Christmas in Nha Trang

I took off for Nha Trang on the 18th of December for my Christmas break with Diep and Megan.  So much happened in that one week, and everytime something new happened, I thought I should get this in my blog.  Well, I am finally at a time where I can update this blog and now all of those thoughts are quickly spinning down the drain, with me unable to stop the flow.

I decided that I would deliberately slow things down this time, offering to let Diep do whatever it was she wanted, as long as it didn't always have to involve me.  It worked out well and I read my way through Stephen King's Just After Sunset with great relish. We were in Nha Trang with another family. Diep and I have known this couple for about 15 years and we happened to be in Nha Trang at the same time.  Diep was able to spend time with her friend and I was able to spend some time with the husband.  The couple has a daughter a couple of years younger than Megan and they played well together, too.

If one gets the opportunity to go anywhere they want in Vietnam, and their primary objective is to relax, I personally believe that Nha Trang is THE place to go.  It is very international and the people are about as friendly as they get in this country.  The hotel rates are more than reasonable and the levels of service span the gambit from roughing it, to 5-star accommodations.  Being a seaside town, the seafood is excellent.  And, if you don't care for seafood, there are plenty of other options.

I feel fairly refreshed after the seven days in Nha Trang, and I am now in Saigon.  Saigon is right up there with Nha Trang as far as places to go in Vietnam.  We plan on celebrating New Year's Eve here.  I talked to Diep about one of my goals before I leave Vietnam, and I think I can get her to go along with me... of course, it will be hard for her to stick with the training plan.  I am working out the broad strokes in my head, but it may be that this time next year, Diep and I will take a bicycle trip from Hanoi to Saigon during the Christmas/New Year break.  It should be somewhere in the way of 1200km (800 miles).  A real goal would be to cover that distance in 8 days... which would be AWESOME, but with Diep, gear and proper hydration as well as factoring in my aged arse I am looking at around 15 days including break days.  If that goes well, I might ask Diep to let me do the following year at a century a day pace.

I know I have some other resolutions I need to make, but I will start with the easy ones and work my way into the harder ones that have to do with character flaws and bad habits.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from Saigon.