Last weekend I went to a beach close to Ho Chi Minh City, and it was...not the greatest. Unlike Mui Ne, the beach that I went to early in my trip here, Vung Tau is a purely Vietnamese beach--it doesn't really have much appeal to many expats. It's a place where the Vietnamese go on the weekends to get away from the city. This is why, when I called ahead to book a room in a cheap hotel, none of them spoke enough English to do so. Thus, when I got there, I had to pay way more than I wanted to ($30 a night), and I was cranky about it.
The Vietnamese don't like the sun; as I've said in older posts, white skin is a status symbol. So they go to the beach and plop down under umbrellas. Also, the women don't really wear bathing suits for modesty reasons, I'm guessing, so they swim in their clothes--shirts and shorts, usually. This made me the only pale person on the beach, the only one in the sun, and the only one showing any skin. (I wore my tankini top, so as not to blind people with my tummy, and I kept my shorts on. Scandalous.) Needless to say, I was the entertainment of the day. I was gawked at, talked about, and yelled at (I pretended not to notice). Not conducive to relaxation.
Incidentally, Vung Tau is home to one of the largest Jesus statues in Asia, as well as this random abandoned mansion.
The photo album is here.
Nothing really eventful happened on this trip, except that I got very flustered and anxious and sunburned. Not an awesome combination. But hey, look, some Engrish!
Mmmmm, I love mouse chocolate, but only when it is made from Italian Chef.
4 comments:
Someone should do a study over time as to whether Vietnamese, shunning the sun, suffer less skin cancer than westerners.
I love the Engrish! It cracked me up. Hope you're doing well <3!
Quite funny review.
The problem is you did not know where to go and what to do.
Vungtau is the most expats populated city in Vietnam (relatively to locals). Hundreds of bars, restaurants and hotels and 99% of them more or less can speak English. Believe me I am living here 7 years.
There are many information about the City in the web and on sites such as www.vungtau-city.com, vungtauinfo.com etc
Next time you go somewhere just check everything in internet ...
u might be having fun over there i think that vietnam is a good country isnt it
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