A Vacation from My Vacation

This weekend some of us decided to take a vacation and get out of Saigon/HCMC. We caught a boat and went to Vung Tau, a resort town on the south peninsula of Vietnam.

Vung Tau was very interesting. The best way to describe it is as a mix of Port Townsend and Miami, if both of those towns had been deserted for 10 years, and people came back now to live in them. It was a bit eerie actually, and at times felt a bit like a ghost town. Regardless, we got a hotel room for $5 a night, across the street from the beach

We all have our hobbies, our pride points, or our collections. For me, it’s less about the tangible and more about the experiences. One of my goals is to touch as many major bodies of water as possible. As weird as that sounds, it’s actually quite challenging. I’ve touched both sides of the North Atlantic, the Gulf of Mexico, one side of the North Pacific, and now the South China Sea. (Interesting side note: the Vietnamese hate China so much that they refuse to call it the South China Sea, and instead call it the Eastern Sea). Vung Tau has beautiful beaches and we spent most of the day Friday swimming and lolling around in the sand. What I failed to remember is how close Vietnam is to the equator. Why is this important? Well, the sun is hotter, brighter and fiercer here. I currently look like a lobster crossed with a cherry tomato.

The weekend was spent lounging on the beach with a cooler full of ice and beer and running into the water when it got too hot in the shade.

  

One of my favorite moments of the weekend was when I was sitting on the beach finishing a bon mi sandwich. The rest of the group was back at the hotel, but I wanted to spend my last few minutes in Vung Tau on the beach. While I was sitting there, watching the tide come in, there was a pack of boys, about 7-9 years old playing soccer on the edge of the waves. They were just kicking a few balls around, and every so often a stray ball would come my way. I kicked it back to them, and after a few times they realized I actually knew what I was doing with a soccer ball. Now little boys enjoy showing off more than anything. So once they figured out that I was watching they started doing headers and dives and tackling each other. When I got up to throw away my wrapper, one of the little boys panicked and sent a ball flying my way, which hit me square in the back. Now, it’s been a while since third grade, but if I remember correctly, being pelted with a soccer ball is equivalent to a handwritten love note. Well I couldn’t let this go by. The next ball that came flying my way, I trapped and started juggling. The look of utter shock and joy made my day. I scrimmaged them for a little while until it was time for me to leave. As I left all the boys walked me to the road and waved and blew me kisses goodbye. “Hen gap lai!” they called-- see you again.

Things I learned (among other things):

Sharing a hotel room with 9 people can be rough, but not as bad as I imagined

Just because the fish is skewered on a stick does not mean that you should eat the entire thing (head, spine, bones etc). However, if you do eat the entire thing, it won't (necessarily) make you sick. Nor will it phase you if you have an iron stomach. (Personal experience)

Sunscreen is always a must, no matter where you are on the globe.