we somehow managed each day.

Our translator, while lovely, was not the best fit for this project.  He continued to wear urban attire while Jenny and I were trying to assimilate by wearing clothes which resemble people living in the villages. I felt that this created a little barrier between him and group members and maybe even lost some of the trust in being open with their stories.  But either way, we managed to complete 7 days of walking and talking and develop our evaluation which we set out to do.  The final day 7 or 8, I am losing my memory on this, we managed to only visit homes.  We walked nearly 14 hours with 3 of our staff and visited nearly 10 homes just to see the fruits of our work on the ground.  We were hungry, thirsty and sun burnt.

In order to celebrate our final night, we had a big dinner with all of us (3 staff and 2 of us) and even had time for some silly pictures on the Zebra statue outside our hotel.

Getting back to Kampala was again a nerve wracking experience.  We had only a few days left to meet with stakeholders and decide on some big steps for the future of Thrive.  I was also going to leave Jenny alone for a week because my ticket to Europe was waiting, and I had to attend meetings which have been planned along the way.

Overall, we had a wonderful time in Uganda but I'm sure this isn't my last time.

Off to Amsterdam on Feb 4.

- R :-)

The Pre-Vietnam Rush - Last minute never again!

Do NOT try this at home....especially if you struggle with stress and anxiety :)

A little background to my pre-travel rush story:

Some would suggest my relocation from Rankin Inlet to Iqaluit was like, 'ripping off a band aid' leaving on a Thursday, spending 3 days (Friday -Sunday) in the south to buy only the essentials for my 4 week orientation, then fly out Monday at 7 am (4 am check in) to Iqaluit....and work.

During this frantic relocation process, no surprise looking back now, my modem miraculously stopped working on my very first day in Iqaluit.  No internet for the next 4 weeks....which meant, limited reading of any sort, especially researching/planning for my very lose plans of possibly visiting a dear friend in Vietnam. I was even brave enough to consider South East Asia, travelling through multiple countries.  However, a brief discussion with a dear friend quickly snapped me out of dream world and landed me on planet earth, recognizing that I have done zero research on Vietnam to this date. 

Knowing this bit about my last 4 weeks in Iqaluit sets us up nicely to the pre-travel rush. 

I returned to Toronto on Nov 6 at 7 pm and spent a relaxing weekend with my nephews while in the back of my head I finally made the decision to visit Vietnam.  

Day 1 (Nov 9)

Monday, Nov 9 - 09:00 I make the very first phone call to the Vietnamese Embassy in Canada, where they inform me that my passport has to be valid for 6 months prior to travel and that I also need to be approved for a tourist visa. This is where the pre-Vietnam rush begins.

I was faced with getting a new passport, flight tickets and visa in the next 5 business days.  I though to myself, "How hard can this be?"

Step 1: Submit paper work for re-newing my passport 

The application asks for 2 referees to sing the form....so I called, on a Monday during work hours, all the friends I could think of and get a signature from them in person.  After securing the first 2 victims, and meeting them in person, one of them reminded me that next time just ask for their details over the phone, as signatures are not required.  True and I do hope to remember this come 2025 when my passport is due to re-new. 

Once at the passport office, I was told in order to issue my passport as 'urgent' (next day) I not only have to pay double service fee, but provide my receipt of purchased flight tickets for Monday, Nov 16.

Step 2: Book flights for Monday Nov 16 

I booked my ticket on Monday night, with my travel-agent-mother-extraordinaire however, for some reason we had to use a website rather than her own saber, as she was not able to issue my ticket. Remember this bit come day 4. 

Day 2 (Nov 10)

Faxed my flight ticket receipt at 9 am to passport office, my references were contacted at 8:30 am.....passport ready and picked up by 3pm.

Step 3: Apply for Vietnamese visa 

I called the Embassy in hopes to receive useful information, which I did, however, I was hesitant to pay their requested service prices.  I had a few friends offer their travel experiences and opted to use their recommended online visa services. I shared my ticket and passport information.....on a roll....this feels too easy to be true. 

Day 3: Remembrance day

I received news that my visa is just a payment away.....so I make my payments, and was told that my visa letter with supporting document will be available by Nov 12 at 5pm Viet time. 

The day was busy with catching up on my usual side projects and ...

Step 4: Booking accommodation and creating my travel plans 

I spent the remainder of the day searching for hostels, registering and booking my first stay in Hanoi. I was getting excited knowing that my paperwork was in order, my friends in Vietnam were excited to see me, and a dozen or so friends/people were kind enough to assist me with this rushed process. 

Life 'was' good ...

Day 4 (Nov 12)

Visa letter receiving day.....should be relaxing and packing from here on....'should be'...

I wake up Thursday morning with a care free attitude, the rush is over, and I have received my visa letter and instructions for when I arrive on Tuesday, Nov 17. 

However, there is another email below, from my booking agent, telling me that my ticket which was booked on Nov 9 (today is Nov 12) is yet to be issued and I should call them to try and book another ticket.

Wait .....what?  

I got my passport and visa issued without a purchased ticket ?  But it was a receipt....and showed the prices ....and everything!?

It is 9 am (EST) on Nov 12, and I don't have flights to Vietnam. 

Travel-agent-mother-extraordinaire to the rescue .....! 

Step 5 (in case Step 2 fails the first time): Receive an issued flight ticket 

Mom gets on the phone.....dose some lengthy paperwork to collaborate with another travel agent from a different company.....as they are the only ones who can issue the tickets I need....

I get my ticket in less than 1 hour....and by noon on Thursday I am back in travel mode.

Step 6/7: Re-arrange immigration and accommodation as per arrival time and date 

Since my arrival to Hanoi has been pushed back 1 day, Nov 18, I had to arrange with immigration, accommodation and pick-up.  But by 8:40 pm I received confirmation from both parties, that my late arrival can be easily accommodated. 

The pre-Viet rush is over!  On Day 5, I am fully stocked with official prints, copies, and paperwork.....

My flight is on Monday, Nov 16 and looking forward to my journey through a country I have yet to meet from up close.  However, thanks to friends, food, and my never ending curiosity, I have had the pleasure to learn about Vietnam and anticipate....that this will be one special place to visit.

Plus, it doesn't hurt to travel to Vietnam while you have friends hosting you.....and a wedding to help set up :) 

Gentle reminder: Do NOT try this at home....especially if you struggle with stress and anxiety :)

- R :)