On the Road Again...

Me in Da Lat... so cold!

...And off the road, and sleeping in my own bed. Magical!

Over the past four weeks (!!) I've had the pleasure of having two longer-term guests visit me in HCMC. Let's just start with the obvious:

1) Guests? Here?? It's not exactly a weekend camping road trip! No, these flights are bad boys that take an entire day each way and cost a lot of money. It's truly humbling for me to know that there are people that want to see me and experience Vietnam with me, in all it's contradictory, tropical, SE Asian glory!

2) New (and old) restaurants! New cuisines! Pictures of all the foods!

3) New travel destinations in Vietnam!! Pictures of ALL THE PLACES!

4) Now they're gone, and I have two weeks of relatively normal life again before my next trip (to the Philippines!), which will conclude my travels this summer. It's been a pretty good jaunt.

Me in Con Dao... so hot!

So hello! I'm not dead!

In fact, there's a LOT more to come in the next few weeks, including posts about my trips to Hanoi, Ha Long bay, Con Dao, Mui Ne, Da Lat, again (and the coolest guesthouse), and Hoi An (wow, seriously, all in four weeks. I am TIRED of traveling).

I ate a ton of great food, had some amazing experiences with good people, sent about a zillion postcards, and only got sick once. It was a pretty great all around, and soon I'll be recovered enough to tackle these puppies and beat them into submission.

I also learned how to use Instagram, and I might be marginally totally obsessed with it. Check it out at http://instagram.com/benritto and remember, it's still in it's social media infancy. Not a lot there yet... and I'll do my best not to duplicate between Instagram and this blog.

In the meantime, here's a funny picture I took at Lion Brewery in HCMC:

Nothing about this translation makes me want to try it. I did anyway.
#regrets #thinkinginhashtagsnow #oneofthosepeople?

Yes... they sure are. Hit the nail on the head, Lion Brewery. Blech.

Talk to you soon!
Ben