My Unforgettable Vietnam Experience
Losing one’s passport has got to be the most stressful thing that could happen to any tourist. I must totally agree because that unthinkable experience has what welcomed me upon my arrival at the streets of Ho Chi Minh City in the wee hours of the morning of November 26, 2016.
From the airport, my husband and I were dropped off by a taxi along Pham Ngu Lao St. Pham Ngu Lao is a famous street known to backpackers and tourists. We were scouring the area looking for our hotel accommodation which is Elegant Inn, however, as soon as we found it, to our dismay, the doors are closed! So we then tried checking other possible accommodation where we can just crash for the night. We continued walking around checking our Google maps on our phones, when all of a sudden I felt a tug on the purse (it’s actually a tablet case) that I’m holding. In a split second, my purse was instantly snatched off from my clutches by two men riding in tandem on a motorbike. It all happened so fast as I was in total shock for a moment before I started crying and screaming my heart out. I couldn’t believe both my passport and my cellphone included in that purse are all gone in just a poof! Thank god, my wallet was not in it and that I bothered to backup all my files in my phone before travelling. As for my passport, I literally felt heartbroken as it still contained valid US and Japan visas. A Canadian named Ryan who witnessed my hysterics was kind enough to guide us to the nearest police station. Unfortunately, Vietnamese people are not that well-versed with the English language so it was a major struggle communicating with the police. Not to mention that the policeman in charge at that time was a total douche-bag (I still feel like punching him in the face whenever I think of him). He advised me to come back to file a police report at 8 o’clock in the morning with the receptionist from our hotel to act as my translator.
At this point, I just wanted to slap myself and wake up from this nightmare. I filed the police
report with the assistance of Edgar, our receptionist from Elegant Inn as instructed that morning, however, since it’s a Saturday I still need to wait for Monday because the Philippine Consulate is closed on weekends. My day couldn’t have gone worse. Instead of wallowing in self-pity, we just decided to enjoy the tours and make the most out of our stay in Vietnam since it’s our first time (and definitely the last) to be in the country. Monday rolled around and we paid a visit to the Philippine Consulate in Ho Chi Minh City (The Embassy is located in Hanoi). Issuance of emergency passports is not being offered in the Consulate so my only hope is to obtain a travel document which only provides a one-way travel back to the Philippines. At this moment, my tiny hope for still making it to Cambodia has been completely crushed hence, wrecking all the plans that we made for Cambodia including our return flight home. To further add salt to my wounds, there is no rush processing that week for the travel document so we have to wait for SEVEN working days!!! How could a single document take so many days to process?!! Indeed, what I thought to be a great vacation has suddenly turned for the worst. Until I get my travel document, we’re literally trapped in Vietnam.
We managed to cope despite our limited budget as our intended stay of 6 days (supposedly 3 days Vietnam + 3 days Cambodia) has been stretched out to 11 days. Our money reserves have been used up since a travel document costs about 1 million VND (that’s about 40+ USD). Fortunately, our hotel was kind enough to accommodate us for our extended stay. People who knew of my plight expressed their sympathies and to look at the bright side of the situation which is to consider it like an extended vacation. I just couldn’t get over the additional expenses and wasted money on our bookings and return flight (although we did get some refund for the bus trip and one tour). I did try to cheer myself up despite my sinking heart over my loss, thinking that years from now I’ll just laugh over this very unlucky situation. Mike has even made a joke about it saying “Vietnam love me long time”.
After getting the travel document, I still need to apply for an exit visa which we did on the next day. On December 6th, Mike and I had been so anxious because we had been dying to go home. As soon as I got my exit visa in the afternoon, I felt like crying for joy. I can finally go home!!! We booked our return flight on that day as well (never minding the cost) and got the hell out of Vietnam for good.
Vietnam will always be an unforgettable memory for me. Though my visit has been marred by unfortunate events, I am still glad for the many firsts that I encountered as well. It was in Vietnam that I got to fire for the first time an AK-47 rifle, go into a 15m tunnel, bravely carry and hold a python, eat fried frog meat and watch a water puppet show.
The next time I travel I will definitely guard my passport with my dear life. Even if I have to secure it firmly inside my bra haha! I am now in the process of getting my lost passport cleared and hopefully I’ll be able to get a new one and apply a visa in time for my next trip to Japan. Also I’m still hoping for that trip to Cambodia which we never got to do. I better make sure that this unfortunate incident will be my first and last. It’s certainly a wake-up call for me to stay alert, be very careful and prepared whenever I travel--esp. to third-world countries where thieves are known to thrive.
From the airport, my husband and I were dropped off by a taxi along Pham Ngu Lao St. Pham Ngu Lao is a famous street known to backpackers and tourists. We were scouring the area looking for our hotel accommodation which is Elegant Inn, however, as soon as we found it, to our dismay, the doors are closed! So we then tried checking other possible accommodation where we can just crash for the night. We continued walking around checking our Google maps on our phones, when all of a sudden I felt a tug on the purse (it’s actually a tablet case) that I’m holding. In a split second, my purse was instantly snatched off from my clutches by two men riding in tandem on a motorbike. It all happened so fast as I was in total shock for a moment before I started crying and screaming my heart out. I couldn’t believe both my passport and my cellphone included in that purse are all gone in just a poof! Thank god, my wallet was not in it and that I bothered to backup all my files in my phone before travelling. As for my passport, I literally felt heartbroken as it still contained valid US and Japan visas. A Canadian named Ryan who witnessed my hysterics was kind enough to guide us to the nearest police station. Unfortunately, Vietnamese people are not that well-versed with the English language so it was a major struggle communicating with the police. Not to mention that the policeman in charge at that time was a total douche-bag (I still feel like punching him in the face whenever I think of him). He advised me to come back to file a police report at 8 o’clock in the morning with the receptionist from our hotel to act as my translator.
At this point, I just wanted to slap myself and wake up from this nightmare. I filed the police
report with the assistance of Edgar, our receptionist from Elegant Inn as instructed that morning, however, since it’s a Saturday I still need to wait for Monday because the Philippine Consulate is closed on weekends. My day couldn’t have gone worse. Instead of wallowing in self-pity, we just decided to enjoy the tours and make the most out of our stay in Vietnam since it’s our first time (and definitely the last) to be in the country. Monday rolled around and we paid a visit to the Philippine Consulate in Ho Chi Minh City (The Embassy is located in Hanoi). Issuance of emergency passports is not being offered in the Consulate so my only hope is to obtain a travel document which only provides a one-way travel back to the Philippines. At this moment, my tiny hope for still making it to Cambodia has been completely crushed hence, wrecking all the plans that we made for Cambodia including our return flight home. To further add salt to my wounds, there is no rush processing that week for the travel document so we have to wait for SEVEN working days!!! How could a single document take so many days to process?!! Indeed, what I thought to be a great vacation has suddenly turned for the worst. Until I get my travel document, we’re literally trapped in Vietnam.
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| The Philippine Consulate in HCMC |
We managed to cope despite our limited budget as our intended stay of 6 days (supposedly 3 days Vietnam + 3 days Cambodia) has been stretched out to 11 days. Our money reserves have been used up since a travel document costs about 1 million VND (that’s about 40+ USD). Fortunately, our hotel was kind enough to accommodate us for our extended stay. People who knew of my plight expressed their sympathies and to look at the bright side of the situation which is to consider it like an extended vacation. I just couldn’t get over the additional expenses and wasted money on our bookings and return flight (although we did get some refund for the bus trip and one tour). I did try to cheer myself up despite my sinking heart over my loss, thinking that years from now I’ll just laugh over this very unlucky situation. Mike has even made a joke about it saying “Vietnam love me long time”.
After getting the travel document, I still need to apply for an exit visa which we did on the next day. On December 6th, Mike and I had been so anxious because we had been dying to go home. As soon as I got my exit visa in the afternoon, I felt like crying for joy. I can finally go home!!! We booked our return flight on that day as well (never minding the cost) and got the hell out of Vietnam for good.
Vietnam will always be an unforgettable memory for me. Though my visit has been marred by unfortunate events, I am still glad for the many firsts that I encountered as well. It was in Vietnam that I got to fire for the first time an AK-47 rifle, go into a 15m tunnel, bravely carry and hold a python, eat fried frog meat and watch a water puppet show.
The next time I travel I will definitely guard my passport with my dear life. Even if I have to secure it firmly inside my bra haha! I am now in the process of getting my lost passport cleared and hopefully I’ll be able to get a new one and apply a visa in time for my next trip to Japan. Also I’m still hoping for that trip to Cambodia which we never got to do. I better make sure that this unfortunate incident will be my first and last. It’s certainly a wake-up call for me to stay alert, be very careful and prepared whenever I travel--esp. to third-world countries where thieves are known to thrive.
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