Girls All-Inclusive Spa Trip to Da Nang, Vietnam

Flight from KL to Da Nang was 3.5 hours. and stayed from April 12- 17

Helpful Hint: Get a green or white taxi when leaving the airport and demand on using the meter! Also, make sure they fully comprehend where you are going. Seems like a mundane detail, but the language barrier can pose issues. We experienced it first hand ;)

Sam, Kelly, and I stayed at the beautiful 5-star all-inclusive spa resort Fusion Maia Da Nang in our own private pool villa.

 

Friday, checked in to beautifully decorated serene room with our own private cabana and swimming pool. We decided to stay in for dinner and had lobster bisque and fresh Vietnamese spring rolls. After dinner, all three of us then had full body massages followed by head massage before bed. It was perfect end to our long day and ensured a blissful night of uninterrupted sleep.

Saturday, breakfast by the beach, swam in pool and got sun, foot massage followed by pedicure. Relaxed more in the room and went into Da Nang city to have dinner at The Waterfront on the Han River and listened a live music festival with violinist, saxophonist and local singers performing various types of music.

Heading to dinner at the Waterfront

Sunday, woke up and had a wonderful facial early in the morning followed by a full buffet spread for breakfast. We relaxed by the infinity pool listening to waves crash into the ocean and just enjoyed our afternoon in the lush surroundings. That afternoon we had warm pressure massages with oil followed by a therapeutic head massage. We are truly getting pampered!!! Dinner that night at the in-house restaurant Five consisted of bamboo smoked duck with red cabbage, cilantro, sprouts and candied apples and raisins followed by sweet potato gnocchi paired with tomato relish and salad. Dessert was a phenomenal coconut creme brulee with coconut ice cream. The food, service, and atmosphere have all been impressive to say the least!!!

The gorgeous dining room

Monday we had our usual 2 treatments at the spalon and then took the shuttle from our hotel into the town of Hoi An just 30 minutes away. Hoi An Ancient Town is an exceptionally well-preserved example of a South-East Asian trading port dating from the 15th to the 19th century. Its buildings and its street plan reflect the influences, both indigenous and foreign, that have combined to produce this unique heritage site.

Sam with her massive coconut at lunch in the Secret Garden

Tuesday morning was one of the most perfect days we had with beautiful weather. Most of the day was spent lounging by our pool (after our delicious breakfast of course) and getting some sun.

Wednesday was unfortunately our last day...I think we all had our fill of such great spa treatments over the past week. We started the morning off with one last delicious breakfast buffet and then had a facial and a 1-hour hot oil pressure massage. It was the perfect end to our relaxing week. After we cleaned up, we had one last lobster lunch out by the beach before heading to the airport on our way home.

It was a wonderful week and we had such a great time reuniting in Da Nang!!!

{Complete photo album}

HCMC Day 2

We took a day tour first to the Cao Dai temple, had lunch at a local restaurant (great Pho) and then to the famous Cu Chi tunnels used during the Vietnam War.

Cao Đài is a relatively new, syncretist, monotheistic religion, officially established in Tây Ninh, southern Vietnam, in 1926. The term Cao Đài literally means "high place." Figuratively, it means that highest place where God reigns. It is also the abbreviated name for God, the creator of the universe, whose full title is Cao Đài Tiên Ông Đại Bồ Tát Ma-ha-tát - Within the title are representations of the Three Teachings: Saint, Sage and Buddha.

Caodaiists credit God as the religion's founder. They believe the teachings, symbolism and organization were communicated directly from God. Cao Đài's first disciples claimed to have received direct communications from God, who gave them explicit instructions for establishing a new religion that would commence the Third Era of Religious Amnesty.

Adherents engage in ethical practices such as prayer, veneration of ancestors, nonviolence, and vegetarianism with the minimum goal of rejoining God the Father in Heaven and the ultimate goal of freedom from the cycle of birth and death. Estimates of the number of Cao Đài adherents in Vietnam vary, but most sources give two to three million. Some estimates are as high as eight million adherents in Vietnam. An additional 30,000 (primarily ethnic Vietnamese) live in the United States, Europe, and Australia.

We were able to view a ceremony take place from the balcony at the temple (2nd picture) This was very interesting to see how it was conducted and how the rituals were carried out.

The tunnels of Củ Chi are an immense network of connecting underground tunnels located in the Cu Chi district of Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), Vietnam and are part of a much larger network of tunnels that underlie much of the country. The Củ Chi tunnels were the location of several military campaigns during the Vietnam War. The tunnels were used by the Viet Cong as hiding spots during combat, as well as serving as communication and supply routes, hospitals, food and weapon caches and living quarters for numerous guerrilla fighters. The role of the tunnel systems should not be underestimated in its importance in resisting American operations and protracting the war, eventually persuading the weary Americans into withdrawal.

Seeing the tunnels was very interesting, but definitely hit a soft spot when hearing/seeing the videos of Vietnamese that were praised for killing Americans. The American Pride took over and I was finished seeing the tunnels after the first few. Overall, it showed how terrible war is and can be, no matter what side you are on.





This entry into the tunnels was only big enough for a Vietnamese person. There is little chance an average-sized American could fit in it.

Trip to Ho Chi Minh City

Hotel: Liberty 1 Saigon
Price: $60 USD/night inclusive of breakfast
Transportation: Lots of walking & Taxi -->avg ride = $2 USD

We landed in Ho Chi Minh City on Friday night and did some exploring, but were caught in the rain and headed back to our hotel to rest up for the next day. We spent all day Saturday walking around the city to visit the War Remnants Museum, Reunification Palace, Notre Dame Cathedral, and Ben Thanh Market.

The War Remnants Museum is a war museum thatprimarily contains exhibits relating to the American phase of the Vietnam War, and is a major tourist attraction.

Operated by the Vietnamese government, the museum was opened in September 1975 as the "The House for Displaying War Crimes of American Imperialism and the Puppet Government[of South Vietnam]." Later it was known as the Museum of American War Crimes, then as the War Crimes Museum until as recently as 1993. Its current name follows liberalization in Vietnam and the normalization of relations with the United States, but the museum does not attempt to be politically balanced. The museum comprises a series of eight themed rooms in several buildings, with period military equipment located within a walled yard. The military equipment include a UH-1 "Huey" helicopter, an F-5A fighter, a BLU-82 "Daisy Cutter" bomb, M48 Patton tank, and an A-1 attack bomber.

Reunification Palace, formerly known as Independence Palace, built on the site of the former Norodom Palace, is a historic landmark in Ho Chi Minh City. It was designed by architect Ngo Viet Thu as the home and workplace of the President of South Vietnam during the Vietnam War and the site of the official handover of power during the Fall of Saigon on April 30, 1975. It was then known as Independence Palace, and an NVA tank crashed through its gates.

The Ben Thanh market was a great market for shopping. Cheap house decor (the same as what you can get at Pier 1) and your usual knock-offs: handbags, jewelry, clothes, and shoes. Kaes and I were able to both find "NorthFace" rain jackets for $30 USD a piece...beats the $300 USD you pay back in the states :)

There are TONS of motorbikes everywhere here and to be able to cross the street, you must start walking right in the middle of the traffic. Luckily the riders of motorbikes are cautious of pedestrians and do a good job of driving around them to avoid any accidents. We are heading to Cu Chi tomorrow to see the elaborate tunnel system used during the Vietnam war.