[Nha Trang, Vietnam] We didn’t have much planned for today. The idea was to take it easy and relax in preparation for a big dinner. We hopped a local bus into town from just outside our hotel and after strolling around for a couple hours found a lite bite at a French restaurant (complete with large obnoxious French owner). V finally got her drink out of a coconut – but she still prefers the one with sugar added just as nature intended. Nha Trang’s beach front is somewhat like Durban’s. The manicured beaches are lined by a picturesque promenade and across the road are the usual internationally branded hotels and resorts. We love the way the fir trees have been groomed into geometric shapes but when the weather changes there are not many options for killing time.

We arranged our bus ticket for Ho Chi Min City (HCMC) then headed to the beach to relax. Five minutes after finding a suitable palm tree to sit under on a mostly deserted beach the rain started. At first it came in little waves and we persisted under our umbrellas. After an hour and the thud of a coconut hitting the sand nearby we gave up and went looking for ice-cream. Sitting in an Italian ice-cream shop (yip, life is hard) the rain started bucketing down and refused to stop. By the time we were getting hungry for dinner it was still pouring down – no option but to get a little wet.

The streets leading to the Texas BBQ and our imported steak dinners were, in some places, waist deep in floodwater. Buses ploughing their way trough had to open their doors a to drain water once reaching shallower sections. Shops flooding, motorcycles engulfed, and us wading through in search of steak – it was hilarious. It was however worth the soggy discomfort as our American host (the city seems full of American and French Restaurateurs) presented me with a perfect rib-eye. We both gouged ourselves and still managed to put away some home made apple pie. A bill of more than 800 000 Dong was a lot (for us) but well worth it in the end.

[Pictures: Cool strop tan. Could use a kayak !]

– Posted from my iPhone via WiFi