Nha Trang, Vietnam

March 14^th…..68 days at sea.

Nha Trang, Vietnam

Back in the tropics. Temp. 85 and the humidity to match. I never in my wildest dreams thought I would be writing about, let alone visit Vietnam. We have 2 ports of call here, Nha Trang and Phu My. Nha Trang is the capital of Khanh Hoa Province, Vietnam. It is located in the southern part of Vietnam. Up until a few years ago it was a small sleepy fishing village. Now, recent government and private investors are transforming it into a beachside resort area, which is a very popular vacation destination for international tourists and the Vietnamese. We saw several high end hotel chains under construction. The beach promenade is beautiful and the water is warm. Bruce and I walked along the beach and found tons of sea glass. The beaches reminded me of Hawaii, where the surf breaks right on the shore, and the sand is very course. We were docked about a 30 minute drive from the city so we booked a city tour. We went to the 7^th century built Cham Po Nagar complex where Hindus worshiped for more than 500 years. Only 4 spires remain, but the Buddhist community still arrives to pay their respects. We had to remove our shoes and cover our shoulders and knees. Instead of candles, they light incense and the smell is everywhere. It was perched on top of a hill, so the views of the city were very nice. Fishing boats and beaches as far as the eye can see. Next stop was the Lon Son Pagoda which is marked by a 78 ft. tall white Buddha sitting on a lotus blossom, which can be seen all over the city. The Pagoda has been rebuilt several times and the glass and ceramic tile decorations are beautiful. The Pagoda is still home to 8 practicing monks and pays tribute to the lives and tragic deaths of the fellow monks who dramatically burned themselves in Saigon protesting the Vietnam War. We walked the 152 steps to the top to see the Buddha. They are in the process of erecting statues surrounding the Buddha of all the monks that died. We then paid our own tribute by lighting incense, giving a silent prayer and personal wish, and sticking it into a pot of sand in front of the Buddha. It was very beautiful and moving. Vietnam is known for its beautiful embroidery. We visited a factory where everything is handmade. It is exquisite. You can tell an exceptional piece by the back. It must look just like the front, and it does. Young girls sit for hours turning out this wonderful artwork. The conditions seemed nice, but this is a communist country and I was ever curious if these were the real working conditions or just for show. I chose the latter. No eye contact or interaction was ever made and there was always someone watching. As always, there were the usual hawkers and vendors. Here, they were all women, and we all know how persistent they can be, but not so much in your face. One US dollar is worth 20,000 Vietnamese dong. A huge number to me, but it’s all in perspective. The money has been devalued so much that they don’t deal in any coins. The currency is all paper money with the highest note being 500,000. We kept a 10,000 one for Kai which is only worth 50 US cents . Imagine.