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A Beach to Die for: Shell-Shocked in Central Vietnam


I’m big into beaches; I’m serious about sand. 

I do “seashore” better than shuffle-board champion, South Florida retirees with white hair and metal detectors.   I do it so well, I pee sea, even when land-locked in Kentucky in the dead of winter.

I’ve been lucky though, beach-blessed, if you will.  In recent years I’ve strolled some of the best beaches in the world.

In Vietnam, for example, a long thin country with an entire eastern border exposed to the Pacific—we saw striking stretches of sea and sand, adjacent to magnificent mountains that are a far eastern extension of the Himalayas. 

But, by far, the best beach we visited hugged the country’s central shore, south of the UNESCO World Heritage town of Hoi An in Phu Yen Province.

So, today—a photographic tour of one remote beach in this region .  The images, I think, speak for themselves.  Hope you enjoy————————

If you could visit any beach in the world, where would it be?

28 thoughts on “A Beach to Die for: Shell-Shocked in Central Vietnam”

  1. Thanks for transporting me to a different place. Was feeling so weird and miserable right now…..looking at these beauuuuuutiful pictures went a long way in perking me up.
    Whoooeeee, that’s a lovely beach. Wait, I think I’ll scroll back up to look at it again.
    Ok, back now. Apart from the action-packed waves and the rocks, I really liked the serenity of the periwinkles floating in that urn.
    The shells reminded me of the time we spent a month on Paradise Island in the Maldives. That was one idyllic place….I could definitely go back there.
    I think I love most beaches. The out of the way ones are just that much more fascinating though. I live right next to the Arabian Sea by the way, but the beach near my house is not that great. We have plenty of amazing beaches further away especially along the Makran coastal highway….
    And you have given me another great idea for a post!

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    • How cool that you live near the Arabian Sea. I would love to see photos of that. And I would totally adore seeing photos of the the Maldives! Yes, yes, Munira–I vote for some beach posts!

      I agree the urn with flowers was lovely. They were freshened every morning. Such a serene touch!

      Hang in there today, my friend. By the time I type this, it should be closer to a time for eating and drinking in your part of the world. Is it at sunset that you break your fast?

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      • I’ll get to work on something beachy 🙂
        Yes, sunset is the time to break the fast…..it’s past midnight now and I finally feel a little ‘normal’. Can’t believe I’m going to subject myself to this repeatedly! How masochistic can we get, right?

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      • Yes, it does seem semi-masochistic, actually. I’m wondering how what seems like a semi-extreme religious practice would be adopted by non-religious people for cultural reasons. I think there is something about your part of the world that folks in the US just don’t get, and I’m so curious to understand why.

        Have you also ever considered doing a post that explains Ramadan to those of us in the West? You could call it something like “Ramadan 101” or “Ramadan for Dumbies.” Do you know the “___________ for Dumbies” books? I think a post called “Ramadan for Dumbies” would catch a lot of readers’ attention. It’s even a great book concept–maybe.

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      • Darn–I’m so sorry, Munira! I had that happen to me earlier this morning when I was commenting on someone else’s bolg. It’s really irritating if you have taken the time to respond in detail! I’ll catch up with you later——————–

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  3. Beautiful pics Kathy! If I could visit one beach, I guess it would be….a beach in Phuket, Thailand. I have always wanted to go there and the beaches look amazing.

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  4. It is indeed a beautiful beach. You also need to come to Australia, we have gorgeous beaches. I grew up beside the sea at Main Beach on the Gold Coast. It had to be the best place in the world to grow up. We now have a place just a block from my old house where we go occasionally. There are 2 post on my blog about Main Beach if you are interested.

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  5. I’ve been to a lot of beaches in my day, and I’m impressed with both the beauty of the Vietnam beach – and the solitude. Looks like you had the entire place to yourself! Great collection of shells, too.

    I was most impressed with the black sand beaches on the Big Island of Hawaii.

    If I could pick any beach in the world? St. Tropez – as much for the surrounding atmosphere as for the beach itself.

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  6. I got to walk a couple of beaches in Viet Nam along the South China Sea. I wanted to find shells for gifts, so the kids in the family I stayed with ran up and down the beaches with me, hunting shells. It was a joyous activity.
    Thanks for the beautiful photos.

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  7. We’re lucky to have some lovely beaches where I live in New Brunswick too, Kathy (both fresh and salt water ones). Growing up in Southern Ontario, we went to a Provincial Park called The Sandbanks. It was great fun “jumping” the waves of Lake Ontario as they came in to shore.

    Hugs,
    Wendy

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  10. Wow, Kathy. Now I reallly really really want to go to Vietnam. It is high on my list. If I was able to sometime go, how many days would be sufficient and where should I go? It is hard now with young kids as I need the help of my Mom and husband to watch them. Last year, I did 17 days away when I went to Nepal and that was the most I’ve been gone before my mom lost her mind! Anyway, I really hope to visit Vietnam someday…..oh the travel bug, how it always burns within my soul!

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    • Vietnam is a gorgeous country, for sure. And, goodness, I understand wanting to travel. I have it pretty bad myself. I’d say if you can be in the country for two weeks, you can see a good deal. But, of course it will take at least 24 hours to travel each way. I definitely prefer Hanoi over Ho Chi Minh City/Saigon. But don’t go to Hanoi in the summer–it is miserably hot and humid. And by all means don’t miss Halong Bay, which is stunning.

      You should try to go, for sure. We can talk about more via email, if you like.

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