World Tourer - Travel Information - February to March 2013


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23rd March 2013

There is only nine days until I move out of my apartment and start the trip back to Australia (Australia Photo Gallery) - I will be staying in a hotel in Nha Trang for two nights then catching the overnight sleeper train to Saigon followed by a night in Saigon and then fly on to Bangkok. After a night in Bangkok I will catch the bus down to Jomtien (for three nights) to say goodbye to old friends - followed by another night back in Bangkok before flying to Sydney via Kuala Lumpur. I will be back in Sydney on the 11th April.

I am not sure if the name of the apartments where I am staying (Five Continents House) got their name before or after the tennants moved in but I have been here for a couple of months now and during that time the following nationalities have stayed here - Vietnamese, American, Indian, Australian, English, German, Danish, French, Canadian and possibly others. Considering there are only 14 apartments I think that is quite a variety.

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11th March 2013

I have just created a photo gallery of my favourite photos (in no particular order) contained within this site.

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9th March 2013

Today I took the bike on another trip out of town - this time I went North to Dai Lanh a small fishing village about 80 kilometres from Nha Trang. I also went part way down the Hon Gom peninsula which starts just before Dai Lanh. Dai Lanh is in a small bay with mountains on three sides. There is a good beach that is sheltered from all the seasonal winds. I may return for an overnight stay if I get the chance.

There was also a sheltered (and empty) beach at the begining of the Hon Gom peninsula where I had a quick swim. I did not go all the way down Hon Gom as I think it is around thirty kilometres long and mainly sand dunes.

Hon Gom Sand Dunes  Rice Harvester  Ox Cart and Rice  Grazing Water Buffalo

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8th March 2013

Yesterday I went for another walk around the local area covering about ten kilometres in a circular loop. I am still amazed at the diversity of the area - within a few kilometres of my apartment there are rice fields, mountains, banana plantations, marble quarries, market gardens, cattle farmers, a duck farm, water buffalo, a large river, hot springs with mud baths and several graveyards (both Buddhist and Christian).

Today I did the same circuit but on my motorbike and took a few photos.

Christian Graveyard  Marble Quarry  Rice Fields and Mountians  Cai River and Mountains

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2nd March 2013

Due to health (and Australian residency issues) I have cancelled my plans to retire to Hurghada, Egypt and therefore my apartment is for sale - it is due for completion at the end of next month and is on schedule.

The apartment is 28 Sqm on the third floor of the Tiba Paradise Complex (actually five floors above the pool) overlooking the swimming pool - For sale at the bargain price of $15,000

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23rd February 2013

Today I rented a motorbike and went exploring - I found the beach - it is several kilometres South of where I am in Mui Ne (in fact the beach is not really in Mui Ne but between Mui Ne and Phan Thiet) and there is only one small public access point with no sign (and easy to miss) with all the beachfront developed with "Resorts". The beach itself is OK except very (very) windy at the moment (normal for this time of year) - good for kite surfing but the sea is too rough for swimming and lying on the beach would result in a good sandblasting.

I went all the way into Phan Thiet (the main town of the area) which is a small fishing town to the South of Mui Ne. I then rode all the way to the North of Mui Ne but did not bother going to the sand dunes (that are a local attraction) as the wind was too strong.

Tomorrow I leave by bus for Dalat up in the mountains. Final thoughts on Mui Ne - I wont be back.

Mui Ne Beach South                     Mui Ne South Beach Resort                Mui Ne Fishing Boats        

        Mui Ne Beach - South                  Private Resort Beach (No Entry)     Fishing Boats Sheltering From The Wind

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22nd February 2013

I arrived in Mui Ne this afternoon after a six hour bus trip from Nha Trang (it's only 250klms) - the trip is scheduled to take five hours but we had a flat tyre and had to have a wheel change.

My first impression of Mui Ne is not good - there is really no accesss to the beach which does not really matter as there is no beach - just the sea and then a sea wall and hotels etc. I have had a look on a map and there may be some beach further South. I plan to rent a motorbike tomorrow and have a look around. I already know this is the only time I will be visiting Mui Ne - No beach - no atmosphere, bad restaurants.

Mui Ne Concrete Beach

Mui Ne Beach - The Concrete Beach

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13th February 2013

So much for the "Happy New Year" - Yesterday it finally happened - something I have been dreading for years - my backpack got stolen whislt I was in swimming at the beach. I was trying out a new beach that is the closest to where I live and is used mainly by locals rather than tourists. For some reason I was even more relaxed than normal (which translates into less observant and less aware). I did not see anything - it would not have made any difference as I assume someone just ran onto the beach, grabbed my bag and ran back to their motorbike and rode off. There was next to nothing in it that would be of any use to the thief but many things of value to me - my glasses, my driving licences (Australian and Vietnamese), my credit card and the keys to my flat and bike - my new 350,000 Dong mobile phone was also in the bag (I had only made one call on it).

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10th February 2013

"Chúc Mừng Năm Mới" (Happy New Year) from Nha Trang - Today is the first day of the lunar new year, the year of the Snake. This period is known as Tet in Vietnam and is the biggest festival of the year. It is relatively quiet here in Nha Trang - whilst there are many decorations etc. along the streets there do not seem to be many "Activities" (I belive it is mainly an annual "Family Reunion" similar to Christmas or Thanksgiving) - the shops are closed and the traffic is heavy but other than that it is quieter than normal (and certainly no comparison to the crazy period of Songkran in Thailand)

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