Once again it was really nice weather, we seem to have left the cold and rain far behind us. Time to move on to the next Beach… We are on the son of a beach ride. The route that we have just ridden, from the North down, is called the mountains and beach route. I wanted to combine the best of both of them and I think that it was a success. Next stop was Mui Ne. This is a long palm tree lined beach favoured by kite and wind surfers. Wind conditions being excellent here. Mui Ne is also famous for it’s white sand dunes and lakes. There are also a spectacular set of red sand dunes here as well. The ride there was really good, if not hot. The weather is getting hotter now. There were two routes that I could take, one was inland over the mountains and the other one was the “son of a beach ride”. I had done a lot of mountains and now it was time for the beaches. The coast road turns out to be okay but by no means spectacular. Being built up most of the way it just offered glimpses of the sea. Coming into Mui Ne was good. Roads were wide and good and loads of sand dunes. But also loads of resorts. The sea front is built up with a massive amount of apartments and resorts. This is a famous beach town. Favoured by the Russians and the Chinese. It is a long sprawling settlement. With sandy beaches on one end to sea wall on the other. But there are a massive amount of restaurants and accommodation on offer. Majority of the restaurants were seafood. They were also full every evening. The seafood here is famous.
Coast road to Mui Ne
Road to Mui Ne, sand dunes
Road to Mui Ne, sand dunes
I wanted to park the bike up and be able to visit the attractions in my shorts, sandals and tee shirt, so it was off to hunt down a tour. I managed to find a good one. Sharing a jeep with two other Swedish girls, the tours were all by jeep with 4 people. If you are alone, you end up paying the whole jeep. First stop was the Fairy Stream, this is a natural wonderland on the borders of Fantasy and Reality. It is a gentle flowing stream of red and orange water.
Fairy River Mui Ne
Hiking the Fairy River Mui Ne
Hiking the Fairy river Mui Ne, note the man with the snake….
It winds it’s way through different landscapes. From lush green jungle on one side, and towering red or gold sand dunes on the other side, to fascinating towering sandcastle like structures, formed by the wind eroding the red clay. The only way to view this is to wade down the stream barefooted. The streams bed is sand. This place has an enchanting beauty all of its own. I spent a fantastic time hiking the Fairy Stream. Click on the like named photo album to get an idea, link here under.
Fairy River Mui Ne, wind erosion in the rocks
Hiking the Fairy River Mui Ne
Hiking the Fairy River Mui Ne
Hiking the Fairy River Mui Ne
Then a stop at the local fishing beach. Here the boats come in bringing their catch. The fish is sold on the beach or brought to the market. Once again round boats are used, they resemble large washing up basins. They are also referred to as Basket Boats. Their origin is thought to revert to the early days of French colonization. The French imposed a tax on boats, so the Vietnamese fishermen built large round wicker baskets that were also, coincidently, able to float in the sea, they became fish baskets and not boats. You really just gotta love the Vietnamese. The ones that go further out to sea have an outboard engine. On the fish market I have seen species of maritime life that I have never seen before.
Basket Boats of Mui Ne
Training for the Paris Dakar…
Species of maritime life that I have never seen before…Fish market Mui Ne
Species of maritime life that I have never seen before…Fish market Mui Ne
Rainbow steps from the beach to the street Mui Ne
Mui Ne fishing fleet
Then the sand dunes. I had seen these on the way in. We went first to the White Sand Dunes, about 30km outside of Mui Ne. This is a vast open area of desert. I hired a quad at the base, and he took me to the top of the dune, and in true Asian style…. Flat out, he went fast. Once at the top you have a panoramic view of the whole desert. On one side is a lake. There were also quads there taking people down to the lake. Believe me this is useful. Walking in sand in the heat is just not on.
White Sand Dunes Mui Ne
Quads on White Sand Dunes Mui Ne
Lake in the Desert, Mui Ne
White Sand Dunes Mui Ne
White Sand Dunes Mui Ne
Camels of White Sand Dunes Mui Ne
Then back to the jeep and on to the Red Sand Dunes, just outside of Mui Ne. Here we had to climb up to the top. The dunes are a really nice red colour. This is due to deposits of iron ore. The sunset was nice. Kinda nice and peaceful to sit and watch the day end. I had rented a little chalet and met some nice people. A young Russian couple living in Vietnam. He was a famous windsurfing instructor, and travelled where the work was. Nice lifestyle.
Red Desert just Mui Ne
White Sand Dunes Mui Ne
Sunset at Red Sand Dunes Mui Ne
Sunset at Red Sand Dunes Mui Ne
Sunset at Red Sand Dunes Mui Ne
But Saigon was calling, and I had to listen. I was now on a time scale. I decided to ride to Saigon up over the mountains via another former French hill station called Da Lat.
Leaving Mui Ne
Once away from the coast the weather got cooler but not cold. About 3 km outside of the centre of Da Lat the heavens opened and it just rained and hail stoned. Really heavy. I had to dive into shelter as visibility was zero. Also had to put on the wet weather gear. Finally found a nice hotel and settled in. Da Lat is another hill station built and favoured by the French in the early 1900s. It contains many examples of French architecture and is situated around a lake and a golf course. It is known as the City of Eternal Spring. It is renowned for its agriculture and horticulture. Vegetables, fruits, roses and orchids are the main crops grown. Temperatures remain between 14c and 23c all year round.
Fuel stop, mountain road to Da Lat
Now this is a civilized little rest stop mountain road to Da Lat
Saw this one parked up, mountain road to Da Lat
Parked up in Da Lat
Sheltering from the rain Da Lat
Who is watching who?
The next day I went to visit the Thien Vien Van Hanh Pagoda. This is a really nice little Zen monastery set in the city. It has a really beautiful gold statue of Shakyamuni Buddha who is sitting in the lotus position raising a lotus blossom in his hand. The statue is 24mtr high and 20mtr wide.
Thien Vien Van Hanh Pagoda Da Lat. This is a really nice little Zen monastery set in the city.
Thien Vien Van Hanh Pagoda Da Lat. This is a really nice little Zen monastery set in the city.
Gold statue of Shakyamuni Buddha, Thien Vien Van Hanh Pagoda, Da Lat
Thien Vien Van Hanh Pagoda Da Lat
Thien Vien Van Hanh Pagoda Da Lat
Night Market Da Lat
Night life in Da Lat
Then it crashed down with rain again. Seems to be normal here. The rain is really heavy and can go on for a few hours. Officially the rain season is May to October, but it seems to be early. Went back to the hotel to shelter. From here it was a short hop to Saigon, that will be the next post.
If you would like to see some of the sights then click on the like named photo album, link below. But first get yourself comfy, make a nice wee tea, grab a packet of biscuits and click and enjoy.
South Vietnam 28-03-2024 TO 01-04-2024
Thank you for reading the posts, liking and commenting. Thank you for sharing the journey with me. I appreciate it. My real time location is Pattaya, Thailand.
Tạm biệt tạm thời nhé, Vietnamese for Bye Bye for now