A Sort Of Homecoming

When my dad suggested he wanted to return to Vietnam for vacation (the place he was stationed, where he met my mom and where I was born), it was more of a spoken wishful thought. I don’t think he really thought we’d ever go back due to expenses, life events, and a slew of other reasons.

Fast forward to the end of 2024, and I can only guess as a New Year’s resolution my dad decided it was finally time to take action. He declared that if we were to go to Vietnam we needed to take action, book the trip and finally go. 2025 was the year and we were going.

Thanks to the fine folk at AAA we had a trip back to the homeland. Two glorious weeks sampling the food, the people, the atmosphere, and yes…the never-ending parade of motorcycles. Oh the motorcycles.

According to our tour guide, if you wanted to cross the road when facing traffic in Vietnam, the trick was to keep moving, hold one hand above your head to signal where you are to the motorists and go for it! But the motorcycles!

It was like a never-ending wave of angry hornets. Motorcycles blanketing the city streets, creating a real-life game of frogger for anyone wishing to cross over to the other side of the street. After two steps into the street, I asked myself if this mornings latte run to the Starbucks across the way was worth being run over and not having the opportunity to see my future kids succeed in life.

I didn’t have much faith that holding a hand over my head would protect me from being run over by hell-bent-to-get-to-their-destination-by-any-means-necessary motorcyclists.” But then again, I didn’t want to start my day without my morning coffee so I did the only logical thing-wait for someone else to cross the street and follow their lead. And this method worked wonders and would be one I recommend as long as someone is poised to cross the street in the same direction as you, else you wait forever!

But that was just a taste of what was to come and what we were going to experience over the course of two weeks. Taste wise the food was phenomenal and burst with flavor, color and aromas. From the crunch of the baguette of the Banh Mi sandwiches and bean sprouts floating in a bowl of Pho to the spices surrounding the Bun Cha dishes and plum infused beers, there was never a dull moment for the taste buds. And an abundance of coffee that was ridiculously strong to mugs infused with frothed egg white and condensed milk, there was a taste for every pallet.

And lest we forget the sights of the countryside, the historical sights (both UNESCO world heritage sights and non), and the people that make up the country.

Over the month of February I’ll break down the different regions visited and hopefully inspire you to visit my home country. A country that is full of history, flavor, and resilience with a friendly fair.

I invite you to experience Vietnam-My Vietnam.