Too Many Speedos

Seriously, boys shouldn't be allowed to wear them. All the Russians here have like 4 different styles and it is disturbing. Oh and a Russian girl about 14 years old keeps walking around with out a bathing suit top. Pedophiles would like it here.

Breakfast at the resort was really good with egg fried rice, steamed buns with pork, congee, and other delicious foods. We decided to check out the little market in the village down the road after we ate. The market was amazing. It was the dirtiest, smelliest shit hole you have ever seen, but it was perfect. No other tourists, so we got a lot of stares. Women were chopping up chunks of meat and fish left and right, flies swirling around, baby turkeys running up and down the aisles of durean and papaya. It was very small and cramped, and I am pretty sure I would have typhoid by now if I hadn't had that vaccination, but I really did love going to it. We bought some fruit that was half the price here versus the city. Hieu from the resort had mentioned some BIG FISH but we only saw little ones. Not sure if we understood him correctly.

We spent the next few hours swimming and playing at the beach. I got badly burned of course. No matter what, my Scottish genes have to emerge in the tropical weather... where the heck did all the Italian in me go? So now I have a bad sunburn AND I am actually bruised from too many massages. I literally am bruised on my arms and legs. Ok, maybe I am just very sore to the touch but I don't want another massage for at least a week. : )

After lunch at the hotel, we took a jeep tour of the sand dunes here. We were planning to just go to the closer red sand dunes but the hotel staff said thewhite dunes that were further away were much prettier, and they were right. Driving out there in the jeep was pretty terrifying, but we made it safely, avoiding cows crossing the road, and the driver's sudden sharp turns to get around slow motorbikes and pedestrians. Only for a moment was I worried that he was driving us to some secluded location to sell us into the Cambodian slave trade. Only for a moment.

We get there and of course a child wanting us to pay him to use sleds approached us. He wanted 50,000 VD and I knew you were only supposed to pay a dollar or two for the sled so we bargained and got our way and then we didn't have any small bills so Alyssa said, It is your lucky day! And gave him 50,000 VD. Annoying. Because then our little 11 year old guide Thien started crying when we were leaving saying something like "Big boy needs money to (big boy referring to himself), that money was for sled not for me" and he literally walked away crying. And since I am a bitch and I know it's all a trick to get us to pay more, I didn't want to give anything, but Alyssa found more money to give him. He said it wasn't enough! Uh yeah this is ridiculous. But Alyssa was afraid he would go back home and be beaten with out any money so she gave him an American dollar and said it was worth sooooo much. Ahaha. Whatever.

But anyway, we did hike up the dunes and go sledding. Sand covered my sunburned legs which was not very pleasant. Sledding down sand is fun until it attacks your eyes and you are left blind. Fortunately we were only left half blind. Some people took ponies up the dunes but I knew better than to get on one of those crazy things. Plus the horse would probably beg for money when you tried to leave. Oh and there was a little monkey chained up to a stall. I had never been that close to a monkey, from what I can recall. It was fascinating but really freaking sad. Monkeys should not be chained! Poor thing.

We stopped at the red dunes on the way back and again were bombarded with money requests. Girls actually just walked up to us and said Money? Money? with nothing to give us in return. It's sad, but it's gotten to the point where I am just annoyed. Vietnam is amazing but everywhere you turn someone is begging for money or wanting you to buy something. And they are very very pushy. Especially the english speaking kids that know how to manipulate your mind and sweet talk. Clever little beggar children.

Dinner tonight was great. Both Kevin and Nhat separately told us to go to Ngoc Suong, a seafood place down the road. We tried last night but ended up at Ngoc Phuong. Same difference? Not really. The Suong one was 100 times better. We got buttered clams, fried prawns with salt and pepper, steamed crab with chili, more morning glory with garlic, and drinks and rice. It was a feast of delicious food for a little over $10. I would pay more at the Olive Garden. Crazy. The Russians eating next to us (literally, they are EVERYWHERE), did not know how to eat crab. It came and the woman was like.... um I am supposed to eat THIS? Can I order something else? What the heck did they think they were ordering? Especially when they asked us what we had ordered and it was a freaking crab. Oh and they showed us the crab before cooking it. What is with Asians and giving a live preview of your dinner? I don't want to become attached to my food, I just want it cooked and to eat it. That's it. I don't want to think of a name... I did think of a name. Connor the crab. Connor tasted great. Especially with the salt, pepper, chili, and lime sauce on the side. I will never eat shellfish with butter again.

Tomorrow morning it is back to Ho Chi Minh for our final night. Then THAILAND. Goodnight.