Saigon, Vietnam: PHOod Trip

For our first day, we got back late from the Cu Chi Tour at around 3:00 PM so we opted to go to the War Museum first since it closes at 5:00 PM. I was losing all the energy I had early on that day because we haven’t taken lunch. Mom’s a girl scout because she had some munchies on her bag she brought all the way from ‘Pinas. Too bad I’m not a fan of otap, a delicacy from Cebu City, Philippines. Hehe

Our first meal in Saigon was at Pho 2000, a block away from Saigon Square. It is also known as the Pho for the President since it is where former US Pres. Bill Clinton dined when he went there. I guess it has many branches around the city since I also saw one outside Ben Thanh Market.

Here are the photos of our late lunch/early dinner:

 

Our total bill was 147,000 VND. That amount already includes two cans of soda and fee for the use of wet tissue. LOL. I know I read somewhere that if you use it, you’ll be charged separately for it. 

It looks like this:

"Discarded After Use" LOL

I totally forgot about it so we used it and of course paid for it.

Ahhh… never again! I always bring a pack of tissue and a bottle of alcohol with me so why would I pay for a small piece of wet wipes, regardless if it’s cheap? Haha.

We both were full until late night so we decided not to have dinner. Instead, we went to Baskin Robbins for dessert. I ordered banana split for me and mom. It’s quite pricey at 190,000 VND.

ayaw talaga marotate ng pic ni mama. haha

On our second day, plated lunch was part of the tour but drinks were not included so we had a separate order for it. It was so hard to resist not drinking soda since the heat was scorching. 

complimentary tea + plated lunch

We got back to the hotel at almost 8pm, freshened up a bit and then went out to have dinner at KFC for a total bill of less than 100,000 VND.

finger-lickin' good!

On our last day, we had lunch at Quan An Ngon near The Reunification Palace. The ambiance was nice and food was surprisingly cheap. Here is what we ordered. Our total bill was 185,000 VND.

Quan An Ngon 138.  Cha Gio (Fried Spring Rolls) is a must-try!

Come dinner, we saw Pho 24 so we decided to eat there. I just wanted to know how it differs from their branch here in Makati. I skipped on Pho since I had so much of it since Day 1 and had a rice meal instead. We paid a total of 129,000 VND. It pretty much tasted the same compared here.

If you are more adventurous, you can try the Pho served in the side streets. My mom didn’t want to since they don’t look as clean so we limted ourselves to a more private, enclosed restaurants.

By the way, we also tried the mango being sold in the streets/park and boy, it was yummy! I’m starting to drool over it again. Hehe.

Overall, food in Saigon is great and cheap. Their (iced) coffee is to die for. I wish I had the chance to try their desserts, though. :)

Saigon, Vietnam: Budget and Expenses

Saigon, Vietnam

April 5-9, 2012

Budget and Expenses

We spent a total of US$500 for this trip, excluding airfare, travel taxes, terminal fees and taxi rides here in the Philippines. That’s quite a big amount for just 3 full days in Vietnam but we spent mostly on shopping as detailed in our ITINERARY. So if you’re not into shopping, then a budget of US$300 or even less is already enough for two people.

Below is the actual amount we paid for the accommodation and tours:

Hotel:

1^st night                         - US$ 21

2^nd & 3^rd nights             - US$ 46 (US$ 23 per night)

                                        US$ 67 x 20,500 VND = 1,373,500 VND

Airport Service:

To                               - US$ 14

Fro                             - US$ 10

                                     US$ 24 x 20,500 VND = 492,000 VND                             

Tours:

Cu Chi Tunnel Tour  - US$ 12 (US$ 6 per person)

Mekong Delta Tour  - US$ 34 (US$ 17 per person)

                                  US$ 46 x 20,500 VND = 943,000 VND

Summary:

Hotel (3 nights)                                    - 1,373,500 VND

Tours                                                   -    943,000 VND

Cu Chi Entrance Fee

      (80,000 VND each)                      -    160,000 VND

War Museum Entrance Fee

      (15,000 VND each)                      -      30,000 VND

Airport Service                                    -    492,000 VND

Total                                                      2,998,500 VND or US$ 147 (rounded up)

Food is cheap also; a bowl of Pho averages at 50,000-55,000 VND or less than US$ 3.00 only. I’m doing a separate entry for the food that we had in Vietnam including photos and prices for your reference. Click here for the link > Saigon, Vietnam: PHOod Trip

For shopping and other miscellaneous expenses, I listed the ballpark figures below which were bought from Ben Thanh and Saigon Square and the streets of HCMC. I am not sure though if it’s already cheap or you can actually get it at a lower price. I admit my haggling skill is poor.  :p

Bottled Water – 6,000 – 15,000 VND

Fruit Shake – 35,000 VND

Can of Soda – 15,000 – 22,000 VND

I heart Vietnam Shirts – 45,000 – 80,000 VND

10-pc ref magnets – 70,000 VND

Trung Nguyen Coffee – 40,000-45,000 VND depending on the flavor (3-in-1 or black)

Blouses – 90,000-120,000 VND

Kipling Bags (Fake) – 140,000-180,000 VND

Kipling Wallets (Fake) – 40,000-50,000 VND

The North Face Bag (Melinda) – 370,000 VND

The North Face Bag (Amira) – 290,000 VND

The North Face 2-layer Jacket – 800,000 VND

Taxi Flag down – 11,500 – 12,600 VND

Post Card – 4,000 VND

Doing a rough estimate for the hotel, food, and tours, we only spent a total US$ 200.00 for 3 full days including water/soda and gratuities/tips. It’s only now that I realized how much we’ve spent on pasalubong and shopping. Deym! I overspent again! Shopping in Vietnam is so much like in Bangkok, irresistible!

On our first day (2^nd night), I actually tried to list everything that we spent for the day. Take a look on my mini notebook:

I can really be OC sometimes. See the details? LOL. :p

I was happy doing it and I was being really OC. In the end however, I gave up. I’m short by 260,000 VND. Imagine how frustrating it was for me. I have a Management Accounting degree but I can’t balance my expenses with the amount I had on hand. 

My mom was laughing at me because I didn’t want to admit that I overpaid for something. It must be the bottled water we bought from the sidewalk. But 260,000 VND was too much for a bottle of water. How come I didn’t notice if I paid that much? 

Ggrrr… I was really disappointed with myself. I hate that their money is in hundreds of thousands a piece. It was just so hard for me to keep track and count. Haha.:p

(Being a banker, I felt stupid with my last statement. LOL)

Saigon, Vietnam: Itinerary

Saigon, Vietnam

April 5-9, 2012

Itinerary

April 5 (Thursday):

11:00 PM Manila Time, ETD NAIA Terminal 3

April 6 (Friday):

12:30 AM Vietnam Time, ETA Tan Son Nhat International Airport

7:00 AM Breakfast

8:00 AM Cu Chi Tunnel Tour

3:00 PM War Remnant Museum

5:00 PM Late Lunch & Early Dinner at Pho 2000/ Window Shopping at Saigon Square

7:00 PM Back to Hotel to Rest/Freshen up

9:00 PM Shopping at Ben Thanh Market/Dessert at Baskin Robbins

11:00 PM Back to Hotel/Sleep

April 7 (Saturday):

7:00 AM Breakfast

7:30 AM Mekong Delta Tour

7:30 PM Back to Hotel to Rest/Freshen up

8:30PM  Dinner at KFC

9:30 PM Shopping at Ben Than Market/Stroll around Pham Ngu Lao , De  Tham and Bui Vien Sts.

11:00 PM Back to Hotel/Sleep

April 8 (Sunday):

8:00 AM Breakfast/Check out and leave luggages

9:00 AM City Tour – People’s Committee Bldg., Notre Dame Cathedral, Central Post Office, Reunification Palace

12:00 AM Lunch at Quan An Ngon

1:00 PM Shopping at Ben Thanh Market and Saigon Square

5:00 PM Back to Hotel to Lodge our purchases and freshen up

6:00 PM Last minute shopping at Saigon Square

7:00 PM Dinner at Pho 24

8:00 PM Walk Back to Hotel to arrange our bags/luggages

10:00 Off to the airport

April 9 (Monday):

1:00 AM Vietnam Time, ETD Tan Son Nhat International Airport

4:30 AM Manila Time, ETA NAIA Terminal 3

Army Navy Saved the Day!

I am unusually melancholic lately. It must be the weather. The summer heat is unbearable. And I’m having breakouts and I hate it. 

Last night, I involuntarily woke up at 3:00 AM.

Weird. 

I slept at 12 midnight and I wasn’t even half way on my journey to dreamland. 

I felt restless and it was just so hard for me to get back to sleep.

I tried to think if something has been bothering me. But I can’t think of any, consciously at least.

I finally got back to sleep close to 5:00 AM. One hour later, I woke up again.

Ggrrr...

C’mon! What is with this (Fri)day?  I reckon.  – Naks! Siyempre I thought of that in Hiligaynon. Haha. :p

Surprisingly, I was up from bed earlier than usual and I didn’t even have to force myself.

On my way to work, I know I wasn’t hungry and matter of factly, I don’t eat breakfast.

But I’m craving for something. Of course, I gave in. I’m only human susceptible to earthly temptations. Nyahaha. 

I’m so happy I did! 

Indeed Army Navy's burger and libertea saved my almost sleepless day! :D

my 230 petot breakfast

When All Else Fails... RUN!!!

There have been many predictions about the end of the world. In fact, there have also been various movies shown having that theme. 

So imagine the world is about to end and there is a zombie apocalypse. 

Who are you gonna call? Ghostbusters! Este Zombie-busters! LOL. 

Kidding aside, should there be a zombie outbreak, what are you gonna do? Instincts say: RUN! 

Run, sprint, crawl, and jump if you have to.  And that was exactly what we did at Outbreak Manila last April 14. 

Though in real life, I might just find some place to hide. Hehe

It was a 5-kilometer fun run inspired after Run for Your Lives in the U.S.

We had to protect our “lives” from the zombies, represented by 3 red flags stapled on a belt in our waist. The goal is to have at least one flag at the end of the finish line. The top 40 fastest runners will get a medal.

Here are some pictures:

we were early kaya pictorial muna. ang aangas! haha

hello sunrise! :)

warming up

kami na next!

bring it on! :p

wave 10 - 7:45 AM

let the running begin! 

what's so funny zombies? LOL. ayun ako oh! :p

almost there.. almost! :D

the survivors, the spectator, and the zombies :D

oo na, nanghiram lang ako ng medal :(

yes i did! :)

I was wearing a dress since assuming there will indeed be an outbreak, it must come unexpectedly that you wouldn’t have the time to change into your running outfit. Who knows, you might be asleep in your boxers, or worse, you might even be taking a bath. Hehe

By the way, have I mentioned the run was star-studded and action packed? Guess who we ran with?

The Avengers!

The Flush, este Flash! :p

Ronald McDonald and Spidey!

And of course, if there are Zombies.... there are also the Plants! 

kaso baliktad, di sila lumalaban. haha

It is also worth congratulating the “zombies” for living up to their roles. Their costumes and make ups were all so cool especially the guy who played as Michael Jackson. Plus, it’s no joke to be staying under the angry heat of the sun for 6 hours. 

thriller!

zombie sailormoon with jacko

no other zombie can be more famous than him

Kudos to all the organizers of Outbreak Manila. I hope this will become an annual event. Running has never been this challenging, and FUN! :D

**Photo credits to connie and pinoyfitness.com**

Hello-Yellow-Pillow!

Mondays, being the start of the work week, is my least favorite day.

But April 16, 2012 is an exception. This cute heart-shaped pillow cheerfully greeted me that morning. The best part is - it came in my favorite color! Sunshiny yellow! Yippeee! :)

This was a gift from Mel, a friend and colleague. Uhmmm, actually I forced her to buy it for me because she have one herself - exactly the same, only in pink. :p

I use it as a cushion, when I feel cold, or when I take a nap after lunch.

It's so soft and fluffy! Aahhh.. it's perfect!

Thanks mucho Melissa! You're the best evah! Haha. :D

with my cute pillow and big eyebags.. errr.. big smile. :D

Dear Papa

When my uncle, your elder brother, invited me to fly to Marbel to attend the grand reunion of your clan from your mother’s side, I made up reasons not to come. Some of it was true, some were not. Instead, I chose to join in a zombie-infested fun run. Besides, I was never really close to your side of the family.

I was half-hearted. Part of me wanted to go and see you but another part of me stopped me from doing so. 

Looking back, I don’t even remember the last time I saw you. Was it 5, or 6 years ago? And honestly, I wasn’t even sure if I miss you. As far as I can remember, our memories together stopped when I was in 6^th grade. I practically grew up without you. Back then, I didn’t understand. I just had to live with it.

But recalling the times I had with you, those were the best. I remember I was your little girl; I was a Papa’s girl. 

Isn’t it that you were the one who gave me my name?

When I was in grade school, I used to sleep at the pull-out bed beside you and mama. Every morning as I wake up, you were the first one I was looking for.

I loved it every time you asked me what I wanted to eat even though you know all my favorites – pochero, ripe mango, banana (saba), and siopao.

I loved it every time mamang sorbetero passed by the house and you’d tell me it was just the sound of your keys and not from his bell. Of course, in the end you’d still buy me ten-peso worth of dirty ice cream. At that time, it was already one big glass to my delight. 

I loved it how you acted as if you were mad at mom for scolding me.

I loved it how you favored me over my siblings.

I loved it how you were so thoughtful to follow me at school while I had a girl scout camping just to give me an extra allowance. 

I loved seeing and hearing you played my name, your favorite song on the guitar.

I loved seeing how good you were at playing chess.

I loved it every time you make kinilaw and leche flan.

I loved it even seeing you clean a gun, because you used to be a soldier.

The list is long. 

I just loved how you spoiled me with basically anything and everything.  

However, I also have a long list of the things I didn’t like about you. Maybe it’s longer.

But I refuse to actually list it here. There is no reason to. I only want to remember the good things on people, more so from my father.

Notice I referred to it as ‘things I didn’t like’ because I also refuse to use ‘hate’, even though it’s the opposite of love. 

I don’t hate you. At least that’s one thing I am sure of.

Hate is such a strong word. In can affect one’s life, but in a negative way.

It will only lead to an emotional baggage. It will make your heart carry so many burdens. 

To hate is like living your life eating only junk foods; thereby slowly killing yourself – and your relationships with others. It is very unhealthy.

So why hate? How can I hate the person who’s the reason of my very existence? If not for you, Pa, I wouldn’t be here. You gave me my life. That is something I’ll owe you forever. 

It is just unfortunate why the things that happened had to happen. 

Why to us? Why to our family?

Perhaps if you have been a good and responsible head of the family, things will be different by 360 degrees. We will not be in this (complicated) situation. Human as I am, I went thru that stage where I had so many questions; I had so many what-ifs. There is no doubt I love the independence I am getting from living alone. It is liberating. Sometimes though, I can’t help but wonder if how things are now if we all still live under the same roof. 

But it’s already part of the past. And along with age comes maturity so I’ve long accepted the fact that we will never be together again as a family. 

There is just one thing I’ll always wish we had – a family picture. 

I know we have tons of pictures as a child; while we were growing up; school pictures; and pictures from various family celebrations. But why we never had one where we are complete and together as a family? 

I remember there actually was. The same picture displayed on our living room back then. You were all there- you, mom, nene, toto, inday. While me? I was there too. Only faceless, as I was still inside mama’s womb. 

I just wanted to have something to hold on to. Something which will remind me that, once, we were happy together. We were complete.

I guess that will only remain a dream for me.

So many things have had happened. I’m done with all the wallowing and crying. I trust God. Cliché as it may sound but I believe there is always a reason for everything.

I don’t know what made me write this, maybe because I saw a picture of you from the reunion in Facebook. I barely recognized you. I can’t believe how much you’ve aged. I felt a twinge in my chest. And it struck me. I actually miss you. I miss my Papa.

Why won’t I when we only talk for a maximum of 4 times a year – on my birthday, on your birthday, on Christmas day, and on New Year’s Eve. In fact, it’s not even a ‘talk’, technically speaking. We just exchange one or two text messages.

I am sorry if I have been distant all these years. Please know that I have long forgiven you for whatever it is that you’ve done and keep on doing, and for all the pains you’ve caused my mama and us. Let us all just move on and be happy, albeit apart from each other.

I know I’m sometimes bad at keeping promises. But I’ll do my best to make it up to you.

I can’t thank God enough for hitting me with this realization while it’s not too late yet.

You’re still my father, while I’m still your little girl and your bunso. Nothing can ever change that fact.

And I will always love you, no matter what.

With hopes of seeing you the soonest,

Aubrey

good ol' times with pop

Errr... I am the Speaker!

Last March 29, 2012, I visited my elementary school. The last time I did was back in December 2008 at the Alumni Homecoming. Prior to that, I never had the chance to go back ever since I graduated in 1999.

It was Holy Family School’s graduation day and I got invited to be the commencement speaker. I was hesitant at first but I eventually agreed because to be remembered and invited by my alma mater is both an honor, and a privilege. I even forgot about my fear, which I’ve read, is also the no. 1 social fear of even the most prominent politicians and the most famous business tycoons: the fear of speaking in public.

The moment I step foot on its grounds, I felt nostalgic. I remembered how we hear mass every first Friday on its church; how we used to play between the three gigantic acacia trees beside it; how we ran and fool around while trying to speak English up to the extent of what we knew about the language; and how we savored the two-peso ice scramble and arroz caldo during recess time.

While my mom’s busy with parking, I saw Sir Steve, our Language & Reading teacher, from afar. I was glad to see him again after so many years. He still looks the same. It seems he hasn’t aged a bit. I’m gladder when, as soon as he saw me, he mentioned my name. Oh, isn’t it nice when even after 13 school years, your grade school teacher still remembers you? Imagine how many batch of pupils have he taught already? 

The baccalaureate mass has just started when we came so mom and I decided to attend. I sat beside Ms. Mil, our school principal who like Sir Steve, appears to be still youthful as always.  

The graduation program started right after the mass. I had to parade along with the graduates and the faculty. I was seated in between the school principal and the school administrator. I was browsing thru the program and I was anxious as my turn to speak was getting nearer.

Just when I thought the privilege of being chosen as a speaker outweighs my fear for public speaking. I was wrong. 

And so I was introduced. For me it was not necessary, but it was obligatory for the benefit of the audience.

I tried to crack a joke to break the ice and to lessen the nervousness. I guess I delivered it quite well as I saw my former teachers and some parents smile, giggle, and laugh a little while I speak, unless I was only imagining things. Hehe :D

Then I started talking. In the middle of my speech, I got lost from where I was reading. My knees were shaking the whole time and I am not sure but the faculty who were seated right behind me must have noticed; perhaps the audience, too. Standing there in front of the glass podium felt like forever but in fact, only eight minutes later, I was done.

Maybe I could have done it better. But overall the experience was splendid. It’s something I will always be proud of. Thank you, Holy Family School for this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Here is the link to the final draft of MY SPEECH, not exactly verbatim as I squeezed in a few and spontaneous lines/jokes at the start. 

The graduating batch

Marching with the faculty

With GR, Sir Steve, and Sir Rod.

I thank you! :p

Saigon, Vietnam: Day 1 - War Remnants Museum

From Cu Chi, you can ask your guide to drop you off at the War Museum like we did. There is an entrance fee of 15,000 VND (+/- Php 30) and it closes at 5pm.

 I’d like to warn you that it is very depressing to read articles and see photographs taken during and even after the war. I can’t imagine what the Vietnamese had to go through to think it was just merely 20+ years ago. Let the pictures below speak for themselves. 

Outside the building are various aircrafts and tanks that were used in the war. Some were donated by the U.S. 

By the time we were done, I was already feeling dizzy since we haven’t taken lunch. So I advise you to always have a heavy breakfast before starting the day at Vietnam and bring something to eat with you if you can. You will be doing a lot of walking around the city if you don’t want (or avoid, as much as possible) taking the cab like us.