Our Final Days in Vietnam: Staying In Nha Trang, Sleeper Buses Galore, and Saigon for the USA vs. England Match!

It was difficult leaving Hoi An and our nice hotel, the beautiful beach, and the enjoyable night life--what we had extended our stay for--but it really was time for Ruben and I to head south if we were going to see more of Viet Nam before our flight on June 13th for Singapore. Elliott (who had been patiently waiting for us in Nha Trang--our next city during our trip south) had already moved on to Ho Chi Minh City (a.k.a. Saigon to the Vietnamese) since he was going to leave for Singapore a day before Ruben and I due to accidental booking when we were all back in Berkeley.

Ruben and I--along with Chivi and Andres--spent part of our last day at the Cua Dai Beach and enjoyed cool weather and even some painful rainfall on our motorbike ride back to the hotel. Once there, we got our things packed up, our electronics charged, and ourselves showered for the sleeper bus to Nha Trang that night. We were all pretty excited to get to Nha Trang (despite that being another hellacious ride on a sleeper bus) because the following night--our only one in Nha Trang--was the opening night of the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

I have to say, it's been great traveling in Southeast Asia, but it's been especially fun because of all the people from around the world that are here as well and who are very into the World Cup. Needless to say, every night we've been out watching the games (airing at 6:30pm, 9:00pm, and 1:30am), there has been an incredible turnout along with numerous people from the countries playing during each match.

As you can imagine, it was a fun night with Ruben and Andres in Nha Trang watching the opening match between South Africa and France.

After our time watching the soccer matches with Andres, we made our way to the infamous Sailing Club in Nha Trang. What. A. PLACE! I did so much dancing that night that I could barely stand up.

To my credit, I had an amazing dancing partner named Rachel from England who kept up and kept me moving, so it was worth the near exhaustion after a few hours on the dance floor with her.

The next morning, Ruben and I were booked on our last sleeper bus from Nha Trang to Saigon but were picked up in the morning for a rather long day trip. As we departed Nha Trang, we knew there was one thing we wanted to see during our only night in Saigon: USA v. England in the 2010 FIFA World Cup! Despite riding that sleeper bus the whole day, we managed to make a few friends on the bus, and surprisingly, I have since reconnected with one of them while in Bangkok (Nadeane--a beautiful R.N. from Canada who's moving to Beverly Hills in September to work at the Beverly Hills Hospital . . . whoa!).

After a LONG ride that took the entire day with our seats directly in the sun, we arrived around 8pm very tired, but we had enough time, however, to get a hotel, drop our bags, and make it to a cozy bar--finding great seats for the USA v. England game that was to start at 1:30am. Yes, we spent nearly 8 hours in that pub that night, but that's just what you do when USA plays England in the World Cup and you are surrounded by English blokes.

I could try and explain how outnumbered the 15 or less Americans were inside the little pub right in the middle of the backpacker area of Saigon that night, but I made a 4-part video that does the job much better . . . plus, it's really funny!

I'm sorry for using the f-bomb, but I do not apologize for the name calling of David Beckham because of what Ruben and I endured all night from every English bloke at the pub until USA finally tied the game at 1-1 (about 60 minutes into the game).

So, enjoy the videos! (Celia and Jessica: the "Skype" shout-out at the end of Part 4 is for you.)

USA v. England in Saigon, Pt. 1

USA v. England in Saigon, Pt. 2

USA v. England in Saigon, Pt. 3

USA v. England in Saigon, Pt. 4

Well, there you have it; needless to say for those of you who watched the game, we scored somewhat of a lucky goal, but USA tied the game. (Now in present day--nearly two weeks later--we have placed first in our group and will continue into the World Cup's top 16 countries along with England.)

As for our claim in the final video about getting three hours of sleep, Skype and updating past Dandygrams kept me up through the night, and I think Ruben got 45 minutes. We did, however, manage to catch our flight for Singapore (and to meet up with Elliott once again) right on time!

Next up on The Dandygram: Three Unforgettable Nights in Singapore!