One thing we all enjoyed was the shopping in Hoi An. It is a gorgeous little town with attractive narrow streets which lead down to the river. The streets are full of cafes, restaurants and most importantly, shops making custom made clothes and shoes. Apparently there are over 200 tailors shops crammed into the small town making unbelievably cheap suits, dresses and anything else you may desire. You would think all these shops would spoil the look of the place but somehow they seem to blend in with the architecture.

We spent a whole afternoon looking around the shops and I think everyone ended up buying something. Dima and Verbal bought themselves a fake designer watch each. They spent at least an hour and a half deciding which style and colour they wanted. The woman in the shop had to keep leaving to get different watches from another shop to meet their demands. By the end of it she was so annoyed with them that she ended up smashing the glass cabinet as she slammed the door shut!

Dima has asked me to comment on how cheap the beer is in Vietnam. We found a place in Hoi An down near the river that sold beer for 3000 Dong, that is 10 English pence. They may as well give it away for free! I don’t really like beer but it was actually really nice.

There are things to do other than shop and drink cheap beer in Hoi An. On the second day we booked a trip to My Son which are remains of the ancient Cham empire and a Unesco World Heritage site. They date back to the 4th Century and are pretty impressive.

They would be even more impressive if the Americans hadn’t bombed them during the war. You can still see the evidence of this and there are several large bomb holes around the site, which now just look like grassy craters. We got a boat back to Hoi An and then cycled to the nearby beach in the afternoon. It had been a scorching hot day so it was nice to cool off in the sea and then drink beers on the beach as the sun went down.

We found a brilliant little restaurant in Hoi An and we ended up eating there all three nights because it was so good. Foolishly we never made a note of the name. The place itself was nothing to look at, and when we asked where the toilet was we were just directed to the field at the back of the kitchen. That didn’t matter because the food was amazing, the staff were really friendly and welcoming and it was full of locals which is always a good sign. They found out that it was coming up to my birthday and told us to come back on the 16th and they would make me a cake.

We went along and sure enough there was a cake and some flowers waiting for me. Everyone in the restaurant sang happy birthday to me. It was quite painful to listen to but it’s the thought that counts! I had a great birthday night out with everyone but sadly we had to say goodbye to them all over the next two days and we were back to travelling solo again.

Next stop for us was Mui Ne which is on the coast. We were looking forward to relaxing on the beach for a few days before moving on to the busy and noisy Ho Chi Minh City. The main beach in town has lots of posh resorts and is full of Russian tourists. We decided to hire a scooter and escape the crowds so took off to find a more secluded beach. It didn’t take long to find an empty stretch of sand so we parked up and went for a swim. Dima decided to take it one step further and take advantage of an empty beach in the middle of the day by going skinny dipping! He was like an excited child running into the sea, it was very funny to watch. We do have photographic evidence but I won’t subject you to Dima’s skinny white ass!

After the beach we went to find the sand dunes which are one of the ‘sights’ in Mui Ne. As you arrive, loads of kids surround you trying to sell plastic sheets to slide down the dunes on. The dunes really didn’t look big enough for this so we decided not to bother. The kids are clever though and follow you as you walk saying they will only leave you alone if you rent a sheet from them. We didn’t mind the company so we let them come along! We asked one of them to show us how he slides down the dunes. He set off but only got about two meters before stopping so we weren’t overly impressed and knew we had made the right decision. As we walked back the kids started to get annoyed and I’m pretty sure they were shouting obscenities at us in Vietnamese!

Our next and final stop in Vietnam was the fabulous Ho Chi Minh City, although most of the locals still called it Saigon. It was one of those cities that you instantly know you are going to like. It has a similar feel to Hanoi but on a much larger and grander scale. The traffic is crazy. HCMC has a population of around 10 million and has over 5 million bikes whizzing around. We decided against hiring a scooter because it is likely we would have been killed! The first day we did a walking tour of the city but it started to rain so we jumped into a couple of cyclos to take us around and then back to our hostel. The drivers are fearless and think nothing of positioning you directly in front of a stream of oncoming traffic or weaving in and out of the bikes and cars as they cycle along. You can’t help but feel slightly exposed and vulnerable when travelling amongst the sea of traffic. Obviously they know what they are doing and we made it back alive. It was well worth doing and a great way to see the city.

We booked a few trips to explore the surrounding area. The first one was to the Cu Chi Tunnels which were created and used by the Viet Cong during the war. It was unbelievable to see how small the tunnels were and even more amazing that the soldiers spent days, weeks and even months underground in such confined spaces. We were able to go down into a section of the tunnels to experience it for ourselves.

They were tiny and we only managed to crawl a few meters before escaping out of the first exit. Apparently the tunnels have actually been made bigger for tourists so I can’t even imagine what it must have been like in reality. We were also shown some of the traps used by the Viet Cong. They were pretty brutal and would have caused some painful injuries. There is also a shooting range at the tunnels, where you can shoot various guns from the war. Dima shot two rounds of an AK47 and loved it. After the tunnels we stopped off at the War Remnants Museum which was both fascinating and disturbing. My knowledge of the Vietnam War (or the American War as they call it in Vietnam) is limited, but having seen the information and pictures at the museum I just cannot comprehend how and why the war ever started.

Our Clothes still on for now!next trip was to the Mekong Delta which basically involved getting on and off various shapes and sizes of boat all day! It wasn’t the best tour and it was a bit rushed because we only had one day but it was nice to get out of the city and see the networks of rivers, canals and streams that make up the region. We also got to try the snake wine that we keep seeing everywhere. It looks disgusting in the glass jar with all the dead snakes coiled up but it actually tasted ok. I don’t think I will be rushing out and buying some but it was good to try.

Christmas was quickly approaching and we had both agreed we didn’t want to be travelling on Christmas day so we booked our bus to Cambodia for the 24th and said a sad farewell to Vietnam. We both loved Vietnam and could easily have stayed longer. It is such a fascinating place to visit and the people both in the north and south are unbelievably friendly and accommodating. The food is amazing, the beer is stupidly cheap and the accommodation is really good value for money. Definitely one of my favourite places so far.

Many resorts in Mui Ne such as Terra Cotta, Seahorse and Victoria are decorated with coconut palms. The rustles of coconut leaves swaying in the wind in harmony with the sound of breaking waves seem to ease the stress of working life

In addition to swimming and playing in the waves, the seaside is a favorite place for camping under the shade of coconut trees. Tourist will be engulfed in pleasure when lying on the hammock, sunbathing in the airy atmosphere and enjoying the gusts of sea wind.

A visit to the seaside region of Ham Tien also takes sightseers to a land of coconuts. In the combination of the yellow or white of the sand and the turquoise of the sea, the green of coconut rows in the immense sky highlights the natural landscape in a tranquil atmosphere.

The coconut fruit is not only served as a healthy soft drink but is also processed into cake, candy and oil, which are local specialties often purchased by tourists as gifts for their relatives.

Vietnam is internationally acknowledged for its diverse seafood, with squid being one of the most popular items on many menus. Phan Thiet City has built its image on a particular squid dish known as sun-dried squid, which has attracted many chefs and revelers to the city.

Muc mot nangis fresh squid that has been dried in the sun for one day. The squid, grilled with chilies and lemon and served in fish sauce, is available anywhere in the city but one of the best places to try this tasty specialty is Cay Bang Restaurant.

Another local favorite is steamed bo hom fish, nicknamed thiet giap bien (sea armour) because of its square shape and the patterns on its body. It is sweet, juicy and nutritious, especially when combined with the flavors of aromatic herbs, salty fish sauce and sweet Phu Long griddle cake. Revelers can enjoy bo hom at many of the eateries on Pham Van Dong St along Ca Ty River.

While steamed bo hom fish is typically a low-priced dish, steamed mu fish, mixed with fragrant vegetables and fish sauce prepared with lemon, sugar, garlic and chilies, is more expensive and provides high nutrition. Toan Duong Restaurant near Doi Duong Beach and Sao Bien Restaurant are two of the more popular venues for this dish.

In addition to distinctive seafood Phan Thiet is also known for recipes made with dong. The dong is a reptile shaped like a lizard found in and around the sand dunes. It is served grilled, steamed, fried or minced with citronella and chilly at seafood restaurants around Hon Rom Resort. Ca Ty Restaurant is famous for its grilled dong.

October 24, 1995 is considered the birth of tourism in Phan Thiet, when thousands rushed to Mui Ne to see the total solar eclipse. The event was commemorated on the same day in 2005 as the tenth anniversary of tourism for the province.

At present, Phan Thiet sees more and more foreign faces, those visiting on a day trip from Mui Ne or traveling through on an Open Tour minibus. For the Vietnamese tourist, Phan Thiet is a good compromise, they don’t have to choose between expensive resorts and low-rent guest houses like in Mui Ne. Good, reasonably-priced seafood restaurants are just as fine as in Mui Ne. Domestic package tours tend to show up in Phan Thiet in force as well, no doubt cutting sweet deals with local hotels and taking advantage of the proximity to Mui Ne. In terms of the cost of accommodation, the variety of food and things to do, I have to recommend Phan Thiet as the better destination. But there are things to do and see in Mui Ne proper that make it worth a day trip, and a night or two here isn’t a bad idea if you have the time and budget for it.

Traveling through the city, Phan Thiet has two parts. The older part of town and the eastern bank have more recent development, the beach and most of the accommodations. There are three bridges and the Phan Thiet water tower, which is considered the symbol of the city. The middle bridge leads to a promenade on the west bank and the centre of the old town. The southern-most bridge is just north of the fish market on the west bank. The beachfront is to the southeast of the city, where Le Loi St. runs along the water.

I imagine most visitors will opt to stay on or close to the beach. You won’t save much money on accommodation inland, though it does make it easier to find services and a wider variety of places to eat within easy walking distance. After you’ve exhausted the seafood places and cafes on the beachfront, the rest of Phan Thiet is a kilometer or so away.

I would recommend Phan Thiet to anyone visiting Vietnam. It is a “Hidden Charm”

Then, on the way to breakfast, I see them—the motorcycles and their attendant sidecars, all neatly lined up in front of the hotel—and my ambivalence melts away. No one in his or her right mind could resist the sheer romance of a couple hundred kilometers by sidecar from this tropical perch on the South China Sea to the mountain retreat of Dalat. I’m glad to see that my driver, Gilles Poggi, sports a krama, that distinctive, all-purpose Cambodian scarf. I want one too. And I’m hoping we can line up behind our respective machines and, at the sound of a gun, begin the journey rally-style.

The reality proves more staid. With the sun now peeking over the hotel façade, we slather on the sunscreen, affix our sunglasses, helmets, and hats, and wait for the last of our group to return from the bathroom. Hardly the stuff of Paris to Dakar, though our three-wheelers do turn over, en masse, with a very satisfying rumble, and we pull out in precise formation, one after another, like starlets from one of those 1930s-era musical follies diving into a pool.

Poggi, a Corsican who wears his krama with all the Gallic élan one might expect, is owner and general manager of the posh Princess d’Annam Resort & Spa, located some twenty minutes south of Phan Thiet in Ke Ga. These sidecars and their motorized escorts are his personal obsession, and he leads these trips—along with his friends in Team Camel, their touring club—as a one-of-a-kind amenity for guests seeking 360-degree tours of the south Vietnamese countryside.

“We started adventuring with sidecars more than ten years ago, in Hanoi,” Poggi shouts as we travel up the coast, his voice perfectly audible above the four-stroke din. “I had two friends who had hooked up with these sidecars. One of them invited me to go to Sapa, and I’ve been riding ever since.”

Poggi slows down and stops his narrative for the moment to avoid a cavernous pothole. We’ve turned away from the water now, the roads becoming narrower and dodgier with every passing kilometer. My sidecar, of course, is suspended between three points of a triangle: the two wheels of the motorcycle, to my left, and a third wheel to my right. When Poggi dodges a pothole, my carriage often passes directly over the road blemish. The passenger sees it coming and instinctively braces for a jolt that for some reason never comes. This is a fine metaphor for sidecar travel—all in all, the experience is far more comfortable than one might expect.

“Later, when we moved to Phan Thiet, I decided to get one for myself,” Poggi continues. “I met a policeman who was selling one, and when I asked him how much, he quoted me a price—by kilo! So I bought one, for maybe $200. Later, I realized we should have another one, so we could go out as a group. I bought a second, and the policeman told me, ‘I’ll do you a favor. You buy the second and I’ll give you a third for free.’ Today, we have eleven.”

The ride of choice for Team Camel is the 650cc Ural M-72, a Russian bike based on the vaunted BMW R71, a German army staple during World War II and the very bike Steve McQueen made famous jumping barbed-wire fencing in The Great Escape. Urals became prevalent in Vietnam only after 1975, and they remain practical, Poggi says, because the Russians did a good job simplifying the design, parts are readily available, and Vietnamese mechanics know their way around them. They’ve been fixing them for thirty years, after all.

In our party there are two quite spiffy sidecars bearing the Princess d’Annam emblem; these are the hotel’s primary touring vehicles. The others are decorated more flamboyantly, according to the whims of individual club members. Remi Faubel, the resort’s celebrated chef, drives a canary yellow Ural featuring the snarling countenance of a large cat-like creature. Poggi and I ride a black model named for the Ramones. It’s an odd-but-pleasing juxtaposition, wending my way through a Vietnamese tableau with a Corsican guide, seated in a Russian-made BMW knock-off commemorating the greasers who gave us Sheena is a Punk Rocker.

Having passed through a narrow shelf of level ground set aside for rice paddies, we soon set off into the highlands. We are on the back roads where villages are fewer and farther between. The Urals are working hard now, taking on steep inclines and those potholes too large to straddle. The higher we go into the mountains, the less tropical the landscape becomes. But never is it anything less than lush: ten shades of deep green set against still darker greens.

On a treeless plateau set high above a reservoir of sparkling blue-green, we stop for lunch which, thanks to Faubel, qualifies as perhaps the most elegant picnic ever devised by man. Holding a glass of Sauvignon Blanc, Poggi defends his precious Urals from the half-serious charge that they are, well, rather ungainly in appearance. “The sidecar is not a very noble piece of transportation, it’s true. No matter how we package it. But there is nobility in riding a sidecar, there is nobility in experiencing the highlands in this way, there is nobility in enjoying a lunch of foie gras and perhaps a glass of white wine.”

There’s no arguing this.

After lunch we climb ever higher into the highlands on narrow roads of the switchback variety, each one flanked by precipitous drop-offs lurking just beyond the guardrails—when there are guardrails. It’s something of a shock to see that Vietnam can be so legitimately mountainous. Two hours from Dalat we zig-zag our way up through a broad mountain pass and Poggi points to a hillside dotted with cultivated vegetation: “Café,” he shouts, lifting an imaginary demitasse to his lips. It was the first of many plantations we would pass in the next half hour.

As we draw closer to our destination, the roads get better and the population less sparse. For several hours, we had passed only through dusty, remote villages where locals met our odd caravan first with surprise, then with smiles and waves. In these more populous areas, our standing as curiosities is more modest. Dalat is a resort mecca that attracts all kinds of tourists, foreign and domestic. A light rain begins to fall. We draw less and less attention as pedestrians veil themselves and we find our place amid the wider flow of traffic.

Though we have been climbing steadily since mid-morning, the final stretch of road is the steepest yet. Halfway up this series of switchbacks, the vegetation turns again; there are pine trees at the roadside now, and the air sports a startling crispness as we cruise into Dalat. The French influence in Vietnam is hard to miss, even fifty years and three wars removed. But because the French founded Dalat, as opposed to merely occupying it, the city has retained more of its Gallic character than just about any place in Vietnam. Our ultimate destination, the Sofitel Dalat Palace hotel, which opened in 1922 and has been painstakingly restored, evokes a level of French colonial grandeur and indolence unmatched by anything in the country.

Bedecked in shorts and flip-flops, I surely looked a fright as I hoist my dust-covered frame from the Sheena Express. Had I alighted in this state from a mere automobile, I might feel out of place. As it is, I ascend the ornate, white marble steps in the perfect historical idiom, regretting only that I have failed to pack a tuxedo for the evening ahead.

FACT FILE:

Novotel Ocean Dunes & Resort
1 Ton Duc Thang St.
Phan Thiet City
(84-62) 822-393

Princess d’Annam Resort & Spa
Ke Ga Bay
Binh Thuan Province
(84-8) 840-9646

http://www.princessannam.com/

(Source: thingsasian)

Mui Ne is a coastal resort town in the Binh Thuan Province of southeastern Vietnam, located on an arm of East Sea to the South. Mui Ne Beach is a popular tropical beach and very popular for kitesurfing and windsurfing.

From Ho Chi Minh City, taking National Highway No.1A for 198 km to Phan Thiet City and then taking Route 706 for another 22km, tourists will reach Mui Ne Beach. Its features are immense sand dunes meandering through kilometers of red, yellow and white, shady roads under coconut trees, beautiful rows of palm trees and cliffs battered by the waves of the sea.

The beach is shallow and sloped, the water is clean and blue and the sun rarely hides behind clouds. The typical scenery of Mui Ne lies in the moving lines of golden sand caused by the wind and when they are seen from afar they look like moving waves. The scenery looks more fascinating at dawn, when young Cham girls in green dresses go to work. That’s why no photographer fails to visit this area.

Mui Ne is an ideal place for rest and relaxation. Mui Ne has known as “resort capital” of Vietnam with many resorts along the seacoast. Tourists can swim in the blue water of the sea, slip on the sand dunes, relax in swimming pool of resorts or kiteboard and windsurf. The beach has the best conditions for water sports because it has strongest and most consistent cross-onshore winds in Asia and the lowest rainfall in Vietnam. There are currently about a dozen kiteboarding centers in Mui Ne and the competition is fierce. In addition, tourists can go shopping at the Mui Ne Market for types of fresh sea-food and local specialties.

General information:

Area: 206 sq. km.
Population: 211,000 habitants (2007)
Administrative divisions:
- Ward: Mui Ne, Ham Tien, Phu Hai, Xuan An, Phu Tai, Phu Thuy, Phu Trinh, Thanh Hai, Binh Hung, Hung Long, Duc Nghia, Duc Thang, Lac Dao, Duc Long.
- Commune: Thien Nghiep, Phong Nam, Tien Loi, Tien Thanh.
Ethnic groups: Viet (Kinh), Cham, Hoa…

Location:

Phan Thiet is the provincial capital of Binh Thuan Province. Situated in the South-Central coastal, Phan Thiet is an important junction of national highway No.1A connecting Ho Chi Minh City, national highway No.55 to Vung Tau, and national highway No.28 to the Central Highland. It borders with Ninh Thuan to the North, Lam Dong to the Northwest, Dong Nai to the Southwest, Ba Ria – Vung Tau to the south and the East Sea to the East. It is one of the most attractive tourism cities in Vietnam.

Weather and climate:

Phan Thiet is situated in a tropical zone with perfect weather for sea holidays, lots of wind and sunlight year-round, rare of storm, without hoarfrost, annual temperature from 25oC to 27oC. Rainy season lasts from May to October and dry season is from November to April. Average yearly rainfall is 1,328mm. Relative humidity is 80%. Total hours of sunlight per year are 2,784 hours.

Getting to Phan Thiet:

There is no airport and flight to Phan Thiet but Thong Nhat express train and waterways also cross the city.

Many important national highways cross Phan Thiet and link it to other provinces and cities. Phan Thiet is about 250 km from Nha Trang, 220 km from Da Lat and 200 km from Ho Chi Minh City. So travel by bus in to and around Phan Thiet is very easily and conveniently.

Tourism:

With many potentials in natural and human resources, Phan Thiet has recently had a fast development in tourism industry and services with increasingly sea tourism and a number of investment projects concentrating in Phan Thiet, Ham Tien, Hon Rom, Long Son area, Suoi Nuoc, Mui Ne and Tien Thanh.

Lying on the coastal line of Southern Center of Vietnam, Phan Thiet now offers many beautiful tropical beaches with resorts, hotels, restaurants, bars, and souvenir shops, services of internet, moto, bicycle rubber dinghy, surfboard, and buoy for hide.

Some major tourist attractions of Phan Thiet include Phan Thiet Water Tower (symbol of city), Mui Ne beach, Hon Rom beach, Doi Duong beach, Mui Ne white sand dunes where you can kiteboarding and windsurfing, Po Sha Nu Tower- ancient temple of the Champa Kingdom, Duc Thanh School, Van Thuy Tu Temple, Ke Ga Lighthouse- an unique lighthouse setting on the rocky island and Ta Cu pagoda and mountain

Phan Thiet also hosts many festivals suach as Ka Te Festival of Cham people, Nghinh Ong (whale worship) Festival of Hoa people, traditional boat (dragon boat) racing festival of Kinh people on Ca Ty River, or enjoy “hat boi”- a classical dramas performances or “hat ba trao” -  singing local traditional folk songs.

Besides relaxing on the beach, taking part in sporting activities, other must do is to sightseeing by xich lo, try fresh local seafood like “ca mu”, “ca bo”, “dong”, “banh re”, “banh can”, “muc mot nang”.. which is only described as an unique cuisine of Phan Thiet.

About Mui Ne:

Mui Ne has long been considered the “Hawaii” of Vietnam. Its features are immense sand dunes meandering through kilometers of red, yellow and white, shady roads under coconut trees, beautiful rows of palm trees and cliffs battered by the waves of the sea. The beach is shallow and sloped, the water is clean and blue and the sun rarely hides behind clouds. The typical scenery of Mui Ne lies in the moving lines of golden sand caused by the wind and when they are seen from afar they look like moving waves. The scenery looks more fascinating at dawn, when young Cham girls in green dresses go to work. That’s why no photographer fails to visit this area.

Mui Ne is an ideal place for rest and relaxation. Mui Ne has known as “resort capital” of Vietnam with many resorts along the seacoast. Tourists can swim in the blue water of the sea, slip on the sand dunes, relax in swimming pool of resorts or kite board and windsurf. The beach has the best conditions for water sports because it has strongest and most consistent cross-onshore winds in Asia and the lowest rainfall in Vietnam. There are currently about a dozen kite boarding centers in Mui Ne and the competition is fierce. In addition, tourists can go shopping at the Mui Ne Market for types of fresh sea-food and local specialties.