Blogs from Ba Ria - Vung Tau, Southeast, Vietnam, Asia - page 2

Asia » Vietnam » Southeast » Ba Ria - Vung Tau » Vung Tau March 25th 2012

We needed some sun! Living out in the sticks is fine but there's nowhere we can really go to enjoy the sun when it shines without attracting rather more attention than we want!! The solution - Vung Tau. This is the nearest beach resort town to Saigon and accessible by a hydrofoil in an hour and a half. Sadly they don't run late enough in the day for us to go straight from work so we took the bus instead. From Mien Dong bus station we headed out of town in a minibus at breakneck speed swerving in and out of the traffic all the way. It was breathtaking, nay, frightening, and our knuckles were certainly white for a lot of the time. We got there in two and a half hours but I would have ... read more

A day out in Vung Tau

Asia » Vietnam » Southeast » Ba Ria - Vung Tau » Vung Tau March 8th 2012

Vung Tau

PaulandPauline

It was another really hot day on Monday 5th March and so we planned to get the Hovercraft Ferry or Hydrofoil down to Vung Tau, which is about 50 miles away on the River/Sea route. Vung Tau is a coastal town that is being touted as the next big place in Vietnam. The reason for that is that it's location is better than Saigon as a Port and it is of course a Sea Side town, it also has one other important commodity ..... Oil..... and you can see the oil rigs quite clearly from the shore. The Aussies come over to work them, and those that don't go home on their time off, stay in the town. The place also the a pretty lousy reputation because this is the town that Gary Glitter was allowed ... read more

3 Days Vung Tau

Asia » Vietnam » Southeast » Ba Ria - Vung Tau » Vung Tau February 19th 2012

Vung Tau - Year of the Dragon

HappyTravellers

Leaving HCMC we take a short 90min ride by bullet ferry to Vung Tau terminal, we are met by Keivn (Vietnam Ulysses President) who directs us to our next hotel. After checking into our hotel for 2 night we quickly refresh ourselves and head off to get our bearings and try not to forget our way back. Our walk eventually takes us to the new "Tommy 3 Cafe" (Vietnam Ulysses Club) for refreshment and catch up with Glen (Vietnam Ulysses Vice President) the cafe ower for a chat and pickup up our motor scooters our transportation while here. Setting off, we, not only have to get used to smaller lighter bikes, but also remember to ride on the opposite side of the road and remember anything goes as far as road rules. This we find is ... read more

Côn Đảo islands

Asia » Vietnam » Southeast » Ba Ria - Vung Tau » Con Dao May 23rd 2011

View of islands from the Cape of Shark

theRedRiver

After my 3-day trip to Côn Đảo archipelago from 16 to 18 May 2011, I must say that this is one of the most beautiful places I've ever seen in Vietnam. The archipelago consists of 16 islands and islets in south east Vietnam (40 minute flight from Sài Gòn). Côn Đảo is not only famous for great beaches, but this place also used to be a horrific prison during the French and American wars from 1862 to 1975. Côn Sơn is the largest island of the archipelago with airport and town. The distance from airport to town is 15km. I hired a local motorbike driver to show me around the island during my stay. We spent the first day going to the Cape of Shark (Cá Mập point), Nhát beach and Bến Đầm port (fishing village ... read more

Vung Tau

Asia » Vietnam » Southeast » Ba Ria - Vung Tau » Vung Tau March 10th 2011

Nellie Resting at the Top of Small Mountain

TravelsWithNellie

Vung Tau After a few days in Saigon it's good to escape to somewhere a little less frenetic. The two ferry companies operating to Vung Tau come to the rescue. Vung Tau is 125km from Saigon sitting on the South China Sea and although it's not an island, it has isolated island feel to it. The main town has a laid-back charm to it and has many attractive French colonial buildings. The market has a fish section which is one of the most impressive Monk has seen in Vietnam, probably as a result of the hundreds of small fishing boats moored offshore. There are beaches, including in the town, however, the main beach called the 'back beach' is on the other side of the peninsular - just a 5-minute taxi ride from town. It's a fairly ... read more

Capturing the Orphanage

Asia » Vietnam » Southeast » Ba Ria - Vung Tau » Vung Tau February 24th 2011

My Huong

sunrise2 shanghai

I always find it remarkable how in life how peoples paths cross as well as the timing of these events. My journey crossed paths last week with a remarkable lady which resulted in a chance of a life time opportunity for me. Her name is My Huong. My Huong co-managers three orphanages in Vung Tau, Vietnam & although her title is Project Manager she wears many hats. From Nurse to Teacher to Financer she is dedicated & completely hands on and with the help of a remarkable team, they provide a safe, healthy home for Orphan children. My Huong herself has an inspiring life story, so much so that she was chosen to share her story by an Australian TV Network covering the story of Children who were involved in Operation Baby Lift in 1975. For ... read more

Vung Tau

Asia » Vietnam » Southeast » Ba Ria - Vung Tau » Vung Tau May 30th 2010

DSC00199

cantonfamily

Once we arrived in Vung Tau we realised that on the weekends this place is pretty full and it would have helped us if we had booked accomodation ahead of schedule but that would have been too easy. We went to a bar called Belly's as this was reccomended to us by some friends. Belly is an Aussie and a lot of the patrons are oil rig workers from Oz working in Vietnam and also some old geezers who 'find' it easier for certain ladies to like them! Unfortunately Belly was away on a motor cycle holiday but his number one bar girl called Luen was still able to help us find great accomodation.We stayed at a place called Anh Binh 2 which had two bedrooms and was self catered. Its a bit more expensive than ... read more

Vung Tau and Con Dao Islands

Asia » Vietnam » Southeast » Ba Ria - Vung Tau » Vung Tau November 19th 2009

Sarah and Trang

Governor

Vung Tau and the Con Dao Islands If you are tired of the hot and sweaty HCMC and yearn for the beach, Vung Tau is the least expensive option. If you want to spend a little more money, Con Dao is a possible option. Going to the beach, dealing with the sand, salt water, never gets me too excited. Getting out of HCMC does. So, Trang and family rented a car and off to Vung Tau we went. Vung Tau is described as crowed, oil polluted beach. Not true, in my experience. You can see the off shore oil platforms from the beach and helicopters going overhead ferrying crews back and forth. The water was crystal clear the day I was there, good temperature and a pleasant experience. The highlight for the Tran and Nguyen families ... read more

Lifes a Beach

Asia » Vietnam » Southeast » Ba Ria - Vung Tau » Vung Tau June 28th 2009

Vietnam 001

dmcoe1975

Like a flash it was the weekend and time to escape the city for a couple of days. We boarded a ferry and headed up the river to the beach resort of Vung Tau. The journey was pleasant although we hit some heavy waves as we got nearer to our destination. As each one hit the boat you would have though it had hit a rock, but this seemed normal to the other passengers (apart from one or two children who gave a yelp with each wave). On arrival we went across the road to Ned Kellys. This is an Australian themed bar where the walls are decorated with the signatures and messages of Australian service men, or families of, many of which had been deployed to Vietnam during the war and had returned again later. ... read more

Ca Na to Vung Tao to Ben Tre...Post 9

Asia » Vietnam » Southeast » Ba Ria - Vung Tau » Vung Tau April 18th 2009

Knackered and Traumatised

StuartandRhianydd

One of the longest rides to date...Plans were to stop at Ho Coc about 230 kms from Ca Na but after a breathtaking cross country ride east to the coast and then some of the best coastal scenery to date as we headed south to get to Ho Coc we were somewhat underwhelmed with the acommodation options...There was an "eco Resort" that looked like a UK garden centre and a tired looking resort geared totally to Vietnamese tourists that was like a collection of school bicycle sheds full of hundreds of deckchairs set at right angles to the beach...Strange!... Consequently we pressed on to Vung Tao another 70 odd kms further on and directly south of Ho Chi Minh City where we stayed in a central hotel called Petro House..Vung Tao is busy, full of expats ... read more

Brief history of Vietnam

The conquest of Vietnam by France began in 1858 and was completed by 1884. It became part of French Indochina in 1887. Independence was declared after World War II, but the French continued to rule until 1954 when they were defeated by Communist forc...more history

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