vietnam Archives • The Bliss Movement

Photo Journey, Driving from Hoi An to Hue.

I am fascinated by the countryside. It doesn't matter what country I'm in, I always feel a pull to be in the country. Open space, fresh air, sky that isn't blocked by tall buildings. So when my friend and I got to Hue, Vietnam, we quickly jumped on the chance to do a tour of the countryside. While it was a tour open to all, it was just the two of us and our guides on our own private tour. We cruised on the back of motorcycles past fields, temples used by small communities, and saw all that the Hue countryside had to offer. Our guides even showed us to their childh[...]

Asia, Tips, Planning and Packing, Travel, Vietnam

10 Tips For Surviving An Overnight Bus in Asia

By the time our cab driver has arrived at the bus station, we are one of the last stragglers to board our overnight bus. We are given plastic bags and told to remove our shoes before getting on. I’m maneuvering myself through the narrow spaces between seats, passing foreigners and locals alike doing their best to get into a comfortable position in their designated bed. Instead of seats all perfectly aligned like a regular bus you would imagine, the seats are narrow and fully reclined, two layers of three rows. All I can think is that it looks like The Knight B[...]

Asia, Tips, Planning and Packing, Travel

10 Things You Will Learn After Traveling in Southeast Asia

Southeast Asia has a special place in my heart and I think it always will. When I first decided to try out traveling, I told myself I wouldn't return to a place I had visited before until I had gone to all seven continents. Well, this summer I went back to Thailand for a second time. And during that trip I started to try to plan how I could get myself back there next summer. There is just something about that area that draws you back again and again. It could make you stay forever. Southeast Asia has also taught me many things. About myself, life, other cultures.[...]

Vietnam

Kayaking Ha Long Bay, Vietnam

The last time I kayaked I was on vacation in Ontario to visit some relatives when I was about ten years old. They had this beautiful boat that we took out onto one of the lakes and that day, I kayaked for the first time. Granted, I only went around and around the boat, but I've had it in my mind that I love kayaking ever since. I recently spent two days and one night on Halong Bay, a UNESCO World Heritage Sight in Vietnam. Of all the places in the world to try out kayaking again, I am so glad it was in Halong Bay. This place is undeniably one of the most visu[...]

Vietnam

The Mekong Delta, Vietnam

Saigon, or as it is now officially called, Ho Chi Minh, was full of excitement for us. I had been looking forward to this metrapolitan city and was told that it was the city with the crazy amount of traffic. Well, that was certainly correct. I held my breath every time I crossed the street here but now I'm actually quite good at it! While in Saigon, we decided to spend a day on the Mekong Delta. During the day, we tried some coconut candies, had shots of banana wine, tasted tea made with pollen, I held a snake around my neck(which was actually really cool and I s[...]

Tips, Planning and Packing

Packing for Thailand, Cambodia, and Vietnam.

“Perhaps travel cannot prevent bigotry, but by demonstrating that all peoples cry, laugh, eat, worry, and die, it can introduce the idea that if we try and understand each other, we may even become friends.” - Maya Angelou Well, today is the day! In eleven hours I will be stepping on a plane that will take me away to Thailand, alongside a friend that I met last year at the beginning of my first year of university. The weeks leading up to travel are some of my favorite weeks. They are rushed, stressful, and exciting. Paperwork is being done, photocopies are bei[...]