Teacher Trekker

Southeast Asia Travel Itinerary – Summer 2014

• Day 0 – July 3 & 4 – Flights from NYC,NY to Osaka, Japan; and the connecting flight to Taipei, Taiwan & Overnight Layover
• Day 1 – July 5 – Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) – Ho Chi Minh City Arrival: Airport, Hotel & Eating at the Ben Thanh Market  
• Day 2 – July 6 – HCMC – Ho Chi Minh City – Walking Tour
• Day 3 – July 7 – HCMC – Reunification Palace
• Day 4 – July 8 – Cu Chi Tunnels Day Trip with visits to the Disabled War Victims Crafts Commune & Cao Dai Temple; Sickness, Soccer & Saigon
• Day 5 – July 9 – HCMC – Silliness at the Saigon Central Post Office; Museums & Museums & More Museums
• Day 6 – July 10 – HCMC to Mui Ne – Sweating on a Sleeper Bus to the Beach Town of Mui Ne; Arranging Tours; Motorbike to Red Sand Dunes for Sunset; Nightlife

• Day 7 – July 11 – Mui Ne to Dalat – White Sand Dunes for Sunrise, Red Sand Dunes Again, Local Fishing Village & Fairy Stream; Dalat – Transportation, Lodging & Tour Booking
• Day 8 – July 12 – Dalat – Private Car Tour with New Friends of Lakes, Waterfalls & Key Sites; Dalat Food & Nighttime Markets
• Day 9 – July 13 – Dalat to Nha Trang – Early Morning Dalat Church Tour; Van to Nha Trang; Nightlife in Nha Trang
• Day 10 – July 14 – Nha Trang – Temples, Markets & Deciding to Escape the Tourist Trap
• Day 11 – July 15 – Nha Trang to Da Nang to Hoi An – Flight to Da Nang; Cab to Hoi An; Exploring Hoi An by Afternoon, Spalife & Nightlife
• Day 12 – July 16 – Road Trip to Son My (My Lai) – Full Day Private Cab to My Lai Massacre Site & Son My Vestige Museum; Meeting with Local Tailor; Hoi An Nightlife
• Day 13 – July 17 – Hoi An – UNESCO World Heritage Sites: (1) My Son Sanctuary with Boat Ride to Crafting Village & (2) Hoi An Ancient Town – all 23 sites plus more. (The local ticket agents thought I may have been the first person to do it in a day.)
• Day 14 – July 18 – Hoi An – Tailoring & Saying Goodbye; Hoi An to Hue Bus; Hue Nightlife
• Day 15 – July 19 – Hue – Complex of Hue Monuments – UNESCO World Heritage Site Part 1- The Citadel: Imperial City, Forbidden Purple City, Temples & Places of Worship
• Day 16 – July 20 – Hue City Tour – Additional Complex of Hue Monuments – UNESCO World Heritage Site Part 2 & Other Locations: Dragon Boat Trip on Perfume River to An Hien Garden House, Thien Mu Pagoda, Hon Chen Temple, Minh Mang Tomb, Khai Dinh Tomb, Tea & Whiskey Tasting, Incense & Conical Hat Making & Tu Duc Tomb
• Day 17 – July 21 – DMZ Tour – Part 1: Highway 9: Rock Pile, Dakrong Bridge (Ethnic Minority – Bru Van Kieu, Ho Chi Minh Trail), Khe Sanh Combat Base, Part 2: Highway 1: Frame of Church, Dong Ha Town, Hien Luong Bridge – Ben Hai River, Doc Mieu Base, Vinh Moc Tunnels & Museum; 12 Hour Overnight Bus from Dong Ha to Hanoi
• Day 18 – July 22 – Hanoi – Imperial Citadel UNESCO World Heritage Site, Hoa Lo Prison (Hanoi Hilton) & Additional Sites; Dinner at Cha Ca La Vong (1,0001 Meals to Eat Before You Die); Nightlife
• Day 19 – July 23 – Flight from Hanoi, Vietnam to Vientiane, Laos; Exploring Vientiane
• Day 20 – July 24 – Vientiane to Vang Vieng, Laos – Bus to Vang Vieng; Nightlife
• Day 21 – July 25 – Vang Vieng, Laos – Tubing on the Nam Song River; Nightlife
• Day 22 – July 26 – Vang Vieng, to Luang Prabang, Laos – Bus Ride & Accident on the way to Luang Prabang, Laos; Nightlife
• Day 23 – July 27 – Luang Prabang, Laos – Temple Touring of UNESCO World Heritage Site; Nightlife
• Day 24 – July 28 – Luang Prabang, Laos – Travel Itinerary Planning & Night Markets
• Day 25 – July 29 – Luang Prabang, Laos to Chiang Rai, Thailand – Early Morning Alms Giving Ceremony; Additional Early Morning Temple & Statue Touring: UNESCO World Heritage Site (Continued); Flight from Luang Prabang, Laos to Chiang Mai, Thailand; Cab to Bus Terminal; Bus to Chiang Rai, Thailand; Night Markets
• Day 26 – July 30 – Chiang Rai, Thailand – Chiang Rai Region Tour (White Palace, Black House, Long Neck Karen Village, Myanmar Border (Mae Sai), Wat Tham Pla (Monkey Temple & Fish Tail Cave), Golden Triangle, Opium Museum, Chiang Saen); Private Van to Chiang Mai after the tour; Chiang Mai Nightlife
• Day 27 – July 31 – Chiang Mai, Thailand – Temple & City Touring
• Day 28 – August 1 – Chiang Mai to Sukhothai, Thailand – Bus to Sukhothai; Touring of the Historical City UNESCO World Heritage Site
• Day 29 – August 2 – Bangkok, Thailand – Wandering, Shopping, Dining & Nightlife
• Day 30 – August 3 – Bangkok, Thailand – Tour Guide for a Day & Retracing My 2011 Footsteps (Wat Po; Grand Palace & Emerald Buddha; Wat Arun; Wat Prayoon – UNESCO Site)
• Day 31 – August 4 – Flight from Bangkok, Thailand to HCMC, Vietnam; Revisiting Museums & Cholon District (Chinatown) in HCMC
• Day 32 – August 5 – Mekong River/Delta Tour
• Day 33 – August 6 – HCMC, Vietnam to Taipei, Taiwan –  Appointment with Zaga at Needle Power Tattoo; Nightlife.
• Day 34 – August 7 – Missed Flight due to Sickness; Fixing Itinerary & Bag Pickup at Airport
• Day 35 – August 8 – New Taipei City Yingge Ceramics Museum; Another Tattoo at Needle Power Tattoo; Shrimp Fishing
• Day 36/37 – August 9 in Asia/August 9 in America – Taipei, Taiwan to Osaka, Japan; Osaka, Japan to NYC, NY, USA; 12 Hour Time Zone Swap; Landing in JFK Airport, NYC, NY, USA – Home Sweet Home (Can you say… time traveling!?!?!)

After doing all the math and counting the two original travel days (Day 0) the trip lasted 39 days (2 days worth of flights to Asia; 35 days in Asia; 2 days worth of flights to the United States).