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5 am is early where ever you are in the world and after a bottle of Dalat Red wine and sangria it is even earlier.
We met up with our American travelers and jumped on the motor bikes and headed out in a pack to chase the morning sunrise. The air was still fresh from the wild downpour during the evening and we sped along hoping to beat the clouds to the dunes. Our fears were fufilled as we raced along the coast only to to find a massive cloud obscuring the rising sun. There was a beautiful rainbow appearing above the cloud but, we will have to return to catch the sun next time. As we began a 30 minute walk to the peak of the magnificent sand dunes, the sun broke from the cloud to meet us and heat the sand.
Mui Ne has a micro climate different from other parts of the country and allow for tropical and desert conditions. The desert was partly created during the terrible aftermath of the war by starving farmers who slash and burned the jungle growth to make room for hardy tapioca plants in order to survive. Now the tapioca
fields are used to supplement the farm animals feed as the regions new crops and fishermen bring home abundant food wares.
We brought long plastic sheets with simple tied rope hand holds for sand sledding and as we crested the first giant sand dune the excitment built. We each took a turn sliding down the "practice hill" and then took the long climb back up the sand dune for the "big one". Bianca was the last to challenge the big dune and eat sand at the bottom and we all anxiously awaited her turn. As all eyes turned to her she careened down the dune and lost control taking a wild fall at the half way point and tumbled head over heels in slow motion like Homer in a Simpsons episode. Unfortunately near the end of her acrobatic descent she sustained a hard knock to her head and was dazed for a few moments. We rushed over to help her and she worriedly didn't recall the names of our American companions or where we were.
Thai laboured up the hill to grab some water from his Camelback as "Mr. Binh forgot the water" (our mantra for the rest
of the day in the blazing Mui Ne sun). When he returned Bianca had somewhat recovered from her tumble and was able to list off her parents names, brothers birthdays and the size of the engagement ring😉
We then took a brief stop off at a very rustic village cafe (someone's front porch) for a breakfast of hearty Pho noodles and iced cafe sua das.
After breakfast, we headed towards the Red Canyon. A mini-Grand Canyon, the steep climb, in the blazing sun, rewarded us with breathtaking views of the area. At this point, we had all had too much SAND! Bianca especially, had sand in her eyes, pockets, behind her ears, etc. Kyle our American friend, quickly took an opportunity to take a dip in the sea before we headed out to a local fishing village for the next leg of our tour.
Bianca's bike driver laughed at the concept that tourists were paying money to see a fishing village, and could not understand the charm of seeing something so smelly as he put it! He was right, it was smelly, but also interesting to see the fisher-people in traditional round bamboo boats rocking in the
sea as they cast their nets. Children worked with their parents in the village too, as did cows that had to pull carts full of sacks filled with shrimp, clams, and other sea food.
After our smelly stop over, we were taken to a place where the traditional bamboo boats were made. It was an interesting process of weaving bamboo in different layers and sealing it with tree sap which formed a strong adhesive to hold the boats together. Each of the bamboo boats cost about US$70 to make.
We finally headed to a local market so Mr. Binh could pick up some exotic fruits that he promised us! He purchased pineapples, watermelons, mangos, dragon fruit and bananas for our snack after the tour.
The market was so alive with activity and the sights and smells were fantastic.
Thai recalled many of his childhood favorite desserts and snacks being prepared in the market place, and was filled with nostalgia.
After this hectic day (and hurting for Bianca) we went for our last dip in the Canary Resort Pool for our 2pm bus ride to Nha Trang (or so we thought)!!
Stay tuned.
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anonymous
non-member comment
YAY! what a fun day, right?? glad to hear from you both and glad us "American girls" got to tag along with you on Mr. Binh's adventure! take care, and have safe and fun travels! Laura