This was my first international trip after I started working. The last time I was out of the country was roughly about 6 years ago when I was still in college. My friends were not able to book the same flight as mine that was set to arrive in HCMC close to midnight. Instead, they’re on the first flight in the next day. So for now, its just me.
This being my first DIY trip, I read countless blogs, forums and websites about the place, tourist traps, tips and tricks and all. However, I also knew that no matter how prepared you think you are, always have room for the unexpected and accept that sometimes things just really don’t turn out the way we want them to no matter how hard we prepared for it.
I saw some decent reviews of this hotel called Phoenix 74 which is near Ben Than Market and is very affordable - $14 for a double room. I relied on the pictures posted by one traveler who stayed there before. Not bad I thought and it was cheap so I went ahead and made reservations.
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| Immigration Counters at the Tan Son Nhat International Terminal |
I got out of the airport around midnight, it was almost deserted and that was the first time that I felt some sort of panic or worry being in a foreign country all by myself with no tour guides or relatives to pick you up. I jumped into the first cab that waved at me. Despite all the articles I’ve read about unscrupulous drivers in the airport who don’t turn on their aircons, have faulty meters and old vehicles, I chucked those all out the window and just wanted to seek refuge at the first cab in sight. True enough, I got into one of those cabs without air-con, at least 10 years old and with a meter that’s covered by a towel so I can’t really tell if its faulty or not. The driver, thankfully, knew where I wanted to go after showing him the address of the hotel. As we pulled up outside the hotel, I thought I got the place wrong because although I see the sign of the hotel and we got the address right, there was no entrance at all. All I could see is this steel accordion door pulled down like what you’d see in warehouses or stores when it’s closed. I didn’t want the cab driver to leave until I was sure that I was in the right place. Good thing there was girl from a restaurant nearby that was still open who saw us and who happened to know how to speak English. I told her I had reservations to this hotel, which appears to be closed, and she just told me to knock on the steel door so I did. A few minutes after the door rolled up and I saw what seemed like the ground floor of a house with a small staircase to the side. The guy who opened the door was a teenager without his shirt on. Again I thought I was in the wrong place still until I told him my name and that I had reservations and he said yes and told me to go up the second floor where the “reception” was. After I registered, he showed me to my room.
The room is simple and old but it’s not bad, although the pictures I saw were very deceiving. The bathroom though was small and you can actually use the toilet and take a shower at the same time. I decided at that moment that I will walk around early morning tomorrow to look for another hotel we can transfer to. Tomorrow my friends will be arriving and hopefully I’ve already found us a new place to stay before they get here.
Slightly eventful first night but not so bad for a first timer
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