Nha Trang
The sun finally came out today which is better than getting caught in a typhoon like I thought was going to happen in this beach city of Nha Trang. I really didn’t sleep well on the sleeper bus here. The bunks on those buses are really nice and clean, but very narrow. I can’t imagine how I would have fit in one before I lost a bunch of weight. It would have been funny to watch. But still the skinnier Dean had some trouble too, and the worst part was waking up in the middle of the night about to fall out of the bunk. This happened about a dozen times. So when I got to Nha Trang I opted to stay in the hotel where they dropped us off. It was raining and the rooms were $6, sold. I slept most of the afternoon, woke up to eat some Korean food for dinner, walked around for a while, fell asleep to some terrible movie and woke up to Brokeback Mountain, which was quickly turned off, and slept in the next day. I woke up to beautiful weather for a change, rented another scooter, and off I went. Some sun, a scooter, and some scenery will make all the difference in the morale of a one-man expedition. I’ve been on a foreign food kick, having tried just about everything Vietnamese, I’ve branched out to Indian and Korean, but still avoiding all western food for as long as possible. I imagine I’ll have some Outback or something around Christmas. I’ve also gotten addicted to Vietnamese coffee, it’s like a six-pack of red bull packed into a tiny little mug.
I’ve come to the conclusion that two weeks is not nearly enough time to see this country. I should have allotted a month, but that would have severely cut in to my time in Pai, so I think I did the right thing. There are some places that I wanted to see, but couldn’t really fit in. And some places that I would have spent more time in. I guess I’ll just write it off to a scouting expedition, and when I get back home and ebay everything I own to finance a longer trip, I’ll allot more time then. I’ve only got three more days in Vietnam, and still am quite comfortable with my amble of a pace south so there’s alot that will be saved for next time. Nha Trang has to be the tourist capital of Vietnam, as well as the massage capital. Everyone is trying to get you to have a massage. I overheard these two girls in Hue asking the hotel girl where they could get a massage, and the hotel girl telling them they could get a real massage in Hanoi or Saigon, but everywhere else in Vietnam, massages include happy ending. And Nha Trang seems to be littered with these places. As seedy as it seems, the beaches are awesome, the people are nice, and the food is good. I imagine if I wasn’t traveling alone, then the whole prostitution thing wouldn’t be in my face all the time. The Vietnamese just can not imagine why a fat American would be traveling alone in their country other than for hookers. On the other hand, I guess if that’s what you want on your vacation then here is where you come.
Deano – great blog, bubba. Stellar job of describing your outings in the Far East. I am glad that you didn’t challenge your boy-toy waiter to a kung fu match as he might have given you a beat down in more ways than one. F1
n-e-ting u whan!
you are one crazy mofo, hoss. my adventure for the evening involved crossing the street without the aid of a cross walk in subzero minnesota temperatures on the way to my local thai joint, which quite obviously pales in comparison to your globe-trotting antics. I am mildly tempted to rent a vespa and tour southern Ontario in December to give you some healthy competition in the badass traveler department. Safe travels… let the good times roll. Fast eddie likes men. Best, ponch