First Stop, Vietnam: 20 Countries Down to 19
Kicking off a backpacking trip across 20 countries was always going to feel a little surreal, and starting in Vietnam turned out to be the perfect way to ease into it. It's hard to put into words how much happened in just a few days here — new friendships, new sights, new coffee habits, and more than a few loud reminders that I'm definitely not in Kansas anymore. Here's a rundown of how it went.
New Friends, Familiar Faces
One of the best parts of arriving was getting to spend time with the folks from PPI (Persatuan Pelajar Indonesia), the Indonesian Student Association here. There's something comforting about swapping stories with people who just get it — the same food cravings, the same homesickness, the same jokes — even thousands of kilometers from home. We ended up talking for hours about life abroad, our own journeys, and all the little things we miss without even realizing it. Meeting them early on made the first few days feel a lot less like being a stranger in a new country, and honestly set a really warm tone for the rest of the trip.
𝗧𝗜𝗠𝗘 𝗪𝗜𝗧𝗛 𝗞𝗕𝗥𝗜 𝗔𝗡𝗗 𝗜𝗧𝗪𝗔
Before wrapping up this leg of the trip, I also made time to stop by KBRI (Kedutaan Besar Republik Indonesia) in Hanoi for a good, relaxed chat. There's something reassuring about hearing perspectives from people working the diplomatic side of things — a different angle on what it means to represent Indonesia abroad, and a good reminder that there's a support system out here even when you're technically on your own as a backpacker.
On top of that, I swung by Vietnam ITWA 2026 (Industrial Technology World Asia), the industrial technology trade expo held at VEC Hanoi. It's not exactly typical backpacker territory — think exhibition halls packed with machinery, automation, and industry professionals rather than fellow travelers — but it was a genuinely interesting change of pace and a good reminder that there's more to a country than just the usual tourist trail.
Walking Through History
Part of our itinerary included a city tour, and the standout stop was the mausoleum of Ho Chi Minh, the country's most iconic communist leader. Standing there, surrounded by the quiet formality of the site and the steady stream of visitors paying their respects, it was impossible not to feel the weight of the history packed into this one building. It's one thing to read about a country's past in a guidebook, and a completely different thing to actually stand in the middle of it. Moments like that are exactly why I wanted to do this kind of trip in the first place — not just to see places, but to actually feel them.
A Moment of Calm
Amid all the noise and movement of the city, I made sure to stop by Masjid An-Nuur to pray. It ended up being one of the most grounding parts of the whole trip so far — a quiet pocket of stillness tucked into a city that otherwise never really slows down. After a morning of crowds, traffic, and constant motion, that short pause felt like hitting a reset button. It's a small thing, but it mattered more than I expected, especially this early into a journey that's going to be a marathon, not a sprint.
Coffee, Coffee, and More Coffee
If you know me, you know I'm a self-declared coffee snob, and Vietnam might genuinely be the closest thing to paradise I've found so far. I spent hours just wandering the streets, hopping between vendors, trying different brews, and comparing notes like it was some kind of unofficial research project. Egg coffee, salt coffee, the classic strong-and-sweet iced coffee dripping slowly through a little metal filter — I tried to work my way through as much of it as I could.
There's really nothing like grabbing a low plastic stool on a street corner, coffee in hand, and just watching the city move around you. It's simple, it's cheap, and somehow it feels more authentic than any café experience I've had back home. No fancy interiors, no oat milk menus — just good coffee, good people-watching, and a front-row seat to everyday life in the city.
The Soundtrack of the City (Whether You Like It or Not)
If there's one thing that tested my patience, it's the honking. Cars and scooters here seem to treat their horns as a full-time form of communication — a constant, chaotic soundtrack that follows you everywhere, day or night. It's not aggressive so much as it is relentless, this never-ending chorus of beeps layering on top of each other from every direction. I got used to it eventually, mostly by tuning it out the way you'd tune out white noise, but it's definitely not something I'll forget anytime soon.
On to the Next 19
Wrapping up this first leg of the trip, I just want to say a genuine thank you to everyone who made it what it was. The crew and the guides worked together seamlessly, keeping every part of the itinerary running smoothly even when things got a little hectic. That kind of behind-the-scenes coordination doesn't happen by accident, and it made a real difference in how smooth this whole first stop felt.
Vietnam set the bar high, and I'm heading into the next stop feeling genuinely optimistic. I'm hoping the team only gets closer and more in sync as we go, because honestly, we're going to need that kind of teamwork — there are still 19 more countries left to take on together.
