Hi, and welcome back to the channel.
If you are new around here, my name is Megan,
and I post weekly videos with travel tips and hacks,
so definitely consider subscribing,
'cause I would love to see you again next week.
In todays video, I'll be going through a list of all the things
I plan to order online or buy
and then bring with me to Da Nang.
These are the things that I had trouble finding
the last two times that I visited the city.
I hope today's video will help you
in making your packing decisions a little bit easier
if you plan to go to Vietnam, or anywhere in Southeast Asia.
(Music)
The first thing I'll be making sure I pack with me is sunscreen.
Now, you can find sunscreen in Da Nang;
however, most of it contains a whitening agent,
which I definitely don't need for my skin tone.
If you do find sunscreen that doesn't have the whitening in it,
you're probably going to be paying the tourist price.
So, in this case, instead of using my carry-on liquid limits
to pack things like travel-size shampoo or conditioner -
two things that I know I can buy a full-size version of
when I arrive in Da Nang -
I'll instead be getting various SPFs of sunscreen
and packing those with me.
I'll make sure I have enough to cover both my face and my body,
and then I'll also be ordering and packing a sunscreen stick
for extra sensitive areas, like my nose.
I'll also be browsing Amazon for some medicated lip balm
for the emergency situation that I end up getting too much sunshine
and burning my lips.
That would absolutely suck, but I'd rather have something with me
as opposed to having to search all the pharmacies for a treatment.
Next, I will be ordering and bringing with me
multiple clinical strength, fragrance-free deodorant.
The deodorant that you find in Da Nang
often does have that whitening agent in it
just like the body cream and the sunscreen.
Also, it's nearly impossible to find clinical strength
and most of them have this flowery smell.
So, I know it works for me, I like it, I don't like all the fragrances...
sticking with it.
The next thing that's totally worth taking up
some of your liquid-limit space is face cream.
If you have something that works for you, make sure you bring it from home,
because you probably won't be able to find the same brand, the same product,
in Da Nang;
even if it's the same brand name, it may contain whitening,
because it's been made in Asia.
Make sure that whichever one you do buy
is under the 100-milliliter limit,
because even though it's a cream, it will be counted as a liquid.
If you're checking a bag and have more space for these liquids,
then definitely also bring body cream with you;
you definitely want to avoid the whitening agents in the creams in Asia.
If you don't have space for body cream,
ask one of the sales representatives
if any of the creams don't have whitening in them.
You would be surprised, it's in most of them.
I believe I ended up using coconut butter or coconut oil
last time I was there, and I was fine.
Another thing I'll be packing with me...
are...
any type of face foundation creams or powders that match my skin tone.
If you don't have an Asian skin tone,
honestly, it may be difficult for you to find something that matches your own tone.
so bring these from home if you can.
I realized that none of these items are impossible to find,
they are just the specific things that I, personally, had trouble finding
while living in Da Nang the last two years.
So, please, don't kill me in the comments, and if you have them, these items,
then that's great.
Another thing I'll be packing with me that you may not think about
would be a Chromecast.
Ughh... I'll show you.
What I have is a Google Chromecast
but you can also use an Amazon Firestick
and a Roku Stick, I believe.
And what it does, is it plugs into the HDMI port in the back of the TV -
and most of the apartments and hotels in Da Nang
have TVs equipped with HDMI -
and this way you can cast any movies or TV shows
that your streaming from your laptop or from your Netflix account to the TV.
This way you're not having to pay for cable
only to realize that you're getting Asian channels that you don't understand anyway.
I'll also be packing fitness bands with me,
they're great for strength and resistance training
without having to carry around any dumbbells or weights,
and they will quite literally kick your butt.
I'm in love with these,
I use them at home, I use them while I'm away...
they're great.
If I have any carry-on liquid space left,
I'll also be bringing bug spray with me.
Now, don't stress if you don't have the space or if you don't have any,
you can buy it pretty much anywhere in Southeast Asia,
and I recommend you do because of dengue fever
and other mosquito-borne illnesses.
But know that to find the higher strength with deet
that's actually going to protect you,
you will probably be paying a high tourist price for it.
Then also pack with you any prescription medication.
At the pharmacies in Da Nang, you'll probably be able to find a generic version
of whatever prescription that you're on,
but I wouldn't risk it.
Stick with what you know, order it in advance,
and make sure you have enough with you for the entire length of your stay.
Ladies, know that the birth control pill is available at the pharmacies,
but it's going to be a generic version,
probably not the brand that you're used to.
So, if you're stuck, it's there, but try to bring it with you.
While you can technically get this in Vietnam,
you will need it for the moment you arrive at the airport...
passport photos.
I will be printing out multiple of these
as I will need to present at least two of them as I arrive
before I'm able to actually enter the country.
Something else that will be taking up a lot of my carry-on space
will be shoes.
Even though you can buy shoes in Vietnam,
often they're very small.
I don't have large feet,
but I had a hard time finding shoes that were wide enough,
and I know many men that have a shoe size over size 10 or 11
are definitely going to struggle.
As for food, you can usually buy all the fruits, nuts, vegetables and meats
that you would typically eat.
The tough part is to find particular brands
or anything that's not a whole food.
It's that artificial stuff
that we're a little bit addicted to here in North America
that's going to be tougher to find.
Things you'll likely have trouble finding
that you won't really be able to bring with you from home
would be, number one - one of my personal favorites -
greek yogurt; this is nearly impossible to find.
It's also nearly impossible to find any plain yogurt at all,
or any products that haven't had sugar added to them.
Sugar-free is not a thing.
You also won't find a lot of things that are sweetened with artificial sweeteners;
it's the real deal most of the time.
As for sodas, when it comes to diet sodas,
Diet Coke or Pepsi is really going to be your only option.
I'll include a few examples so you can get an idea
of what you should be thinking about,
but know that I am not recommending that you bring these
or that you consume these;
these are just some things that you may have trouble finding
when you're in Da Nang.
If there's a specific artificial sweetener that you like to use
or something specific you like to put in your coffee every day,
definitely buy it and bring it with you from home.
You'll have a tough time finding any artificial sweeteners
or any sugar substitutes at all.
Decaf coffee is also something that you may have a hard time finding
or may be paying a very high price for it if you do find it.
There's a big coffee scene in Vietnam
and you'll find egg coffee and coconut coffee,
and even coffee where the beans have been digested by weasels,
but you probably won't find decaf coffee
or instant coffee.
I usually drink instant when I'm home too
so, when I'm going to Vietnam, I'll pack with me both instant decaf
and instant regular.
It's nice to go out to a café,
but I like having coffee available to me at home.
If you use any protein powders or you like a specific brand of protein bars,
definitely pack those with you as well.
I have a personal guilty pleasure for Quest Bars
and you definitely will not be able to find these in Da Nang,
if you do, message me, let me know,
but pretty much any bars that are brands you're used to
or brands that don't have a ton of sugar added to them
are going to be difficult to find.
There are some protein and supplement stores in the city
if you are looking for big name brands of protein,
but it is more expensive than what you'd be packing with you from home.
You can also find some Asian brands of protein powder at the local pharmacies
but I, personally, can't read all the ingredients, and it's a long llist,
so I would rather stick with what I know
or just eat whole foods while I'm in the country.
On a similar note to protein powder would be collagen,
which is something that I take in powder form pretty much every day;
it's supposed to be good for your hair and your skin and your nails.
I don't know if it works, I think it's kind of just a fad.
Anyway, I don't want to bring this through customs and security
so instead, I'll be going onto Amazon.com
and ordering the same collagen version but in a liquid form,
so I can just put a few drops into my water every day and keep up with my...
collagen.
Something that I have on a daily basis in Canada
but have a really hard time finding in Da Nang is...
sparkling flavored water.
Love this stuff,
and you cannot find this type of cartons in...
anywhere that I've been in Southeast Asia, honestly.
Occasionally...
Just put that down.
Occasionally, I can find bottles
of individually packaged, sparkling flavored water,
but it's very expensive.
If you do like flavored water and you don't want all that added sugar,
something that you can pack with you
would be one of these liquid water enhancers.
It will take up a little bit of your carry-on liquid limit, but not much.
I have personally not been able to find these
in any of the grocery stores in Da Nang.
Well, there you have it,
that's my list of the things that I'll be packing and bringing with me
when I go to Vietnam this time,
because I had trouble finding these items in the past.
Let me know if any of the items in the list surprised you,
and then also, while you're down there,
please don't forget to give this video a thumbs-up
as it really supports the channel.
Hope to see you back here for another travel video next week.
Until then, happy travels.
Bye.