Filed under: Asia
Vietnam’s premier diving destination – Nha Trang is also the beach capital. It lacks the charm of Mui Nui, which was a stop on the 11 hour bus ride from Saigon. Mui Nui is a charming little town, with a real resort feel to it, minus the high-rise hotel set. Nha Trang, on the other hand, is a strong hold of high-rise hotels, including the Sheraton and construction of some other big names is underway. This buzzing little town – population of 340,000 – has plenty to offer the tourists, primarily sea based activities.
The journey from Saigon was visually stunning, leaving the low lands of the Mekong Delta and rice fields, the journey makes for the amazing sand dunes surrounding Mui Ne, however, stunning and all as they are, they are juvenile in comparison to the amazing Gobi Desert dunes.
The landscape changes further on up the coast to take in the mountains of the central highlands, the road skirting between the coast and the mountain.
Although the journey is only 440km, it takes 11 hours. The single carriageway paved road slows the journey down, although the drivers overtake slow lorries at every opportunity. The incessant beeping of the horn serves as a warning to all the bikes on the road, along with animals at times! This I block out by listening to some of my favourites – The Killers, Tom Baxter and a few others – all reminders of the long journeys in Argentina. Them and ear plugs!
After arriving at 7pm, it’s dark and there’s not much opportunity to look around. One full day here, and it’s time to move on. The day is taken up with looking around the town, booking onward travel and of course relaxing by the beach!
One day was enough for me, unless you are interested in diving or just lying by the beaches, there’s not much else to do. Of course there is a pagoda and some other relics of worth. Moving onwards, I take the 5.30am train to Hoi An, described as the historic jewel of Vietnam. Time will tell. In the meantime, I look forward to the train ride and the beautiful scenery the coastline has to offer.
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