Vietnam (Nha Trang)

The train from Hoi An was delayed and  didn't leave 'til 11pm. We travelled with several other local people in our cabin which was an interesting experience, not to sure how keen izzi was regarding the man sleeping on the floor below. We arrived fine, however not well rested and got a taxi to the hotel. The hotel seems good and is in the typical style of very tall and thin like it has been squashed into position.

Day one only consisted of scoping the place out and a few hours on the beach, obviously I stayed in the shade but Isobel lapped up the rays for several hours. I did however finish my first book 'A man from St Petersburg', very good it was, next onto 'The Quiet American'. We also managed to score some Kellogs Frosties which turn breakfast into something special for the next 3 days.

Day two was the sights, we headed to Long Song temple and its giant white Buddha which was good, giving great views from above the city and was free once you'd pushed your way past the numerous hawkers trying to sell you postcards and other crap. We attempted to find a photo gallery after but failed and flagged a taxi down to take us to Po Nagar Tower, the most famous sight in Nha Trang. We both thought it was average however putting on a Jedi like gown to enter the temples was fun. A long walk home was hot but we managed to break our record and saw 5 people on one scooter, 3 children 2 adults. Tea consisted of a Texas BBQ grill house, a highly rated eatery by both lonely planet and trip adviser. Its run by a guy from Texas who fought in the war in Vietnam and all the meat is imported from the US. Delicious it was, ribs, chicken, corn on the cob, calsaw etc. Not cheap by Vietnamese standards but £13 all in with drinks for both of us is still good value by UK standards.

Day three we decided some skin theory was in order and headed to a spa to get a mud bath. We spent most of the day lounging in mud like pigs or soaking up the minerals in the hot water mineral pools. I started my new book and found it harder to reader due to its French phrases and back to back dialogue. Again for tea we headed to another top pick 'Genesh Indian'. It was again delicious, the best curry we have eaten so far, we haven't eaten much local food in Nha Trang but maybe we needed a change.

Day four we bought tickets to Vinpearl theme park. Its an island that includes theme park rides, a water park, an aquarium and loads more. A bus then cable car gets you to the island, a nice way to travel. This does make it our 3rd cable car since we left England, I'd say we are pros. The theme park was enjoyable, absolutely packed with Russians which was odd. We were told by a local that in the last few years a Russian company started to charter flights here and hence why we see so many Russians. Everything was in Vietnamese, English and Russian all over town which made a change, it definitely added to the tackiness I think. We made sure that we ate local for tea, nothing amazing to be honest, average Vietnamese food.

Nha Trang in conclusion was okay. We had enough to do but we felt that as its just a tourist town it was like a city without a true soul or heart. Good for families and its gorgeous beach hugs the sea front, it was picturesque especially at sunset. The food we had, BBQ and Indian, was also really good but I guess that's as its a massive tourist town. Da Lat should be much cooler as its in the mountains, originally a French settlement built to escape the heat.

We traveled to Da Lat by bus, a trip we read isn't for the faint hearted and I'd have to agree. Climbing up and down mountains, swerving around land slides and our driver is obviously a fearless madman. What made it worse is that several times people threw up, all locals I'd like to add. The smell was wretched and highly unpleasant making the journey not one of our best. These locals act like they'd never been on a bus though, it wasn't the smoothest of journeys but wasn't that bad. I just kept thinking of the news reports in the past of buses falling down cliffs.