Mui Ne Fishing Boats

“The beach is beautiful, but it’s all rich kids and kite-surfers,” a traveller had told me when I’d asked about Mui Ne, a popular beach town in Vietnam.

 

“What if you head away from the beach?” I pressed. He shrugged noncommittally, “I don’t know, I don’t think there’s anywhere else to go.”

 

When we arrived in Mui Ne a couple of days later, we were pushed out off the tourist bus onto a strip full of sunburnt rich kids doing backflips into flashpacker hostel pools and kite surfers hurling around on the ocean.

 

Within seconds we had thrust a few dong into a local’s hand and were off away from the strip on a pair of cranky bikes. The November sun slammed down on our backs as we cycled and cycled along a long, endlessly straight road. I collapsed, begging my boyfriend for sun tan lotion and aloe juice. I slathered myself white and gulped away like an Inuit who’d been stranded in the desert.

 

Finally, we pedalled it over a hill and we amazed to see a serene harbour with hundreds and hundreds of fishing boats. Little blue tubs bobbed near to the shore, gathering in their tangled nets. We sat on a brick wall, watching the sun go down and the fisherman come in. There is always somewhere else to go it seems.

 

CharlieonTravelCharlie is a travel blogger, freelance writer/editor and house sitter taking an alternative path across the world. She writes about ethical and budget travel as a couple. You can read her stories at Charlie on Travel.

 

Want to see your picture featured on our Sunday Snapshot segment? We’re now accepting guest submissions! Just send us an email with your photo and a brief description. We’d love to have you!

Like what you see? You can see all the Sunday Snapshots all in one place!