I have just spent 6 months in South East Asia. It wasn’t long enough! 7 weeks in Vietnam, 3 weeks in Malaysia, 1 week in Singapore, 1 week in HK (before the protests ☹), 4 weeks in Thailand, 3 weeks in Cambodia, 2 weeks in Nepal.

Loas, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka... I’ll be back for you!

Here are my top 10 tips

1. Crossing Roads

Do as the locals do!

If you have ever met anyone who has travelled to Vietnam you'd have likely heard the stories about crossing the roads – that it’s (seemingly) near impossible! It is possible! And you learn by crossing with the locals (or other seasoned foreigners).

Always Look both ways!! ...because vehicles aren't always driving on the correct side of the road.

Vietnam

Go when there’s a sort of gap, continue at one steady pace. Don’t stop, don’t go sideways; head in a straight line and they will avoid you!
You’ll get more opportunity at traffic lights, theoretically.
Look out for the underground and above-ground crossings.

Singapore

If you have just come from Vietnam - forget everything you know. There are many traffic light crossings, and drivers don’t appreciate you just going for it!

2. Getting around – between cities

Bus was by far the cheapest. (But you know.. do your own research too).

The comfort level varies between countries.

Cambodia

Sleeper between major cities, upright with smaller.

They didn't have charging ports, like Vietnam and Singapore, so make sure you have a powerbank for your phone if you're worried about that kind of thing.

Nepal

Upright, and scary and uncomfortable (bus had no suspension, or air flow).

Malaysia and Singapore

Upright seats, generally comfortable, air con not always functioning, but did have massage chairs and USB charging points!

Vietnam

Seemed to be sleeper seats, whether it was overnight or not.

There is an Open Bus ticket from Ha Noi to Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC), which means you have the opportunity to get on get off at numerous hot spots in between! Again.. there’s a few companies involved with it and try to get the details from them, the last stop charged me extra to get to HCMC.

Thailand

I did take a few trains (I enjoyed the sleeper train from Bangkok to Chiang Mai).

Trains were way more comfortable than a bus predominately because they go straight (aren’t overtaking and undertaking vehicles), aren’t constantly breaking and blaring their horns.

Avoid my mistakes!

I assumed if I’d booked a bus from X to Y, that’s all I needed to know. Nope, I would recommend asking if there are any stops or coach changes on the way because they don’t tell you until it's happening.

It’s fine, but a little stressful when you’re kicked off the bus at 430 am and told to wait 3 hours. (For me, this happened from Hoi An to Da Lat, which left me at Nha Trang beach, which actually ended up being a wonderful experience – head down to the beach, watch the sunrise and be in awe of all the activities going on!)

Be Patient. Everything worked out for me. But some people got stressed and angry at the drivers, if the bus was late or they didn’t understand what was going on. Communication isn’t always the best. Maybe their English isn't so great, but how's your Vietnamese? We eventually got to where we were going with no real concerns, just make sure you allow extra time in your planning.

Pro tip 1– tickets: purchase tickets at the office/station – WAY cheaper than buying through 3rd parties online.

Pro tip 2 – buses: Probably don’t put fragile items in your larger bag, which goes under the bus – they’re thrown around without care.

3. Getting around – locally

Download the app Grab!

You can generally walk but it depends where you are and how much you want to do in one day.

Grab appears to be the Uber of Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia and Malaysia.

In Thailand and Malaysia they are cars. In Vietnam they’re motorbikes/scooters and in Cambodia they also have Tuk Tuks.

The benefit of having this app downloaded is, other than ordering them and have a set price already, you can also use it as negotiation if you do accidentally get a lift with someone who isn’t an official driver/rider (because maybe you’re tired and didn’t notice they didn’t have a uniform).

If you’re doing post-negotiating (after you’ve already agreed to the lift), make sure you are out of the car and have your luggage with you first.

Vietnam – Like I said, Vietnam’s main Grab is bikes. When I first got there and saw the traffic mess I was like – there is NO way I am ever getting on one of them!

But then after lots of walking, learning to cross the road, and observing the pattern and protocol within in the traffic chaos, by the end I was a passenger on the back of a scooter with my hiking bag on my back and a smaller bag on the front. If you’re going to get a grab regularly in Vietnam it might be worth investing in a helmet. The grab drivers will give you helmets but they’re more like bicycle helmets…if that… (and never fit my head properly).

4. Getting between countries!

Again, I bused it.

VISAS - Check visa requirements before you get there, it’s often easier and quicker if you already have a visa organised, Vietnam and Cambodia both have online options now (e-visas)– just make sure you use the correct site (there’s a few scams) – I always check the Aussie government’s website smartraveller.com.au (even though I really think they should put an extra ‘t’ in their name, the information is pretty reliable).

BORDERS - Check the information first – not all border gates accept e-visas or visas on arrival so check that before you head anywhere!

To get from Vietnam to Cambodia I had travel backwards for 4 hours on the day of my visa expiry, despite their being a border gate 15 minutes from where I was. I hadn’t properly checked I’d definitely get through!

I luckily found a bus only a few hours before it left! There’s A LOT of benefits travelling outside of peak tourist season. I wasn’t too worried though, because Vietnam allows a < 3 day overstay (with a $22usd penalty).

Borders were generally stressful, and confusing (by bus). But trust them. They’ve been doing this a while, and there will be a bus on the other side, even if it’s not the original one.

Pro tip: Stalk other passengers! I always picked a few passengers, if not all, to try to follow in case I got lost.

5. Communication

Download Google Translate, mime, point, look up photos to help explain.

I had a local sim card in most countries, which helped for the languages you can’t download, and for looking up pics.

Be patient! (Travel is all about patience lol) Because again, – their English is probably better than your Vietnamese/Thai/Khmer/Nepalese, so chill out and have some respect.

6. Air Pollution

This was real. Sometimes obvious (i.e. smelt, breathing was wheezy, or my eyes were burning – Ha Noi I’m looking at you), and sometimes it was more subtle – increased mucus and ear wax.

Prevention

Eyes: Sunglasses helped the eyes.

Lungs: I’m not too worried about looking cool, so I had no issues with wearing a mask.

Eco tip – get a cotton/reusable one! 1. Instead of those horrible single-use plastic ones, which aren’t biodegradable and I assume would make your face all sweaty.

Lower air quality really made me appreciate home (Australia).

And also reinforced Eco values – try to buy locally, recycle, reuse/upcycle, avoid single use – because as far as I am aware, a lot of the pollution is from burning if plastics and factories etc. There’s also A LOT of smokers on the street, and inside the cafes 😢

7. Hiring a bike

Make sure you have the proper licence. I misinterpreted "international licence," (Yeah I have a licence from the internationals!) and as a result in Malaysia, experienced my first cop "not" asking for a bribe.
·Check the before you take it:

Check brakes, accelerator, tire tread, mirrors, lights, oil level.

Also, if you want to keep your skull and preserve your brain invest in a helmet that fits, and preferably a decent one. Apparently, 80% of helmets don’t meet quality guidelines.
Take photos or video before you take the bike to keep as evidence of existing damage.

These are standard recommendations for hiring anything in any country (I was lucky to have 2 of my brothers (mechanic and engineer) on a road trip with me in Central Australia), but because you’re in a new country and don’t have a metal shield around you I thought best to highlight the above.

When riding said hired bike…

Road crashes are a leading cause of death in Vietnam. In 2018, there was over 9000 incidents, over 4000 deaths and 7000 injuries. In Thailand, an average of 5,500 motorcyclists die every year.

Tourists are, particularly at risk. And I can see why. I often cringe. I mean I cringed a lot in Sydney too, but more so here…

Anyway – the main mistakes I see tourists riders do:

Not going with the flow of the traffic
Not using their horn (use your horn!!! Play your part in the orchestral road music of Vietnam! – it's not actually road rage, it's communication!)
Not head checking or using mirrors
Not sticking to the correct area of the road (Vietnam – bikes on the right)
Just… generally not being aware. I guess they are inexperienced riders + pinch of arrogance.

So..just don't do what they're not doing!

I’ve been riding abike for about 8 years or so. My top tip for riding is to pretend you’re invisible. I.e. believe they cannot see you. If they can’t see you, you need to be aware for both yourself and them, and drive smart and defensively.

8. Eco

Water

You can’t drink from taps in most countries unless there are filters, which there often aren't. – Nepal, Vietnam, Cambodia, Malaysia. Sure… you could buy a few single-use PLASTIC water bottles every day, OR you could download this app https://refillmybottle.com/ and get free water that’s also better for the environment

Avoiding other single-use plastics

OMG there’s so much rubbish. I think it’s apart of travel. I thought it was Asia but I think that’s just because that’s the first place I travelled. Now that I’ve been in Europe for 5 weeks, I can see it’s not that much better.

So, my tips for avoiding single-use plastic are:

Carrying a travel container for takeaway foods.
Travel cup
Reusable straw
Carry bags (for shopping or whatever)

Check out the Zero Waste Stores

Look up Zero Waste stores in each city. All doing their bit for the environment and had a lot of cool stuff

(I’ll write another blog specifically on Eco Travel Tips)

9. Toilets and Tissues

Toilets

Yeah there’s some really gross ones. (Again, that’s not specific to Asia). But be prepared. The squat ones are hard… but nice in a clean environment. Sometimes I wish I’d brought my shee-wee!

Bum Guns – I love these. I wish they were everywhere. BUTT (#pun), always check before spraying!!

Sometimes the pressure was too high, and a bit painful. Once the water was dirty (but I’d learnt to check first).

Oh, and press the button after you’ve reached your nether regions, and unpress the button before you bring it back – unless you want a quick shower.

Tissues – My bro’s gf told me this one before I left. And it’s been handy. Again. Not just in Asia, butt it is more prevalent there:

Always have tissues on you. Because there isn’t always toilet paper.

10. Be in the moment!!

You’re in a new country! What are you there for? Experience it!! Look up from your phone, look at the view, hear the sounds of the city, or country, wherever you are. Appreciate when there is quiet. Notice the different pedestrian crossing tones. Admire their motorbike control skills! Look up, look at the people, smile at them maybe?

Some want to practice their English, some don’t. In Vietnam, the kids would be so excited to see a foreigner to practise their English with! And I think, being so privileged compared to them that’s the least we can do for them! Being able to speak English provides more educational and career opportunities.

Also though… seriously...why are you there? If you’re backpacking and have the extra time why not look into help exchange options? Get to know individual local people, their culture a bit more and live with them! My experiences at English teaching schools in Vietnam and Cambodia were amazing and eye opening 💜

Should I add photos to this blog or will it just make it look longer?!

You can see my photos on my insta: