Nha Trang - Vietnam

June 22nd - 23rd, 2016

Nha Trang is a much more modern city than we have visited in Vietnam so far, with high rise buildings aplenty, wide streets and a vast number of package holiday tourists here for the stunning beach and cheap booze. We arrived on the overnight bus once more and were able to get coffee, book our onward ticket, check in and shower all before being picked up at 8.30am for a tour I had booked online the night before. This area is known not only for its 6km yellow sand beach, but also for its many offshore islands which have excellent coral reef systems making this one of the top diving/snorkelling destinations in Vietnam. I had booked us on a snorkelling trip and we were thrilled that it actually lived up to expectations as there are so many reports of sub standard tours and scams around. We were taken on a boat with a dozen or so other people to Hon Mieu, or 'Moon' Island and proceeded to jump in to the cool waters with our snorkel and fins for an hours exploration. The reef was quite deep here so although we saw many fish, the colours of the coral weren't very apparent, some people diving may have had more luck as obviously they were able to get much closer, but still we were pleased with our first site. Once back on board, there was time for a quick drink of water and 15 minutes relaxing while we motored on to our next site, a spot we had passed on the way that had several other tour boats in but was now mercifully ours alone! The reef here being somewhat shallower we were able to get a much better idea of the vibrancy of the coral and of course, much closer to the multitude of colourful fish! By this point I had become somewhat chilly, the water being much cooler than in Halong Bay, as well as my paranoia about jellyfish which had already 'come to say hello' by stinging me on the arm and so we didn't stay in quite as long as before. Once back on the boat we were all ushered up onto the roof deck out of the way whilst the crew prepared lunch. When we were called down again it was to a fabulous array of dishes all laid out on a crisp white table cloth covering the recently converted benches that formed a huge central table along the middle of the boat. Sitting side by side with the rest of the passengers we tucked in to what was some really tasty food until we couldn't possibly eat any more. Another sojourn up on the roof deck whilst lunch went down and on to our final snorkelling spot, just around the corner! Our final site was shallower still and included sandy patches where it got close to the island, giving a slightly different look and a few different fish to pursue. Tired and all 'snorkelled out' we returned our equipment and put on our life vests as we did in Halong Bay and enjoyed relaxing whilst bobbing around in the water for a while whilst the others finished up snorkelling. Our ride back to the mainland was accompanied by plates of delicious fruits to help ourselves to, watermelon, pineapple and dragon fruit, which went down a treat after all that time in the water.

Once back at our hotel we lazed around for a while before heading out to walk along the beach in time for sunset, this was not to be however as no sooner had we placed our feet on the sand than the heavens opened in a fierce torrential storm that lasted for most of the night! After diving for cover and watching the roads quickly become flooded and almost impassable, we were amazed at the traffic that continued to flow, especially the scooters and small bikes where the water was over the riders ankles in some places! Our eventual decision to brave the weather that didn't look like stopping any time soon was brought on by hunger and we waded knee deep along the streets to get back to our hotel where we quickly rinsed off the filthy flood waters before going around the corner to a little cafe for dinner.

In the morning before catching the bus on to Saigon or Ho Chi Minh City as it's now known, we went to a little corner coffee shop we had visited the previous day and were once again treated to a delicious Vietnamese coffee made with a cute little filter that sits atop your glass. After this and buying a tasty egg and salad baguette for later we walked to catch the bus, amazed and thankful that the waters from the night before had all but disappeared. Eventually, after waiting for what seemed like an age we were able to get on our 'sleeper' bus which we've been using to get around...it has beds instead of seats, 2 layers and is actually a really comfortable way to travel long distance, much better than traditional coaches where you can just put your seat back but always worry you're squashing the person behind (or get squashed!) and that have no support for your back! These buses come with pillows, blankets, aircon and even a toilet on board, not that you want to use it unless you have to though. So our 10 hour (which took 11) journey began and after reading a whole book we finally arrived in Saigon that evening, just in time to grab some food and a quick shower before heading out to the first night's party of the Vietnam International Latin Fiesta!!