DAY 1: 

The first day in Vietnam I didn’t have much planned, so I set out by myself to explore downtown Ho Chi Minh City. I took the complimentary Semester at Sea shuttle from the port to central downtown (the shuttle stops right in front of the post office) and set out to explore/get a little lost. 

I really only had one goal in mind for Vietnam… get a fish pedicure. I wandered across the street to the Oasis Spa. It was the cutest little place with the friendliest staff; they laughed along with me as I dunked my feet into the tank full of tiny, dry-skin-eating fish. I’ve never been treated so well at a spa, I truly hope anyone who visits Ho Chi Minh City will find themselves supporting this small business. 

It ended up being the perfect afternoon because as I was getting my nails done, my friends Emma and Julia strolled in. I had planned on spending the day alone, but was so excited to see them. The afternoon was filled with walking around shopping for family Christmas gifts and wandering into random businesses. Some notable places we went to were: the spa (obviously), Craft House shop, Saiko Sushi, and Royal Tea (of course where I fell in love with Boba tea). 

Later that evening, I met back up with my roommate Hana and a few of my other friends to celebrate her birthday at a place called Chill Skybar. We ate dinner at the top of the building in our own private section; it was amazing getting to see the view and have drinks with some of my best friends.

I had to return to the ship before midnight in order to participate in my field class for Reading Without Borders the next day. (If you haven’t read previous posts a field class is required with every course you take on the ship, like a single field trip in a country of the professor’s choice. It is worth 20% of your grade and you have to be on the ship by midnight, the night before).

DAY 2:

The field class (my required one day field trip during the semester for my reading without borders class) was titled Cu Chi Tunnels and War Museum; which was actually a large contributor to why I was even taking the course in the first place. My grandfather was a Marine during the Vietnam War and it was very important to me to take time in this country to learn about the history (as it was important for me in every country, it was especially important in Vietnam). 

*I think it’s crucial for future SAS students to research every course and see what the field class included is, especially if you’re like me and have the ability to take electives (instead of taking required major courses by your university- I only needed 4 electives to finish my degree and had much flexibility). In this case, it worked out because the tunnels are a pretty far ride from the city and during a field class everything is free and organized for you.*

Our first stop was the Cu Chi Tunnels- My entire life I learned about the Vietnam War from an American perspective in school (as my grandfather does not really talk much about it). During my time at the tunnels I heard the dark history of the war from a Vietnamese veteran who had lost his leg in combat. He gave us his story, along with maps of the tunnels and a description of Gorilla Warfare. 

Soon after the history portion, he led us to the section of the tunnels where a few of us were able to crawl through. They were so tiny and it was hard to breathe… our guide informed us the people lived down there for years without seeing the world above. 

After lunch, we boarded our bus and made our way back into the city to see the War Museum. The museum was dead silent and the students spent our time reading and educating ourselves on both sides of the war. The part that hit me the hardest was the section about Agent Orange and its lingering impact. It’s not really something I feel comfortable trying to describe because I think it’s imperative for each individual to educate themselves of the tragedies of the war. 

Vietnam is hard for me to describe, because it was a whole different experience for me. When I say this, I mean that every other country throughout the voyage satisfied me in some way… however, I felt like Vietnam took a little piece of me with it when I left. In other words, I didn’t quite feel fulfilled, I felt a little empty.I later signed out of my field class and caught my flight to Hanoi.

DAY 3 & 4:

Another thing SAS alumni recommended was to do a boat cruise on the Halong Bay, so of course I planned this with a few of my friends. We spent the night before (day 2) in Hanoi before meeting at the tour company on day 3 that would shuttle us to HaLong Bay. We decided to go with the Castaways tour, however, we accidentally signed up for the knockoff version, which was the less classy version of what some of our shipmates went with (*future SASers or anyone traveling to Ha Long DO YOUR RESEARCH and make sure you are getting the best quality for what you’re paying). Nonetheless, we made the best of our trip when we boarded the traditional junk boat and set sail along one of the “top natural wonders of the world”.

We made quite a few stops on our journey through the bay such as the Pearl Farm, Thien Son Cave, Tuan Chau Beach, and an area where we were able to rent and go kayaking for the morning. Overall it was a very relaxing excursion; we laughed and made jokes about how it was supposed to be a party boat, but was packed with little adventures. Instead of dancing on the deck at midnight, the crew was teaching us how to catch squid off the edge of the boat. 

Despite not being the glamorous cruise compared to the ones my shipmates did, I had a great time making memories with my friends. I think from a Semester at Sea perspective, I would rather have spent more time exploring Vietnam by foot since I was on a ship for an entire Semester, but when visiting Vietnam, Halong Bay is a must see. There is simply way too much to see in a 5 day period- had I had more time, I would have taken at least 3 days to do Halong Bay. 

DAY 5: 

On the last day in Vietnam I signed up for a field program (optional travel program purchased/organized by SAS) called the Mekong Delta Exploration. During the day we boated down the river making stops at local businesses such as a brick making place and a coconut processing plant. We learned the importance the river plays in the local culture and economy. 

One of my favorite stops during the day was at a local coconut bar where they opened the coconuts for us and we were able to drink from them… they were absolutely delicious! Shortly after, we hopped on a rickshaw and toured a mattress making place; I think one of the most interesting things I experienced during study abroad was learning how different countries do things differently and the different ways of life. I felt as though the program was very educational and I enjoyed cruising around the MeKong Delta for a day.