It seems like every major city in Asia has shopping areas which all tend to be very similar.  Cho Dong Xuan is no different.  Like most streets in Hanoi the streets in the Dong Xuan area were narrow but the densely packed stores (along with the usual swarms of motorcycles traffic) made this area a little more crowded.  It took only a few minutes to get to Dong Xuan from Hoan Kiem lake which is the primary lake in Hanoi.

The shops sold a wide variety of items from T-shirts to umbrellas, to fabrics to toys and everything you could think of.  I would say a very large percentage of the shops were selling stuff most people would consider junk.  The prices seemed to be a lot more fair than Saigon specifically Ben Thanh Market but again it obviously depends on what you’re looking.  If you’re the type of shopper like me who is either looking to buy a specific item or not going to buy anything I would be willing to bet that you would likely buy nothing at Cho Dong Xuan.

Overall Impression

Since I live in Bangkok where I’m somewhat familiar to the process of shopping it seems kind of pointless to shop in Vietnam or anywhere else for that matter where I can get the sam stuff with less hassle. The areas

As I mentioned in the overview of Hanoi, the people were far friendlier, less annoying and more polite in Hanoi and it made shopping a lot more relaxing than in the hustle of Ho Chi Minh City.  I would recommend Dong Xuan market and the area for anyone looking to buy cheap Vietnamese handicrafts, knock-0ffs and clothes but if you’re looking for something high-end, top quality or very nice you’re probably better off looking elsewhere.

Looks like its Tme to Shop at Cho Dong Xuan

]]> http://tourismpicks.com/2009/11/07/things-to-do-in-hanoi-shop-at-cho-dong-xuan/feed/ 1 http://tourismpicks.com/2009/11/06/places-to-visit-in-hanoi-the-hanoi-hilton/ http://tourismpicks.com/2009/11/06/places-to-visit-in-hanoi-the-hanoi-hilton/#comments Fri, 06 Nov 2009 21:01:24 +0000 Mike Behnken http://tourismpicks.com/?p=898

What's Left of Hoa Lo Prison

Far From Paris

Paris Hilton would not like the accommodations at the “Hanoi Hilton” which is what Hoa Lo prison has been referred to for dozens of years.  Hoa Lo which translates to commonly translated as “fiery furnace” or even “Hell’s hole” and means “stove” is a prison was built by the French in 1886.  Much of it was torn down but what is left serves as a museum and a reminder.

It was around 3pm I had a return flight to Bangkok at 8pm.  I just had a coffee at a cafe with my friend and we saw an American traveler girl who was on the same boat with us in Halong Bay walk by!  My caffeine buzz allowed me to spring up from my chair and run down the street to flag her down.

We got to chatting and she mentioned that the “Hanoi Hilton” was nearby which served as a reminder for me.

Getting There

I had all but given up on any more tourism opportunities and was just going to kill some time before I took a cab back to the airport but now I put Hanoi Hilton on the remaining itinerary.

After coffee I asked no less than 10 Vietnamese people including police, tourism shop owners and pedestrians where the Hao Lo prison before we actually found ourself’s at the entrance.

Touring Hoa Lo Prison

After paying the minuscule entrance fee you are pretty much free to walk where ever you like.   There is a general direction but you are free to go from room to room and read them as well as the stuff inside them.  The most noticeable things I saw were the actual French guillotine that used to behead Vietnamese prisoners and of course the actual jumpsuit and parachute of US senator John McCain the prison’s most famous inmate.

Some rooms had a LCD TV which was hooked up to a censor that was triggered by you walking in the room.  The videos were a mix of mostly old footage, some new image and of course were laced with war-time propaganda.  For example, the videos showed the US pilot prisoners playing badminton and sports like they were in a country club when in fact they were being beaten and tortured on a daily basis.

There was some artwork, stories, and setups like you see below of what life was like in the prison and they all painted a bleak picture of the former Vietnam.  Overall the tour took less than an hour which was good because they were closing as we were trying to finish up the tour which would have been ironic if they forgot about us, closed and locked us in the Hanoi Hilton!

Example of Accommodations at the "Hanoi Hilton"

Overall Impression

Hoa Lo Prison is not the most exciting tour but it doesn’t need to be.  It is a no-nonsense tour which costs almost nothing (20,000 Dong = $1.12USD).  Taking your time and touring Hoa Lo prison takes around an hour and you are able to freely walk around and examine what you’re interested in.  I would recommend anyone who finds themselves in Hanoi with some free time to check out the “Hanoi Hilton” but make sure to have a map printed out to avoid the troubles finding the building which is barely distinguishable from any other building in Hanoi.

More Pain and Suffering for you

]]> http://tourismpicks.com/2009/11/06/places-to-visit-in-hanoi-the-hanoi-hilton/feed/ 1 http://tourismpicks.com/2009/11/05/places-to-stay-in-hanoi-vietnam-gia-bao-hotel/ http://tourismpicks.com/2009/11/05/places-to-stay-in-hanoi-vietnam-gia-bao-hotel/#comments Fri, 06 Nov 2009 05:22:08 +0000 Mike Behnken http://tourismpicks.com/?p=885 Gia Bao Hanoi Hotel (s)

If you read my overview of Hanoi Vietnam you will already know that a very popular area for tourists and the residents of Hanoi alike is the area surrounding Hoan Kiem Lake.  For a short trip to Hanoi this area is surely the most convenient, best area to stay so after a night in Church Hotel which was a few minutes away we decided to move hotels to experience another.

Gia Bao Hotel was featured in (my friend’s) Hanoi Wallpaper Guide which showcases “a tightly edited discreetly packaged list of the best a location has to offer for the design conscious traveler.”

The Wallpaper guide recommended two rooms in the Gia Bao Hanoi hotel which both happened to be available.  The rooms it recommended were 504 and their biggest room on the top (7th) floor.

I took room 504 and my friend took the top floor which had a balcony.  I liked room 504 which felt like home and had a nice feel as you could tell someone carefully decorated the room, not that I care about decor but it was definitely noticable.

My friend chose the top floor room which was more expensive and had a rather large outdoor deck with furniture on it.  He found his room to be excessively loud as there was a construction project next door along with the honking Hanoi traffic which was loud on the top floor but rather quiet in room 504.

Across the Street from the Older 7 Story Gia Bao Hanoi Hotel

There are 2 Gia Bao Hotels!

The suite on the top floor was too loud for the tastes of my friend so he asked to be moved.  It turned out they would move him to their other hotel which happened to be brand new.  As you can see on the map, the 2nd Gia Bao location is very close to the older first one.  He enjoyed his newer and quieter room in the 2nd Gia Bao location as I enjoyed my location.  Even for two friends, one without a cell phone staying at separate locations the distance was not an issue at all.

Overall Impression

I thought the Gia Bao was the best hotel room I stayed at in Vietnam by far.  Everything including the large Samsung LCD television was appreciated.  The only thing which I can nitpick about was the bathroom was not as nice as I think every hotel’s bathroom should be.  Not that I’m a “design-conscious traveler” but the Hanoi Wallpaper Guide really painted an accurate portrait of the hotel and the room.  My room (below) #504 cost $50USD which was around the same price most mid-level hotels cost in Hanoi and Saigon but it was far nicer than all the other ones I stayed at.  The service was friendly and helpful and the location was great.  If I had to pick a hotel in Hanoi for a return visit, either Gia Bao location would be on the top of my list.  Visit the Gia Bao Hotels website for booking and more info.

]]> http://tourismpicks.com/2009/11/05/places-to-stay-in-hanoi-vietnam-gia-bao-hotel/feed/ 0 http://tourismpicks.com/2009/10/19/hanoi-vietnam/ http://tourismpicks.com/2009/10/19/hanoi-vietnam/#comments Mon, 19 Oct 2009 18:10:11 +0000 Mike Behnken http://tourismpicks.com/?p=645 South to North Vietnam

After returning from Vung Tau to Ho Chi Minh City on an early morning hydrofoil trip we barely made it to the Saigon airport in time to catch our flight but of course our Jetstar Pacific flight was delayed.  Once we got in the air the flight was only around 2 hours and touching down in North Vietnam had me thinking if Hanoi would be a repeat of Saigon which I found to be nerve racking and not very enjoyable.

After the flight landed at around 4pm I really wanted to head to Halong Bay right away.  I asked a booth about the trip to Halong Bay and the packages they offered were pretty consistent with what we actually paid.   We decided to book the 2 day excursion to Halong Bay the next morning from our hotel in Hanoi.  We easily found the legitimate taxi (so we thought) and started off for the hour or so long drive into Hanoi.

Taxi Driver Hotel Scam

I saw two things that interested me during the taxi ride from the airport.  First of all, the air was completely filled with smoke.  I couldn’t tell if it was from a celebration or just a bunch of farmers.  The date was September 20th, 2009 so if anyone reading this knows do tell.  Secondly I noticed the very large presence of foreign companies.  Almost every billboard which were plentiful were from Korean and Japanese companies.

Chalk up another victory to the Lonely Planet Guide for warning us about the taxi driver scam.  We asked the taxi driver to take us to Church Hotel which was recommended by another guide book, the Hanoi Wallpaper Guide.  The Lonely Planet warned about taxi drivers taking you to the wrong hotel, or in our case he took us to a random room above a shop.  I know the language barrier is significant, but this guy was obviously trying to make some extra bucks.  I was not surprised because of my experience with the rip-off and scam artists in Ho Chi Minh City which were also in the Lonely Planet.  This taxi driver hotel scam had me thinking again that Hanoi was going to be a repeat of Saigon.

Hanoi is Nothing Like Ho Chi Minh City!

After the taxi driver started driving to the real Church Hotel I had a chance to sit back and observe Hanoi.  It was even apparent on the highway from the airport that Hanoi was a lot more friendly than Saigon.  In Hanoi I noticed a presence of young, smiling faced people.  It seemed that every time I turned my head in Hanoi I would see an attractive 20-something girl or a beautiful 30 something woman doing her thing. I

thought Hanoi really had a small town atmosphere, especially when compared to Saigon.  Most of the streets were narrow and while the traffic was hectic, there was nowhere near the volume of Ho Chi Minh City.   We finally got to Church Hotel and incoincidentally was located right next to this big Catholic church.  We had a chance to get our rooms and relax for a little bit then it was time to head out in Hanoi for the first time.

Places to Stay in Hanoi:  Church Hotel:  -Coming soon

Paces to Stay in Hanoi:  Gia Bao Hanoi Hotel

The Lake

Hanoi is a city with many lakes but the Hoàn Kiếm Lake is seemingly right in the center of the city.  Both hotels we stayed at were located a very close walk from Hoàn Kiếm Lake.  all around the lake was a very peaceful and relaxing place even though it was surrounded by the normal swarm of motorcycle traffic.  The noise of the traffic somehow disappeared when I was walking around the lake.

During the day the lake was a place for people who were just getting off work to sit and rest for lunch and by night time it was a place for couples and friends to go and just relax.   I would estimate the circumference around the lake to be around 1.5 miles and there is plenty of shops and restaurants across the street from the lake and one restaurant actually outside alongside the lake called Hapro Bon Mua. I met a guy selling Lonely Planet guides and post cards walking around the lake.  I first gave him the usual cold shoulder but ran into him again a short while later and started talking.

He said he was a student and explained his life story and we chatted for around 3o minutes.  He told me that he knew some good karaoke places and gave me his phone number and offered to show and my friend around.  He insisted I go across the street from the lake where there was a large group dancing.  It turned out the dancing they were doing was very far from traditional Vietnamese dancing.

Looking Across Hoàn Kiếm Lake at Night

More Rip-Offs

My friend who I was traveling with told me about the Lonely Planet warning about the English speaking people around the lake, I decided not to call back the guy who I spoke with at the lake.   I can usually tell if people I meet are good natured but the Lonely Planet had been 100% so I decided to not take the risk of getting ripped off.  Unlike Saigon there were very few cyclo drivers and other annoying people on the streets trying to sell you something or provide a service.

Taxi drivers seemingly drove around the lakes multiple times for no apparent reason which lead to large taxi bills.  They even did this when we were with our Vietnamese guide who we asked to show us some night venues when he was our tour guide at Halong Bay.  We asked him to show us around since he spoke English well but his guidance led to more rip-offs as he definitely brought us to less than spectacular places because he was going to get a commission.  This wasn’t necessarily a rip-off but an annoyance nonetheless.

Thinks I did in Hanoi

Hoa Lo Prison (Hanoi Hilton)

Shopping at Cho Dong Xuan

Overall Impression

Since my less than optimally planned trip to Halong Bay cost 3 days I only had the chance to visit Hanoi for 1 full day and a couple nights.  I had the chance to stay longer I just booked my return ticket too soon.  At the time I felt it was time to head home to Bangkok but I definitely want to return to Hanoi as I missed out on a few tourist attractions as well as the city away from the lake.  Since Hanoi is close to China I’m thinking I may try to obtain a visa for mainland china and start my journey in Hanoi to see what I missed.

Go to Hanoi and Have a Seat!

If you missed it, Halong Bay Part I covered most of the first day of my 2 day excursion from Hanoi Vietnam.  I stayed and took some pictures and took a nap while everyone else was swimming.  I was awaken by a woman’s voice announcing “buy something”  and I had to investigate.

Just like Benh Thanh Market in Ho Chi Minh City vendors were trying to sell you stuff even in the middle of the bay!  At first, buying bottles of beer, water and snacks from the floating vendors was interesting, and felt kind of like feeding the pigeons but after a while it just got annoying as the relentless vendors and their calls of “buy something” and  “cold beer” just got annoying.  I found it interesting that even after midnight, these women most who were young and pretty were still on the bay, some sleeping and some on their cell phones which I could see lit in the distance.

Floating Vendor Ladies that Swarm the Boat

Dinner, Conversation & Partying?

When everyone came back from swimming they announced that dinner would be in an hour or so as it was just getting dark.  You wouldn’t expect anything less than a fun, unique bunch of international tourists at a world-renowned tourist destination and that is what we had.  Spending almost a whole day with our shipmates let everyone learn about each other.  Almost 3 weeks after visiting Halong Bay I can still remember everyone who I shared the White Dolphin with.

Our group consisted of a single divorced mother from New Zealand with her teenage daughter and son who had been in China for months.  There was an Australian husband and wife who were bankers living in Singapore.  There were two presumably gay guy friends from Australia who have been traveling the world for a year together.  Another lone traveler was a Dutch guy who also had been traveling the world for a year.  There was also 2 solo female travelers, an in-between jobs Filipina woman from Australia and a very cool mid-20s American girl who just graduated school who we actually randomly ran into in Hanoi 2 days later.  Last but not least there was me, an American living in Bangkok and my buddy Jae, a Korean American, living in San Francisco.

Dinner was a great 5 course meal which included very tasty crab.   I forgot the rest of the courses but I remember everything being very good.  We spent about an hour eating dinner and when it was finished everyone with the exception of the mother and two children went to the roof deck of the boat for conversation.

As our group of about 10 people sat and chatted over drinks we noticed the boat off in the distance was making a lot of noise.  It sounded like they were singing karaoke and drinking heavily.  Our group consisted almost entirely of mid to late 30 somethings so I would guess the loud boat in the distance had the group of British backpackers who I sat next to on the ride to Halong Bay.  Keep this in mind if you do the tour.  If you want to party hard, it may be a good idea to get a bunch of young people at a backpacker hotel or hostel to go with or you may get stuck sipping wine and chatting with us old folk.  At around 12:30 or 1:00am our conversation turned to the awkward silence that signals bedtime.

Early Rise

Picture Courtesy of gibtach.blogspot.com

Every guidebook, tour guide and previous visitor to Halong Bay raves about the early morning scenery with the beautiful fog covered limestone rock formations.  Our tour guide stressed that everyone should get up early to view the beautiful scenery.

I was all about getting some good photographs of what would probably be a once in a lifetime experience but when the guide said we were supposed to get up at 5:30am there was a collective groan from myself and the others.

Even though getting up at 5:30am is not something I ever like doing, I set my Nokia cell phone alarm for 5:30am.   I thought the bed was very comfortable in the room and I slept very soundly.  I really didn’t know what to expect but I now know that being in the middle of a shielded bay is pretty quiet at night.

I know it is anticlimactic but when I woke up at 5:30 and looked outside there was no fog at all.  The day was clear and it looked exactly like the day before.  Back to sleep.

Kayaking

After breakfast, which I unfortunately slept through it was time to kayak.  We put on our life vests and got in one of the little transfer boats and it took 10 minutes to get to the pier with all the kayaks.

The kayaks were the open kind where your sitting at the same level as your feet.  There were 2 people per each kayak and then we were set free to explore the bay.  The kayaking was great because you could go through some of the giant limestone rock formation’s caves.

I didn’t bring my HD Canon camcorder because I didn’t want it to get wet, but I was lucky enough to have my picture taken by one of my shipmates.

Saying Goodbye to the White Dolphin

Leaving

After returning from a little longer than an hour of kayaking around Halong Bay it was time to return to the boat for lunch.

I was tired from kayaking and really welcomed the food which never disappointed while on the White Dolphin.  Right after lunch it was time for checkout.  Just like any hotel, we packed our belongings and payed the bill for drinks and the mini bar.

We then loaded up all our baggage to the smaller boat and waved goodbye to the White Dolphin and soon Halong Bay.  We actually got a bigger,  spacious, more comfortable bus/van on the way back which made the 4 hour trip seem a lot shorter.

Overall Impression of Halong Bay

Everything met and/or exceeded my expectations including the great on-board service, fellow shipmates, food, tours and the facilities on the boat itself.  I haven’t mentioned the price of this 2-day Halong Bay excursion from Hanoi on purpose.  I myself didn’t know what to expect when they told me how much it cost.

The entire 2-day trip including everything I have mentioned except drinks only cost 1,600,000 Vietnam Dong or $90!  Considering most of the hotels I stayed at in Vietnam cost around $50 a night, the all inclusive excursion was one of the best bargains I have ever experienced while traveling.  I did go during “rainy season” (didn’t rain a drop) so the price I paid may be lower than someone would pay during peak travel time in December or January.

Since the flight from Saigon to Hanoi was only around 2 hours I thought it would be a good idea to try to get to Halong Bay the same day.  Halong Bay is a good 4 hour van/bus ride from Hanoi so I figured if you could take the flight and then drive straight from the airport to Halong bay it would save a day of travel.  If you read about my experience with flying Jetstar Pacific Airlines you will already know a flight cancellation and the associated delays cost me at least 3 hours of travel.

For anyone reading this who wants to go to Halong Bay, there are booths selling sleeping boat tours (for fair prices) at the airport so it still may be a possibility.  The moral of the story is, if you want to get from Saigon to Halong Bay in a single day, make sure you take the earliest flight from Saigon to Hanoi and book in advance.  I never book in advance so I ended up having to spend a night in Hanoi which wasn’t a bad thing but sometimes it just feels better to get the bulk travel done all in one shot.

Booking & Bus Ride from Hanoi to Halong Bay

Halong Bay is one of Vietnam’s biggest tourist attractions so finding sleeping boat tours is very easy in Hanoi.  Most hotels and all tourist information centers had multiple types of Halong Bay excursions to offer.  Myself and a friend chose a 2 day package which included 1 night on a sleeping boat.  They told us the itinerary which included swimming, kayaking and of course sight seeing and one night sleeping on the boat.  There are also tours that include hiking.

Before you can go on the exciting nautical adventure you need to get there.   I read you can take an hour helicopter flight for around $100/hr which I would have considered due to the fact I have never been in a chopper before and it would shave 3 hours off the trip.  The all inclusive cost for our Halong Bay sleeping boat exrursion included included the 4 hour bus/van trip so why not.

The good part about van trips to excursions like this is you get to meet a lot of interesting people.  Getting stuffed like a sardine to fit 13 or so people in an extended air conditioned van or short bus gives you the opportunity to get up close and personal with your possible shipmates.  Our group included a bunch of different characters on different points of their travel which I will talk about later.  Needless to say, the 4 hour ride which stopped once for a restroom and food break allowed us to get acquainted with some interesting travelers and is a blessing in disguise.

Once we crossed the bridge we knew it wasn’t too long before we boarded our temporary home on the water.  They separated the people in the van into groups depending on whether you were on the 2 or 3 day trip which meant we lost some of our bus companions for people in another bus.  After getting off the bus it took about 30 minutes to all board a small boat to take us to the large sleeping boat.  In a couple minutes we got to the sleeping boat and set sail (not literally) for the middle of Halong  Bay where we would anchor down for the first and in our case only night in Halong Bay Vietnam.

Just Boarded Sleeping Boat, Heading for Middle of Bay

Welcome Aboard

When we first boarded our sleeping boat which was called the White Dolphin we were given choices of rooms.  I was with a friend so we shared a room which had twin beds, nice washroom, mini bar and most importantly air conditioning.  For anyone who travels alone keep in mind you will likely be sharing a room with a complete stranger.  If the thought of this bothers you, it’s probably a good idea to make prior arrangements to avoid this situation.

The White Dolphin had 3 levels.  The bottom level had all rooms.  Our room happened to be the last one on the bottom level towards the back of the boat (sorry for not using the correct nautical terms) so the water was right outside our window.  The mid level had the dining room, bar and more rooms and top level had a bunch of lounge chairs and outdoor tables and furniture.  We barely got a chance to explore the boat after we got our rooms when we were called up to the main deck for lunch.

Lunch & Conversation

Food was included not surprisingly drinks were not.  They served the first meal in 3 courses of pretty good food.  The dining room was very nice with tablecloths and the whole nine yards.  Most of the tables had 4 seats which allowed us to chat with 2 people who happened to be two friends from Australia who have been traveling the world this year.  The conversation was interesting but as soon as we were close to finished we were told that we would leave the White Dolphin via small boat to explore a large cave in 15 minutes.

The Cave & Swimming

We were all shuttled to a big cave which was famous for having several rock formations which looked like objects from a lion to Buddha to the infamous pink genitals!  After the boat landed there was a decent hike up a bunch of stairs to get to the entrance of the cave.  By that time I was very hot and sweating profusely but it came as a relief to find out it had to have been 10 degrees cooler in the cave.

It was unexpected and surprising to me that the first thing we saw upon entering the cave was this very obvious pink penis with scrotum.  Our guide spent a good 5 minutes talking about this pink penis and seemed genuinely excited to talk about the pink phallus which I think was lit up for show.

The rest of the cave wasn’t nearly exciting as the pink phallus.  There was a basic 10 minute walk looping around the cave and then it was time for pictures.  After leaving the cave there are some great picture opportunities which allowed me to take the one at the top of this post.  After leaving the cave everyone got the chance to go to a nearby beach and swim, swim of of the boat or stay on the boat and relax which is what I did.   Most of the people in our tour opted to swim on the beach while a couple others were content to jump off the top deck of the boat.  Everyone seemed like they burned a lot of energy swimming and after I took a nap it was beginning to get dark…

I Told you our Guide was Excited!

Continue to Halong Bay Part II:

]]> http://tourismpicks.com/2009/10/15/places-to-visit-from-hanoi-halong-bay-part1/feed/ 6 http://tourismpicks.com/2009/10/13/flying-to-hanoi-vietnam-on-jetstar-pacifi/ http://tourismpicks.com/2009/10/13/flying-to-hanoi-vietnam-on-jetstar-pacifi/#comments Tue, 13 Oct 2009 08:58:56 +0000 Mike Behnken http://travel.askthetrainer.com/?p=576 Land, Sea or by Air?

For those of you who aren’t familiar with the geography of Vietnam (like I was) , Ho Chi Minh City is pretty far from Hanoi.  I thought it would be a hop, skip and jump in a bus or train but in fact it is 3 day train trip.

Most people will tell you that the best parts of Vietnam are in between the 2 large cities in the north and the south.  Taking the train over a few days is probably the best way to explore Vietnam but a 2 hour flight is a lot easier, or is it?

Booking the Ticket

When booking a domestic flight in Vietnam the usual suspect websites such as Expedia, Kayak an Orbitz do absolutely no good.  You have a choice between Vietnam Airlines, Indochina Airlines and Jetstar Pacific which is the cheapest and offers almost 10 flights a day.  The price for a one way ticket to Hanoi from Saigon was around 880,000 Vietnamese Dong($50USD).

Saigon, we have a Problem

As we boarded the relic of an airplane I noticed what I thought were patches on the side of the plane.  It reminded me of when I used to patch up the inner tubes of my bicycles when I was a kid.  My friend argued that it was a compartment or hatch but I think this old plane was patched up like a sinking ship (see for yourself below).

Patch or Hatch? You be the Judge

Just as the plane finished boarding the pilot who happened to be from New Zeleand announced over the intercom in English before Vietnamese, “This plane’s wing is broken and it cannot fly.”  After the collective groan as they made the announcement in Vietnamese everyone got off the plane and went back to the terminal.

At the terminal I noticed there were at least 4 Jetstar pacific flights that were canceled.  I took it in stride as I wouldn’t want to be flying a plane with a defective wing so we waited.  Less than 2 hours later after a bunch of junk food consumption we boarded an equally old, but working aircraft.

Definition of Budget Airline

If you want an inch of spare legroom or a free meal on your 2 hour flight to somewhere in Vietnam Jetstar Pacific is not going to help you.  If you want the new LCD screen on the back of the seat in front of you with video games, internet and movies Jetstar Pacific is not your airline.

If you do want to spend around $50USD one way and don’t mind being herded around like cattle in a smoke smelling aluminum tube with a bunch of people with hacking coughs Jetstar Pacific is right up your alley.