Vietnam: From Dalat to Hue

From the time that I got my own hotel room in Dalat after being sick for about 5 or 6 days straight and sleeping through almost everything, I had two relatively peaceful days of healing and slowly but surely making my way out of my hotel room. Mama and Papa headed back home on the tour bus, and Claude and I stayed in Dalat another two days so I could actually experience what the place had to offer, with energy and awakeness.

We spent one of those days (April 15th or 16th? I don`t even know anymore) renting bicycles and riding them down and then up a beautiful country hill to the local Pagoda/Temple where a very important Monk lives, and explored the terrain all around, and had a nice lunch by the riverside. This was my first day really moving or getting any exercise in a week! It felt so good! And the views were lovely. When we came back into town we rode around for another 2 hours searching for this other Pagoda, which, once we found it around 6pm, turned out it was closed. That night we wandered around the Dalat night market, and I suddenly began to feel myself returning. It felt good!

I was eating again, too! Also, I had found a restaurant I knew I could trust- The Peace Restaurant, run by a sweet Vietnamese lady name Tu Anh, and she was very proud of her food (and also helped me find a Vietnamese SIM card for my new Android after breakfast one morning). I had dinner there one night with Claude, and had breakfast there the rest of my time in Dalat. Up until now, I had been eating strictly traditional Vietnamese food, or, in Thailand, strictly Thai food, but after being sick for so long, I realized I needed to just bite the bullet and eat what seemed appetizing. Omelets with bacon for breakfast it was!!! Hooray!

The next day we took a bus (a short ride this time) to Nha Trang, the first beach town that I had basically missed while sick, and spent two days there. We spent our first day riding our bicycles to an AWESOME Mud Bath and Hot Springs spa place, where we bathed in Mud (as suggested by title just now), as well as Mineral Baths, as well as Waterfalls, and getting massages. This whole afternoon of pampering- $12.50USD!! We finished the lovely afternoon with dinner on a floating restaurant, and then rode our bicycles back to town. I made arrangements for the next day to complete my Advanced Scuba Certification, which I did! Two dives in the morning completed with a lunch with a big group of Russians, who, when I told them I didn`t drink said 'Sorry- Russian Tradition!!' That night, the final dive- a night dive! I went with Giup, my dive instructor from the morning, and we walked into the ocean with all of our gear. There was a crowd of Vietnamese onlookers, and from their faces you would think we were flying to outer space! One person asked me where I was from, and then before I made my way toward the water, stated with awe and meekness "Ha-have a good trip!" referring to our journey into the deep dark ocean. It was kind of a neat feeling, really. I was terrified during our 1-hour night dive, I must confess, but I did it! We saw many night creatures, and Giup caught a little lobster to take home, as well as some other fish, with his bare hands!

That same night, Claude and I made our way to the train to move on to Danang, a city further north of where we were, and I had my first sleeper train experience since I have been in SE Asia, and, for that matter- ever! It was really cool! We shared a cabin with 4 other people, in 3 layers of bed platforms. Claude and I were on the 3rd level, and I fell asleep within the first 10 minutes around midnight, and didn`t wake up until 9am. We had another hour and a half or so after waking to just watch the scenery go by. I also had a breakfast of chicken and eggs and rice that was brought through on a cart by a Vietnamese pair.

I discovered by reading my guidebook on this morning that there was a very desireable tourist destination about 1 hour from Danang called Hoi An, and, decided that the following day I would rent a motorbike and do a 24-hour solo trip, since Claude had already been there and isn`t as into the touristy stuff. What can I say- I`m a tourist!

But first, we found a hotel on the river in Danang, and a place to rent a motorbike. When we found the bike that I would take the next day to Hoi An, we decided to take it first to China Beach, a beach just 20km or so from Danang, and halfway to Hoi An. We decided that I should drive it this time, since I was going to be on my own with the bike the next day. I ride a motorbike in Boulder and have for the past 2 years, but, it is automatic! This bike is manual, and also pretty cheapy cheap and not always the smoothest! Anyhow, we wound driving all the way to Hoi An afterall to scope out the scene there. Hoi An is an incredibly quiant and sweet tourist town, historic and charming in all of it`s buildings and decor! I couldn`t wait to come back the next day!

On our way back to Danang, we stopped at China Beach. It was SO big and BEAUTIFUL, it is an ocean scene that I haven`t seen in ages, the kind that is infinite and endless and it is difficult to tell where the horizon begins and the waves end. Vietnamese families and friends and boys were all over the beach as the sun was going down, until we were walking on the beach in the dark. The tide was going out, and the waves seemed to go on forever and we could still see people only knee deep what seeemed incredibly far away. Fisherman collecting their nets and cages, and boys playing soccer and volleyball- all in a foggy darkness that had some serious magic going on for it.

The next morning, I had a good breakfast and got on my way. Dropped Claude off at his desired destination, and I was off! I suddenly felt much more comfortable on the bike with no passenger, realizing that half of my problem was self-consciousness, and headed back to Hoi An. I got as far as China Beach and decided to stop there for a little visit. After a little walk, I got back to my motorbike and realized I couldn`t start it. The starter button didn`t work, and it is quite difficult to jump start a motorbike in flip-flops (though the Vietnamese do it here every day). I tried for 10 minutes straight using all of my energy to stand on that damn starter pedal, with no luck. Then, of course, a huge Australian guy on a motorbike with a tiny braid running down his back wearing a big black tank top and sunglasses (and pants, of course) shows up, and calmly says `'You`re having trouble getting your bike started.`" And by then though I had been on the verge of tears for inability to even get this bike started so early on in my trip, I started laughing and said with gratitude and relief "yes, yes! I am having trouble! I need help!" And with one easy step he had the bike started.

I thanked the heroic Australian and made my way back to the road. Another 10-20km or so, I made my way to the Marble Mountains, a great place to explore halfway between Danang and Hoi Anh. At one point I made a U-turn to get to the right entryway, and made this turn right on some sandy patches and skidded into a crash. I got up with as much dignity as I could muster, and let a Vietnamese onlooker help me to get my bike started again. I drove down of the side of the road to the entry of Marble Mountain, and decided I would have some food before I began my climb. Some nice Vietnamese ladies fed me, and I was on my way again, but first I left my bag with another Vietnamese lady store owner. Trust becomes relative in these types of places- a stranger store owner becomes a `safe` place to leave my overnight bag, simply because she says 'I keep your bag for you. When you come back- you buy something.' I`m not really sure if this is contractual, but either way I know I don`t want to carry two backpacks up a mountain for possibly hours at a time on a humid and hot day!

Marble Mountain is a treasure trove of sights and climbing. It is covered in Temples, Pagodas, Shrines, Caves, and views of the ocean. One could spend a whole day on this one mountain alone, and there were four! I spent two hours climbing up and down stairs, in and out of caves full of Buddhas, Shrines, and Bats (eek!) and finding endless ways to climb and explore. After a full two hours up there, I found some peace at one final Pagoda on a chair swing, and listened to some spiritual music that was blasting throughout the mountain area.

When I returned to the bottom of the mountain, the storeowner with my bag was waiting. The bag was nowhere in sight, but she had plenty of souvenirs to show me. We had one of my aforementioned awkward bargaining matches, where I managed to get a teeny tiny marble Buddha for Claude for a `fair' price, and was on my way to Hoi An again.

I pulled into Hoi An around 4pm, found a hotel to my liking, and immediately after dropping off my stuff rented a bicycle from across the street for $1 and rode it 25 minutes away to Cua Dai beach, and I am so happy I did! It was picturesque country scenery, and upon crossing a little bridge, I watched some teenaged boys jumping off the bridge and down into the river, as well as being in the midst of people foreign and local walking, cycling, motorbiking by, as the sun began its descent.

I pulled up to the beach a bit later, and saw another gorgeous ocean scene. There were people all over the beach, a healthy mix of local and tourist. There were mats spread all over the beach and a Vietnamese lady came and offered me a menu, pointing out their special of banana-leaf wrapped Ray. I promised her I would come back to eat after a swim. I identified a few Australian guys with a teenager on the beach and asked them to watch my bag so I could swim, and had the sweetest swim in a deliciously cold ocean. I chatted with the Aussies for a bit when I got out of the water, and then met my date of a delicious Vietnamese meal. It was served on a big platter with rice paper that I used to make my own spring rolls, to dip into what turned out to be the hottest sauce I have ever tasted. Luckily, I also got the largest coconut I have ever experienced to drink, and that helped.

Now it was dark, and there were silhouettes of locals eating on mats, running and playing, and sounds of men singing together. The people who made my dinner were very sweet and hospitable, and charged me a whopping 85,000 dong, which is about $4USD.

I got back on my bike and leisurely made my way back to town. I stopped in some bookstores and traded my somewhat lame Vietnam guidebook for a much better LonelyPlanet one, and found some new memoirs for my own reading. Stopped in some shoe stores to try and find better footwear than flipflops, and was suddenly entering a discussion about having shoes MADE for me for the next day. I backed out, realizing that while that would be cool, I am trying to have as little stuff as possible, and was not quite ready to design my own unique shoe at a moment`s notice and at a relatively high price.

I was hungry again- I must be totally better! I had planned to go to a restaurant recommended in the Lonely Planet book, so I did! It was called MangoMango and also another one is there in town called the Mango Rooms. MangoMango was on the riverside, and MAN was it good! I paid much more of what I might pay in the states, but, man, it was WORTH it!! I ordered a lemongrass ginger lime mango TEA that is brewed fresh, and then the incredibly hot Vietnamese waiter brought me an appetizer that I didn`t order- a vegetable tempura with mango sauce- on the house. It was DELICIOUS! Then I got a seared tuna with mango sauce as well, and finished the meal off with a dessert of banana flambee with rum, brown sugar, and coconut sauce. I haven`t eaten like this since before leaving for SE Asia, so, it was definitely my solo-trip treat.

Slept well last night, woke up this morning, took a bicycle ride back down to mangomango for a special breakfast treat of tuna tacos on sweet potato tortillas and special tea, took some last minute photos of the town, and checked out. Got back on the motorbike, and after a few classic Rachel-Leber `'detours' (the inevitable getting lost just because that is what I do) I came back to Danang to find Claude, and we got on a 3-hour uneventful bus ride to Hue, where we are now.

Tonight, I had dinner solo while Claude met up with his Vietnamese friend, and experienced Live Traditional Vietnamese Music while eating all sorts of traditional Vietnamese Food at the Tropical Restaurant in Hue. Tasty food, excellent music, and I came back to our hotel. I`m here for another day and night, with tomorrow to explore the city of Hue with Claude. I am leaving on a train the next day for Hanoi, where I hope to experience the famous Water Puppetry Theater, and also do a 1-week epic motorbike journey exploring the Northeast and Northwest of Vietnam, before I have to leave the country on May 6th. I will have spent a whole month in Vietnam! The next blog you read will be about part or all of this epic motorbike journey and Hanoi.