Day 96: windy Mui Ne

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Mui Ne has been awesome so far - such a beautiful and relaxed stretch of coast. But friggin' windy!! From about 9am until sunset, there is a really strong wind from east to west. Apparently it does this 6 months out of the year, and the other 6 months it blows the opposite direction. It has made this a favorite spot for kite surfers and wind surfers.

The bus from Saigon to mui ne was painless - $5 and about 5 hours. Our first night we stayed at a place that was literally on the beach - take two steps out the door and you're on sand. BUT it didn't have hot water or AC, so we upgraded a little bit to another hotel after that first night. At $20 it is a bit higher than we'd normally pay, but it is so sweet. Hot water, AC, TV, fridge, and a balcony on the 3rd floor overlooking the ocean. Here's a little video I took of it:



Steph had a little bit of a cold on the first day (she claims I gave it to her... but mine wasn't as bad) so we mainly hung out in the room and enjoyed the view. I rented a motorbike and went on a little spin in the afternoon. The coast line is beautiful, and not very developed. I want a chunk of beachfront land here. Mui Ne is actually a fishing town about 5 km from where the more touristy stuff is, so I rode towards it. Hundreds of brightly colored boats dot the water.

The next day steph was feeling better so we rode the motorbike 20 km to the white sand dunes. The scenery on the way was so epic... most of it is right along the coast. And not too many other vehicles so I could appreciate the scenery too. The only hazard was the wind, which was blowing in our faces on the way there, sometimes kicking up sand that stung our bare skin. Good thing I had sunglasses to protect my eyes.

The white dunes were really scenic too. They sit above a lake - the contrast of colors is something else. We paid a little kid for two sheets of plastic to go sliding down the dunes. This part was not as fun as we hoped. The wind was strong, and blowing sand in our eyes, mouths, everywhere. And even at the steepest dune we could find, sliding down was at crawling speed. We tried a few times but gave up once we were covered in sand. Here's a funny video of steph trying to climb back up the dune in the wind:



...and one of my best run down the dune



Today we had our first day of kite surfing lessons. I think I might be hooked already. We did 2 1/2 hours today, and we'll do another 2 1/2 tomorrow, each with our own instructor. First they start you out on the beach with a small training kite that isn't really meant to pull you around, just so you can get the feel of it. Then they upgrade you to a full size kite, still on the beach. It is crazy how powerful it is. It is pretty tricky at first because you have a lot of control (or lack of control) over how the kite moves. But with some more practice I could see how it would become second nature.

Girls get a little different curriculum than guys, so steph stayed on the beach today, but I got to go in the water. I still didn't get a board though. The shorebreak is actually pretty big and it is a bit of the challenge getting out past the waves. I basically just learned how to get pulled (called "body dragging") left and right, downwind. I learned how to go upwind too but it is really hard without a board. I got a lot of water in my mouth. At one point I moved the kite too aggressively and it lifted me completely out of the water like a dolphin! The kites have so much power. But I was doing pretty good, or at least my instructor said I was. I can't wait for tomorrow.

So I'll probably write another blog before we leave Mui Ne - however long that will be. Here's some pictures from here so far:

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Comments

[Matt Potterton]

Magic carpet ride
I think Aladdin made it look more fun....

[Will]

Funny stuff
Just so you kids know, you had 60% of the IDC office laughing and roaring-mostly @Steph fighting the wind and sand...Godspeed!