We boarded the 9 hour night train to Sapa from Hanoi Wednesday night only a few hours after returning from our beautiful Halong Bay excursion. Having showered, repacked our little blue matching packs and Pho for dinner, we were off on another adventure. After settling in to our 4 bed (2 bunkbeds) train cabin outfitted with clean sheets and complimentary bottled water, we anxiously awaited our cabin mates as we heard some horror stories from other travelers about whom they got stuck with. We were pleasantly surprised when we met the Austrian couple we would be sharing the cabin with for the evening, both university students in their 20s. After chatting for just under an hour and swapping Vietnam travel experiences as well as advice, we all called it a night as we would be arriving ... read more

We arrived in Hue at about 6pm after a beautiful 4 hour busride through mountains, beaches and small towns along the eastern Vietnamese Coast. We checked into our 18$ a night accommodation, Huenino Hotel, where we stayed for one night. Upon arrival, we were given watermelon slices and egg sandwiches, also, the staff were so courteous and the rooms were clean - thanks to trip advisor for the suggestion. That evening we walked to the Perfume River, which has played a vital role in shaping Hue's history. It was very pretty, having a long boardwalk lined with street vendors. We then walked a little longer and opted for a 45 minute $5 foot massage. Following that, we had a tasty dinner, which was composed of 4 coke lights, 2 Hue style Rice pancakes filled with tofu ... read more

After a seven hour bus-ride from Phnom Penh, we arrived in Ho Chi Minh City. The border crossing into Vietnam was a breeze and we only needed to disembark the coach bus in order to pass through customs with our luggage and then reboard the same transport. We were entertained by two Hollywood movies and a series of Jennifer Lopez dance videos being played on the bus' t.v. - random. After speaking with another traveler who did the same journey, we found out that his bus took advantage of the music videos and sang along. We made it to Ho Chi Minh City at about 9pm and were dropped off in the backpacker's district, also known as District 1 - this is where most tourists find accommodation. Our hotel was a short walk away from the ... read more

Our 30+ hour journey to Cambodia finally came to an end with a cheap, reliable and comfortable flying experience on Bangkok Airways into the quaint and spotless airport of Siem Reap. The "Chinese Architecture" like airport definitely made us feel as though we entered Asia. Arrival was great - passport control was simple and easy since we were able to pay for our Cambodian visa on the spot (20$ USD each), Gus and Michelin (our backpacks) were waiting eagerly after we passed through immigration and Mr. Dim was waiting outside to drive us into town and start our Cambodian adventure. We exited the airport in Mr. Dim's air-conditioned Lexus (who would have thought- are we really in Cambodia?!?) to transport us to the Borei Angkor Resort and Spa Hotel. This was a free service offered by ... read more

Happy Birthday to moi, Happy Birthday to moi. Well yes, but not really. Today wasn't my actual birthday, just the day I got to cash in my gift. For my birthday, Gali's parents got Gali and I tickets to the Canadiens' hockey game in Ottawa. Of course, the gift included dinner at the Works (one of the best burger joints around)! Gali picked me up from school and we headed out towards our country's capital. As we reached Jean Talon, Aviad, Gali's brother gave us a call and decided to come along. His friend Steph had invited him to the game so he drove to meet us and we all continued west. Arriving in Ottawa was traffic filled but the radio kept us company as we sat and sat and sat. After picking up Steph we ... read more