June 6
2:44pm Vietnam time
Unfortunately, our train didn't hit any water buffalo last night and we were pretty much on time. Around 4:30am this really obnoxious loud music started playing and I wanted to kill someone. It sounded like Vietnamese BBC or something. I don't know. It sounded like the news channel music but Asian. Then a few minutes later there was pounding on the door. We weren't sure if that meant it was time to get up or not but once we heard people and saw shadows moving about outside the cabin we figured okay, it's probably time to go.
I started packing my stuff up. By that I really mean I stuffed my sleeping bag into into its casing and shoved it into my pack. I grabbed everything else and put it on the side of the bed and awkwardly stepped/slide off the bed. Hiked my bag on my back and proceeded out the cabin door. I did stop to make sure Mars was following me out but somehow she still was a little delayed coming off the train. She went the opposite way. It's now a little joke that Mars is always lost or the last one. We lost her in one of the temples at Angkor Wat and she takes more pictures than I do! Which is always nice to have someone around to stop and take pictures with. Plus I can always have her take one if me if I take one of her.
We got off the train and I completely ate my words. We had to walk across another train track to get to the platform. It was a lot safer than in India though because the train tracks were on the same level as the platform, not 6 or 7 feet below it.
We ha a bus waiting for us outside the station and we got taken to the hotel. While we were driving we drove past the beach and the sun was rising. Holy shit it was beautiful. The sandy white beach with the reds and oranges and yellows of the sunrise. I kind of want to get up and walk down to the beach tomorrow morning to see it again and take some pictures. I'm not sure if it will happen though because Matt has a pretty fun night planned for us it sounds like. Lots of drinking and partying. Tomorrow is a day we don't have to get up before sunrise and now I actually want to get up. Silly me.
The next day
Well, I didn't get up for sunrise. Ha. Sleep is so precious when I can get it I figured I should just sleep.
After we got to the hotel our rooms were actually ready which was really nice. So we got into our rooms at 5:30am and had til 8am. I took the time to sleep ha. I ha the room to myself here. There are 3 of us traveling on our own who signed up for double rooms so we are doing a room rotation. It was actually pretty nice to my own room. I didn't have to worry about taking up too much space or not wearing enough clothing.
We met downstairs at 8 and had breakfast next door to the hotel. It took a really long time for my tables food to come out. I got a banana and honey pancake but I wish I would have gotten an omelet and baguette instead because it fills me up more.
We regrouped at 10am and met Fung (im sure thats not how it is spelled but thats how it is pronounced) our local guide and chef for the day. She took us to bai dai beach for the day. It was about 17km away from Nha Trang. The views on the way out there were ridiculous. Pretty much like all the views in Vietnam. It was blue water with small islands rising from the water.
When we got to the beach, we were led to an area that was all set up with an awning, a long table and chairs, lounge chairs, and a small table to cook on. We paid $15 for transportation to and from the beach, as well as an all you can eat and drink day at the beach. It was great!
Fung started showing us how to cook oysters on the barbecue. She put a sauce on them that was made with oil and green onions. You watched the shell til it turned brown and that meant they were done. The seafood is obviously all really fresh so it tasted great. We also barbecued tofu, pork, and vegetables. We ate the pork in small pieces of baguette. The seasoning she put on the pork was so good but she said it is a secret recipe. She also dipped the baguette in the pork juice and seasoning and barbecued that and again, it tasted amazing.
Throughout the day we literally had a ton of food. We started with that. I tried a quail egg for the first time. It was basically a small colored speckled hard boiled egg. Then we had rice and chicken and noodles served at different points as well as freshly cut watermelon. Tasty.
We had rum (it was really sweet but tasted good with coke), beer, water and soft drinks. I spent a lot of time talking to Andy, Saskia, and Katrina about things. They're all impressed with the number of countries I have managed to go to. I got extra free shots later that evening for being a "legend traveler".
Most of the people from the UK had never jet skied before and I became the photographer for most people who went to do that. I didn't think it was worth paying the $20 for 20 minutes since we can jet ski whenever we want. I also spent time in the water with different people and it was really warm actually. Still was refreshing. It was a lot nicer than the beach in Cambodia. The sand was very white and fine. The water was really clear and obviously the view was beautiful.
I took some time to myself on the beach as well which was really nice. I took my towel and laid out. 25 minutes on each side. I just listened to music and didn't think about anything. It was so relaxing. I think I need to do that more often.
We were literally at the beach from 10:30am to 5pm. It was a long day. I was rooming alone for the evening which was nice because there was sand everywhere. Plastered to my boobs, up and down my legs, stuck to my sandals, literally everywhere. Since I was alone I could strip down and get the sand off without worrying about being proper. I showered right away. Still Hate the feeling of sand all over my body.
We met for drinks (and dinner if you were hungry) at 8pm. Matt took us to a bar where the happy hour was buy 2 cocktails, get the 3rd free. We also got a free shot. When we arrived a tiny Vietnamese girl greeted us. Even though she was tiny her personality was pretty big! She was screaming and going crazy about photos and drinks... And Ed. Leanne told her it was his birthday. We had titled the night "Ed's Night" so we were getting a bunch of girls at the clubs and bars to come up and hug him or dance with him. The other day I asked Ed if he's ever gotten this much attention and he said, "no, but I love it!" He's one of 3 guys on the trip now and in Cambodia he was the only guy.
So at the first bar I had 3 cocktails. I think my favorite was a strawberry coconut daiquiri. Then we had a free shot. I ordered a pizza... Which later I was glad I did because when we entered the 2nd bar I got 2 free shots. And another free shot. And it was ladies night so I got a free jagerbomb. I was like jeezus! Haha.
It was a fun night though. Lots of dancing again. I love that everyone gets into it, even the guys. At home that would rarely happen. I also think the drinks here have way less alcohol in them because I wasn't even drunk after all that. But I'm fine with that because getting drunk in a foreign land still freaks me out a bit.
I ended up walking back to the hotel with Katrina, Robby, Zara, Mars, and Saskia. Robby and Zara had seen a cool bar on the beach they wanted to go back to so we detoured to the beach. This night club was off the hook. It is also obviously the place to be. There was a $5 cover. But there were also reflection pools and statues. There were a million people on the dance floor and it was bumpin. We went around the back to the beach. Someone should do this at home. There were swings on the beach. There were also bean bag chairs around fire pits with little tables. It was really cool... Until we got kicked out almost immediately. Their security is great! Although maybe since we're white we just stick out like sore thumbs?
That was pretty much the end of the evening!
P.S. I accidentally deleted this post an had to rewrite it! Good thing for you because I think it's shorter and better this time :)
2:44pm Vietnam time
Unfortunately, our train didn't hit any water buffalo last night and we were pretty much on time. Around 4:30am this really obnoxious loud music started playing and I wanted to kill someone. It sounded like Vietnamese BBC or something. I don't know. It sounded like the news channel music but Asian. Then a few minutes later there was pounding on the door. We weren't sure if that meant it was time to get up or not but once we heard people and saw shadows moving about outside the cabin we figured okay, it's probably time to go.
I started packing my stuff up. By that I really mean I stuffed my sleeping bag into into its casing and shoved it into my pack. I grabbed everything else and put it on the side of the bed and awkwardly stepped/slide off the bed. Hiked my bag on my back and proceeded out the cabin door. I did stop to make sure Mars was following me out but somehow she still was a little delayed coming off the train. She went the opposite way. It's now a little joke that Mars is always lost or the last one. We lost her in one of the temples at Angkor Wat and she takes more pictures than I do! Which is always nice to have someone around to stop and take pictures with. Plus I can always have her take one if me if I take one of her.
We got off the train and I completely ate my words. We had to walk across another train track to get to the platform. It was a lot safer than in India though because the train tracks were on the same level as the platform, not 6 or 7 feet below it.
We ha a bus waiting for us outside the station and we got taken to the hotel. While we were driving we drove past the beach and the sun was rising. Holy shit it was beautiful. The sandy white beach with the reds and oranges and yellows of the sunrise. I kind of want to get up and walk down to the beach tomorrow morning to see it again and take some pictures. I'm not sure if it will happen though because Matt has a pretty fun night planned for us it sounds like. Lots of drinking and partying. Tomorrow is a day we don't have to get up before sunrise and now I actually want to get up. Silly me.
The next day
Well, I didn't get up for sunrise. Ha. Sleep is so precious when I can get it I figured I should just sleep.
After we got to the hotel our rooms were actually ready which was really nice. So we got into our rooms at 5:30am and had til 8am. I took the time to sleep ha. I ha the room to myself here. There are 3 of us traveling on our own who signed up for double rooms so we are doing a room rotation. It was actually pretty nice to my own room. I didn't have to worry about taking up too much space or not wearing enough clothing.
We met downstairs at 8 and had breakfast next door to the hotel. It took a really long time for my tables food to come out. I got a banana and honey pancake but I wish I would have gotten an omelet and baguette instead because it fills me up more.
We regrouped at 10am and met Fung (im sure thats not how it is spelled but thats how it is pronounced) our local guide and chef for the day. She took us to bai dai beach for the day. It was about 17km away from Nha Trang. The views on the way out there were ridiculous. Pretty much like all the views in Vietnam. It was blue water with small islands rising from the water.
When we got to the beach, we were led to an area that was all set up with an awning, a long table and chairs, lounge chairs, and a small table to cook on. We paid $15 for transportation to and from the beach, as well as an all you can eat and drink day at the beach. It was great!
Fung started showing us how to cook oysters on the barbecue. She put a sauce on them that was made with oil and green onions. You watched the shell til it turned brown and that meant they were done. The seafood is obviously all really fresh so it tasted great. We also barbecued tofu, pork, and vegetables. We ate the pork in small pieces of baguette. The seasoning she put on the pork was so good but she said it is a secret recipe. She also dipped the baguette in the pork juice and seasoning and barbecued that and again, it tasted amazing.
Throughout the day we literally had a ton of food. We started with that. I tried a quail egg for the first time. It was basically a small colored speckled hard boiled egg. Then we had rice and chicken and noodles served at different points as well as freshly cut watermelon. Tasty.
We had rum (it was really sweet but tasted good with coke), beer, water and soft drinks. I spent a lot of time talking to Andy, Saskia, and Katrina about things. They're all impressed with the number of countries I have managed to go to. I got extra free shots later that evening for being a "legend traveler".
Most of the people from the UK had never jet skied before and I became the photographer for most people who went to do that. I didn't think it was worth paying the $20 for 20 minutes since we can jet ski whenever we want. I also spent time in the water with different people and it was really warm actually. Still was refreshing. It was a lot nicer than the beach in Cambodia. The sand was very white and fine. The water was really clear and obviously the view was beautiful.
I took some time to myself on the beach as well which was really nice. I took my towel and laid out. 25 minutes on each side. I just listened to music and didn't think about anything. It was so relaxing. I think I need to do that more often.
We were literally at the beach from 10:30am to 5pm. It was a long day. I was rooming alone for the evening which was nice because there was sand everywhere. Plastered to my boobs, up and down my legs, stuck to my sandals, literally everywhere. Since I was alone I could strip down and get the sand off without worrying about being proper. I showered right away. Still Hate the feeling of sand all over my body.
We met for drinks (and dinner if you were hungry) at 8pm. Matt took us to a bar where the happy hour was buy 2 cocktails, get the 3rd free. We also got a free shot. When we arrived a tiny Vietnamese girl greeted us. Even though she was tiny her personality was pretty big! She was screaming and going crazy about photos and drinks... And Ed. Leanne told her it was his birthday. We had titled the night "Ed's Night" so we were getting a bunch of girls at the clubs and bars to come up and hug him or dance with him. The other day I asked Ed if he's ever gotten this much attention and he said, "no, but I love it!" He's one of 3 guys on the trip now and in Cambodia he was the only guy.
So at the first bar I had 3 cocktails. I think my favorite was a strawberry coconut daiquiri. Then we had a free shot. I ordered a pizza... Which later I was glad I did because when we entered the 2nd bar I got 2 free shots. And another free shot. And it was ladies night so I got a free jagerbomb. I was like jeezus! Haha.
It was a fun night though. Lots of dancing again. I love that everyone gets into it, even the guys. At home that would rarely happen. I also think the drinks here have way less alcohol in them because I wasn't even drunk after all that. But I'm fine with that because getting drunk in a foreign land still freaks me out a bit.
I ended up walking back to the hotel with Katrina, Robby, Zara, Mars, and Saskia. Robby and Zara had seen a cool bar on the beach they wanted to go back to so we detoured to the beach. This night club was off the hook. It is also obviously the place to be. There was a $5 cover. But there were also reflection pools and statues. There were a million people on the dance floor and it was bumpin. We went around the back to the beach. Someone should do this at home. There were swings on the beach. There were also bean bag chairs around fire pits with little tables. It was really cool... Until we got kicked out almost immediately. Their security is great! Although maybe since we're white we just stick out like sore thumbs?
That was pretty much the end of the evening!
P.S. I accidentally deleted this post an had to rewrite it! Good thing for you because I think it's shorter and better this time :)
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