Nha Trang and Jungle Beach

The road from Buon Ma Thot to Nha Trang was long and winding, but interesting. The scenery went from lush to desert-like to salty before I ever saw the ocean. But once Idid, I was so grateful to be out of the mountains and back in the tropics... especially since the woman sitting next to me was sick for at least half the ride!

Nha Trang is a breath of fresh air coming from Vietnam's south. It's a major coastal town and has that bright, lofty, pastel air about it. In fact, the city reminds me a lot of Santa Monica, Calfornia, which is weird. It's not like I didn't try to get as far away as possible or anything.

Nha Trang's beach is slightly dirty and you'll never have it to yourself, but the water is warm and calm, you can rent a chair under a thatched roof for a couple bucks, and the fruit lady never wanders too far off. I was wondering how the whole beach culture vibe was going to work, given the obvious aversion Vietnamese people have to the sun. But it's all good, they just flock to the beach when the sun goes down.

Nha Trang is a relatively flat, condensed city, perfect for biking. I rented a bike and rode up to Nha Trang's Cham towers, visited a monastery, and worshipped at the giant Buddha. It turned out to be a pretty good day!

Quiet a few people have recommneded a little place about an hour north of Nha Trang called Jungle Beach Resort, promising a better coastline with less traffic. Already tired of the hustle and bustle of Nha Trang, I packed up, jumped on the back of a motorbike, and headed up to Jungle Beach.

Perfection achieved. Lay on the beach, read, rinse, repeat. It rocked.

Even though it's called a resort, Jungle Beach is more like a tropical campsite. Guests sleep in open-air bamboo huts without electricity and share bathrooms. The place has the potential to be a five-star joint, but there's an allure to its modesty. For $15 per person per night, you have your run of the place and three delicious meals prepared by the owners and their staff.

The owner, Sylvio, recently spotted a group (pack? tribe? gaggle?) of monkeys living in the mountains nearby, and now primate researchers from all over the world are coming to Jungle Beach to study them. Apparently there aren't monkeys like these monkeys anywhere else on Earth and experts are sort of freaking out about the discovery. Unfortunately no monkeys graced me with their presence.

Unfortunately, I had to say goodbye to Jungle Beach after just one day. My visa for Vietnam expires on December 29th and this is a very big country, that I have just barely started to explore. Tonight, I will be spending the evening on a 12 hour bus north of Hoi An. Wish me luck!