Nha Trang

**Photos for Hoi An are now uploaded. A nice man in Dalat got the virus off our USB. We were so thankful and he didn't charge us

Nha Trang is a beach town for Vietnamese and boy was it hot and humid. It was a so-so town and we were finished with the sites by 2pm and feeling like sticky fly traps but still happy we went.

We stayed at one of the few hotels we could find online in our price range but most of that is due to the fact that many hotels don't offer rooms to foreigners, at least from what we have heard. We woke up early in the morning and had a breakfast sandwich for $1 outside our hotel. It had egg, tomato, cucumber, and some type of mystery meat. After our semi-filling meal we rented a motorcycle and two helmet's for $7. I was skeptical of Billy's driving since he said he had only driven one once before but he can drive a 600hp Camero, I am sure he can handle a scooter.

Our first stop was for gas since the gauge was on empty but we took the long way down the waterfront and for $3 we filled the tank. WE continued south to the Vinpearl cable car, which is the largest sea crossing cable car at 3320 meters long. We thought we could just catch a ride there and back but they want you to buy tickets for the entire theme park. Think a Vietnamese version of Disney and Raging Waters. We passed and took off again on the moto for Hon Chong Promontory.

Hon Chong is a gathering of hundreds of boulders balanced precariously on top of each other. It was a beautiful stop to enjoy cold water and an ice cream for $2.

On our way south we checked out the Cham Towers. The towers were built between the 7th and 12th centuries, and although they have been partially rebuilt, they still are just as spectacular inside and out. I went into the shrines since I was dressed in proper attire and all were filled with women making offering and praying. Unfortunately we couldn't take photos of Uma, the largest female statue, who is believed to be in a state of Shiva.

Next stop was the market. What we are finding is the markets are more expensive than the street vendors and really cater to locals with sales of shoes, housewares, fruit, etc. I tried to bargain a woman for laundry detergent from .50 to .25 since I bought it for that price one day ago, but she wouldn't budge. I told Billy for that price he can wear his clothes an extra day. One thing the market does have is good food vendors. We ordered soup, which I thought was crazy being that it is hot and humid, but Billy couldn't pass it up. I didn't care for it but Billy thought the seafood spam on top mixed with mystery meat and broth was his favorite thus far. I just ate the mystery meat and noodles, the spam substance was to fishy for me.

After the market we went west to Long Son Pagoda and the Giant Buddha. The monks in the monastery were sleeping so we had to tip toe with a guide to the sleeping Buddha and to the giant Buddha. There was no entrance fee to see the Buddhas but they asked for a donation of $5. Billy worked him down to $1, since that is all we had left and he gladly accepted. We hate to bargin for things like this but we were out of Dong (Vietnamese currency). The lying Buddha and Giant Buddha were both spectacular and visible from the road which made finding it easy since our travel book didn't give a street address. On our way out of the monastery the monks had woken from their nap and we were able to see the red brass Buddha on her lotus throne.

By 1pm Billy and I were thirsty and hungry again so we stopped off the beaten path at a smoothie shop. The woman didn't speak any English and our Vietnamese isn't very good so we drew a picture of the type of smoothie we wanted. She understood our drawing of a pineapple, and although she and her friend laughed, Billy was served what he said was a great pineapple smoothie with yogurt. I sipped water and tried for ice cream but their machine was broken.

Our last stop was the Nha Trang Catholic Cathedral built in the 1930's.

We returned to our hotel and were frustrated by the Internet so we headed off for an Internet cafe. Most of the kids there were playing games or living their virtual life in Sim.

For dinner we walked to a hotel a few blocks away Billy had read about and had dinner on their roof top terrace. Although the food was so-so the views of the city at night were worth it. I stopped off for another ice cream and we returned to the hotel for a peaceful nights rest. The elevator wasn't working and the repair guys were in our hall so we were able to see the inside of a Vietnamese elevator shaft. Construction is really a fascinating experience outside of the US.