April 2015

A Guide to Thu Dau Mot and Binh Duong Province, Vietnam

Thủ Dầu Một, Bình Dương, Vietnam
Thu Dau Mot from the Becamex Hotel
Thủ Dầu Một (pronounced Too Yow Mot) is about 20 km north of Ho Chi Minh City — straight up the QL13. It’s the capital of Bình Dương province. In 1996, the Vietnam Singapore Industrial Park (VSIP) was officially launched in the province. A cooperation between the two countries, the industrial park is a 500 hectare (1235 acres) industrial area that is equipped to hold over 200 manufacturing plants. They offer ready-built, modern factories that are fully equipped for foreign investors. The project brought a lot of attention to Binh Duong province.

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The Best Day Trip from Saigon: the Cu Chi Tunnels

Cu Chi Tunnels and Shooting an AK47

Considering Trip Advisor rates the Củ Chi tunnels the number 2 thing to do when visiting Ho Chi Minh City, it’s ridiculous that we waited this long to see them. The 121 km tunnel system was preserved after the Vietnam War. They are one of the best ways to experience the Vietnamese side of the war, and to understand how they were able to beat one of the most powerful countries in the world.

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6 Tips on Traveling as a Couple and How to Avoid Fights

Couple at Machu Picchu, Peru
“Does this view make me look fat?”
There are many advantages to traveling with your spouse/boyfriend/girlfriend. Saving money is a major one. Having two brains also helps significantly. But don’t think that everything will be peachy all the time. You are going to fight — hopefully not fist fight. One of you may go a little crazy for a short period of time, and may want to throw the other one down the steps of Angkor Wat. This is not a good idea and should be avoided at all costs. Killing your partner will only make the vacation more difficult (what with the funeral arrangements and the awkward phone call to their parents). Here are my tips to avoid a relationship meltdown while travelling abroad.

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Pulau Pangkor to Penang, Malaysia: Taxis, boats, and buses.

the ferry from Palau Pangkor, Malaysia
When we were planning our trip to Malaysia we originally had planned a stop or two between the island of Pangkor and the state of Penang. Knowing that we’d have to take 2 boat trips and a bus, we thought it would be too much in one day. Of course, plans change when you’re traveling, and we ended up having to go all the way to Penang in one, fairly easy, fairly short day. Here’s the best way to get from Pulau Pangkor to Penang (and also the cheapest).

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Ipoh, Malaysia: Seriously Bad Ass.

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concubine lane in Ipoh, Malaysia
Ipoh, Malaysia – Concubine Lane
It’s easy to take a bus from Kuala Lumpur to the Cameron Highlands (4.5 hours), or Penang (about 4 hours) buzzing right past Ipoh like it was a solicitor on a sidewalk, but don’t underestimate the 4th largest city in Malaysia. I know, the name Ipoh looks like it’s an acronym for something boring — International Party of Humdrum or something, but it actually gets its name from a tree. Yes, trees are boring too, but this particular tree, the Pokok Ipoh, is notorious for killing people. It’s sap is highly poisonous and was used by indigenous people to coat the tips of their darts for general killing purposes. The Chinese have a saying about the tree that translates to: “Seven up, eight down, nine no life”. It means that if someone is poisoned by it they’ll only be able to take seven steps uphill, eight steps downhill, or nine steps on level ground before falling to their death. Yeah man, Ipoh is bad-ass.

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