The Prettiest Place on Earth? (and lots of rain...)

The last week has gone by so quickly, I've met a whole new group of people, traveled further down south, and it's all made me enjoy Vietnam more. Many of the friends i made are traveling south to north unfortunately, but luckily some are going the same way as me and I'll see most of them again in Saigon in a few days. I always get surprised with the things I learn about myself and this side of the world every day.

Not everything is beautiful and easy here though - Out of all the places I've visited so far, Vietnam has presented the most annoyances with people harrassing you to buy things. I've learned that if i hide my camera, cover my legs, shoulders and NEVER make eye contact, then i blend in pretty well and am bothered substantially less. It gets tiring when you're eating a meal at an outdoor restaurant, only to be confronted by someone selling souvenirs when you're in the middle of a conversation. Very often I've been confronted with street vendors insisting that i buy something even after i've said no, twice. And if i do say yes, i've mastered myself out of the foreigner-price scams. It's been a pattern that foreigners are overcharged on the most basic things, but once you take a stab at speaking their language, saying their price is ridiculous and implying you know what game they're playing, they drop their prices down by 60% the original price, sometimes even 80%! Another tiring thing is when you stumble in a store and the owner immediately gets out of his/her chair and follows you around within 2 feet from your back the entire time... Do they not realize that scares customers away and makes you not want to shop, even browse? Are they doing that to make sure you're not stealing, or just trying to see what catches your eye so they can try to sell you similar things if you're about to walk out? I guess there is a give-and-take with all the harrassing and the insisting, though: when i see a poor local family trying to enjoy their outdoor dinner together, I also can't help but notice the intrusive 40+ year old foreigner in his khaki pants and a fanny pack with a huge SLR camera snapping away at the scene barely 4 feet away. Whatever happened to respect, subtlety? At least i'm really subtle when taking my own photos...


Hoi An

As stated in my previous entry, this place is just so stunning. With beautiful flowers and lanterns decorating the yellow-painted buildings and their wooden shutters; locals in their conical hats leisurely riding their bicycles down through the old quarter, with the sweet and spicy smell of cinnamon incense filling the air... A smile never left my face here.

one of the main bridges

A quaint little restaurant and shop, gorgeous flowers, and the sun hitting the warm yellow walls..

This place is just packed with stores to get custom made clothes - i had several guy friends get fully tailored suits for the cheapest possible prices, and they do an amazing job. I came completely unprepared in terms of design ideas to get things made, but i eventually wound up getting a summer dress custom made.

I think Hoi An casts a spell on every foreigner here to buy AS MUCH AS YOU CAN, i did a lot of very unnecessary shopping here including that dress, custom made sandals, 2 new baggy pants (my pair from thailand is getting worn out), and 2 gigantic lanterns to decorate my room, along with a gift or 2 for friends/family... And i may or may not have gone to a bakery every day to get a new kind of chocolate cake, muffin or mousse. What made me feel less guilty about that and all the shopping in general was my accommodation which cost an incredible $5 a night, beer which went as low as 3,000 Dong (that's 14 cents by the way, UM YEAH), and FREE POOL everywhere! Needless to say, we had a good time in Hoi An.

A few of Hoi An's sites, and captured moments...

Japanese bridge built in the 16th century for China trades, UNESCO site

Beautiful buddha faces carved into bamboo roots... watched the artist make them too

Non-covered lantern delivery!

Snuck this one of a rice paddy farmer

Faded primary colors?..sort of

Lantern stand at night. couldn't resist and bought 2

My Son

My 2nd day I spontaneously decided to go to My Son on a motorbike which cost me $10 for the day (it was 55km away). The ride there was CRAZY - i think my driver was going a solid 90 mph on his motorbike, i jumped off my seat 4 times, holding on for dear life on the railing at the back of the seat.

My Son are ancient ruins from the 4th century, also designated as a UNESCO world heritage site. It is the longest inhabited archaeological site in all of Southeast Asia (4-14th century). It contains so many monuments, but several were completely destroyed by US bombings. I had to be careful not to stray off of unmarked paths, because there is still a really large amount of unexploded ordnance from the Vietnam War. That gave it a cool thrill. I came early enough that i had the whole place to myself, completely devoid of tourists. And the mountains surrounding the area were gorgeous too, the tops getting lost in the clouds.

There were a few men working there to cut the plants off of the stones to maintain the site. The plants were taking over. This place is so ancient that you know if the workers turned their back on them for one second, My Son would quickly be reclaimed by nature....

I've also learned that local restaurants are the best. For the rest of my time in Hoi An i ate at an outdoor restaurant sitting on those little plastic stools with my friend Robin from Germany, enjoying a nice filling bowl of Cau Lao (noodles, coriander, thin pork, delicious broth) for $1. Local food is always going to be better!

My last full day in Hoi An was one of my most beautiful and fun days, up there with my times in Pai and at Halong Bay, the elephants in Laos, blue lagoon in vang vieng... This was a day all to myself, with the sun beaming and the breeze blowing, going at my own leisure in no rush and with no solid plan. It was so nice out I rented a bicycle for $1 and rode it 5km to Cua Dai beach. I actually loved that i was alone here. I also forgot how amazing it feels riding a bike. I felt more human and responsible and independent seeing as i've constantly been at the back of motorbikes, in buses and in taxis. Had delicious seafood for $3, did a little shopping, and actually sat down and chatted with a local for a long time at a cafe, he even bought me an iced coffee. It was great chatting away with him, and his english was very good. That night i also had the most amazing night playing pool with awesome friends i made at my hotel. There was a laptop where we could be the DJs of the entire bar, so my friend Robin and I were in charge of the bar's music for a while. Here as well was the first time i met someone from MANHATTAN, which was so crazy. I also for the first time met a traveler from France, and of all places she came from STRASBOURG, where most of my dad's family lives. Both on the same night. It was SO weird, honestly. What an awesome day!!

Nha Trang

The road to Nha Trang was, yet again, another rough one. i learned that the bus company i booked with is one of the dodgiest, which i guess i learned too late. This bus had a broken bathroom. Thankfully i made friends with 3 great people as we all bonded over the ridiculousness of the bus.
My first day in Nha Trang was so great, even though it drizzled all day - i went to an aquarium with 3 other people from my hostel which cost us an unbelievable 75 cents admission, with live tortoises and seals, and some beautifully colored reef fish, as well as a giant hall of preserved fish of all species in glass jars. definitely worth 75 cents... I'm also completely intrigued by all the natural patterns and colors on reef fish, definitely another inspiration for my art work...

Pretty amazing

Thought this was so cool...

Honestly, if Borat were a fish, wouldn't this be it???!?!? COME ON

Then we made it to Long Than Gallery, home of the most famous Vietnamese photographer, and checked out some of his award winning photos. I got to speak with him about photography and his cameras (he owns 11!). He was a nice guy. His photos truly captured the emotion of vietnam and its locals. I had an incredible Indian food dinner that night as well, and went out for a good time at the bar connected to our hostel. I beat a local at pool which i was insanely proud of myself for (they are so good!), and i danced until 3am that night. it was a great first day in nha trang, despite the rain, yet again. It is interesting that i just noticed some of my most memorable days have been during rainy days?

one of the bars

beat this local!! and he even wanted to bet 100,000 Dong for the game but i refused

The next day, Typhoon Pakhar hit Nha Trang pretty bad. Disappointed that this beach town could not be put to good use, i went out and booked my ticket to go to Mui Ne the following day, and got absolutely drenched outside. It was the craziest downpour i had ever been stuck in the middle of, to the point where the drops of rain almost hurt. I zipped back to the hostel only for a few seconds when a bunch of people from the hostel spontaneously decided to go bowling at one of the shopping malls in town, which could not have been a better idea. I decided to get back out in the rain and into a cab - I met some great people at this bowling alley.

Drenched by Typhoon Pakhar

Possibly my best bowling game ever, broke 100 at least...

Where I Am Now

Mui Ne. The Typhoon/tropical storm is still here, but things are much better today - I'm going to visit amazing red sand dunes (one of the things Mui Ne is known for) with 3 other people i met back in Hoi An. Hopefully the sun will continue peaking through. I am leaving for Saigon tomorrow i think. I am getting more and more excited for Cambodia, I'm feeling great things about it. I have the same hopeful feelings about Cambodia as i did for northern thailand, which has still been my favorite place/part of my whole trip...
I also can't believe it's already April. Can't believe how much has happened, how many friends i've made, how many goodbyes have been difficult, how many goodbyes have been so easy, and how many things i've done and learned and realized, and there's still 4 more weeks of unwritten adventures to add.