On Sunday evening we packed our bags and excitedly planned our route out of the city. We woke up at a reasonable hour on Monday (we decided to let the crazy morning traffic run its course without us in it) and set off for Vung Tau. It's about a 2 - 2.5 hour bike ride from HCMC. So off we set, looking very touristy. Me driving the scooter, and Mel clinging on for dear life while carrying our backpack on her back. We were SO ready for an adventure!
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| 2 little birdies ready for an adventure |
Our first, exciting stop was the Cat Lai Ferry, where we boarded and crossed the Nha Be River - along with plenty of other motorists on scooters, in cars and even minivans. It is a quick trip across the busy water way, but exciting for first-timers all the same. It cost a whopping R2 for both of us. Once on the other side, it was back on track, and back into the crazy stream of swerving scud-missiles.
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| The holding cell before we were allowed onto the ferry |
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| Driving onto the ferry |
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| Waiting to get off the ferry |
We were mentally prepared for an almost unbearably treacherous drive, because we had been thoroughly warned by many people who have done the trip before themselves. To be honest, as we drove out of the (seemingly never-ending) city and, as the landscape began to open up and become a little more rural, the fellow motorists began to whittle down, and become more manageable.
As we drove, we came across something which has almost become foreign to us - a plantation. It wasn't even a big plantation, but it was certainly a welcome respite for these two city-crazed, country birdies. In the plantation were some cows, and we also saw some goats ploughing down any and all reachable vegetation in the area. (For you South Africans reading - it felt just like driving through Zululand or the Transkei.)
There were hammock cafes scattered along the route, and they seemed to be fairly popular. You may be wondering what a hammock cafe is, or you may have made the pretty logical, pretty accurate guess. Yup, they are places where people stop off for a little siesta in the shade of some trees (and sometimes a tarpaulin), on a hammock, with only the sound of rustling leaves, chirping birds and intermittent waves of massive trucks blasting their fog-horn hooters at anything that is remotely in their way. I know what you're thinking - bliss!
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| A hammock cafe |
As we continued along the appalling road, with trucks, busses and cars passing us at ridiculously close quarters, the (mildly) open landscape began to get cluttered with people, and buildings, and more scooters, and cars, and dogs and all sorts of other obstacles which helped to make it an eventful journey. My parents always used to tell us that the holiday starts as soon as you leave the house, and we should enjoy the trip as much as the destination. In this case, that ideology could NEVER be applied!
The rest of the trip was more of the same - near misses and one long, built up stretch of road, running the remaining (roughly) 80-100km down to Vung Tau. In and around Ho Chi Minh City, there are virtually no hills. The landscape is very flat, despite it being an inland city. This remained true for most of our trip down towards the coast. Until we got about 30km out of Vung Tau, when suddenly we came across our very first sightings of hills in Vietnam.
Vung Tau is a very cool city. It has a beautiful seaside road, which takes you along the port, around the peninsula and along the swimming bay. The water is a little gross and polluted, so we didn't brave a swim in the sea. When we arrived in the city, we drove along this beautiful, seaside road looking for a reasonably priced hotel to stay in. It was incredibly hot, and we were feeling a little hungry, so we decided to stop off at one of the many restaurants overlooking the beautiful, ocean view. We chose a friendly looking sports pub called Lucy's, where we each had a burger and a coke. Here we saw a group of older men (who have clearly been expats in this coastal city for too long) enjoying some lunch-time drinks and a game of darts. I say that they have been there too long, because they have begun resembling one of those salty sea dogs that are commonly referred to as pirates.
After lunch we continued our search for a hotel, which thankfully didn't take too long. We needed a little bit of a break from the scorching heat, and had seen a stunning pool at one of the hotels that we had queried at. So I gave them a call and asked if we could use their pool even though we were not staying at their hotel. The lady said that it would be no problem, but it would cost us 50,000 Dong each - a price which we were more than willing to pay!
Off we went to the pool, sun-creamed up and towels in our bag. We drove through the hotels gate, past their increasingly inviting pool and up to the reception with confidence. Mel hopped off the bike and went in to pay. The man behind the counter gave her a very puzzled look and asked, "Use the pool?" Mel confirmed that he had heard correctly, and offered him the money. Again he looked confused and radioed for back-up. Another man pulled up in a golf cart and asked us if we wanted to use the pool. Again we confirmed that they were in fact comprehending our apparently confusing request. The man then asked us to follow him, jumped into his golf cart and drove down to the pool. We followed him there and, once again, offered him our money. He laughed at us and pointed us towards the pool. We were clearly going to get to enjoy this awesome setting for free - score!
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| Cheers! |
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| Fresh pineapple juice... mmmmmm |
We spent the afternoon by the pool side, swimming, napping in the shade and drinking fresh pineapple juice. When the sun started dipping lower in the sky, we dragged ourselves away from our afternoon oasis, and back to our hotel. We asked the receptionist for recommendations of places to eat dinner, and were told that we absolutely had to try a seafood place down the road.
By the amount of vehicles and scooters outside the restaurant, it seemed to be quite a popular place. The ordering is quite different to what we are used to, and the portions are made for sharing. So the idea is that you order one or two dishes and some rice, and everybody has a bit of everything. Mel was not feeling 100%, so when the dishes did arrive, Ross was in for a lot of food. We had ordered a mixed seafood and rice dish, and a seared, sweet and sour fish steak. The food was delicious!
After dinner we took a bit of a drive around to see Vung Tau by night. Its a really beautiful, coastal city and the night lights reflect beautifully off the bay. Many of the locals head down to the waterfront at night, to enjoy the view, drink some beers, let their kids run around, or to light up a karaoke bar. Whatever each individual's reasoning for being there is, they all contribute to the electric atmosphere of the city nights.
That evening we went and sat along the waterfront. There was a thunder storm illuminating the sky in short bursts behind the fishing boats to our left, and the colourful hill across the bay from us. There were intermittent flashes of lightning which created an almost fairytale-type picture before us. We patiently tried to capture this beautiful scene on our camera, but couldn't quite do it justice. As the evening grew darker, more people crowded the sidewalks to enjoy the city lights and sounds. They weren't the only beings coming out of all sorts of crevasses though. As we sat on the wall separating the road from the bay, our feet dangled just centimetres above scores of rats coming out to scavenge all the food dropped by the thousands of people enjoying the atmosphere. Local ladies walked the sidewalks, selling cool drinks, beers, coffee and various traditional snacks.
After a while we went back to our hotel to get a good night's sleep. The next day would hold another long bike ride to another popular coastal town called Mui Ne.
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| Mel might have forgotten to put sunscreen on her knees. The burn lines are still there! |
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