The team takes a break in Nha Trang to unload the stress of jet lag and culture shock.  Coconuts & Cuttlefish for everyone.

Our private boat took us though bay after bay of endless blue green sea.  Everything from the sky to the coast was fairly overwhelming.  After a short trip across the bay we ended up a first destination: Mun Island.  Though not as filled with monkeys as nearby Monkey Island, Mun Island still provided us with excellent snorkeling and swimming.  The only catch to Mun Island was the swarms of stinging jellyfish.

We arrived, sun burnt and stung, one short ride later at the most unique seafood dining experience I have ever had.  We pulled up to what looked like a grid patterned floating dock with a small house on it.  Once we stepped out we realized that in each square was a different type of delicious sea creature.  As we were led around it was explained that we got to choose our dinner here and then it would be brought over to the nearby restaurant and prepared.  With glee we set about choosing a bucketful of lobsters and a tasty looking cuttlefish (think squid).

Getting to the restaurant proved to be our next adventure.  As soon as we picked out our meal a team of women ran over and grabbed our hands, leading us to boats that looked like large baskets floating in the water.  They kept repeating that this was how we got to the restaurant, so without so much as a second thought we jumped in.  Shortly after they handed us each a fresh coconut to drink from on the ride and we immediately began to worry.  We were once told that “Nothing in Vietnam is free” and realizing that we would be charged in some way for these coconuts we started to look around more carefully.  It turns out that we were not so much heading towards the dock as away from it.  Now we found out, if we wanted to return to land, we would have to pay for the ride.  Clever.

Despite our appetizer of swindling, dinner was amazing and we enjoyed some of the tastiest, freshest, cheapest seafood alongside some of the best views I have ever experienced.  All in all, quite the meal.

We slowly made our way back to the hotel after that, and called it an early night.  The next day we spent simply sitting the shade of coconut trees on the beach.  I have to say, I think l realy like my job.

Here’s to my new office.

(You can also check out where Nha Trang is and all the pictures here)

Today we returned from the beaches of Nha Trang.  I have never seen so much vacation packed into so few dollars before.

Our trip started on with an 8 hour overnight train ride from Ho Chi Minh City.  The train was about what you might expect from a train traveling down Vietnam’s only railway, and it was reminiscent of the Darjeeling Limited.  We had a room stacked floor to ceiling with our six bunks, and midnight exploration lead us through a corridor of packed cars and eventually a dining cart where the train crew did most of their drinking.

After an uncomfortable, but fantastically unique night we arrived and fell out of the train tired and ready for the beach.  Our hotel was literally across the street from an almost deserted beach that stretched as far as the eye could see in both directions. The hotel – 12$/night.

After a few quick hours of sleep on real beds in rooms with slightly less people we made our way out on a boat we chartered privately for about 12$/person.  With this we were able to sail to Mun Island and get in some snorkeling before one of the most unique seafood lunches I have ever had.

Part 2, Tomorrow.