Country Counting

I’m Terry and I love to travel.

What it’s like to live in Vietnam

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As many of you know, my niece, Kelly — who is my number one travel companion — is living in Vietnam for two years. She is teaching orchestra and music at an international school in Hanoi.

Many of you have asked, “well, how did that happen?”

It’s an interesting story so I’m happy to share.

Kelly has been teaching in the US for more than 15 years. She earned her doctorate a few years back and about two years ago, started to think about a new adventure. She’s been teaching orchestra at a high school in the Atlanta area, loved it, but her travel addiction beckoned.

She began to investigate teaching overseas and soon found three openings for orchestra teachers. One was in Dubai, one in Bangkok and one in Hanoi. All three places had appeal to her, so she applied for all three positions. The Dubai school quickly offered her a position, but on reflection, she worried that the values of the UAE did not mesh with her own and it would not be a good fit. After some time, she heard nothing from Bangkok. But Hanoi was interested and offered her a position there.

As she later found out, the Hanoi school is considered one of the best international schools in the world and she was thrilled to accept the position to teach orchestra and music.

From the time she accepted the offer, it was fascinating to me how much interaction she had with the school. They were amazingly diligent in explaining where she would stay when arriving, who would meet her and how things operated.

When she first arrived, she was put up in an apartment near the school and given a full month of residence there while she found her own apartment. Part of her pay is an apartment allowance and an airline ticket home and back each year.

Her orientation was a two-week session of morning meetings that covered everything from the school’s mission and vision, what to expect from life in Hanoi, and outings to different cultural sites and restaurants around the city.

Each afternoon, the new teachers were given time to look for apartments with real estate agents.  She eventually found an apartment she liked and I got to see it when I visited her in March.

Those orchids in Singapore are so beautiful!

Before I got to Vietnam, I took a short solo trip to Singapore, Brunei, Sabah and Sarawak. My last visit to Singapore was 19 years ago. But I still found the city to be cosmopolitan and full of skyscrapers. My favorite sites were two beautiful gardens – The Gardens by the Bay and the National Botanical Gardens.

As for Brunei, Sabah and Sarawak, one word describes them best – jungles. But on to Vietnam.

Kelly picked me up at the Hanoi airport and we took a taxi – or Grab as they are called in Vietnam – to her apartment. It’s on the third floor of a seven-story building. She has two bedrooms, two bathrooms, a large living/dining room with a small kitchen complete with sink, stove, microwave and full-size refrigerator. When she moved in, the place was brand-new. As part of her rent, she receives internet, electric and twice-weekly maid service. Oh, yeah. She even has her own private washer and dryer.

Our first night in Hanoi, we walked from her apartment to dinner. It was about four or five blocks, but you have to watch where you are walking in Vietnam. No sidewalks and lots of buzzing scooters, cars and people.

We met up with two of Kelly’s closest friends in Hanoi- both fellow new teachers. One is a third-generation international school teacher– her grandparents and parents were all teachers in schools around the world. In Hanoi, she teaches Individuals and Societies which boils down to history and social studies. Kelly’s other friend is the drama teacher and had taught in Hawaii and had just moved to Hanoi after a 7-year stint in Columbia. Both of them were fun, interesting, smart and progressive. What a joy to meet them and know that Kelly is surrounded by good people.

The next day we toured Kelly’s school and met more of the fine arts teachers. It was interesting how beautifully fenced and well-guarded the school was. We had to enter through a security area, sign-in and receive visitor badges – all very reassuring after the terrible US school shootings.

The school is beautiful, equipped with every amenity and even has a cappuccino bar for students and parents who visit!!  All the teachers I met were fabulous – the teachers you would dream of for your child. Smart, energetic, engaged and passionate about their subjects and their students.

Later that afternoon, our hired car and driver arrived, and we headed to Sapa, in the mountains of Vietnam. I had read about Sapa 20 years ago and thought we’d find a quiet little mountain village. Imagine our surprise when we arrived – after a five-hour drive from Hanoi – to find a town filled with people, lights and partying – a mini–Pigeon Forge, as Kelly aptly called it.

Kelly and I took the cable car to the top of Fanispan Mountain in Sapa, Vietnam.

We spent our weekend touring the city, visiting a local ethnic tribal village and soaring via cable car to the top of Fansipan Mountain, the highest mountain in Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos.

The local village we visited near Sapa. What fabulous farmer we found.

On our return to Hanoi, Kelly had to return to work for the week, while I re-acquainted myself with Hanoi. Ken and I have been there twice before and always loved the city. I wandered around the Old City, took a tuk-tuk ride with a sweet man and spent a day lounging around Kelly’s apartment after a morning stop at the nearby Starbucks!! Only two blocks away – how lucky was I!!

My two Korean friends who I met on the cruise to Ha Long Bay.

I also booked a day-trip to Ha Long Bay where I went on a lunch-time boat cruise around the bay and met the most fascinating folks who shared my lunch table. I was the only Caucasian and by far the oldest person in our group. My tablemates included two guys from Malaysia, a Chinese gal who lived in Australia and a cute couple from South Korea who became my new best friends when they learned how much I loved Korean dramas on TV.

Our international table on the Ha Long Bay cruise. Loved meeting such an international crowd! I was even invited to the Phillipines by a group of social workers who shared the cruise with us.

At the end of the week, Kelly and I headed to Singapore for our flight to the Solomon Islands where we stayed three nights in a beachside hotel and then traveled to Papua New Guinea for an excursion to the mountains and the tribal communities.

After reflecting on my visit to Vietnam, I have a couple of observations:

  • Driving in Vietnam is an artform. The fact that drivers see all around themselves so they don’t collide with pedestrians, other cars or scooters is a huge statement about their culture: always kind, always aware of others and always patient. No one seemed in a hurry to push someone aside or get in front of someone else. Total respect and courtesy. It was truly like watching a ballet. Geez, American drivers could learn some lessons.
  • The Vietnamese people are very industrious, kind and hard-working. There was a bustle about the city, a busy spirit and yet no frenzy or craziness.
  • Food is delicious and inexpensive. Kelly says she eats most meals out as it is so easy to find good places to eat.
  • The international school community is a lively and fascinating group of people. Who knew there was such a world-wide connection to teachers all over the world who love exploring, travel and finding new experiences.
  • Kelly will never have a problem meeting great people wherever she lives. She finds and keeps the best friends and knows how to nurture and support friendships. I sure am happy to be her friend — even if I don’t live in Vietnam!

A good group trip to study English Gardens at Oxford University

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PS. I figured out how to save $3500 on this group trip, too!

Merton College grounds were stunning. Lots of flowers and unusual plants were all over the property.

As you probably know, I’m not a big fan of group trips. Too orchestrated, too many people, too little freedom – you know the drill.

But I recently found a trip that proved enticing. I’ve buried the lead in this story, so you’ll have to go to the end to find out how to save big time on this trip, so read on!

I received the Smithsonian’s brochure of trips, flipped through it and mostly said, “been there, done that.” But then I saw a section on Oxford University and it listed classes you could take for a week. When I read on, I found a class on English gardens. Um, that got my interest. As a Master Gardener Volunteer in my hometown, I love learning about gardening, garden design and all the how-to’s of gardening. I pulled up the website for the trip and called the customer service folks for more details.

The most disturbing fact was that the housing would be in student dormitories where there was no air conditioning and no hair dryers. After a quick check of the weather in Oxford in July, I decided I could handle 70-degrees and would purchase a small travel hair dryer to take on the trip. The price for the trip seemed reasonable and after consulting my friend who lives in England, we arranged for me to visit her for two days prior to the class.

My brother-in-law, Lynn, was planning a trip to the UK and had purchased tickets for the British Open or The Open as it is called in the UK. He invited me to join him after my class. Pouf, I had a plan and easily booked my flight to London and found train schedules to get me from my Winchester friend’s home to Oxford and then onto Edinburgh, where I would meet Lynn. Leery of group trips, I decided I would go into the experience with an open mind.

I arrived in Oxford after an easy train trip from Winchester to Basington and then onward to Oxford. As I left the train station, looking for a taxi to take to the college, I saw a long line at the taxi stand. Well, this may be the time to try Uber, I decided. After 3 minutes, my car arrived and the driver told me I was lucky to get him, because today was a visiting day at Oxford and the town was crowded with people. Most taxis were taking an hour to get to a waiting passenger.  I found out later that I paid two times the normal rate for my ride, but at that point, I was glad to get a taxi as the walk would have been at least 30 minutes.  I didn’t feel like dragging my carryon all that way.

My arrival at Merton College at Oxford was pretty easy. Merton College is one of 39 colleges at Oxford. It was founded in 1264 and has about 650 students.

You are not allowed to walk on the grass, but wow, it was beautiful and green!!!

I found my way to the meeting room, where I signed in and was told a porter would bring my bag to my room. I got directions to my room and after a few wrong turns, finally got to Rose Cottage and my room on the second floor. I had seen photos of the dorm rooms but was pleasantly surprised to find a two-room suite. The outer room had a desk, dresser, bookshelves, mini-refrigerator and coffee maker. The small bedroom had a twin bed and connected to an even smaller bathroom, complete with shower, sink and toilet. There were two windows which I opened to let in a breeze. No hairdryer, as promised. But a standing fan, which I really didn’t use the whole week. Ian delivered my suitcase and I unpacked and explored my room. No hangers in the closet, so all my clothes went in the drawers. I set up my computer and connected to the wi-fi. I was ready to rock and roll. I found a detailed booklet full of helpful information about the staff, entrance hours, meals and drinks schedule, housekeeping and a map of Oxford. Also included was a detailed schedule of every day’s activities.

The bathroom was tiny, but worked quite well.
Here’s the small bedroom. A twin bed was plenty for me. Housekeepers cleaned the rooms every day and changed sheets and towels once during the week.
The main room worked well to store clothes. I also had a desk with wi-fi access for my computer.

An evening orientation session was followed by a welcome reception on the lawn of the college garden. I have to admit, for a garden enthusiast, the grounds at Merton were pretty fabulous. Lawn was green and trim. There were numerous and voluminous plantings of flowers, shrubs and all kinds of gorgeous plants – most I would never attempt to grow in Florida. But, beautiful, nevertheless. In fact, Merton probably has one of the nicest gardens of all the Oxford colleges.

Peter, the Merton College bartender, took great care of me. He found a bottle of Bourbon and some ginger ale.

The reception offered wine only. So I slipped away to the college bar and met Peter who found a bottle of Bourbon and some ginger ale. I was set! With drink in hand, I ventured back to the reception to meet some of my fellow students.

All the 64 people in the large group were from the US. They seemed to be well-traveled, bright and interesting folks. Most seemed to be retired or close to retirement age. My class, The History of English Gardens, included 12 ladies, led by our amazing instructor, or tutor, as the Brits say.  Richard Bisgrove was full of detailed and interesting information about English gardens, famous designers and all kinds of fascinating tid-bits about the plants, garden construction and famous historical gardens.  

Our typical day went like this. Rise for hot breakfast in the dining hall from 7:30 to 9:00. There was always some egg dish, ham or bacon, potatoes, grilled tomatoes, baked beans. A cold buffet included cereals, yogurt and fresh fruit. Coffee, tea, juice and water was also available.

After breakfast, we all joined our classmates for an hour and a half lecture, followed by a 30-minute coffee/tea break. Classes then resumed until 12:30 when we ended for the day. We had lunch every day, a hot buffet, at 1 pm. Lunch included a meat/fish, starch, vegetable, salad and roll/bread. Dessert was also served. I found the ice cream stash and a small carton of ice cream was my preferred choice.

The afternoons included a tour of Oxford and a tour of another college – Pembroke College. We also had a couple of free afternoons, where we could join tours of various sites in Oxford or just have free time to wander around by ourselves.

My favorite activity was an afternoon tour of one of the historic gardens we had studied. Our class joined our instructor at Rousham Gardens in Oxfordshire, a country house with walled gardens and herbaceous borders, built in the 1600s and still occupied by descendants of the original family. It was a treat to have our instructor point out all the design elements, the kitchen garden , water features and pergolas throughout the 80-acre property.

Richard, our instructor, explains the details at the Rousham Gardens in Oxfordshire.

Dinner each night was a sit-down, served affair. You were invited to sit at the high table (think Harry Potter’s dining room with an elevated platform and a large table) one evening during the week. You were asked to dress up a bit – jackets for men and dresses for ladies. Most people just looked like they did on any other night. Dress code was pretty casual. So, I had brought a dress for really no reason. (You know, I hate over-packing, right???)

The dining hall resembles the one shown in the Harry Potter movies. So historic and beautiful.

We were served three courses: an appetizer (or starter as the Brits say), a main course and finally dessert and coffee. I thought the kitchen did a pretty good job of getting a decent meal out to everyone and serving it nicely. For the UK, I thought the food was pretty good. Nothing to rave about. But better than the standard fish, chips and mash (green peas – not my favorite Brit dish).

Here I am sitting next to the Shakespeare instructor, Dr. Priscilla Martin.

After dinner, most folks went back to their rooms. One couple in the large group did not stay in a dormitory, but had rented a hotel room at the best spot in town. They did eat their meals with us and attended all functions. So, I guess that is an option if the dormitory just doesn’t do it for you.

Every night at dinner, I met more and more classmates. I have to say, there weren’t very many I didn’t connect with. Most were interesting, curious, had been on some great travels and were excited about learning. Classes for the week included my History of English Gardening, The Rise and Fall of the British Empire, Myths and Legends of the British Isles, The Archaeology of Anglo-Saxon England, The Age of Winston Churchill and Shakespeare’s English History Plays. I was told the smallest class was the four in the Shakespeare class.

I’ve saved the best huge money-saving tip for the end. After I got home, I did a bit of digging and found out that you can take one of dozens of classes at Oxford every summer – without going through the Smithsonian Journeys folks. They were really great and I appreciated all the service they provided. But for $3500-4000 less, you can book directly with Oxford  https://www.conted.ox.ac.uk/about/oussa and save a bundle!!! Here are the caveats. You’ll need to pay for your own transfer from London (or wherever you start out). For me, that was about $85 for train to Oxford and the same for return to London when I left. You may not get the tour guide service that we got with Smithsonian. They were there to help with onward reservations, got COVID tests and care, when needed. We had three guests come down with COVID. They had to stay in their room and the college brought their meals to them.

I don’t know if the receptions or any of the afternoon trips are included when you book directly. But, for a lot less than $3500, you can hire a car and driver and do whatever you like in the surrounding areas.

I may or may not go back. Probably depends on if I find a course that looks appealing. For the lower price, it is definitely enticing. Hopefully air fares will go down in the future. I paid $1900 for an economy ticket from Gainesville to Charlotte and direct to London and return. I know I could have gotten something cheaper by flying out of Orlando, but didn’t want to make the drive.

How to get back in the USA after international travel

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The right COVID test for travel
The right COVID test for travel
Here is the correct test to use for return to the USA.

Since my last international trip to Uganda and Kenya in July, the rules for USA travel have changed. They are a bit challenging so here’s what you need to know.

For return to the USA for US residents, you must be fully vaccinated AND take a COVID test that shows you are negative for the disease.

The fully vaccinated part is easy. Just have a copy of your vaccination card with you and/or a photo of it on your phone.

The COVID test is a bit more challenging, as you must show that you tested negative one day before your return.  The test must be one that is monitored with results shown to an online live person.

Kelly did the research to figure out which test we needed. A photo is shown above. We planned our last day in Madrid for taking the test and getting our results. Here are a few tips for making it easy.

Prop up your phone so it is standing vertically.

Before your trip, be sure to download the Navica app. Sign in and get it set up so it will be ready to use when you need it.

When you are ready to take the test, set up your phone against a glass or other stable object so it is sitting vertically on a hard surface. I didn’t know this in advance and spent several minutes with the monitor trying to find something in my hotel room that would be stable enough for my phone. I finally used a jar from the mini-bar and a washcloth for it to sit on. And the monitor’s English wasn’t the best in the world so it took me a while to understand what she was telling me to do. The monitor will ask you to hold your test kit behind your phone so she/he can see the expiration date and the QR code on the box.

Then, you will be instructed to open the test kit so she can see what you are doing. Next, you take the swab (a long-handled que-tip) out of the protective paper. You will put the swab in one nostril, twirl it around five times and then using the same swab, do the same thing in your other nostril.

When you close the cardboard, you will see one line for negative and two lines for positive.

Then you will insert the swab into the little cardboard package. You hold the swab horizontally and insert it into the large hole. Next, you’ll take the small vial of liquid and drop six drops onto the small hole.

On our trip, there were three of us, Kelly, Lynn and me. When you buy the test kits, they come in packages of two kits. Luckily, we had a total of four kits. When we did our tests, Lynn’s test had no liquid in the bottle. My extra kit saved the day.  So, if you have two people, you might want to buy an extra kit so you don’t get stuck without liquid. I really don’t know how often this happens, but it threw us for a loop – momentarily at least. And we were very happy to have that fourth kit so all three of us could be tested.

After you do all of the above, you’ll have to wait for 15 minutes to get your results. You’ll see a window on the cardboard package that shows you two lines for positive and one line for negative. After the wait, another person will come on the line and look at your results. They will then tell you that the results will be sent to your email address.

When I got my email, it was password protected with my birthdate. I simply sent that PDF document to United Airlines and thought I was good to go. I knew they had my birthdate, so figured they would be able to open the PDF. No. That didn’t happen. I kept getting messages from United that my documents were not OK.

Finally, I took a screen shot of the results after I had opened them. (On the i-phone, you press the on/off button on the right and the volume button on the left at the same time.)

That gave me a screen shot that I saved to my photos.

Then I re-sent the photo to United. Hurray. I was approved.

United then labeled me “travel-ready” and I was good to go.

If you’re not too computer savvy, this may be a struggle. You can always look for a testing facility near the departure airport and get tested there. But after we figured out all of the testing procedures, it really wasn’t too difficult.

Safe travels!

Clouds Mountain Gorilla Lodge: the best of the best

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I admit it. I am a hotel snob. Now, don’t get me wrong. I’ve stayed in some dumps in my time. After visiting 158 countries, I’ve seen it all. But in my old age, I’ve done my best to stay at places that have that little something special. That make you remember the care you’ve received and the beauty of the place.

Clouds Lodge in Uganda is one of those places. African lodges can be a real mixed bag. Most are expensive due to the logistics involved in getting high end food, clean water and materials to remote locations. But Clouds is a step above them all.

How did I find it? On the web. When Kelly and I decided we wanted to see the gorillas in Uganda, I started searching for a nice place to stay. It didn’t take me long to find Clouds and see that it was at the top of my list.

From my first email to the Clouds representative, I received kind, patient and comprehensive answers to all my questions. Mackline (info@wildplacesafrica.com) and I must have exchanged forty emails. She answered every question, no matter how detailed. She arranged for our stay at Clouds, explained that we would need to fly from Nairobi to Entebbe and then on to Kisoro for the final drive up into the mountains. She booked our hotel in Entebbe and the flights to and from Kisoro. She even took care of getting the COVID testing in Entebbe so we could return to Kenya after our visit in Uganda. (A doctor came to our hotel to administer the test and it took a total of 10 minutes.)

Once we flew from Entebbe to Kisoro, we were met at the airport and driven to the lodge by a kind and caring young man. Rasheed took care of our luggage and loaded us into a late model 4-wheel drive SUV. Despite being stopped as we left town by an over-anxious policeman, Rasheed kept his cool. When there was no budging from the policeman over a supposedly missing tourist sticker on the car, Rasheed quickly transferred us to another vehicle that took us the rest of the 2-hour drive to the lodge. (Uganda was in lock-down due to COVID at the time and the only vehicles allowed to travel were those that carried tourists.)

When we arrived at Clouds, we were greeted enthusiastically by managers Des and Kim, a South African husband and wife who have managed properties all over the world. Des and Kim are authentic, genuine and kind and apologized for the delay and assured us they had spoken with the local mayor and all was well with the car.

Our butler, Edith, met us as we entered the lodge and gave us warm towels to freshen up and offered us a beverage. (Edith was in charge of serving our meals and helping with all logistics.) The lobby of the lodge is huge, tastefully furnished with over-stuffed furniture and anchored at one end with a cozy dining room and at the other with a well-stocked bar.  The entire property includes art by well-known Ugandan artists and is tastefully decorated and comfortable.

The entrance to our cottage with the spectacular view to the left.
The bedroom was later made up for twin beds.
We had our own living room, complete with super comfy furniture and a fireplace.

After a stop for refreshments, we were shown to our cottage, down a rather precarious flight of stone steps. The cottage included a generous-sized living room, with large comfy couch and chairs and a twin-bedded bedroom with adjoining bathroom. A two-sided fireplace opened on the bedroom and living room and huge glass windows gave us an unobstructed view to the nearby forest and mountains.

Edith showed us a menu for lunch and asked us what time we would like to eat. No mass seating for meals at Clouds. Every room could select their preferred eating time and the three-course lunch and dinner menus included several options for appetizer and entrée.

Lunch began with fresh salad, from the Clouds vegetable garden.

Kelly and I were seated outside for lunch, overlooking the beautiful view of the mountains. For dinner, we sat in front of the fireplace in the dining room.

That evening when we went to bed, there was a fire lit in our cottage and we found hot-water bottles nestled in our beds. What heaven!

The next morning was our gorilla trek. We rose early for a hearty breakfast – ordered the night before. Des and Kim were there to get us ready. Edith strapped gaiters onto our legs and Des gave us walking sticks for the trek. They all reminded us to take our time and enjoy the trek. They supplied us with a lunch and four jugs of water, which we stashed in Kelly’s backpack.

Rasheed walked us to the ranger station, since the lodge was located just on the edge of the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest, the home of several gorilla families. (see my blog about the gorilla trek for details about the gorillas.)

When we returned from the trek, Rasheed was there with the SUV to drive us the short distance back to the lodge.

The next day, I decided to hang out at the lodge and take a “slug” day. Kelly opted for a tour of the local community. A guide accompanied her and she had a delightful tour which included the purchase of souvenirs and a demonstration of local dancing and singing.

Clouds was a delight from every aspect. The food was delicious and plentiful, the accommodations were top-rate and the staff was kind, considerate and helpful. A full-time gardener oversees a beautiful and bountiful vegetable garden, so our salads and vegetables were amazingly fresh and tasty.

If you want to see the gorillas, Clouds Mountain Gorilla Lodge is THE place to stay. We especially liked finding out that the lodge building is privately owned, but the land is owned by the community. Every night that a guest stays at the lodge, the community receives a fee that goes toward helping the community’s needs.

Why is it so expensive to travel to Africa?

When researching trips to Africa, you may be shocked at the cost of travel there. I know I was.

Here’s why it costs so much.

Most lodges are remote. That means transporting supplies to the lodge can be costly.

Safe water is not readily available. Most lodges must bring in safe drinking water or process it locally to be potable.

Lodges employ security staff, housekeepers, chefs and guides. Many lodges provide housing for staff as folks can’t easily commute to work from their homes.

All meals are generally included in your lodge stay. Also, laundry services are included.

Safari vehicles are expensive. You’ll travel out to see animals and visit remote locations in a vehicle that will transport 6-8 people, is four-wheel drive and has necessary amenities for off-road and touring activities.

You generally will fly by small planes to reach remote locations. Those planes are expensive, as they hold fewer passengers and may have to make lots of one-way trips to carry passengers.

Logistics can be complicated. Therefore, lodges must employ agents and representatives to arrange for flights, auto transfers and coordinating with international flights.