I traveled to Vietnam for the first time in 2008. It was the first time I have been out of the States. Before I went there, I talked to one of my friends, who just come back from a trip to Vietnam. He told me that it is going to be my eye opener and now I think it is very true.
It opened my eyes to a bigger world and it made me feel like I have to come back to this country one day very soon because I am so excited to see the changes that I cannot wait.
I arrived at Noi Bai airport at 11 pm. It was late but it was very crowded with lots of people. I was welcomed by a friend. He took me to the restaurant inside the airport and I had my first Pho in Vietnam. I live in California very near a Vietnamese community. This is not the first time I have ever had Pho, however Pho here tastes very different. I do not know if it is just my feeling or it is different indeed. Anyway, I really enjoyed the hot Pho and found it very tasty.
Then, we drove back to my hotel, which my friend booked for me. I asked him to book the one which is in the old quarters so that I can find myself in the center of the city. The hotel was very nice, though it was not very cheap as I thought. I paid 60 dollars a night, which is quite pricey compared to average going rate in this country. Anyways, I did not mind too much about expenses when I decided to take this trip. This is going to be my life changing experience so it is worth to pay that much.
I woke upon hearing lots of different noises from the window. It is a new day already. I had breakfast at the hotel. Here they had wonderful pancakes; I do not know where they got the ingredients but very good honey with excellent pancakes. After finishing my tea, I decided to take a walk around the old quarters. Until that time I understood why my friend told me that this is going to be my eye opener.
All the streets were packed with so many people; many of them were tourists like me. We all enjoyed the small streets so much. All the vehicles were so close to each other. I do not know why all the drivers could handle that. If this happened in the States, we would have much more car crashes than this because we all want our privacy and do not want to be too close to others. This is just so different.
Also, on the streets they sold so may fruits. Some I know and some I do not know. I guess we have never had so many kinds of fresh fruits like this. I bought several bananas from street vendors who were so excited about me speaking 'Xin chao' and offered me to take pictures with them.
After a long walk around the streets, I decided to stop by a restaurant. I was so surprised that here they do not tip. Anyway, I was working as a waitress before so I understand that tips are so important to people who work here. So I decided to give them a big tip. The waiter was so happy and said thanks to me so many times, which I think was worth it because of hte very good and friendly service.
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