Greetings my forum friends! We are in Singapore! I'm going to try to report in here as we experience this wonderful area of the world.
Here is the itinerary:
Five nights Singapore.
13 night cruise with port stops in Thailand and Vietnam.
2 nights Hong Kong.
4 nights Seoul.
Here we go!
We flew Korean Air from Toronto to Seoul, then connected in Seoul to Singapore. The first flight was 14.5 hours and the 2nd, 6.5 hours. Korean Air offers pretty good leg room in economy! Too much food though. My favourite meal was the bibimbap. The rice and scrambled egg snack was nice too.
We got to our hotel in Singapore at around 01:15. I had about 3 hours of deep sleep and feel ok right now. We are shortly heading out for a food tour booked through With Locals. I shall report back later!
I am looking forward to your report. What an adventure!
Very much looking forward to your reports. Hoping to relive what was some of our very favorite SEA cities and one of our most memorable cruises. I envy your stay in Singapore. We only had 2 nights, and hope to return for more.
Andrea, so pleased you are doing this, as you know, we have 6 weeks in Asia this fall. Following!
Our food tour was booked through With Locals. We chose "William". For those of you who haven't used With Locals, you can review the guides and choose who you think you'd best gel with. We chose William because he seemed to have the best credentials and experience. He contacted us in advance to discuss upgrading from the Hawker Center tour to the Ten Tastings Tour. The former is five tastings, all Chinese. The latter is, as advertised, ten tastings, Chinese, Indian and Malay. Wisely we upgraded.
I think the tour was worthwhile. We had planned to visit each of these neighbourhoods, but wouldn't have tried food at all three in one day. William was maybe a bit aloof, but warmed up as we went along. And of course you always learn more with a guide.
We learned how to use the MRT. So easy, and no fussing about tickets. You just tap your credit card on way in, and way out. It's air conditioned, clean, and quiet.
The food tour wrapped up at 3pm. We came back to our hotel, Oasia Downtown, to have a swim and relax. We booked a "Club" class room. We get access to a pool just for "Club" folks, all day snacks and beverages, and canapés and cocktails between 6pm and 8pm. Normally we wouldn't splurge like this, but I figured if we used the canapés as a light dinner it could go a long way to stretch the food budget. It's very civilized. The pool is on the 21st floor with an infinity edge. Definitely refreshing after the heat and humidity.
It's an early night for us tonight. Though we aren't feeling jet lag at all, we want a good rest to set us up for the rest of the trip.
Tomorrow we are planning on an English language tour of the Asian Civilizations Museum. We are thinking we might also hit the Gardens by the Bay too.
If you like museums, you might enjoy the National Gallery. The history of the building itself and its re-make from civic buildings into an art museum is fascinating. There are tours of the building as well as the galleries - or self-explore. They have brochures.
https://www.nationalgallery.sg/sg/en/architecture-and-history.html
The National Museum is excellent on covering Singapore history. https://www.nhb.gov.sg/nationalmuseum?sc_lang=en
I'm quite familiar with Singapore, expat experience. Lots to see and do. I hope you enjoy the visit!! Thanks for the report! I'm looking forward to vicariously joining you on your sightseeing! (Forgive me if I seem to be butting into your itinerary with the above thoughts. I'm sure you have well researched for your interests - I just can't contain my enthusiasm!!)
Andrea, thanks for doing this! Just curious; how long was your layover in Seoul?
Thanks for doing the report! I also enjoyed my Korean Air experience and the bibimbap. Best flight attendants I've ever experienced - courteous, efficient, detail oriented. I can attest that there is probably a magic layover time at Seoul airport but I didn't find it - 1.25 hours definitely not enough, 3.5 hours was way too much.
Andrea, thanks for doing this! Just curious; how long was your layover in Seoul?
I think with a short delay to the first flight we had 1h50, and it was enough, mind you we arrived at 00:10 so the airport wasn't very busy.
Back to the food tour. William explained there is no street food in Singapore. In the 1970s the government moved them all into the hawker centers. That was for safety food preparation; take it out of the heat. Also to ensure hygiene of the food prep and the preparers.
The tour included the famous chicken rice Michelin starred dish by Hawker Chan. Top tip: wait in line in the center for the original. There's a satellite location nearby and William says it's not as good and three times the price. All it offers is fewer lines and better air con.
EDIT we didn't arrive in Seoul at 00:10, that was jet lag talking. It was early evening.
Best flight attendants I've ever experienced - courteous, efficient, detail oriented
Agreed. We watched how they handled things when the little girl in the row in front of us threw up. Very caring, and professional at the same time.
I too will follow along. This type of trip is on our list. We’re trying to branch out to Asia while we are young enough, meaning under 70, lol.
too will follow along. This type of trip is on our list. We’re trying to branch out to Asia while we are young enough, meaning under 70, lol.
Barbara, I know you're a city girl. Singapore definitely fits the bill!
Something interesting with the Singapore MTR. On the platform floor they've painted red lines from the side towards the train, and a green arrow pointing out from out of the middle of the train door. This allows both embarkation and disembarkation at the same time. People seem to follow it. Of course we didn't notice right away and stood wherever for several journeys. Didn't notice any stink eye.
Today we did an English language tour of the Asian Civilizations Museum. Highly, highly recommended. Among its many treasures are the artefacts from the Tang shipwreck. If I ever knew about it, I had forgotten. Perhaps that speaks to the Western centric outlook most of us are taught. The docent was engaging and knowledgeable. The tour is no extra charge.
A funny coincidence. The guide was asking where everyone was from. Turns out there was a couple from Peterborough, England.
After the museum we hoofed it out to the Liverpool FC store. It had exactly the same stuff as the store in Liverpool, which was disappointing. We were hoping for some items with an Asian flair. At this point we were both worn out from the heat and walking, so headed back to the pool.
We planned to go to Gardens by the Bay tonight, but the elastic went on my bathing suit so we rushed out to Great World Mall to pick up a new one . I was really concerned, being a plus size woman, that I'd never get a bathing suit in Asia, but no problem. I think we will hit the gardens tomorrow.
So far I'd give this trip a 10/10 !
Andrea, I am bookmarking this as it sounds fascinating! I'm a city girl, too, and I love the idea of each item on your itinerary! I also have a relative (my cousin's daughter) who lives in Seoul, so it would be a chance to meet up with her. Thanks for doing this!
Singapore is important in history, and now, due to its location for trade.
Every morning we can see at least a dozen shipping ships from the hotel.
Gardens by the Bay. Absolutely spectacular! The riot of colour in the Flower Dome was balm to these winter hardened eyes!
Walking around the green space is free, but you pay for entry to the top sights. We did the OCBC Skyway, Flower Dome, and Cloud Forest. The Skyway is an elevated walkway in the Supertree Grove, which is a bunch of huge tree structures with plants growing all up them. You can walk at their bases for free. There's a light show in them each evening so we plan to go back for that.
But that Flower Dome! Oh how lovely it is!
The Cloud Forest has an enormous waterfall, and an orchid display ("display" just doesn't capture it) from Thailand, beautifully set amidst Thai scenes.
Top tip- the Cloud Forest and Flower Dome are refreshingly cool. Do them after doing the outdoor Skyway. Or maybe sandwich the Skyway between them.
We finally crashed this afternoon. Slept for about 3 hours.
Andrea - you are making me homesick!! I can't can't wait to hear about your next stop!
For the curious, a unique place (in my mind): https://www.gardensbythebay.com.sg
This evening we went back to the hawker center in Chinatown for dinner. It surprised us that many of the stalls were already closed. We chose a pork and rice dish, which came with soup. With a pop for each of us it came to $11 SIngapore dollars. After meandering Chinatown we had Gelato which was $17 SD, lol. I'm sure we could have found a cheaper place.
Be prepared to sink wash your undies a lot. It's so hot we are going through two per day.
The Chinatown hawker center was a personal favorite spot for lunch. (is this the Maxwell Food center? that's the one I'm picturing)
I still miss "fried carrot cake" which is actually made from daikon radish, not carrots. I have never been successful in my attempts to replicate the dish at home. If you are so inclined, enjoy some for me!!! I like both the light and dark versions. You can find it pretty easily at any of the hawker centres I have visited.
Thanks so much for sharing your impressions. I am enjoying my memories!
So glad you enjoyed your day at GBTB. The Flower Dome was lovely, but the Cloud Forest absolutely blew my mind. We were there for hours, and I think I took hundreds of photos. By all means try to get back to GBTB for the light show, but get there early to stake out a prime viewing spot. And if you can find time to see the Spectra light and water show, it's very worth your while
And for those with any kind of mobility impairment, I want to say that Singapore is very accessible. I had aggravated a back problem, but we managed to rent a wheelchair and still see everything we wanted to. (Huge kudos to DH who had to push me around in all that heat and humidity).
The Chinatown hawker center was a personal favorite spot for lunch. (is this the Maxwell Food center? that's the one I'm picturing)
No, ORD, that's not the one, though we pass by it when walking to Chinatown. I dont know if there's a name for the one I'm referring to. To get to this one, alight from Chinatown MRT at Pagoda St. Cut right through a side street, cross a road, then cut again along a side street. Go up an escalator by a small department store. It's up there, open sides to the air.
Oh well, I had a good time remembering chicken rice at Maxwells. It doesn't matter, there are so many great hawker centers that's it's hard to go wrong.
I am eager to hear about your next venture!
This morning we did a walking tour - "Of graves, guns & battles, a tour of Fort Canning Hill". it was a good introduction to the history of Singapore with emphasis on WWII, I highly recommend it, if you can tolerate heat. It has been a scorching day and climbing stairs and standing in it for 2.5 took it out of me. Thank goodness they run it in the morning.
After it wrapped up we walked to Clarke's Quay. This is a pricey area of restaurants along the river. I'm glad we saw it but wouldn't go out of my way to go back.
Earlier I was grumbling that our room has only been made up once. I don't need clean sheets or fresh towels everyday, but I use the glasses and mugs provided to make tea, etc. I ran into housekeeping and discovered we had pressed a switch that indicated to them we didn't want it made up. Never come across this system, felt kind of dumb. At least I didn't complain!
It's our last night and I still haven't had a Singapore Sling!
Hello Andrea
I am so enjoying your report.
How hot was it in Singapore. I know that it is March but is it summer such as in Australia / New Zealand or is Singapore just. a very hot country?
If I can do the cruise in October, I will be sailing from Tokyo to Seoul or vice versa so I am going to be very interested in your cruise experience and especially when you get to Seoul.
Bostonphil, a glance at a map would show you that Singapore is only 1 degree of latitude from the equator. That's about 85 miles. There are no seasons, as you would define them. Temperatures don't fluctuate significantly during the year, only the rainfall amounts.
Singapore is near the equator with a tropical climate. Hot (high 70s to high 80s is typical) and humid with frequent rain storms - fairly constant throughout the year. Two monsoon periods, but not to the extent of certain other countries such as India. I didn't notice much difference on a day to day basis although I suppose some months and days had more rain than others - you adjust. Monsoon season was much more evident to me in Cambodia and Thailand.
One of my favorite memories was Christmas in S'pore. At Gardens by the Bay that Andrea wrote about, there is (was?) an annual Christmas Festival. Lights by the giant trees, Christmas carols, ice skating rink for kiddies, and - the best- fake snow that cascaded down on visitors as the Christmas carols played. On the big shopping street, Orchard Road, many of the malls and stores also had fake snow blowing across the sidewalk and light displays. Coming from the cold MidWest, I loved it! Enjoying the holidays in sandals and the lightest of summer weight clothes was terrific in my mind.
I know many are not as enthusiastic over S'pore's climate as I am, but I loved it. I had a special Singapore wardrobe of tropic weight clothes when I was doing a lot of back and forthing between there and the US. I learned the necessity the hard way.....
The light show at GBTB was fabulous. It's free too. They run two per night, and change it every month.
Top tip- when you are leaving the Supergrove the signs points you to Bayshore MRT. It's a farther walk than GBTB MRT. Unless you need the line that Bayshore is on, go the other way.
We could see our ship from our breakfast room. As we prepare to leave Singapore I'm already listing things I want to come back for. I read in the past that Singapore was a boring place; I think whoever said that must be a boring person!
The heat...
Yes, it's hot and humid, all the time. I think of the very hot days we get at home (yes, we get oppressive heat in my area of Canada), but we always talk about when the heat will break. It never will here. The key is to not expect to sightsee all day. Add in breaks. Book a hotel with a pool. Ours was very cool - do they cool their pools like we often heat ours?
Also clothes matter. I was most comfortable wearing active wear dresses (like golf dresses), with my Thigh Society Cooling undershorts. I can't recommend those undies/shorts enough.
I have this dress, and more in other prints:
https://www.anthonysfla.com/products/spx4427bls?_pos=62&_fid=a3dd0447f&_ss=c&variant=51692562579828
Now this dress does not look like what the locals wear, if that's important to you, but I never got side eye. They tend to wear lightweight wide leg trousers, or a dress, and many more wear short sleeves than sleeveless. Muted colours as opposed to my propensity for bold brights (I was a teen in the 80s, after all).
The day I wore Bermuda shorts I was ready to drop and the shorts were soaked through with sweat. Dresses and cooling undies are the way to go.
Thanks to everyone who responded to my comment about the weather in Singapore.
I know nothing about Singapore and very little about Asia.
I hve heard some good things about Singapore but I do not think that I would like the weather. But Andrea and you others make it sound so desirable.
so I did some research on Singapore and watched two long youtube videos.
All I can say is, fabulous and awesome.
But I do not think I could handle the weather very well.
We took the MRT to the ship. Fast and easy. We had to clear security, then show our Vietnam visas, then check in. We walked on the ship at around noon and had a very nice lunch at the buffet.
Our cabins were made available at 1:30, so here we are settling in a bit. We've done enough cruises we know how we like to set our cabins up.
The ship is Celebrity Solstice. It's the first of the S-Class ships. Launched in 2008, she's starting to show her age. Hey, so am I so who am I to judge! I'm really getting the urge to try Edge Class ships. Booking onboard gets you onboard credit and reduced deposit. My problem is Edge class doesn't necessarily go where I want to go. I did see on M-Class a nice itinerary from Mumbai to Singapore with stops in Sri Lanka and Phuket...
Chris is disappointed with the overwhelming white make up of our fellow passengers. We had read that cruises out of Asia attract a lot of Asians, and we were looking forward to that. Oh well, I'm sure we'll meet lots of lovely folks.
Right now it's too hot to use the balcony we paid for.
Andrea, really appreciate the link to those undies and dresses. One of the reasons I don’t wear dresses in hot climes is thigh chaff. Definitely going to order these. Loving your report!
Tammy, Thigh Society Cooling undies are fabulous. They single handedly put dresses back into my summer wardrobe.
Our bags have been delivered to our cabins and we are unpacked and settled in. Our steward had already provided the few extras we like, not that there's many. We are pretty easy going.
Bon Voyage to Andrea and Chris
You must have begun sailing or very close to sail away.
Looking forward to continued updates.
I can see from AIS vessel tracking that the ship departed 36 minutes early, at 1824 local time.
We are sitting on our balcony listening to the waves and just saw a shooting star. Bold and bright, right across the sky. Looked so close.
It's 5pm on our first full day on the cruise. A sea day. The weather is more bearable as we traverse the Gulf of Thailand. We were able to sit out on our balcony comfortably.
I had a keratin treatment done on my hair. I have heard it cuts out cruise frizz. So far so good!
Chris did a Steak Master Class. He said it was great fun.
Tomorrow is Ko Samui. It's a tender port. We have an excursion booked through Travel Authentic Asia.
Thailand.
I'm trying to be objective about Thailand. I was prepared to love it, found i didn't, but as I look back I'm seeing more clearly.
First thing - Thailand is jammed with tourists. As jammed as anywhere I've been in Europe. More jammed in fact. Add in 39+ Celsius heat, and stricter dress codes for temples than for churches in Italy.
First port day was Ko Samui. Or Koh Samui, I've seen both spellings. We did "Highlights of Ko Samui", from Travel Authentic Asia (TAA), not including elephant interaction. This was a deliberate choice. Most excursions included elephants, but we were concerned about the ethics of it.
Our excursion wasn't the best. It was a whistle stop tour that was temple heavy. The guides English was almost non-existant. He tried hard but couldn't answer questions, even simple ones (someone needed a lift/elevator, and he didn't have a clue what was being asked). On the bright side, there were only six of us on the tour and the included lunch was delicious, plentiful and not rushed.
We stopped at a waterfall which was advertised as a swimming stop, but none of us oldies on the tour were going to leap off a rock 30 feet into the water.
To get to the waterfall we passed two elephants that looked very poorly kept, saddled up for rides, and tourists were paying for bananas to feed them. Both were demonstrating repetitive tics (eg repeated dipping head banging it into fence). I couldn't even look at them; they looked so distressed.
After Singapore, Ko Samui looked poor and dirty. I think it would show better with a longer stay at a nice beachfront hotel. In retrospect, the short walk into Nathon would have been a better day from a cruise ship.
The next day was an overnight in Bangkok, independently. We bought the transfer from Celebrity at a fabulous price of $25CADpp.
Upon arrival we jumped in a taxi to our chosen hotel, the Mandarin. There are two Mandarins, this was the cheaper one near Sam Yan MRT. We checked in, but the room wasn't ready. We put our bags in storage and headed to the MRT to the Royal Palace. The MRT isn't as convenient as in Singapore. You have to figure out the ticket machines, which isn't that hard really. And the stops aren't plentiful. It was a very, very long walk from the MRT to the Palace, in searing heat with no shade. And the crowds! There was an upcoming English language tour so we joined that. It didn't take long for us to jump ship on that. The tour wasn't great, we could barely hear, people kept joining but then talking over the guide, the heat was unlike anything I've experienced. So we left the tour, and in fact left the Palace.
I suggest nobody ever go in the afternoon. When I checked the weather it said Bangkok was experiencing hotter than usual temps, but I doubt there'd be much relief. We spoke to someone who went early on day 2 in Bangkok, and they said it was tolerable in terms of temps and crowds. It's a shame I couldn't enjoy it because it truly is spectacular.
On the walk back to the MRT we stopped at Wat Pho to see reclining Buddha. Busy, but not like the Palace.
We got back to the hotel and had cool showers and a 2 hour rest before joining our Midnight Food Tour by Tuk Tuk.
This was worth every penny and value for money. Over 4 hours, we zipped all over the city and the food was (mostly) delicious. There were fifteen participants, so 8 TukTuks. It felt like we were in the Amazing Race at times as the drivers jockeyed for position with each other. Ours was fond of driving in oncoming traffic to get ahead! The guide gave us a comprehensive list of foods and locations which I'll add to this report after I'm home on a laptop as opposed to my phone. Tour ended with a cocktail on a rooftop bar opposite from Wat Arun. Truly spectacular. And the Tuk Tuks even drop you off at right at your hotel. Highly, highly recommended. This is when I started liking Thailand.
Another cold shower and bed!
Bangkok, day 2.
We got up early to get ready, eat, and checkout with time to meet up for a longboat back canal tour we had booked. This was wonderful, especially since we started at 9am so the canals were quiet. We saw all kinds of abodes along the canals: rich, poor, and half collapsed into the water. There was a stop at Artists Village, and then at a temple (can't remember the name). This temple is for "regular people" the guide said, so no special attire was required. It was beautiful, and mostly empty. There's the lesson on how to see Thailand in the heat.
There are locks from the canal to the River, which reminded us of home because we've done locks on the Trent Severn waterway many times. We had to wait 30 minutes to complete! At this time we started to panic a bit because our two hour tour was now up to almost 3 hours, and we had to meet the bus back to the ship which was across town. Finally we crossed the choppy river! The boat docked but it was a huge step up to make. I couldn't do it and ended up falling on the pier like a walrus, hopefully with fewer chin hairs! Got myself up and hustled our butts to MRT back to pick up our bag out of storage at the hotel. There we grabbed a taxi to the bus meeting point.
Have I mentioned the traffic in Bangkok? We didn't move fast, in fact we barely moved for ten minutes!
But we made it. After all that panic, we made it.
Thanks to the wonderful food tour and canal tour, I like Thailand enough to return. But I'd avoid the so-called "big sights" unless they have a cold snap!
Back on the ship we got our core temperatures back to normal, showered and went to Cellar Masters for a wine. We ended up drinking the whole bottle by the end of dinner, which is way cheaper than a beverage package.
Our server at the dining room is so personable. He keeps bringing us 3 meals, what I order, what Chris orders, then a 3rd meal for us to try. And I keep declining dessert but one appears anyway. I haven't felt like I've over eaten this cruise, which I usually do. And I probably sweated off at least 5 pounds in Bangkok.
I am enjoying reading your trip report.
I have researched the area of the world that you are visiting and I would not be able to tolerate being a tourist in the heat that you are describing.
The crowds would also be difficult for me to handle
However, I am glad that you are enjoying the food and I am intrigued by the midnight food tour. Were you really eating around midnight?
However, I am glad that you are enjoying the food and I am intrigued by the midnight food tour. Were you really eating around midnight?
No. The tour ran from 7pm to 11pm, but because of the latitude it's dark by the start.
We've arrived at the port for Ho Chi Minh city. The weather is a tiny bit cooler now, but still forecasted to be over 30 C.
Forgot to mention, Stephen Barry is onboard headlining. He was made famous on Ireland's Got Talent. We saw the end of one evening show and then the whole matinee.
Love Ho Chi Minh City. Love it!
why do you love Ho Chi Minh City?
why do you love Ho Chi Minh City?
Partly it's the French colonial architecture. Wide, leafy, shady boulevards. Haussmann-like buildings. Add in the Vietnamese flair, it's just very pretty wirh a dose of fascinating. Of course it's kind of run down and very hectic, but it has a good feel. All the trees create shade so the heat was bearable. It was cooler (only around 30, lol), and less humid, and the plentiful shade made a huge difference.
Our tour took us to a Chinese temple, a cyclo ride, the old Post Office, lunch, War Remnants Museum, and some time at a huge market. I enjoyed everything! The Museum was mostly photos from the War, and many were difficult to look at, but I think it's a worthwhile place to go. Americans might feel differently.
The tour guide told us Vietnamese don't really think or dwell on the War.
The vendors at the market are very, very aggressive, so if you can't handle that, skip it. I was fine with firm nos, but Chris's polite side was a problem for him.
After one day in Vietnam I can say I like it better than Thailand.
Today we attended a matinee show by Charity Lockhart. Man but that woman can sing. She was doing Whitney Houston songs this afternoon. The other night she did Aretha Franklin but we missed it.
Tomorrow we have an excursion to Bana Hills - where that bridge with the hands is. Rain expected, so hopefully it's not a long wet miserable day.
The Museum was mostly photos from the War, and many were difficult to
look at, but I think it's a worthwhile place to go. Americans might
feel differently.
I went to this HCM museum during my free time on a Gate1 tour. It was definitely a difficult exhibit but also an eye opener to see a very different perspective on the war. It was quite an adventure to get there on foot from my hotel about a half mile away - not sure what I was thinking venturing out as a pedestrian with all that chaotic traffic! A nice traffic policeman literally stopped traffic so I could cross safely - kindness is everywhere.
Andrea, still following! Where are you? Lol
About the weather: Weather Spark is a great website for seeing visually what the weather will be like across the year and over the course of each day. Here is Singapore's page. Scroll down to the third graph and you will see that, year-round, 24 hours a day, the weather goes only from "warm" to "hot". Contrast this with, say, Toronto or San Francisco :-)
My favorite graphic is farther down, the "humidity comfort levels". You can see that for much of the year, the humidity in Singapore ranges from "oppressive" to "miserable" lol; whereas in San Francisco it ranges from "dry" to "comfortable". I have to brace myself when I go to Korea in the summer!!
Loving your real-time trip report, Andrea!
. It was quite an adventure to get there on foot from my hotel about a half mile away - not sure what I was thinking venturing out as a pedestrian with all that chaotic traffic! A nice traffic policeman literally stopped traffic so I could cross safely - kindness is everywhere.
We were taught how to cross the road. Put your hand up, keep your eyes open to traffic and walk slowly at steady speed. It works!
Danang - Bana Hills
This was probably our least favourite port day. We chose to go to Bana Hills, or Ba Na Hills. We wanted to swe the Golden Bridge. That's the one on the side of the mountain with the giant hands. Not only was the fog so thick we could barely see, but that whole area is a kind of Disney-esque attraction. I think if it had been a nice day it would have been better, but with fog and sporadic rain, it was a long drag of a day.
We got back to the ship and Chris started feeling unwell. He went to medical and has flu. He is immunocompromised, so gets sick easily. He is quarantined, i am not.
Halong Bay and Hanoi (overnight)
Chris encouraged me to go on our excursions rather than staying back with him, so I did. Poor Chris missed the best port days of the whole cruise!
Hanoi is an amazing city. Again the French influence makes it leafy and pretty. It seems wealthier than Ho Chi Minh City, but that's a comment based on a day's visit so who knows. The group did a walking tour that covered markets, residential neighbourhoods, a fabulous lunch, a jeep backroads tour, and Vietnamese egg coffee. Egg coffee was invented to satisfy the French's desire for coffee and condensed milk, without using condensed milk. They whip up egg yolk and sugar and put it on very strong coffee. I loved it. Could have had more than one. I'd love to return to Hanoi.
Halong Bay
An experience right out of my imagination!
The nice thing about today was no bus! The junk was a short stroll from the ship. Love it! There were 13 of us on a junk that probably accommodates up to 50 or more, so lots of room to spread out. We cruised to another Bay (can't remember name), and switched into our choice of kayak (paddle yourselves) or a bamboo boat with someone else paddling. I chose the latter. It was about 45 minutes of peaceful time amongst the limestone formations. The water was like glass. No other tourists. Just us and nature. We passed by the floating fishing village. Interesting way of life, but the young don't want to live it so I guess it will die out.
We stopped at a pearl farm to see them inserting mother of pearl into the oysters and then of course a chance to buy pearl jewelry. Nobody did, but it sure was beautiful. Pricey.
Lunch on the junk was very fishy. Those who love seafood felt it was great.
Our tours were all booked with groups formed through Cruise Critic, so we were getting to know each other well. Had a great time together, drank three bottles of wine. First two were Chilean, then we had the nerve to drink the Vietnamese wine. It was drinkable; I've drank worse, for sure.
Train Street
Forgot to mention in Hanoi we went to see the train at Train Street. My god but it's dangerous! All of us jammed up against some walls while a train flew past. It's a very popular thing to do, check it out online if you haven't heard of it.
Chris's Quarantine
He's taking it with good humor. The medical centre did not bill him for the visit, but he paid for the meds, I expect insurance will reimburse it but at $213USD, it won't break us if they weasel out of it.
They've waived the surcharge for room service, and made all the PPV movies free. Once he is cleared they will calculate the days he missed against what we paid and issue future cruise certificate.
We have a balcony so he's had a good view throughout.
I doubt this hiccup will deter us from cruising again (have my eye on the Transatlantic that goes from Buenos Aires to Europe...)
I'm so sorry for your husband's illness! Good to see you back and I've enjoyed reading the review(s). Fun to follow live updates!
I have not traveled to Viet Nam, but could empathize with your impressions of Bangkok. You are making Viet Nam sound quite tempting!
Thanks for sharing your experiences with us.
I have not traveled to Viet Nam, but could empathize with your impressions of Bangkok. You are making Viet Nam sound quite tempting!
Almost everyone we've spoken with has said they prefer Vietnam to Thailand - by a lot. We certainly do.
Interesting to hear the above! You are giving me ideas........
I don't want my comment above to come off as painting me as a Thailand un-enthusiast. I have had multiple visits to the country and would eagerly return to areas such as Chiang Mai and Kanchanaburi. Additionally, there are other areas I would like to explore.
I have failed to warm to Bangkok, where I have spent time on several occasions. I was surprised at my reaction, expecting to to love the city. Ahhh, if only circumstances allowed for unlimited travel time - then I would feel that I truly knew a place!
Chris was allowed out of quarantine by lunchtime on the last day of the cruise, which was a sea day. We took it easy, enjoyed our last meal and packed. He received $375 in future cruise credit as a thanks for doing the right thing. The amount is prorated based on how many days in quarantine against what fare we paid. I'm not sure if it's valid for new bookings only, or if we can use it toward our Japan cruise.
As mentioned above, neither of us are dissuaded from cruising when the itinerary and price point are good.
Hong Kong
We did self assist to get off the ship and easily found a taxi to whisk us to our hotel. For those who haven't cruised, you either do self assist with your luggage and disembark in the first group, or leave your luggage out the previous evening and leave in a preassigned numbered group. All are supposed to be out their cabins by 07:30, and in any public lounge waiting for their number.
We got to the hotel by about 8am, and if we were willing to upgrade could have a room immediately. It was $100CAD, so we did that. The hotel was stunning and our room well worth the upgrade.
Having been to Hong Kong in 2012, we didn't plan on any of the biggies like The Peak.
We rested for about an hour then went to Nan Lian Garden. This is an oasis of calm and beauty in the big city. It's free to enter.
From there it was a 20ish minute walk to Wong Tai Sin Temple. It's quite a complex and was jammed with people. The best thing was the vast majority of those there were there for worship, not sightseeing. I highly recommended both places.
We went to the Ladies Market and the Temple Street Night market. Temple St was much smaller a market than we remembered from 2012, but perhaps we are misremembering. And we didn't see any wet market section, which again we could be misremembering. We were able to pick up a few gifts for our cat sitters and snow shovelers.
I loved Hong Kong in 2012, and I still love Hong Kong.
After two nights in Hong Kong we flew to snowy Seoul, and are here for four nights. I love it!!!
The subway isn't as easy to figure out as it is in Hong Kong, but we've managed. We got a 3-Day pass.
We went to Bukchon Hanok Village. Most of Seoul is modern high rises, but there are a few pockets of the old city left. And people still live there; it isn't K-Disney at all.
On the walk from the subway to Bukchon we had to walk through a huge protest. A few weeks ago the president imposed martial law, and for it was impeached and ousted. These people are the counter protesters who want him back. They were waving American Flags and had banners reading "Stop the Steal". I don't want this thread shut down so let's not discuss politics. I'm just reporting what I saw.
The fellow who drove us from airport had said that it was good we are leaving Friday because Saturday these protesters are coming en masse and the city might shut down; we'd not make it to the airport.
Forgot to mention, in Hong Kong we decided to take the bus to the airport. We knew the bus stop was nearby our hotel, so asked the concierge where exactly. He walked us right to the bus stop, pushed my suitcase, checked the departures, and broke down a big bill because the driver doesn't give change. Even giving this wonderful man a big tip, taking the bus was a fraction of the cost of a taxi.
We went to a cat Cafe. When we arrived, Chris put his coat on a chair and immediately a cat took his seat. Funny thing was it looked exactly like our cat Patchey, who we both had the strongest bond with of all our cats. Patchey died in 2022 and we were devastated, especially Chris. This one popped right up and was Patchey's twin.
The cats are well looked after. You can't pick them up or hug, but you can pet them and play with them. I saw a separate area where more cats were, presumably they get time away from people. They are all very nonchalant about people. It's clearly THEIR space and we are visitors.
It cost about $13CAD to enter and with that you get one non-alcoholic beverage.
We are goung back later!
Myeongdong Night Market
Fabulous. Lots of energy, excitement - lights, street food, shops, stalls. We made a small dinner of amazing street food. I had an egg bun, Chris had a potato tornado, and we shared sweet and sour chicken. I also had a custard treat in the shape of a deep fried fish, which was only ok.
Thanks for sharing! I was hoping only yesterday that you would be back with further reports!
Hong Kong is another residence from my expat days. I can visualize all you mention. Thanks for the memories.
And, thanks for reporting on Seoul where I had a couple trips last year. I had wondered what the current situation was after the "incident" late last year. I hope this doesn't prevent you from visiting some of the palaces and other tourist highlights.
Glad to hear that your husband is back to good health!!!!!
Andrea, as you may know, we are heading to Seoul and Hong Kong for our first visits this fall. So I am eagerly taking notes! Keep it coming!
Nice to see Hong Kong on here. I too was an expat out there based on the Gold Coast building the new [current] Airport. I did a lot of the really great walking both on HK Island and in the New Territories, and really loved visiting the out islands on the ferries. As well as the more touristy stuff. I loved doing the Peak Tram in the early morning before the tourists were up, then walking down the other side to our offices in Aberdeen, or an evening tram up then walking back down to Central via the intermediate stations, then the mega ferry back to Tuen Mun or the fast ferry to Tsuen Wan for the late evening non AC bus back to the Gold Coast. After a hot day the trade winds blowing through the non AC bus of China Motor Bus was one of those treats. No comparison to the modern AC bus of KMB.
Many very happy memories.
I actually went back there some years later by container ship from Southampton via the Med, Suez and Emirates just to fly out of our new Airport.
Ahhhhh- the Peak! Thanks, isn31c!!!!
I loved the early hours. My last day in the SAR, I did my favorite walk despite heavy fog. That was the only time I have ever experienced a situation where I could literally not see my hand in front of my face.
I highly recommend a visit, preferably not during fog, for those who are reading in anticipation of a visit to HK. Lion Pavillion for views - which I'm sure Andrea experienced on her earlier HK visit. Morning, noon, or night all have something to offer although it can become quite crowded. Lots of walking trails for those interested, not rigorous although going up can be a slog due to the height. Most take the tram, a bus, or taxi. https://www.thepeak.com.hk/en/the-peak-experience/nature-walks
Seoul = Stairs.
There's precious few escalators in the subway stations.
Interesting observation!
This is what I remember being startled by: emergency supplies.
https://centers.ibs.re.kr/html/living_en/transport/subway-emer-stn.html
Hi Andrea,
I am so enjoying your trip report.
I want to ask you about Incheon where I believe the Seoul airport is located. How did you get to and from your hotel.
I am hearing that the airport is very nice.
And did you have ny chance to see the cruise port in Incheon which I also hear is very nice.
How about Incheon itself? Did you spend any time there?
What Koreans are wearing.
It's March, cool but not cold. They wear black coats. Long, short, in between. Wool, puffy, other. But black. Pants are subdued colour straight leg cut. Sometimes wide leg. Jeans too, but not as often as trousers, and never skinny cut. Nothing flashy, always clean and tidy. Sensible shoes, mostly branded athletic shoes. Even the young women, at least for regular day, we weren't out late enough to see how they Amp it up for night.
want to ask you about Incheon where I believe the Seoul airport is located. How did you get to and from your hotel. I am hearing that the airport is very nice.
And did you have ny chance to see the cruise port in Incheon which I also hear is very nice.
We booked our hotel through Booking . Com and they offered a good price on a transfer. It is just over an hour drive to the city. We arranged with the same driver to bring us back to the airport. The airport is very nice, but big. Lots of walking.
We did not see the cruise port - we flew in and out.
Bostonphil -
There are multiple easy ways to get into Seoul from Incheon. On my trips, I took the KAL Limobus which stops right outside the terminals with ticket kiosks right outside the doors. English spoken, tickets available on bus also for return. It dropped me directly in front of my hotel door so seemed the obvious transport choice. https://klimousine.com/EN/
Subway, taxi, and another bus company are all detailed here. All good choices in my understanding.
https://english.seoul.go.kr/service/entry/getting-to-seoul-from-incheon-airport/
Airport is easy to manage. English signage every where and much English spoken. No knowledge of cruise ports.
Cat cafes have now moved on to my to-do list front page! Thanks for your posts.
What Koreans are wearing.
It's March, cool but not cold. They wear black coats. Long, short, in between. Wool, puffy, other. But black. Pants are subdued colour straight leg cut.
Yes, even in summer the colors you will see are all neutrals ... white, cream, beige, navy, black, maybe pale pink or pale blue :-)
And women, even young women, dress conservatively. No sleeveless tops, and no low necklines – even collarbones are to be covered. There are exceptions, of course, but surprisingly few. Shorts and skirts, on the other hand, can be very short ... but they're often near or below the knee. Men wear long trousers and collared shirts.
Since I can't take the heat and humidity (see above), I had been wearing sleeveless linen shirts on my summer trips to Korea. A few years ago when I was going to meet my son's MIL for lunch in Seoul, I put on a short-sleeved linen shirt and ... suddenly felt like I fit in! It was really bizarre. I had NOT consciously noticed not fitting in before, with my sleeveless shirts – no side eyes or anything. And of course as a tourist, you can wear whatever you'd like. No one will say anything or look askance at you.
Another example of cultural norms: Koreans will always hand you something with both hands, or with one hand below the other wrist (as if holding the sleeve of a hanbok) – but of course most foreigners don't do this, and it's completely fine. If you do do this, they will be surprised and appreciative, but it's no big deal if you don't.
We are home and as promised above, here is the list of food we had on our Midnight Food Tour by Tuk Tuk in Bangkok:
Isan/north-east food (larb muang grung @ Lumpinee
Banthadthong
Elvis Suki (Yodse)
Chinatown
Flower market
Cat cafes have now moved on to my to-do list front page! Thanks for your posts.
Avi, we went twice to Cat's Sarangchae. The second time we paid about $3CAD for a small pot of "cat snack". I was happily mobbed by furry friends.
Welcome home!!
I certainly enjoyed the reports. Thanks for taking the time to write the updates and on-the-spot impressions and reflections. I'd be happy to read any other recollections as they occur to you!
Any favorites? Any spots on the list of "return to's"?
I have so enjoyed your trip reports. And another welcome home.
What was immigration / customs like leaving Seoul (Incheon)? How long in line (s)? I am assuming that it went well since you did not write about it.
Welcome home!!
I certainly enjoyed the reports. Thanks for taking the time to write the updates and on-the-spot impressions and reflections. I'd be happy to read any other recollections as they occur to you!
Thank you! I still have to report on the three palaces we visited in Seoul, the Insadong area, and of course random thoughts. I'm back to work this week and suffering with the jet lag. I guess it was meant to be since I adjusted to the time change effortlessly when we flew to Singapore.
And like so many of us, I've already been planning the next trip!
What was immigration / customs like leaving Seoul (Incheon)? How long in line (s)? I am assuming that it went well since you did not write about it.
There were some lineups to get through, but they moved quickly and efficiently.
BTW for anyone looking at similar cruises, a heads up that our passports were gathered at the port of embarkation, along with our printed Vietnam visas. We subsequently received pink landing cards that we had to show a Vietnamese immigration official every time we disembarked in a Vietnam port (he was on the ship). Then we collected our passports on the final sea day.
And human nature what it is... we all received notice where to go to collect our passports. It went by deck; we were on deck eight so went to mid ship elevators on deck eight... same for each deck. . Of course on that last day I saw mass lineups at guest services of people trying to get their passports. The workers were endlessly patient as they pulled those folks out of line and told them to go to their deck. I'd love to hear what the crew really thought. It couldn't have been made clearer. I work with the public and strive never to be like so many of the folks that I deal with!
Oh Andrea,
I would not like having to turn in my passports to anyone for any reason. I would stress about my passport getting misplaced or lost and I am betting tht once in a very great while, it happens.
Did you have to do this while only in Vietnam or was it other countries / ports?
One more thing. I think that you said something about visiting Japan next. Am I right?
Is that going to be for a cruise?
I am hoping that I might be taking a cruise in September or October that will go from Tokyo / Yokohama to Seoul.
Whatever you do, if you are going ahead of me, I will be looking most forward to your next trip reports. If I go first, I hope that my trip reports will help and entertain you.
Welcome home. I thoroughly enjoyed reading your trip report. I arrived in Australia yesterday and you have inspired me to do a live report as well. Hopefully people won’t confuse us. ;-)
Welcome home. I thoroughly enjoyed reading your trip report. I arrived in Australia yesterday and you have inspired me to do a live report as well. Hopefully people won’t confuse us. ;-)
Looking forward to your report! And I'm sure nobody will confuse us.
I would not like having to turn in my passports to anyone for any reason. I would stress about my passport getting misplaced or lost and I am betting tht once in a very great while, it happens.
I also felt a bit uneasy, but then figured if they lost it, they'd bust their butts assisting me in getting a new one.
It was taken right upon embarkation, along with a printed copy of the Vietnam visa, and not returned until the last full day of the cruise. They provided a receipt for it, and also a letter stating why they had it (for those who chose to stay in Bangkok overnight, to show the hotel at checkin).
Any favorites? Any spots on the list of "return to's"?
I'd happily go back to it all, except Thailand. Chris liked Seoul best. I can't really decide. Each place was so unique.
One more thing. I think that you said something about visiting Japan next. Am I right? Is that going to be for a cruise?
Yes, we are going on a 12-night best of Japan cruise next March, with extra time before and after. We weren't thinking of Asia back to back but found a deal we couldn't say no to.
