For the past several weeks, our team here in Saigon has been a little distracted. The source of our distraction has been the social media-driven travel site TripAdvisor, on which we’ve been listed since last February. We’ve been marking the progess of those (incredibly flattering, blushworthy) reviews toward the number 100 like a kid watching a Christmas calendar. Like a pot that’s being watched for a boil or that red light that just seems to go on forever (in Vietnam this is admittedly not much of a problem), it seemed like the closer we got, the slower time dragged on, and that we would never reach 100.
Until yesterday, when we did.
At about 2pm Vietnam time on 31 August, the TripAdvisor ticker rolled over to triple digits. The coup de gras seems to have come from one of two people – oddly, we can’t be sure, as the site holds comments for a short time before posting them. The first indication came via Twitter, from user @blurblurz, who wrote:
@VNVespaTours there … just gave you guys your 100th review! any discount for futur tours? hahaha..
But moments after this, Steve sent ’round an email noting that review #100 had been posted by Scotland native Ronnie Blair, who joined us with his brother Michael on our recent August 14-20 trip to Nha Trang. Among other gushing comments, Ronnie wrote:
Words cannot do this trip justice. The 7-day trip will leave me with a lifetime off memories I will never forget. You’re definitely not just another tourist here, these guys take you in like one of the family. Nothing was too much trouble. You will never find experiences like this on your own or on a tour bus. I’ve never had so much fun or adventure, truly the adventure of a lifetime.”
And just as fast as that, we were at 101.
