Nha Trang and Scuba training

I said goodbye to Hoi An the night before last and have now been in the beach town of Nha Trang in South Vietnam for 2 days and a night. I've been getting around in Vietnam by bus--$50 buys you a get-on-get-off ride from Hanoi all the way to Saigon via Hue, Hoi An and Nha Trang on sleeper buses but I'm learning each ride is a bit different. From Hanoi to Hoi An, it was more or less bunk bed style with each person having their own little Asian-proportioned rectangle with a pillow and blanket. I must say that in the states I'm always hard-pressed to find clothes in small sizes (especially on the sale racks), but here in Asia I'm blessed to be sized more like the locals because I can only imagine how uncomfortable long transit rides would be for taller people all folded up like. Anyway, the bus ride from Hoi An was a bit more intimate, with nary a separation between fellow passengers. Here's a shot of me with my bus mates to give you an idea of what an overnight bus ride can be like in Vietnam:


When I woke up in the morning, the guy to my left was mysteriously gone. Thankfully my wallet was not

So we arrived in Nha Trang early in the morning and of course were dumped in front of some guest house in cahoots with the bus company. Still too groggy (and stoned from the sleeping pill) to put up a fight, I checked in and took a nice snooze before heading out to see what the town has to offer. Basically, I just signed up for a PADI scuba diving certification course which started today and hung out at the beach. At the diving office I was warned sternly to be vigilant about keeping an eye on my possessions and sure enough, I witnessed an attempted theft.

It's crazy how fast it all happened. I was just sitting on a bench drying off a bit when I noticed a Vietnamese guy quickly bend down and toss a handbag that belonged to some snoozing French group to a fellow accomplice. I shouted "Hey!" but already running towards the guys was a beach security dude that smacked one of them right over the head with a big ugly stick! The thieves were both apprehended and tied to a lamppost while I assume the police were en route--I didn't stick around to see their ultimate fate:


Bad seeds


Lovely Nha Trang beach

After the beach, I went back to my hotel room, did my scuba training homework (requires quite a bit of outside work I'm finding) and then went to a nearby restaurant/bar where I played the worst, most embarrassing pool games of my life (OK, I still won every one, but I was ashamed nonetheless).

Scuba Training Day 1:

So I can't believe it's taken me 25 years to decide to get scuba certified. Having always grown up with a pool, I've been a fish since 3 or so and will take any excuse to play around in some water. My favorite things to do were to a) take some of my dad's free weights, hold them to my chest and just lie on my back at the bottom of the pool staring up at the surface for as long as I could hold my breath or b) fill my goggles with water and walk around on land with my eyes open, pretending like I was breathing under water. So it makes sense that being able to sustainedly breathe under water (albeit with a bit of cumbersome gear) would be a thrill and now after just one day of training (in just a swimming pool) I know that diving is going to be a blast and something I'll be planning future vacations around for sure.

My instructor is Vietnamese but speaks very good English and just one other girl from Dublin is in the 3-day course with me. I've heard it can be done for cheaper than the $300 I'm paying, but the center is 5-star PADI rated and seems top-notch so I'm satisfied. In two more days I'll have my certificate and 3 days from now will get my two free dives and then be off to Saigon!

In a way, I'm a bit sad that I'm tied up in Nha Trang for 4 days since it probably means sacrificing a trip to Dalat in the mountains in order to give Cambodia enough time, but it does force me to kick up my heels a bit since after the dive course of the day, there's not much to do aside from hang out at the beach and knock back some cheap beers. I have to be reminded sometimes that this trip is as much about totally unwinding and relaxing before 5 years of indentured servitude (a.k.a. grad school) as about adventure and seeing exotic locales.

Oh yeah, and for anyone that follows the pageant circuit, you'd know that Miss Universe 2008 was held in Nha Trang the last few days. Apparently rather than drinking cheap beer and playing pool, I could have been schmoozing with Roberto Cavalli at one of the hipper beach bars last night. Oh well, he probably would have spit on me anyway considering I've been wearing the same cheap-ass clothes for the last few days straight.

Alright, time to hit the books...first open water dives tomorrow morning!