Na Trang

Wed 7 February

Yesterday we took the shuttle bus into the seaside resort on Na Trang. The bus dropped us at a very modern, classic indoor mall. We took a peek, but opted to meander our way to the local market. We strolled down the boardwalk and found the outdoor “gym” and I managed a workout. B found a bench to sit on and says he upgraded his companion – sorry Dusty and Greg, I guess you're out of luck...lol!

We manged to find the post office, so some of you can be on the lookout for postcards.  

In our wanders we came across the local sausage hibachi grill – I purchased one for a $1 and it was quite tasty – B assured me it was pork, however this is Viet Nam...lol! 

Did I mention the scooters? I think 1 out of every 3 people own scooters here, like mine but without the dragon on them...ha! We have seen as many as 4 people on 1 scooter as well as bundles as big as a dishwasher box being transported via scooter. And the noise – they beep their horns with this high-pitched tinny “beep beep” and assume they're impervious to all trucks, cars, people and buses. On 2 separate occasions B and I were almost slammed into while we were walking – he and I agree we'd have been banged up a bit, but the scooter and rider would have been wiped out...more mass you see?  

The market was fun with haggling being the word of the day. I bought a pair of cotton teal loungers for $8 after negotiating down from $15 – I actually tried to walk away, but she kept lowering the price. LOL! Flowers were also available for amazingly low prices – we bought 3 bundled bouquets for $3. I have 1 in our room and the other 2 we gave to Dolly, our adorable Indonesian wine steward.

Strange foodstuffs were also for sale just sitting in piles in the open air – no indication as to what they were except peculiar... Oh we saw some folks “Aging Gracefully” playing cards and one lady who was so exhausted she was sleeping in her booth... 

All in all, we enjoyed our day in Na Trang and I will say I have a more positive view of Viet Nam now....

Today we are in port in Phu My which is the entrance bay to Ho Ch Mihn City otherwise known as Saigon. It is a 2 hour ride just to get into the city so we chose to relax and stay on board. Our mobile hot spot is working terrific from the pool deck, so we have been catching up on email, Georging and blogging. B is disappointed that he can't enter bills from here because it is blocked, but otherwise the Skyroam device is fab! (Thanks again Susan & Dusty)

My trivia team is improving as we have won twice now – once for daily trivia and a win in music trivia, a surprise for all of us. We were able to name every song but 1 and about half the singers...

Our evening dining mates are enjoyable. 2 solo ladies from Seattle and San Francisco area, a couple from Scotland and a couple from California. The food has been good but nothing spectacular. Our waiters are both from Indonesia named Made` and Aldi. Service has been excellent and most evenings we are having such an enjoyable time we are the last to leave the dining room.

Tomorrow is a sea day and I am participating in a Quiz Show with an unknown partner. You know me, I am always up for a game! Our next port is Cambodia – until then, cheers!