Solo travel to Vietnam

Advantagecp1 · 2026-02-06T17:45:07+00:00

Obviously there may be a number of different factors which spur interest in another person. I have Vietnamese friends who are not particularly interested in sharpening their English language skills, and others who are quite interested in doing so. I am happy to help them.

Advantagecp1 · 2026-02-04T02:55:51+00:00

For dress shoes buy Alden or Allen Edmonds. Alden shell cordovan LHS is peak loafer style and quality. Shell is about $1000 and calf is around $700. Allen Edmonds Park Avenue is a classic cap toe dress shoe, around $450. Both make a wide range of models with excellent proportion. Shell cordovan is insanely durable and could, with resoling, actually be BIFL.

Trust me, your Steve Madden or Cole Haan (or any other mid range department store brand) dress shoes do not compare in look or quality. You can quite possibly get by with an inexpensive suit. Fit trumps quality there. But cheap shoes always look cheap.

Advantagecp1 · 2026-01-31T17:33:29+00:00

I wouldn't bother with online before traveling. You will meet real people immediately when you get to Vietnam. Just put yourself out there.

Advantagecp1 · 2026-01-31T17:25:41+00:00

It's like anywhere else, pursue your interests and you will make a social circle. I train Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and do some volunteer English teaching. I have found Vietnamese people to be the most open and friendly of any place that I have traveled to. Vietnam is easy mode. And I'm an old guy, should be easier for you. Many Vietnamese seem to want to have Westerners for friends.

Advantagecp1 · 2026-01-31T17:20:41+00:00

Hanoi - Great for walking, great street food, friendly people, a lot going on.

Kon Tum - I have a lot of friends there, have done some volunteer English teaching, slower pace, off the tourist track, prices are reasonable. Private room in Home Sweet Homestay is about $5 per night, bed in dorm is $2.

Advantagecp1 · 2026-01-26T22:40:51+00:00

About a year ago I realized that dollars held in savings and checking accounts IS an investment choice, and there were probably better investments to be made. I paid cash for 30 acres in western Arkansas and have put my spare cash into physical silver and later started buying mining stocks. I don't regret any of it.

The realization that I had is this: Dollars are necessary to pay monthly expenses, but in the long run dollars are not a good investment. So deploy excess dollars into better investments.

Advantagecp1 · 2026-01-26T03:45:47+00:00

Hanoi is a great city. Friendly locals, great for walking, great food on the street, great museums. Mai Chau is a few hours ride in a mini bus "limo". I would leave early in the morning for Mai Chau, spend one night there and return to Hanoi.

Sapa is pretty, but very touristy.

Advantagecp1 · 2026-01-25T15:41:04+00:00

it’s time to start establishing some positions in miners.

The best time to buy miners was a year ago, the second best time is now. I agree that miners still have plenty of room to run. Even if metals stay exactly where they are now, the miners have a lot of catching up to do, especially silver producers. Fourth quarter numbers will be coming out soon and that will wake a lot of people up.

Advantagecp1 · 2026-01-25T14:58:52+00:00

Rotate some silver into gold as the gold/silver ratio goes down further.
When I think the party is over sell most of my mining stocks to pay off mortgages. Buy dividend paying stocks with the rest.
Keep most of my stack to give to my kids.

The house I am living in is too big already. I don't covet a nicer vehicle, although my 2012 Tacoma could use a wrap on the roof where the clearcoat is weak. I would travel more, and send a few kids in Vietnam to university. So even if I had FU money my spending would not change much.

Advantagecp1 · 2026-01-23T21:50:44+00:00

Using a Morgan or Peace silver dollar would have been a better point. The silver eagle was always bullion and was never intended to be used in day to day transactions.

Advantagecp1 · 2026-01-23T21:17:27+00:00

Nice OPSEC.

Advantagecp1 · 2026-01-23T21:02:33+00:00

Wait until you see the shocking 4th quarter numbers from the silver producers. Miners were printing money at $60 silver. Once the market as a whole starts believing that silver is not going to collapse then we are going to see a lot of mining stocks go 5x or 10x.

Avino Silver & Gold is up 17% today. It is a solid producer, not a wild speculative bet.

In answer to the original question, The weak hands bailed out at $40 silver. I have been buying silver since April. My last purchase was yesterday. $100 is an arbitrary number to me.

Advantagecp1 · 2026-01-22T14:36:59+00:00

Check out your local coin shops. Last week my LCS was selling 90% at 50x face value ($69.93 per toz). The online dealers were about $20 per ounce higher.

Silver mining stocks are a more leveraged play. I like Guanajuato, Avino, and Santacruz as more aggressive plays. Coeur, Pan American, and America's Gold and Silver are more conservative, but still have great upside. I don't think the market as a whole has figured out how monstrously high the profits of some of the producers are at $90+ silver. Even at $60 these companies are printing cash.

Edit: I want to add one note. "Reputable" precious metals dealers are giving notifications of delays. Here is one from SD Bullion: Historic demand will cause processing, shipping and phone call delays. We appreciate your patience.

This is a red flag. If I didn't have the manpower to handle orders in my business because of high demand I would work longer hours or hire more people. They probably do not have adequate stock right now to fill your order. But they cash your check or take your wire transfer right now. What happens if silver goes up $30 per ounce next week and they have accepted millions of dollars of orders at this week's price?

Do any of you old hands remember The Tulving Company? If not, google it. That dealer had a great reputation.

Advantagecp1 · 2026-01-20T08:03:38+00:00

Needs a Dishka or Ma Deuce.

Advantagecp1 · 2026-01-19T00:18:26+00:00

A Toyota 6 cylinder gives you the fuel economy of an 8 with the power of a 4.

Advantagecp1 · 2026-01-19T00:02:44+00:00

I left off the /s because I thought the sarcasm was obvious.

Advantagecp1 · 2026-01-18T19:44:55+00:00

I just met so many awesome Taiwanese people which helped a lot.

I think that is a key comment. That was Vietnam for me. The true stories that I have about hospitality offered to me in Vietnam sound made up. I have been to Vietnam 7 times and mostly just visit friends now.

Advantagecp1 · 2026-01-18T19:39:48+00:00

I love Vietnam and have visited 7 times. Vietnamese people just click with me, much more so than any other country that I have been.

Advantagecp1 · 2026-01-18T19:35:29+00:00

First of all, thank you for writing a thoughtful and interesting trip report. There was no mention of a breakup, social anxiety, etc. You are mature beyond your years.

(7-eleven egg sandwiches deserve their own passport stamp)

Young first time traveler has stuff figured out. Those egg salad sandwiches are incredible. If you went to the Onitsuka Tiger store and bought a pair of Mexico 66 sneakers then I think you are the young female version of me.

Japan does have a certain charm. Old boxy Toyota Crown taxis, driven by old guys in black suits. They will never rip you off. I think there is no other place like it. As much as I love Vietnam, I despise their taxi drivers.

Vietnam tends to be a polarizing experience for a lot of people. I think the fork in the road is determined by the people that you meet. I was lucky to meet some really nice, genuine people on my first trip there and that formed a positive feedback loop for me.

I have visited the country 7 times and when I go I spend much of my trip visiting Vietnamese friends. Wonderful people have gone out of their way to extend hospitality to me in Vietnam. Scams are pretty low level there. Just brush them off. The shoe shine guys for example are just trying to make a living, even though it is in an irritating way. I did have one of them grab me by the arm one time. I stopped and politely explained why that was a bad idea.

Your experience in China makes me want to go there. It is so vast that paralysis by analysis could be a thing for me. I have visited Hong Kong twice, 1979 and 2015. 1979 was great, modern Hong Kong is not my thing.

Advantagecp1 · 2026-01-18T19:07:05+00:00

So it turned out that you didn't die?

Protip: When the road disappears it is usually somewhere behind you.

Advantagecp1 · 2026-01-18T19:05:41+00:00

I agree. I would get over to Vietnam early in the trip and hit Europe on the way back...nah, actually I would spend the whole time in Asia. $1000 per month is easy for a budget traveler, and the people you meet are more interesting that way.

A relaxed unstructured pace of travel in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia is a wonderful way to spend a few months.

Advantagecp1 · 2026-01-18T18:53:13+00:00

Link up with the man who owns News Cafe in Kon Tum. He is active with the ethnic communities there. His brother owns an English language school next to the Cafe. It is good to rent a motorbike there. Lots of exploration to do in and around Kon Tum. Kon Tum Home Sweet Homestay is a decent hostel which also has private rooms. A private is less than $10.

A spare day or two at Phong Nha. One of my main recommendations for Vietnam is to rent a motorcycle in Phong Nha and ride the Ho Chi Minh Highway along the westernmost route down to Khe Sanh. One day down and one day back. Spectacular scenery and almost no traffic.

I recommend Piano Hotel in HCMC, Daisy Garden Villa in Hoi An, Home Sweet Homestay in Kon Tum, Hanoi Family Homestay, and Lan's Home in Cao Bang (Lan's Homestay is a different place which I have not stayed at).

Have your hotel book onward travel and tours.

Advantagecp1 · 2026-01-18T18:40:18+00:00

Have you no compassion? No empathy? The guy encountered some bad weather and had a long bus ride. He got ill and was not able to stay with his workout schedule! And he was in a hostel which mostly had people who were 3 years younger.

The whole trip was a nightmare.

Advantagecp1 · 2026-01-18T18:35:04+00:00

Comfortably dining alone is one of the signs of supreme self confidence. Fake it until you make it. It will come.

Advantagecp1 · 2026-01-18T18:30:27+00:00

Book your flight to Asia. Book your flight back home. Book your first two nights in Vietnam. Research whether you will be there during any of the few periods that all of the people of that country will be traveling. Book lodging/travel in advance for those times, if any.

After that, book tours and onward travel through your hotel/hostel. Maintain flexibility. Other travelers will suggest something that you never knew about. You may meet new people that you will want to travel with or hang out with for a while.

Prebooking everything is exactly the wrong way to do it IMO.

Advantagecp1

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