Following the thrilling beginning of my Vietnam journey, I was keen for several peaceful seaside days. I recognise many will regard this detour as questionable. Plenty of magnificent destinations in Vietnam likely surpass Vung Tau. Yet those acquainted with me know that the sea dominates my existence. During stressful moments, the sea provides me solace. Since we lacked the time for the roughly 5-hour journey to Mui Ne, we selected the nearest alternative.
As it turned out, Vung Tau resembles a smaller-scale Australia. Numerous retired Australian expats were residing or vacationing in the area. The Australian presence was evident through restaurants serving Australian cuisine and architecture reflecting contemporary Australian design. When my Crohn's chose to surface during this leg of the trip, I was grateful to access familiar meals that wouldn't cause complications.
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| Not particularly elegant in 89% humidity and 38C conditions but then again...Straya! |
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| Cruisin' smooth across the sparkling waves |
A great deal of the holiday was devoted to unwinding along the shoreline. Although it wasn't necessarily the most stunning of Vietnam's beaches, it offered respectable swells, pleasant sand, and balmy seawater. The drawback to visiting Vung Tau in the quieter months was that we'd cop a downpour around 2pm every afternoon. I'm not referring to gentle showers—I mean pouring rain and I can't even make out the opposite side of the road rain. On the bright side, there weren't many visitors about, so there was heaps of excellent beach space to choose from.
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| Beach walk |
We did plenty of exploring on foot around the island, moving between various bars throughout the day. On our second day, we decided to visit the colossal Jesus statue. An absolute must-see attraction in Vung Tau. After that we strolled across the peninsula's outer edge. It's evident that Vung Tau is an emerging tourist destination in Vietnam, given the extensive number of new hotels under construction. Though many new hotels are rising, I reckon Vung Tau will retain its charm as a smaller town.
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| Can I live there please? |
True to form, rain caught us unawares, so we ducked into a local Australian pub for sustenance and beverages whilst we waited for the downpour to ease (we weren't entirely comfortable with taking taxis at that point). During this visit, we spotted a sprawling shopping precinct alongside what looked like a theme park. Regrettably, time didn't permit us to check out these interesting finds.
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| Fishing boats along the shore |
Visited Vietnam before? Tell us about your favourite spots in the comments section below!
Till the next time...
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