Mũi Né--Another Paradise....

...until the Russians invaded it!

Advice on traveling anywhere in Asia! Only listen to half of what people tell you and then only believe half of what you hear! This policy will greatly reduce your chances of disappointment. GG

On Friday morning we left Bến Tre to HCM city via a small bus with 6 other tourists (more expensive). The 2.5 hour ride was pleasant. We returned to our usual hotel but in a different room and discovered bed bugs that night! I freaked out and moved to another hotel at midnight. but it was very noisy and we didn't have a goo night's sleep.

On Sat morning, we had 2 choices:
- search for a better hotel to stay one more day before taking off to Vũng Tàu (by boat) or Mũi Né (by train)
- OR take off right away to save hotel cost that night.

A very nice bus stop for snacks

G changed his mind about Vũng Tàu (a very busy beaches place) and found a good deal going to Mũi Né by bus in the afternoon.  The new hotel in Saigon we will stay at when we return agreed to store our luggage, so by 3pm we boarded the bus to Mũi Né. Little did we knew that it would take 6hrs instead of 4hrs to get there as we were told.

Arrived late in Mui Ne and were shocked to see how much it has changed since our last visit 3 years ago! On the way to our usual motel, we saw shops, restaurants, resorts lined up as far as the eyes could see... And the signs where mostly in Russian instead of English! We were worried that we wouldn't be able to find our place or find peace in Mui Ne anymore. But luckily, the hotel owner and her family were still there and happy to see us; and we were so glad that this place is far enough from the tourist area!

Beach view from our window

We settled in our usual AC room for $10/night with beach view, and had a good night sleep. I regained my good spirit from the bed bugs freak out, loss of sleep, and the long bus ride.

A big herd of cows went by the beach

Sunday morning was a great start to our vacation time! We borrowed a motorbike to go for breakfast, visited the fishing harbor briefly (G's favorite place), spent most of the afternoon at the beach away from the tourists ;)--The water was perfect to dip in. We both had a minor sunburn. At night, we went for a seafood adventure near the tourist area and sat outdoor right by the beach, ate fish dinner, saw the sunset, and listened to the sound of the waves, walked and browsed other shops and restaurants before riding back. That was my ultimate kind of dvacation time! We realized that since the bad Chennai experience, we are now leaning toward a comfort zone more than adventure into the unknown. We only have 2 more weeks, not a time for great challenges.

The plan for the next day will be a full day of motorbike rides until we drop, will see some familiar places (back to memory lanes) plus new ones. JUST RIDE, EPLORE, and EXPERIENCE.