Sunday Funday: I'm Back!

Hi there!  If you read the rather self-explanatory title, this might be kind of repetitive, but I'm back from my ridiculously long and fantastic vacation!  I wanted to share with all of you what I've been up to while I was away, so here it is!  Just as a quick warning, this post is pretty long and has tons of photos, so if that isn't your thing, be sure to click out of this post because you're not going to like it.  But if you think you are, keep on reading!

The first notable stop I made during my trip was to the wonderful and amazing Topshop.  Very unfortunately, I don't have a Topshop close to where I live back in Canada, so I've always had to admire the beautiful designs from afar.  Which sucked.  

But then, I learned that there was a Topshop about ten minutes away from where I was staying in Ho Chi Minh City, and I kind of freaked out.  This photo was snapped (quite obviously) right in front of the Topshop, marking my first ever visit to Topshop.  

After visiting family for the first week, give or take a few days, we took a tour around Danang City, Hue City, and Quang Binh.  Our first stop on this little tour was in Danang City at the Ba Na Hills.  

We went on a ski lift-esque thing and the views were simply breathtaking.  My breath was also taken away when our cart thing randomly shook and stopped completely, but that's a story for another day.

This photo was snapped in the beautiful Paradise (Thien Duong) Cave that was really duper super cool.  Cool as in awesome AND temperature-wise.  (insert name somewhere)  As you may or may not know, Vietnam is extremely hot, so the visit to the cave was a nice change.

There were a bunch of really amazing things to look at in the cave, and I tried to take a bunch of pictures, but the lighting was just messed up.  Anyway, I did manage to capture this photo, which you might think is a bit of a mistake or whatever, but I think it turned out pretty cool.

Once we got out of that cave, we climbed up the mountain-y area (I'm really sorry but I have no idea what to call these places) and this was our view from the very top.

Selfie time!  Or should I say, Célfie?

After that trip, we headed on another one a few days later to Tien Giang.  This was taken when we were on a boat thing similar to the one on the right in the photo.

Here is another shot of some wonderful crocodiles.  At first, I actually thought that they were fake.  But then a chunk of raw meat was thrown at them and they ate it.  Let's just say I kind of jumped.

After that we visited this snake zoo, but we came across this kid (apparently that's the name for a baby goat) and he/she was kind of adorable.

We also visited this dragon fruit garden that was just enormous.  I'm not even exaggerating.  It was massive.

Just to warn you, but I really shouldn't have to, dragon fruit plants are prickly.  I learned that the hard way...

A few days after that trip, we headed to Buon Ma Thuot.  On our first day, we visited a ton of falls, but I don't think any of us remembered the names...

Well isn't that a nice quaint little house?

Guys, this is rice in a stick.  It was pretty cool at first, but when I had to start opening it to be able to eat it, I almost got splinters numerous times and suddenly, it wasn't that cool anymore.

After resting for a few days, we headed to Cambodia.  We visited quite a few landmarks, but the only ones that really stood out for me were the absolutely beautiful and breathtaking temples in Siem Reap.  You can't go to Cambodia and miss that!  This photo (and the next few) were snapped in and around Angkor Wat.

The stone carvings on the walls and the details on the columns and everything were simply stunning.

This is the Angkor Thom temple, my favourite of the three.  The faces in stone were just so fascinating.  I loved it.

Ooh la la...

I don't actually remember the name of the last temple, but aw well...

On our last night in Siem Reap, we went to the Night Market.  The atmosphere was amazing.  Despite how it was super late at night, everything was buzzing and it made everything really exciting and fun.  We didn't buy anything besides food because we saved all that for the Phnom Penh market.

When we got to Phnom Penh, our first stop was to the King's palace.  It was kind of gorgeous.

I just had to take a picture of this little detail.  It's just so, so beautiful.  I kind of gasped when I saw them.

This photo of the Ben Thanh Market was snapped when I was out and about in Saigon (or Ho Chi Minh City) on my last day.  It's a great place to shop for souvenirs and little trinkets.  I wouldn't suggest buying anything clothing-wise besides graphic tees there, though.  Taka Plaza, a ten-minute walk away from this market would be a much better place to shop for cheap clothes, in my opinion.

And that is my birthday cake.  The phrase on the cake basically means "happy birthday."  The two words in red are my Vietnamese names.  I had a wonderful birthday celebration filled with tons of unexpected gifts, edible and non-edible.  Thank you to everyone who helped make my day so special! :)

I had a wonderful time in Vietnam and saw so much, at least to me, of the country.  If you ever get the chance to come to Vietnam, you definitely should.  The streets are pretty crazy, and if you're someone who doesn't know the language, it might be kind of hard for you.  But if anything, it'll be an adventure.  At least, that's how I saw it.

Would you like to visit Vietnam?  What was the most interesting landmark or place to visit if you did get the chance to go to Vietnam?  If you have any questions or comments about where I went, please leave it in a comment below!  I'd love to hear from you.

Thank you so much for reading!

- J

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