Vietnam, here we come!

It seems like a week ago, but yesterday morning we left Roanoke for Vietnam. After 30 hours of travel and three flights, we landed late last night and arrived at our hotel around midnight local time (1pm EST). Luckily that meant we could just crash for the rest of the night.

We woke this morning to find our sailing plans held up by paperwork for the new Max Cruise 55 Sailboat, the JustDucky, we were hoping to join on sea trials today. The good news is it looks like we're going to have about a week to explore Vietnam before the JustDucky will have all it's paperwork completed. As much as we are looking forward to gettting on the water, this is an opportunity to explore we didn't think we would have, so today we will get acclimated, make some plans, and do a little local exploring.

Our Hotel, The Riverside, is a lovely older building with local charm, comfy beds, and a riverfront view.

It includes an amazing breakfast; and, although the food was different by Western standards for a morning meal, everything was delicious, especially, the coffee!

After a delicious lunch in a tiny restaurant, we met up with Joe (boat owner and captain) and Neal (crew member) with whom we will be sailing the next two months. During drinks and dinner, we got to know them a little more and are happy that we all seem to get along very well.

We also feel more comfortable with the skill and knowledge of the captain, Neal (also very experienced) and the boat we will be crewing. Safety will be everyone's first priority.

The boat's Starlink system is already operational, so we fully expect to have internet during the transit. WhatsApp is working great and will be the best way to reach us.

We'll send our next post about Ho Chi Minh City. Our initial impression is very positive. The city is very modern with lots of high-end shopping and good food. We're looking forward to seeing more of it the next few days.