• How To Find Cheap Flights
  • Southeast Asia Railways

Nomadic Notes

Travel blog and weekly travel newsletter

  • Blog
  • Newsletter
  • Travel Booking Sites
  • Travel Gear
  • Travel Insurance

Where I’m At: July, 2018 – Osaka edition

July 1, 2018 By James Clark 1 Comment

Where I’m At: July, 2018 – Osaka edition

Greetings from Osaka and another edition of Where I’m At; a monthly update of what I’ve been up to and general site news.

Where I’ve Been

Luang Prabang

Luang Prabang

I ended up spending a week in Luang Prabang, and it turned out to be a productive stay. I was mainly interested in exploring the town, so I didn’t do any side trips. I made a list of the best cafes in Luang Prabang, and I have also put together a guide to the upcoming Laos Railways.

Here is my full trip report on Luang Prabang.

Bangkok

There are no direct flights from Luang Prabang to Saigon so I opted to stay in Bangkok again for two days on the way back. This trip was mainly shopping and visiting friends, so I saw the the inside of malls instead of visiting anything new.

MBK Mall

I also had a few more photos to get for my Future Bangkok report. On Sukhumvit 11 Cheap Charlie’s relocated last year to make way for a new development. This was a famous outdoor bar that was tacked on to the side of a decaying building. I arrived to see the building boarded up and demolition crews on site.

Sukhumvit 11

Last month I stayed in Chinatown, and I’ve blogged about the re-emergence of Bangkok Chinatown.

Saigon

District 5

I was in Saigon when I heard the news about Bourdain. Usually I don’t think much about celebrity deaths, so I was surprised at how much his death moved me. From a travellers perspective, there was no one else doing what he did as well as how he did it.

He was the closest we had to a modern-day Hunter S Thompson, and coincidently I was also in Saigon when I heard the news about Hunter’s death. I was backpacking the country and I got a text message from a friend in Australia about the news. I remember exactly where I was standing on both occasions.

Bourdain left quite a legacy in Vietnam, which was one of his favourite countries to travel. There are some places in Saigon that have become famous after he visited, including Banh Xeo 46A. Not knowing how else to honour someone I’ve never met, I went back to Banh Xeo 46A.

Banh Xeo kitchen

Banh Xeo is like a crepe made with rice flour. You pull it apart and wrap it up in lettuce and herbs, sometimes wrapped in rice paper, like a spring roll. It’s very hands-on, and best enjoyed when it is straight out of the pan.

Banh Xeo

This short clip of Bourdain’s visit to Banh Xeo 46A is also a great little time capsule of that era. Since this video was made the restaurant has expanded their operations to accommodate the crowds.

Hong Kong

Hong Kong skyline

When I was planning my trip to Osaka all the flights I found were expensive or flying overnight. Japan is out of range from most of Southeast Asia for low cost airlines flying A320’s or 737’s. So instead I cobbled together a trip with low cost airlines via Hong Kong. Not only was this cheaper, it also gave me a good excuse to visit Hong Kong. It’s one of my preferred stopover cities, so I make a point to plan flights via HKG whenever possible.

Market lanterns

Osaka

Osaka at night

The last time I was in Osaka was in 1999 en route to the USA. I stayed at the airport hotel which was included in the airfare, and I had a day to wander around. I don’t remember much about the trip, and being back 19 years later nothing is familiar. This was pre digital cameras, when taking a photo was a deliberate process. With 24 shots on your roll of film, every click counted. No cat photos or pictures of what I ate for breakfast in those days. I probably took five photos for the whole day, and they are buried in a box in storage somewhere. I was not into sushi at that point of my life either, so I feel like I am doing this famous food city justice this time around.

Sushi window

I will post a full trip report of Osaka this month. There will be food photos, and maybe a cat photo as well.

Filed Under: Where I'm At Tagged With: bangkok, china, ho chi minh city, hong kong, japan, laos, luang prabang, osaka, thailand, vietnam

Comments

  1. Juan Ovalle says

    August 20, 2018 at 4:47 am

    So true about Anthony Bourdain. He left such a great legacy

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Welcome to Nomadic Notes

James Clark from Nomadic Notes

Hi, I’m James Clark, and I've been travelling the world since 2003 while running a location independent travel business. Nomadic Notes is a travel blog featuring travel guides and notes from my travels.

I’m currently based in Vietnam, writing about transport and infrastructure in Southeast Asia.

More about me and Nomadic Notes.

Weekly Travel Newsletter

Sign up for the free weekly newsletter for the latest posts, and a roundup of best travel reads from around the web.

Follow Nomadic Notes

Recent Posts

  • Where I’m At: March 2021 – Con Dao edition
  • Notes on Phan Rang–Thap Cham
  • Where I’m At: February 2021 – Saigon edition
  • Da Lat – Trai Mat Railway – A restored heritage railway in Vietnam
  • Notes on Da Lat – The cool mountain city in the Central Highlands of Vietnam
  • Notes on Nha Trang – pandemic edition
  • Where I’m At: January 2021 – Saigon edition
  • Notes on Lao Cai – The provincial capital on the Vietnam-China border
  • Where I’m At: December 2020 – Tam Ky edition
  • Notes on Sapa – Visiting a tourist town without tourists (2020 pandemic edition)
Top 200 Travel Books
Southeast Asia current and proposed railways
How to find cheap flights
Best new banks for travellers, expats, and nomads

European Travel

Eurail Pass Travel Guide

Featured Travel Sites

Living In Asia

About Nomadic Notes

About
Advertise
Contact
Contribute
Press/Media Mentions
Where I've Been

Digital Nomad Resources

Digital Nomad Resources
Long-term Travel

Travel Resources

Travel Gear
Travel Guides

Travel Blog Resources

Travel Blog Directory
How to start a travel blog

Where To Stay In…

Bangkok
Chiang Mai
Da Nang
Ho Chi Minh City
Hong Kong
Jakarta
Kuala Lumpur
Macau
Penang
Singapore

Search Nomadic Notes

Copyright © 2021 Nomadic Notes · Site Map | Privacy · Log in