Xin chao! That’s my favourite ‘X’, Vietnamese greeting for ‘hello’, always said with a smile, to friends and strangers alike. A great ice breaker.

A close second spot is for Xuan Dieu (pronounced ‘swan ziaou’), the expat lane for shopping, chilling out, eating. Wegdy’s for exotic groceries, lovely bamboo and other furniture shops, organic store, Le Pub for hanging out, Don’s for borrowing bicycles and tandems, and for enormous breakfasts, Kitchen for simple delicious food, Bobby Chinn for haute cuisine, some high end clothes shops, crazy range of wine & liquor, Saint Honore’s fresh breads – it’s all out there at Xuan Dieu. B

But most of all, it’s where our friends, Shweta & Abhijit stay, giving us a reason to hang out and have some great times.