A good friend sent an email today informing me that she was studying for a few weeks in Vietnam and having a great time. I couldn’t be more happy for her, but it brought back memories of two different trips I had taken there. Neither trip was particularly amazing, but I can’t figure out why. Maybe it’s that I had watched so many movies about Vietnam that I expected something different. So instead of shaking my fist at Vietnam tonight in anger, I decided to go back through my photos and see if there was something I was forgetting. Sure enough, I found something.

In November of 2008 I flew to Saigon, Vietnam and was immediately placed under house arrest upon arrival at customs and immigration. For 24 hours I would have my passport revoked and would be detained at a government owned hotel near the airport, while being continuously watched by a suspicious hotel staff. I arrived in their country unannounced and without permission. How else did I expect to be treated? Truth is that it’s not nearly as bad as it sounds. In fact, it was a pretty fun experience overall.