vietnam — Blog — Hannah Gates

South Vietnam

Da Lat

This town is one of the only tourist towns that is inland, and the drive there was pretty cool, though mountains and down curvy roads. Waterfalls are the main draw here, and you can abseil down them which looks like a lot of fun! I didn’t indulge in this $40 experience, and just looked from afar. Although at Dambri Waterfalls, you can get a toboggan roller-coaster down to see the falls which was great fun.

Central Vietnam

I arrived into Da Nang Airport weighed down by the chocolate and earplugs (!!!) mum had sent me for Christmas, newly refreshed to start backpacking again. Little did I know that I’d fall in love with the town, and settle back in. It was in Da Nang that I bought my motorbike, along with the help of Che, and made the terrifying decision to head to Saigon on two wheels!This blog doesn’t include a hell of a lot of central Vietnam, and I’m sad I missed the beautiful places between Ha Long Bay and Da Nang but I’ve loved what I have done.

travelHannah GatesFebruary 14, 2017vinpearlland, nhatrang, da nang, quy nhon, vietnam, biking vietnam, motor bike, lady buddha, hoi an, tourism, beach, mountainsComment

Hong Kong - Home & Away

I took a taxi out of Hanoi to the airport and hopped on my hour long flight to Hong Kong. Waiting at the other side was Astrid, holding a sign, no more like banner, with my name on. Christmas was here! I met her at cheer at university, and hadn’t seen her since we graduated. She lives in Discovery Bay on Lantau Island, which is the largest of the 263 islands that make up Hong Kong. It’s an international hub of Expats and is so much like being at home it’s strange. This does, however mean I can get Richmond Sausages and Cheddar Cheese!

travelHannah GatesJanuary 10, 2017hong kong, kowloon, lantau island, china, mainland, islands, language, cantonese, hanoi, vietnam, DB, Discovery Bay, Home comfortsComment

North Vietnam

Coming from Laos, there are two options to get to Hanoi, the hub of North Vietnam. The bus, which takes over 24 hours and costs around £15, and a flight, which costs around £90 and takes an hour. Now as much as I’d have loved to have saved some money, I was still hung over from Vang Vieng and 24 hours sharing a small bed with a random person was making my stomach churn. Off the the airport it was!

Landing in Hanoi, I had pre-booked a taxi via my hostel, as the shuttle bus to the city doesn’t run at night (I landed at 9:30pm), so it was an easy journey into old quarter, which is where many of the backpacker hostels are.