January 13th     Nha Trang, Vietnam    A beach town

I'm in Nha Trang for a few days, after flying here from Da Nang. This is a famous Vietnam beach town with all the normal things that a beach town has. You can swim, dive, snorkel and get a tan. The beachfront has a wide promenade, with parks and sculpture gardens. The sand is illuminated at night, so walking near and on the beach is popular.

My hotel is pretty much across the street from the entrance to the biggest city marketplace, the Dam Market. It is large and organized in concentric circles, so it's easy to walk around without getting lost.

There's a large seafood section, as this is mainly a fishing town, with a Western style beach resort thrown in.

All the big international hotels are represented here, and if they're not here already, they are being built. It's easy to spend big money on hotel rooms, the budget rooms are a bit harder to find.

Kiteboarding is popular because there's a lot of wind, usually all day.

In the winter (now) the beach is pretty dangerous with rough surf and poor conditions. Hardly anyone goes in the water. This looked like the local university soccer team out for a training run.

Bicycles are available for rent, or if you prefer someone else to pedal, you could go with this guy and his bike.

I rented a bike and went on an all day ride. There are a lot of the larger size basket boats here, a whole fleet of them.

This man was heating some tar-like liquid and applying it with a coconut husk brush.

There is an industrial port here, with freighters anchored offshore.

The big deal here is Vinpearl, a 5 star resort like Disneyland located on a nearby island. It has the longest over water cable car, hotel, waterpark, sandy calm beach and all the things a big resort can offer. I rode the bike down to the cable car staging area and was immediately asked to leave by a uniformed guard brandishing his day glo nightstick at me. I guess I looked like some sort of a threat, cycling up to take a photo.

I was sitting on a bench near the beach when a lady with a bamboo pole over her shoulder and a portable kitchen came by. She organized her set up and asked me if I wanted a lobster. Of course I did, but not the big one, just the smaller one. She grilled it, put on some fish oil and chile and served it up. Delicious!

Nha Trang is also noted for grilled pork.

I walked over to the train station to check it out and on the way spotted this fast food outlet. This store sells  steamed, filled dough pockets, which are called buns.

The train station has a beautiful facade, but the inside is just like all the other stations, run down and worn out. I met a guy who had hoped to go on the train to Saigon, but the train was cancelled today. He was bummed because he now had to scramble for a bus.

Many businesses close for the lunch hours, usually from 11:00/11:30 - 1:30. It's a common thing to see people napping outside during that time.

I really wanted to buy one of these helmets, but decided against it as I'd have to carry it around. Hmm, or I could wear it while traveling.

I'm off on the bus to Dalat tomorrow to meet up with Renata, formerly of Carpinteria, who now lives there. It should be fun to have an American guide. It's supposed to be cold there, as it is in the mountainous region.