Just past the half-way point. Jan 4

I got up early this morning to walk on the beach and realized that yesterday was the half way point in this journey. The time has gone by quickly but eventually there has to be a break in the endless booking, packing and moving to the next place.

I found I was getting a little irritable so I am taking an eight day rest here at this beach town, sort of a "holiday" from traveling. Just like a child, I can't tell when I'm tired.

A pail of water and a coconut shell dipper by the pool to rinse the sand off your feet.

After my walk I had the hotel breakfast and went to my room for a short nap but ended up cleaning out my day pack instead.

Then I had lunch at the economy diner the hotel provides in front of my bungalow. They serve a set menu of soup, rice, one vegetable, several choices of meat, tiny salad, Vietnam iced tea and a banana all for the astronomical price of 30,000 dong or less than $2.00 US.

After lunch I read a while and then went out for ice cream.

I then met my bus for the sand dune tour. First stop was a little fishing village. They were harvesting shrimp that day and you could smell them in the bus with the windows closed.

They tie up the normal boats on the water but bring the round wicker ones on shore.

Here is the fishing set-up in one of them.

The catch was tiny little shrimp and these women have spread them out on this cement slope by the road to dry. When the are dry they sweep them up with a broom and put them into baskets.

A close up if you care to see it.

Here we have four men in a tub boat. Rub-a-dub-dub! Sorry, I couldn't help it.

A shot down the main street of the town.


Then we headed off to the dunes. This one was taken along the way from the bus. The soil is actually sandy, well sand, all along the way. It also apears in many different colors.

Only the hardiest of plants manages to grow here.

Half way up the white dune looking down.

Windy, but also time for a hair cut.

There was water laying in and around the dunes. Looks a bit higher than usual.

There were a few houses and livestock here and there.

Here is a guy sand boarding. I had read it wasn't very fast so I didn't rent a board. It wasn't.

This is at the red dune. The sand was much finer and very much harder to climb.

Looking down the hill at the little village.


Since I had only spent 30,000 dong on lunch, I splurged and had a nice dinner at a white tablecloth place for 69,000 dong. It was an outdoor resturant as most are here and these cows walked down the street while I was eating.

It is so chilled out here and peaceful, the perfect place.