I got ripped off!

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Before I divulge into the biggest rip off that happened so far in Vietnam, let me tell you where I have been the last 3 days.

Vung Tau

After spending a day in the hottest province (Tay Ninh), I decided the hustle and bustle of HCMC was not where I want to be so I went to the near-by beach resort town of Vung Tau. It is about 80 min if you travel along the Mekong by Hydrofoil (US$10) but I decided to take the local bus (US$2). I saved 8 bucks and for it I got a cramped seat between a sleeping and drooling old man and a woman who keep giving me weird looks.

The beaches in Vung Tau aren't quite as nice as those in other parts of Vietnam but a lot of locals don't go there for the beaches. Nevertheless, I spent 3 days there; 1st day, exploring the town via motorbike, 2nd day, motorbiking about 80km on the rual roads to Ben Chiu hotsprings, and 3rd day just sleeping in, getting a hair cut and alternating between doing nothing and reading a book on the beach.

Ben Chiu

The 2nd day (Wednesday) was the most interesting one. It was one of those days when everything seem to go right. The best e.g. I can give is this: I woke up around 9ish and flipped on the tele, guess what was on? The NBA Finals in the first quarter, so needless to to say I spent about an hour and a half infront of it before leaving reluctantly in the 3rd quarter to start my rather long trip for the day. Here is the best part, when I got back around 6:30pm and flipped on the tele, there was a repeat of the same game and exactly around the same time that I left in the 3rd quarter. How lucky is that!

Armed with a rather dubious map, a compass, a bottle of water and a piece of paper containing the question "Where is the way to Ben Chiu hotsprings? Thank You" in Vietnamese (from courtesy of one of the waitresses at the restaurant from the previous night) I set out to find the hotsprings. The day was cloudy for the most part which shielded me from the sun during the ride. I aslo decked myself out with a helmet and and a bandana and was quite sure I could passed for a Vietnamese since I don't have proper papers to drive a motorbike and I don't want to bribe the police (US$7 is the going rate I hear). Eventually after about 2/1/2 hours, I found the hotsprings after numerous stops and use of the aformentioned piece of paper.

The rip off

Keep in perspective the relative cheapness of the things here: a good meal at a nice restaurant US$3, a 5 hour bus ride US$3.30, a bottle of local rum (US$0.70), my hotel room, with a magnificent terrace on the penthouse in Vang Tau (US$6), motorcycle rental (U$4).

Ok here is the biggest rip off so far in Vietnam. I paid 120000 Dong (U$8) for a bucket of mud at the hotsprings. Now that is a rip off in any part of the world not just in Vietnam. I guess in retrospect, biking under the 32 degrees sun to bath and 40 degrees hot spring water isn't too smart either. Anyways, when I got there I figure since I rode for a long time, I deserve a treat. Besides according to the brocher, it will help me improve my complextion, reduce heat (what ever that means) and cure obesity.

Ok thats enough talk, enjoy the pictures.

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Photos

My Balcony
During the day, great place to dry shirts after self-laundering. They wanted 70cents for to wash a shirt and a pair of shorts, what nerve.

Beach
Not the best I've seen but serviciable.

Hong Ha Pagoda
Appearently you can walk to it during low tide, I never made it there.

Vaung Tau
Front beach taken from the mountain as it was about to rain.

Vaung Tau
Tried to climb up the hill on bike but was blocked by this monstrosity. The locals say if I honked enough, it would pause and I could squeeze by between the left side and the cliff but I didn't care to try.

My Balcony
@ night, I love that place. Perfect place to catch a breeze and read or just do nothing (see pic).

Long Hai
Fishing boat heading to Long Hai (I presumme). You can see Long Hai over the horizon. Shot from the bridge when I was biking to Bien Chiu.

Fulling decked out
Scarf and helmat for protection against potholes, pollution, and police.

Local traffic
Cows and chickens are as common as cars on the local red dirt roads.

Locals
Getting drunk on rice wine, I joined them for a couple of (may be 5-10) shots.

Vaung Tau
Back beach during the day

Rip off
I paid 8 bucks for a bucket of mud!

Rip off
Doused in super expensive mud.

Hot Springs
It is suppose to boil an egg in 15min. I waited 13 to get a hetrogeneous textured egg which I donated to the rubbish bin.

Hot Springs
A watched eggs never cooks!

Pool
Ahhhh civilization for a change. BTW the local girls there kicked my ass in that game.

Accident
I thought its going to drop to the ground and crush someone so I was ready to "capture it on film". Fortuantly, I was disappointed and it made it down safely.

Mui Ne
This is what I wake up to every morning for the last 3 days. I'll post up pictures of Mui Ne sandunes and fairy sprint in my next entry. Till then.

Comments

[Richard]

Hey STAN!!! Sounds like you are having an amazing trip. The pictures look beautiful! Take care and I look forward to seeing you soon!