Vietnam-Austria House Phan Thiet

After another nice 18 hour busride with a litte incident we arrived in Mui Ne, Asia's kite- and windsurf mekka. In the morning we stopped in Nha Trang were we had to change bus and had a breakfast break... when the bus came at aroung 7.45 I reserved 2 seats in the bus and walked out to the bathroom while Matthias took care of our luggage. Finally when I came out of the bathroom at around 7.50 there was no bus anymore - and obviously I had NOTHING on me... Surprisingly I was very relaxed, espe...

Today I got a driver to go sightseeing around Mui Ne, first stop Fairy Spring.








My driver pulled over to a café, took me down the side and showed me a stream, with a sandy base. And said "just walk up the river". That's through the river as there were no banks. So off I went. I thought it could have been a bit of a joke for tourist, until I saw people walking the opposite way. As the river went on it weaved through "sand hills". The formations really were w...

We left Saigon on Monday morning for Mui Ne, we actually had bit of luck as we paid for our Saigon hostel as when we checked in we told them we were going to stay for 2 nights when in actual fact we'd stayed for 3. They only charged us for 2 when we came to pay our bill, so we got back pretty much the money they'd stolen from Raywood, haha. The bus journey was uneventful, a little minibus with three other western couples, two of them were half western men half asian girl. One of the men was h...

Tanya has discovered the wonder that is shopping in Vietnam, specifically the Dong Khoi district, near our hotel. We both agreed that if we were working, we would spend at least 4 days just ordering clothing. The prices are unbelievable, especially when considering what you would pay for something similar in the US. The fabrics have also been very good and the workmanship seems to be great as well. They are very good at making very fitted clothes, which is the hardest thing for me to find in ...

Mui Ne- a low-key, quiet beach town knon for its impressive red and white sand dunes. Our bus to Mui Ne was quite a surprise, the trip was only 4 hours long but we got the 'sleeper' bus. So there is Russel trying to fit in the sleeper 'tube' that he was assigned to (the upper tube). He was just too tall and ended up on his side with his knees bent and cramped. I, on the other hand, was happy as a clam in my tube, I fit perfectly. (Mary you would get a kick out of the 'pillow' in the tube--it ...

mui ne is a lovely little beach town and we checked into the first hotel we saw when the bus dropped us off. 10 USD night for an airconditioned room overlooking a beautiful beach, waves crashing on the sand, seemed like a bargain to me! the hotel was perfectly located for restaurants and as i mentioned you could stumble straight out the door and onto the beach! its a pretty tiny town, with just the one street running parallel to the shore and there seemed to be hardly any people about! the be...

SAIGON & MUI NE I spent Monday in Saigon, visiting the Cholon area and going swimming in the afternoon. There is a pretty big pool in Cong Vien Van Hoa Park. There is a sports club there with quite a lot of sports on offer. The pool seems to be used by schools too, so I got quite a lot of attention from kids asking to borrow my goggles or trying to practise their English on me. They seem to be fascinated by foreigners. Cost of a swim is 15,000 Dong, equivalent to 0.75 Pounds Sterling - ye...

MUI NE There are a few sights in Mui Ne for those bored of the beach, some of which I visited today. Many of the hotels and cafes offer 'tours' of local sights for over $10 a day. However, you will find locals, especially those around your hotel, that will take you to the Sand Dunes, Fishing Village, and Waterfall for 50,000 Dong (about 2.50 Sterling). Yesterday I hired a battered old bike from my hotel for $1 and cycled to the Village (a few km away). It is an attractive ride, although it is...