The adventure in Vietnam started from the marvelous Phu Quoc Island, selecting to perfect place to be on holiday: La Veranda Resort!
From the first moment we were picked up at the airport, the driver greeted us with a big smile and a very warm “Welcome home!” and in fact this is how it was going to be, home!
The Island it self is lush jungle, has colorful coral reefs and the kind of beaches you usually dream about when thinking of the picture perfect place and as cherry on top, La Veranda is a very beautiful mansion in French colonial style just in front of one of those idyllic beaches.
Once reached the Hotel we were welcomed from a very competent staff and offered a welcome drink and fresh towels, it was just getting started but I could already tell it was going to be an amazing experience!
Once reached the Suite, that has a private terrace, gorgeous ocean view and the room equipped with all kind of amenities, I was actually thinking about locking myrself in the villa and forget the rest of the world but then I saw the pool and the garden and changed fast idea! :p
Locking myself in the Villa was an option, the other one was to go on a trip to Sao Beach, where everything is already organized by the staff and you just have to relax and chill at this wonderful beach with white sand and crystal water located on the east side of the island.
The atmosphere at the Resort is amazing, the staff is very attentive and smiley and theres always something to do between the lots of activities organized from the Resort.
Every day, before deciding what I was going to do later on, I took my time to enjoy the wonderful breakfast served at the Pepper Tree Restaurant.. There’s literally everything you could imagine and even more;
I think that the french origins of the owner are a clue to imagine how good the croissants and pan au chocolate were, french patisserie is definitely my favorite one but i must admit i also loved everything else on that huge buffet!
My goal was to try every day something different, starting from the SPA with the Vietnamese massage that has been 60 minutes of pure relax and rejuvenation, the foot massage,manicure and everything on the list of the wellness treatments;
It felt so good to be pampered with all those massages, from people that you can tell know what they’re doing and are doing it really well and the most surprising thing is that the masseuse was tini tiny but really strong ll!
Apart from the Spa and all the great services available at the Resort, what I mostly like is that La Veranda has a precise identity and soul, making you feel like home and at the same time giving you something authentic with a mixture of french colonial style and traditional Vietnamese art.
Talking about Vietnamese, I wanted to know more about the traditional food and how to make it, so I booked a private cooking class making and exception request: i wanted to go visit the Local Market with the Chef.
I know that sounds a pretentious request, but this Island has so much to offer and I really wanted to know more about all the food and spices and the Chef was just the perfect person to show me around and tell me more about it.
We had a wonderful and inspiring tour at the market, I ate some special deep fried snacks made of fish paste then we went back to the restaurant to start our cooking class.
It was really funny learning how to do a lot of vietnamese dishes, something I didn’t expect to be difficult were the Spring Rolls..The Chef made it look easy, his ones looked really good, while mine were sticky and had some pretty alternative shapes..but I can tell that everything tasted delicious!
At the end of the day cooking was great, but later on I was going to enjoy one of the best meals of my life at the Pepper Tree Restaurant for dinner.
At that point I fully trusted all the team in the kitchen and restaurant, so I just gave them some clues about what I liked and they made the magic happen: each course was amazing and paired to a great selection of different wines.
As an Italian that enjoys and appreciates quality food very much, I can honestly tell you that they NAILED IT;
Not only the food was perfect, the atmosphere was so relaxing and the staff very attentive, polite and always smiling..I couldn’t have asked for more!!
Talking about perfection, the private beach is the prefect place to take a rest, empty your mind and enjoy the quiet nature that surrounds you.
The attention of the staff is always remarkable, in fact they make sure you’ll have everything you need and nothing is missing,so I decided to watch the sunset from the loungers while having a drink and later on, have a good walk towards the fabulous Night Market from the beach side in 30 minutes!
My stay at La Veranda represents the ideal place to be oh holiday, it’s unique style makes me feel like home and the courtesy of the staff gives that feeling of some very attent and kind friends that take care of every single detail you could never think about, making you feel special!
