Vietnam faces

Vietnam for me was a very interesting destination. When I was there, the weather was pretty bad, cold, foggy, rainy. This gave the whole experience a different feeling. I liked Vietnam, but it disturbed me to see the sadness in so many people. Other countries I visited have also suffered from recent wars, and suffer poverty, but in Vietnam at least I could feel a different vibe. Sadness, even hostility at times. That trip made me think how important is the culture and the way it sees and processes things. Cambodia, right next to Vietnam, also suffered a war recently, and you can even see a lot of people without arms or legs because of the mines, but they lived more happily, more spontaneously. 

Of course I also met some amazing people from Vietnam (read the Malaria test in Sapa post http://travellerstuff.blogspot.com/2014/04/positivism-while-travelling-malaria.html), but there was like a general energy that was very different and felt a little bit bleak.

Here are some pictures of men and women in Vietnam. They were taken in Hanoi and Hoi An.

Sunsets in Montevideo, Uruguay.

The sunsets in Uruguay  are pretty amazing. The way the clouds and colors play in the sky is very unique.
Here are some pictures of sunsets from Montevideo, Uruguay.

I love Prague

Prague is one of the most beautiful cities I´ve ever seen. 

It wasn´t reached by the bombs of the Nazis during World War II, so you can appreciate a well preserved city from the middle age. The houses, churches, and buildings are beautiful and well taken care of. Wherever you look at in Prague you see a beautiful scene. I remember at night I closed my eyes and saw all these houses and buildings. It´s a really magical place.

Collect moments not things

Positivism while travelling - Malaria test in Sapa

When you travel, things are awesome, but they can also get bad. You get sick alone in a town where few people talk in English or your languages, you may get injured, miss a train, get robbed, and more.

The important thing is to stay focused in the fact that all of this are still experiences, and there´s always something good you can take from them.

For example, when I was in Sapa, Vietnam, I started feeling bad from my stomach, but like really bad.

First a girl from Australia I had met that day borrowed me her hotel room, as I was supposed to do a trek and sleep in a village house. When I felt better I got my own room.

After a few hours laying alone in the hotel room, I started feeling that I had fever. The north of Vietnam is a Malaria zone, so I knew I had to get up and go to a Hospital, but I was feeling so bad that it was hard to do so.

When I was finally able to get up from bed, I went down to the hotel lobby and asked for the nearest Hospital. People there told me there was one, but that no one knew English there.

I sat down and a tear came down my cheek as I thought what to do. Going back to Hanoi meant a night bus, a lot of hours, hours you shouldn´t waste if you suspect you have a chance of having Malaria.

A woman approached me, she worked in the Hotel. She told me she was coming with me, called a cab and took me to the Hospital. She translated everything and was really sweet, cheering me up while waiting for the results of the test.

That day was kinda crappy, cause I felt really bad, but it was so awesome at the same time. That woman, she didn´t even knew my name, took two hours of her life to be there for me, to selflessly help me when I really needed it. We couldn´t communicate very well, as her English was very basic, but just looking at her eyes and connecting in such a way was comforting and it sort of gave me back faith in humanity.

And, I didn´t have Malaria,so everything turned out just fine!

From a potential bad moment, I lived a really interesting experience, that included seeing a Hospital in a town in the north of Vietnam, see Doctors work in such a different culture, and share all of this with a local.

Poda Island

I had arrived to Ao Nang, Krabi the day before. I had a minor medical problem that required a surgical procedure (but that´s a whole other story).

I came back from the clinic, and there they were: a girl I met the day before when I arrived, who was from Singapur, and two other girls I didn´t know, one from Switzerland and the other from Ukraine. They were sitting in the Hostel, waiting for me, to go to the beach. That´s the awesome feeling I love from being a solo traveler, you experience this gratitude when people you don´t even know give you support and this selfless kindness. By the way, I´m still in touch with them :)

Someone proposed to go to Poda Island, an island close to Ao Nang where you can go for the day with a cheap taxi boat. There we went, to find one of the most beautiful beaches I´ve ever seen. The water is really clear and there are very beautiful fish swimming by you in the shore, which makes it a good beach to snorkel. 

It wasn´t as crowded as other beaches, which was refresing in Thailand! And it was quiet and relaxing. 

Tip: take water as it´s very expensive there compared to supermarkets.