nha trang & electric wiring

So. Onto Nha Trang for a night.

Nha Trang is the St Tropez of Vietnam. Considered bright, garish, full of tourists and somewhat resortish, we figured we'd stay one night. After the Hippie Colony, we need time to ease back into society.

And we were craving a pizza something chronic. Days of rice will do that to you. The mere thought of dripping hot cheese was enough to send us into mild frenzy.

Again, we almost died on the journey back, on dirt roads, shit everywhere, rice paddies, people, motorbikes, general mayhem. My hands turned into instant sweat bags as I dug my fingernails into the Brit's hands and thigh.

Brit: Stop looking at the road Peas. You're winding me up.

Peas: We're going to die. Fuck!

Brit: [As car narrowly swerves a ten tonne truck coming towards us] ...Ok we're going to die.

Peas: Dude! Taxi driver! What the hell is going on, can't you stay in your own lane?!

[Taxi driver completely ignores me]

Peas: FUCK! Did we just knock that motorbike over?

Brit: [Wincing, head in hands] ....I think so.

Peas: Jesus, my shattered nerves.

Brit: Dude, how much longer? Five minutes, ten minutes?

Peas: Are we in Hell? Oh my God oh my god oh my GOD! [Truck hurtles past, missing us by a fraction].


By some sort of divine miracle, we arrived, fully limbed, but having full on panic attacks, in Nha Trang.

We booked a very local little bed and breakfast off the main tributary. We had to venture through little allies full of carts bulging with vegetables and other detritus, electric wires hanging down ready to electrocute the fuck out of any unseeing victim, women washing their clothes, kids running amok.

I rather enjoyed this setting. Hell, any setting would've done after that horrific taxi journey through rural Vietnam. I'd have been happy landing in a tip full of nappies after that journey. Word.

We inquired after pizza. (Would there be rice on the pizza?)

Turns out, there was a place beautifully called "Good Morning Vietnam" just around the corner.

And so after ten days of rice, we inhaled a pizza. Had we cheated? Sure. Did we care? No.

Headed to a beach bar and took in all the bronzed bodies over a cocktail.

Nha Trang is a lovely stretch of beach. Turquoise water, only obliterated from the road by Sheratons and Sofitels.

Vietnam's answer to Disneyland lies on an island off the shore. The 'Vinpearl' water and amusement park is apparently a hot destination for, well, I'm guessing the same sorts of folk that like going to Euro Disney.


Ended up staying on the beach for hours, playing cards and sipping on daiquiris into the night.

But we had a big fish to still fry. We were flying to Saigon/Ho Chi Minh City the next day. The big notorious city. And therein lay all sorts of interesting adventures.