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Category: Australia

April 2, 2018August 8, 2018sarahnicho

Refresh for Alice Springs address …

March 29, 2018August 8, 2018sarahnicho

Canberra in 2018 …

March 27, 2018August 8, 2018sarahnicho

Byron Bay YHA update …

March 26, 2018July 31, 2018sarahnicho

Local tips for​ visiting Victoria …

March 23, 2018August 8, 2018sarahnicho

Qantas unveils new Perth lounge …

March 20, 2018August 8, 2018sarahnicho

Freycinet’s new Coastal Pavilions …​

March 14, 2018August 8, 2018sarahnicho

Holiday Inn Melbourne on Flinders refurb …

December 15, 2017March 10, 2018sarahnicho

Christmas 2017 in Melbourne …

December 1, 2017December 1, 2017sarahnicho

Melbourne’s Adina update …

October 30, 2017March 10, 2018sarahnicho

Cruising the Australia coast …

October 6, 2017November 22, 2017sarahnicho

Sydney’s swanky new Sofitel …

September 4, 2017October 29, 2017sarahnicho

Sydney’s Sheraton receives refit …

July 27, 2017March 11, 2018sarahnicho

Travel tips from top photographers …

July 19, 2017March 3, 2018sarahnicho

Accommodation for Adelaide Airport …

July 18, 2017March 15, 2018sarahnicho

Cool and quirky QT Canberra …

July 15, 2017October 29, 2017sarahnicho

AVANI coming to Queensland …

January 27, 2017March 10, 2018sarahnicho

Where to stay on Victoria’s MP …

January 23, 2017March 24, 2018sarahnicho

… strolling through View Street history …

November 24, 2016October 29, 2017sarahnicho

Four Points makes it to Melbourne …

October 23, 2016March 11, 2018sarahnicho

New to Aussie travel in 2017 …

October 19, 2016October 29, 2017sarahnicho

The big Kimberley catch …

September 20, 2016March 24, 2018sarahnicho

… spying the flag of the Southern Cross …

July 31, 2016November 25, 2017sarahnicho

Australia, after the stars …

May 9, 2016October 31, 2017sarahnicho

Port Stephens glamping …

April 30, 2016March 16, 2018sarahnicho

Little corner of France …

April 26, 2016March 11, 2018sarahnicho

Sydney’s Surry Hills …

April 14, 2016October 31, 2017sarahnicho

Sand-side dining …

April 13, 2016March 6, 2018sarahnicho

… The Yarra River …

April 12, 2016March 15, 2018sarahnicho

Westin welcome …

April 5, 2016November 1, 2017sarahnicho

New outback experience …

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About me …

My name is Sarah and I’m a travel journalist writing features and news for a swag of Australian newspapers, magazines and websites.

This is my website, the place I post words and pictures gathered as I gallivant around the globe.

So enjoy the news, reviews, updates, random thinking and regular snapping – photos, that is – assembled here.

And hopefully you will find inspiration for your next trip far, near or here …

© Sarah Nicholson 2018

Recent Posts

  • Hints on finding flight deals …
  • New look for Caravelle Saigon …
  • Going for a Galway getaway …
  • … Saigon afternoon storm …
  • Answering the big hire car questions …

What's new on Instagram ...

... Saigon lemonade at Saigon Oi, the cafe in an old apartment building on Nguyen Hue Street that’s now home to a collection coffee shops and artist studios. . The apartment block at 42 Nguyen Hue was built for American soldiers serving in Saigon during the 1960s and 1970s before accommodating dock worker and the families from 1975. . Now the apartments facing Nguyen Hue Street are being turned into eateries and while it’s illegal for families to rent out their abodes the government is yet to clamp down and the floors of this modernist tower are packed with quirky places to drink and dine.
... late night laneway lingering in Pasteur Street.
... breakfast on the go in Pasteur Street.
... two of District 1’s historic old buildings. . On the left is a French-colonial era apartment building standing on the corner of Ding Khoi and Ly Tru Trong streets and next door is what was know as the Pitman Apartments during the American War. . This was a CIA building and that white pedestal you can just see to the right of the photo was the location of that famous April 1975 photo showing a helicopter evacuating people from the rooftop. . Many people mistakenly caption that photo as the nearby US Embassy, which was also evacuating from the roof on April 30, but a smaller group of local CIA staffers and their families climbed to the top of the Pitman Apartments via flimsy ladders to board Huey helicopters hovering above.
... a touch of Scandi style in the Liberty Central Saigon Centrepoint Hotel’s 16th floor club lounge.
... there are a few things visitors simply must eat when in Saigon and one of those is crusty French-style baguettes.
... admiring architecture in Saigon’s Ton That Dam Street. . Looking up above the market stalls reveals another gem built during Vietnam’s French-colonial era.
... fruit stall on Saigon’s Ton That Dam Street.
... fruit - some of it already sliced for convenience - for sale in Saigon’s Ton That Dam Street. . This lady likely collects her stock in Ton That Dam Street - which is one of the last remaining traditional street markets in the heart of the southern Vietnamese city - and then carries the baskets around the neighbourhood finding customers. . The baskets hang from a plank of wood she wears across her shoulders when moving around and locals sell everything from fruit to freshly-made waffles from these travelling kitchens.
... a flower stall in Ton That Dam Street, which is now one of the last traditional market streets in Saigon’s District 1.
... I love the old buildings constructed during the American and French-colonial eras. . These elegant structures make Saigon the city it is and it breaks my heart to see so many of these architectural treasures demolished to make way for generic glass towers. . While many are long gone there are still lots of bygone structures in the streets of District 1 so keep your eyes up when wandering around to see structures boasting delightful Art Deco, Art Nouveau, Belle Époque and modernist flourishes.
... I love this fabric at a shop selling quilts, and other crafty items, created by ladies living in the remote corners of Vietnam’s Mekong Delta. . The shop, called Mekong Creations, is upstairs in the building on the corner of Le Loi and Nguyen Trung Truc streets using the stairs on the left side of the jewellery shop.
... every morning the arcade, which leads to the apartments above, is one of Saigon’s busiest eateries with a couple of local ladies cooking up a storm to feed an army of diners who sit on little plastic schools dotted around the footpath. . Around lunchtime, once the ingredients are exhausted, they clean up and go home. . I don’t know how long they have been there but from the looks of the sign hanging above the open green shutters I would say it’s been a while, a long while.
... Saigon is rapidly changing, going from the sleepy settlement I knew in the 1990s to a big and busy metropolis lacking the uniqueness bestowed by decades past. . But there are still opportunities to see “old Saigon” and I’m making that my quest for this visit. . Here artist brushes being sold by a footpath vendor - these guys have been around for decades and I remember spending money on this stuff back in 1997 - hang on the grill covering the front door or a Le Loi Street shophouse. . #saigon || #hochiminhcity
... a room with a view at Liberty Central Saigon Centrepoint Hotel. . I’m up on the 15th floor and the vista from every window is somethings special, especially for those of us that love this city’s 19th and 20th-century history, but it’s really special in the bathroom ... just swipe sideways to see. . #libertycentral || #libertycentralcitypoint

What’s new on Twitter

  • Today marks new chapter in long - and colourful - life of the #Caravelle #Saigon with historic #Vietnam #hotel begi… twitter.com/i/web/status/1… 1 week ago
  • I knew the beach was good at #AVANI Quy Nhon #Resort & Spa - and it hasn’t let me down - but the #food has been a r… twitter.com/i/web/status/1… 1 week ago
  • A very sweet turn-down gift from the housekeeping team at #Avani Quy Nhon Resort ... I do love a #frangipani.… twitter.com/i/web/status/1… 1 week ago
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