Nha Trang, Vietnam

Okay, no more horrifying pictures. I promise.

In the next two weeks, we are traveling on land from South Vietnam to North.

Nha Trang, Vietnam – Day 13 (Feb-11)


We smoothly arrived in Nha Trang, the 5:30AM train arriving at 7AM. The Pho Bien hotel is clean, cheap ($10), has everything, and is one street from beach, dive shop, and restaurants. Nha Trang is described in the book as the fun capital of Vietnam. We are working our way north as quickly, because we don’t want to run out of time. The temperature is cooler here.

Nha Trang is pleasant. The beach is not super clean, but they make a good effort (Vana: cleaner than Kuta, Bali). It’s kind of like a small version of Santa Monica; urban but also beachy. We sign up for a snorkel tomorrow, grab some lunch, have some homemade Italian ice cream, and then head for a massage.

(Interesting combination)

(just like the ice cream we had in Italy, if not better)

On the book’s recommendation we walk up to Lucky Foot Massage (despite what the name implies to some people). We get quite a treat. Besides the usual foot beating, there is intense pressure applied to various points on the foot, which has me grunting and the masseuse giggling. The two masseuses had it down and give Vana and I the same routine. First the masseuse is in front on me, next she is on top of me, then she is behind me, finally she is underneath me! The final move has her knees underneath my back, with my body in a backwards arch (like a typical yoga move). They also rock out the hot stone. The theme is; no pain, no gain.

We look in a crafts center where they are making woven silk "paintings". Vana sees one with a young woman and really wants it. The store is a bit touristy, but interresting to watch them weaving the art.

(I love this 'painting')

For dinner, we scope out the various dinner option, and choose a seafood restaurant recommended by the book. The shrimp is excellent, but they overcook the fish. We are disappointed by the US prices ($40) for the live lobster.

(seafood display in front of the restaurant)

(BBQing our dinner on the grill)

(river crab was delicious)

In an evening walk we pass an American in dress shirt and slacks having dinner on the street, eating lobster. He is sitting in a children’s plastic chair and table, popular for street side “restaurants”. He is shaking his head in a pleasured disbelief of how delicious his dinner is (Vana: he looks like he's in heaven). Lobster on the street is on ice (not live in the tank), but is one quarter the price per kilogram. We vow to return tomorrow night.


We run into Jonathan and Kimberly having dinner. They are a couple from Canary Islands that we met at breakfast in our hotel in Ho Chi Minh City. They have the same travel book, and are also traveling North. We compare notes, and discuss potential to meet in Ho An for dinner.

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Nha Trang, Vietnam – Day 14 (Feb-12)

This morning we go out with Coco Divers, run by a retired French navy gentleman, Jiene Pierre. The dive boat is the largest and most comfortable dive boat I have ever been on. Our mini-cruise heads to the offshore islands where there is a marine park. The water is chilly, like a San Diego summer, and we wear full wetsuits. The first dive site is next to a cliff, and reminds me of La Jolla Cove, in San Diego.

(KR, VH, Jiene Pierre, the woman on the right is Vietnam's first diving instructor. You go girl!)

(harbor)

The visibility is not very clear, but there is still many coral and fish to see. The second dive is a little better, and we see plenty of colorful fish. Coming from Bali, we are not impressed enough to book another snorkel trip. On a side note, we meet a Vietnamese Dive Master who shows us amazing pictures from his dive at 20m. He shots some extremely colorful and bizarre looking fish in amazing detail, using a very close, and steady flash shot. We become frustrated because our pictures are nothing like his. We have lunch with a nice fellow from Finland who is in Nha Trang working for several months to become a Dive Master.







For dinner we are determined to have lobster. We pick one among a few of the street side “restaurants”, who have their seafood on ice. You chose what you want, and they BBQ it for you. At first we are skeptical; how fresh is the fish? What do we get on the side? Are we going to get sick? $10 is still a bit expensive (Obviously, Kevin over-analyze everything).

The “restaurant” we chose is interesting. It seems this fellow moved his family on to this empty lot, big enough for a large hotel, put out some children’s furniture, and fired up a grill. For having what seems like almost nothing, he does an amazing job. Each table has a roll of TP, and small jar of toothpicks, and they bring a candle upon request (Vana: no, only when the light go out). Even the food is well presented. He pops that lobster right on the grill; first on its back, then on its feet. Then he chisels it in half, pours in the butter/garlic/salt/sugar/chill love, and finishes it up with a little flame burnage. Shaking our heads in pleasured disbelief, it was the BEST lobster we ever had. He serves with a tasty baguette, basil/chili/mint plate, and a few side sauces.

(final product!)

We are fascinated by this guy’s little restaurant. We think he’s sitting on a gold mine. We analyze his business and think it can be increased four-fold with a few simple changes (Vana: I had tons of marketing ideas). We discuss our ideas with him, but his English vocabulary is specialized for selling his product. This seems common in Southeast Asia. We have heard the motorbike drivers (who taxi you on the back of their bike, including luggage!) speak elementary English, Chinese, Japanese, and French.

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