Saturday, May 23, 2009

Unveiling: Vietnam!

I think it's high time I tell-all on my June trip that I've been keeping hush-hush for the past few months. Well... *drumroll*... I'll be going off to Vietnam on 9th June, the day after my final exam paper, for 10 days! I know this news is pretty anti-climatic since I'm sure most people who knows me are aware of this. BUT... the big deal about this trip is that it'll be my first solo travel!


I've been trying to keep this piece of information under the wraps for few reasons.

#1. I absolutely do not want to jinx this plan. Travelling solo have been something that I've wanted to do for awhile, just never had the courage to take that leap. So what made me jump? I'm not sure... but I think it was a hard-shoved push off the cliff, rather than me willingly jump. Backpacking through Vietnam has been on my mind for awhile, eversince I watched Amazing Race Asia and found out about the beautiful lost city of Hue. But the prospect of travelling solo is scary, yet I know it'll be a good experience as well as a worthy challenge. So... when AirAsia had a promotion last February, I just... closed my eyes and bought a one way ticket. Yes. One way. Because I know that once I've bought that ticket, there is no turning back. I have to go through with this. So... here I am!

#2. I am unprepared. The trip is 2 weeks away and I have yet to do any solid research. I may have a rough idea of where I plan on going. Will be flying into Ho Chi Minh (aka Saigon), spend 2 nights there, before travelling northwards. I've been to Hanoi, so that'll be my final pit-stop, as I want to end this leg of the travel someplace familiar. Hue, Da Nang and Hoi An are a few places in between that I intend to go to, either by train or by local flight. And I am travelling on a budget. The thing is, I know I need to buck up and start preparations. But... I suddenly feel like I've miscalculated my timing. Going off right after exams? I don't think that's a good idea, especially since I still need time to study. Maybe getting myself a travel guide will be a good start?

#3. I haven't been completely honest with my parents in regards to my travel plans. They know I'm going to Vietnam, and they know I'll be off for 10 days. BUT... they don't know that I'll be going solo. Heh. I think my mum have an inkling of my plans, but I trust that she knows I'll be able to take care of myself since I've been travelling with her a few times now. But it's my dad. He can get overprotective at times, and I'm pretty sure that if he have any idea about this, he'll put a stop to it. (He had already pulled the brake for my Bangkok trip) So I'm easing him to the idea slowly. Do a bit of sweet talking... smile a lot more... maybe pull off my puppy-dog eyes...

I'm getting nervous just thinking about it. I'm not sure if I can survive 10 days with my own company. I had a dry-run of travelling solo to Singapore before, for 2 days and a night, and I thought that was okay. But... Singapore is too familiar. Vietnam will be a different matter entirely. Different cities, different language, different culture... but that's where the fun is, right?

1 comment:

Eddie said...

Good that you have the guts to travel solo. It's gonna be fun tho that's something I'll nvr do. A friend of mine does that all the time and it seems that he never fell short of having a blast everytime. Go! Go! Go! And have a fun trip!