Welcome to the backpacking diaries, where I’ll be updating you weekly on where I’ve been, what I’ve been getting up to, and most importantly, how I’m really feeling about this insane decision I’ve made.
As you probably know, I’m currently backpacking through Asia after quitting my job and leaving London for good.
I want to remember every moment of this experience, and document as much of it as I can, just like I’ve documented everything else in my life post-18 on this website.
You can keep up to date with my travels on Instagram, TikTok and YouTube but for now, enjoy week fourteen of the travel diaries!
If you missed the first thirteen weeks of backpacking diaries, you can catch up here.
Top tip: for mobile data around Asia, we used the Airalo eSim which was super handy and easily installed onto our phones as soon as we arrived in Vietnam!
Day 92: Monday 17th June 2024
Location: Hanoi, Vietnam
Dear travel diary,
Today was a chilled laptop day. Since it was a Monday, I felt like I needed to sit down at my laptop and get a good day of work done.
We of course headed to Tranquil Books & Coffee and set up camp here for the day, sampling their brownies and hot coffee.
After a few hours here, we headed to a banh mi spot for lunch called Banh Mi Pho, that served very tasty sandwiches. I had a chicken sandwich with a honey and mustard sauce and it was so good.
Afterwards, I still wanted to get more work done so headed back towards our hotel and sat inside TEDS Coffee for a while as they make incredibly tasty caramel macchiatos.
For dinner, we were being fancy for a change. We dined at a restaurant that was awarded a Michelin Star last year. The food was traditional Vietnamese and we ordered a variety of dishes.
I would say that it didn’t really majorly stand out for me, and that some of the smaller cafes I’ve ate at have been better, but it was still good all the same.
Our meal came to £20, so I can’t complain about eating at a Michelin-Star restaurant for so cheap.
Day 93: Tuesday 18th June 2024
Location: Hanoi, Vietnam
Dear travel diary,
Today was an exploring day. We set off in the morning, grabbing a coffee to-go from TEDS which is becoming our favourite coffee here in Hanoi.
Our first stop was Train Street, so we could explore it without the crowds and to get some photos. We were surprised that there were still tourists in the coffee shops that early in the morning as we’d heard the trains only come in the evenings during the week.
We walked along the curved side, seeing the Vietnamese go about their day along this street.
There was a little bit of a panic as police started to blow their whistles and you could see the coffee shops moving tables and chairs back in off the side of the tracks and ushering everyone inside.
But we kept walking and made our way off the track with our coffees in our hands, so at least it looked like we had come to buy something. I think it’s meant to be closed to tourists (unless you’re sat in a coffee shop) – something to bear in mind!
Next, we walked to St. Joseph’s Cathedral. An incredible sight, that looks more like a drawing than a physical building.
We headed back to the Note Coffee shop as I had put some makeup on and had my hair dyed since my last visit, so thought it would be nice to grab a quick photo or two over a hot mocha.
Each time we’ve visited the coffee shop, we’ve been sat next to Irish people. So, if you need to find other backpackers or Irish people, I’d recommend stopping by here.
We went bookshop hopping next, as Hanoi has a little book street of sorts with bookshops lined up next to each other. Most of the books were in Vietnamese or either in plastic wrapping, so it was a little difficult to browse.
We had come across a Harry Potter-themed coffee shop on TikTok last night, so headed there to check it out. It’s called Always and has a lot of themed merchandise and decorations, so a great spot to check out if you’re a Harry Potter fan.
Then it was onwards to the Gate of the city, walking through and sweating buckets. By this point, being out in the heat all day and walking everywhere, I was dripping.
It was then lunch time, and we headed for a banh mi from a place called Bami Bread. I had the barbecue chicken banh mi which was delicious. It’s quite a popular spot too, but you can sit on the little chairs outside.
We retired from the sun and headed back to the hotel for a few hours to chill out in the air-con before heading back out for dinner.
We dined at a Michelin-Guide hole-in-the-wall spot that served very tasty chicken over noodles, that definitely hit the spot.
Then it was back to the hotel to catch up on more Love Island.
Day 94: Wednesday 19th June 2024
Location: Hanoi, Vietnam
Dear travel diary,
Today was another relaxed day in the big city. We spent a full morning working from Tranquil Books & Coffee, making the most of their fast WiFi, quiet setting and ample plug sockets.
For a late lunch we headed to the popular Bun Cha 34 for some tasty bun cha. After learning how to make this last week, we’ve dined on it quite a few times.
It’s both sweet and sour, and incredibly tasty. More suited to lunch time as it’s not the most filling meal, but we also had some spring rolls on the side and these were incredible.
Bun Cha 34 is very much a local spot and they only have one thing on the menu, which makes them so good at it. Highly recommend for a light bite (and it’s very cheap) to eat!
Afterwards we headed back to the hotel to do more work from the bedroom and so I could record some voice-overs, before getting ready to head out to dinner.
We ordered a Grab to take us to dinner as we were craving dumplings. A little out of the way, but so worth the drive. Plus, a torrential downpour started as soon as we got inside the car, so definitely a good choice to grab a taxi.
We arrived at the restaurant to many strange looks. As we were the only foreign people in the restaurant and the entire menu was in Cantonese. We used our phones for Google Translate and ordered as many dumplings as possible.
They were amazing. I ended up eating 30!!!! dumplings in total. 30. I was looking quite like a dumpling by the end of the meal, I won’t lie.
But they were delicious and I could happily dine on dumplings for breakfast, lunch and dinner for the rest of my life.
Day 95: Thursday 20th June 2024
Location: Hanoi, Vietnam
Dear travel diary,
It’s our last full day in Hanoi and I’m honestly gutted.
I had a rocky start to Vietnam, I won’t lie. I wasn’t loving the country and the different parts that I’d been to, and wasn’t bothered about the trip coming to and end.
But then we got to Hanoi.
I don’t know what it was about the city. If it was the fact we spent two weeks here, or if it was just the hustle and bustle that I’d been missing.
I could happily spend a month or more here, working from the different cafes and coffee shops, eating from the restaurants that quickly became our favourites and making a way of life among the chaos.
For our last day, we again spent a long morning in Tranquil Books & Coffee. If we’d have spent any more time there, they may have started charging us rent.
I used their stable WiFi connection to schedule my next YouTube video, a little essay about leaving London which I’ll insert below:
For lunch we grabbed one last banh mhi from one of our more-preferred locations and headed back to the hotel to chill out for the afternoon.
We’re onto a new country tomorrow and I don’t really know what to expect as it’s not somewhere I’ve seen a lot of people explore before.
In the evening we headed to Uniqlo to buy some new tops, trying to change it up from the three tops I’ve been wearing in rotation.
Afterwards, we headed to Pub Street which was chaotic and you couldn’t walk two steps without someone sticking a menu in your face and calling you into their pub. Incredibly off-putting but still a street to come and see.
For dinner we were heading to another Michelin Guide spot. When we arrived, we knew we were in for an expensive meal as it was a very beautiful (and expensive) looking building.
We were directed upstairs and sat in a room full of local Vietnamese – they can get loud! We were cooking our own food of traditional ‘Cha Ca’, made of mudfish and veggies, mixed with noodles and fish sauce.
It wasn’t my favourite meal that I’ve had during my time in Hanoi, but was a bit of a novelty to have the saucepan on the table and being able to cook/serve ourselves.
Day 96: Friday 21st June 2024
Location: Hanoi, Vietnam & Vientiane, Laos
Dear travel diary,
It’s our last day in Hanoi and in Vietnam! I’m so gutted to be leaving Hanoi in particular, but also excited about visiting a brand new country.
I don’t really have any expectations for Laos or know what to expect. It’s a country I really don’t know that much about or have heard about that often either.
We slept in and made the most of our time in our Hanoi hotel, the receptionist even let us stay until 1pm until we had to call a taxi and go.
Hanoi has a very nice airport, that reminded us a lot of JFK airport in New York. Saying that, our Popeyes lunch/dinner did cost us around £20 so it’s definitely not cheap!
We flew with Laos Airlines for the first time and it was such a nice experience. There was so much leg room, they gave you a free croissant and bottle of water when the flight started and we couldn’t have been comfier.
Around 6pm we arrived into Vientiane, Laos’s capital city. This was a huge contrast to Vietnam’s capital of Hanoi that we had left that morning as Vientiane was incredibly quiet. My local high street might actually be busier than Vientiane.
We headed out for dinner to a local spot that had been recommended called Three Sisters but I wouldn’t say we loved our first experience of Laos cuisine.
We were near to the river so checked out the night market across the street and stumbled upon a teenage fashion show where the kids designed their own clothes and were being judged.
Quite cool to see some everyday life in the capital of Laos.
Day 97: Saturday 22nd June 2024
Location: Vientiane, Laos
Dear travel diary,
Today was a full day of exploring the city of Vientiane.
We set out to a coffee shop (naturally) to pick up some takeaway coffees and pastries for the walk. We happened upon a spot called Joma which had a lot of croissants and buns to choose from. As well as a nice iced caramel latte.
The walk was incredibly hot. The city hadn’t seemed as humid as Vietnam when we landed yesterday, but quickly changed.
We walked to the Laos version of the Arc de Triomphe. A cool spot and popular with tourists all getting photos from various angles. After this we walked around to find some temples and proceeded to sweat out every bit of the pastries and coffee from the morning.
To cool down we headed to COPE museum to learn about unexploded devices in the country.
I had no idea that Laos is the most bombed country in the world per capita. Due to the Vietnam War.
Thousands of bombs were dropped every few minutes across a number of years. With many of them not actually detonating when they did land. Meaning they’re still out there today.
They go off mostly with children finding them and playing with them. Or when farmers accidentally hitting them while tilling the ground.
The museum was great to learn about the history of Laos and what happened to it due to being the neighbouring country of Vietnam and Cambodia.
Plus, COPE is actually a centre that works with adults and children impacted by these bombs that still go off today and that have to have limbs amputated. Definitely a must-visit when in Vientiane.
After a full day of walking and exploring, we headed to a cafe called Sili. To have some late lunch and work on our laptops. The WiFi was great and the food incredibly cheap, so we stayed here until dinner time.
For dinner we actually headed to a Chilean restaurant for some very tasty empanadas and quesadillas.
Day 98: Sunday 23rd June 2024
Location: Vientiane, Laos
Dear travel diary,
We were up early to grab a taxi to the Golden Palace. The last touristy thing for us to see here in Vientiane.
We probably spent around ten minutes in total here and spent £1 each to enter. It was nice to see, but I wouldn’t add it to the top of my must-see list.
After this, we headed back in a taxi to Sili Cafe where we had been working yesterday. Only when we got there, we learnt it was closed on Sundays (but ‘open’ on Google). We headed to a coffee shop nearby that we had saved on our maps, but again, it was closed too.
Starting to think that everywhere was going to be closed because it’s a Sunday. Also proving this is a very quiet and chilled capital city. We found a spot called Cabana that was very popular and stunning.
We had breakfast here (and caught up on Love Island) and a few coffees. And were able to get a lot of work done. Maybe it was a blessing that both of those spots were closed so we were able to discover somewhere new.
Around 5pm, we headed out and went for a walk along the riverfront as they were setting up for the night market.
We then headed for an early dinner to a pizza restaurant we had on our lists but when we got there… you guessed it – it was closed!
So we headed back to one of the main streets that had quite a few restaurants. And eyed up where we wanted to eat.
We ended up at a very strange Japanese spot that had good reviews. But there was only one woman working there who seemed to be the waitress and the chef. So she would disappear for long periods of time. But her dog would hold the fort at the front of the restaurant.
The gyozas we had were excellent and so cheap for so many!
Then it was back to the hotel for an early night and before the rain started. We were up early the next morning to grab our bus to the next stop of our Laos trip. Vang Vieng!
Make sure to check back next week for more Laos diary entries!
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