the staff at the check in counter and at the main doors seemed pretty normal and helpful. after that though was irritable, bored staff. an aussie guy on my flight back home was so offended wrt the bribes and ngl i agree. like, if you worked at sydney airport and took a bribe you'd be instafired

both times going through the intl terminal the non-paid lines didn't look that bad, it could've been bc it wasn't peak season yet. there were virtually no lines at the new domestic terminal, same went for hà nội's airport. it seems like an awful russian roulette wrt waiting times

i was watching the flight attendants going through the VIP security screening and one of them popped off her heels to put on white slippers, while two others were wearing disposable plastic feet covers. respect ngl, protect that pantyhose

the lady at my booth was ALSO taking a pointlessly long time and like my sister in christ, I ALREADY PAID TO STAND HERE, why in god's name would i also give you money. it felt like a silent, stony five minute stand off lmfao

ftr i paid for us to get the mid-level fast track (essentially an 'official' bribe) bc my family is neurodivergent and i'd read the horror stories about being held up for three hours in security. i wasn't risking all of us having meltdowns

update #1: at 3k now, only on the 2nd section out of 7(?) sections

there was also virtually no fresh fruit juice, i guess it's not a viable market bc everybody's used to buying fresh pressed juice drinks from street vendors

i can't drink long life milk bc i'm really allergic to a common preservative. AND SOME OF THE FRESH MILK HAD ADDED SUGAR?!?! i tried a small bottle and it was disgusting, oh my god

the fresh milk situation in vietnam is bizzare bc there *is* some milk produced in the central highlands, but all the cartons were either use immediately or use in 24h. i ended up buying a couple of use in 24h 500ml ones and got my bro to drink the remainder

while i was over there, i didn't have a chance to try the black coffee bc it didn't sound like i'd like it either, and... like a week in my bowels started a rebellion. unsure if food poisoning or just not being used to the bacteria or w/e

addendum: district 1 has actual sidewalks AND people paid to help you cross the road at main tourist spots!! bc tourists getting run over is a bad look lmao. what i've learnt is: don't hesitate and go slow, up your spatial awareness to 1000%, cross with other people if possible

i missed the cats but didn't feel homesick at all, gee i wonder why /s (ftr this was the first time my brother and i had been to vietnam)