Phu Quoc Island

Friday, January 11th, 2013
Yesterday morning we had a great breakfast here in the hotel. Although we wondered what it would be like it turned out to be really good. There’s a wide variety of food including a lot of traditional Vietnamese dishes like pho and curried chicken etc. along with eggs, bacon, crepes and lots of fruit. Breakfasts are included in our package.
After breakfast we walked north along the beach but you can’t go very far before the beach ends near Duong Dong town. Then we walked south for a couple of kilometres. We finally quit just past the Pearl Farm although the beach continued out of sight. It really is Long Beach. Back at our resort we got a couple of towels from the man and laid out on the lounge chairs in the sun. The ocean is really nice and warm so we were in and out a lot. Finally, we came back to our room for happy hour with beer and wine that we’d bought at a little store across the street the night before.
Before dusk we headed back to Oc Tam restaurant, this time for calamari, crispy rice noodles with vegetables and grilled shrimp with chili sauce. And of course Saigon  Red beer. Even though the head waiter recognized us from the night before and greeted us warmly, he still tried to shortchange us by 20,000 VND ($1) when we left. This has been tried on us a few times now in different shops and restaurants. You really have to count your change. It’s all very smiley and friendly and they’re very apologetic about making a mistake when you catch them but that doesn’t stop it from happening.
After dinner, we walked into town toward the Night Market and saw a wedding on the way. Some weddings are held in little restaurants right beside the street. The music, whether live or recorded, is at ear-splitting volume. Then the karaoke starts.
The Night Market is a long stretch of street near the harbour, blocked off for temporary restaurants and shops. There is any kind of fresh seafood available. There are rows of plastic tables and chairs set up under tarps, all brightly lit. We may go down there for dinner tonight.
This morning after breakfast we walked down the beach to the Pearl Farm. We had flip-flops, shorts and shirts in a pack so we got dressed and walked up the hill to the retail centre. It’s quite big with a section explaining all about how pearls are farmed and then an extensive display and retail section. Just like the airport, this place is set up to handle hundreds of tourists at a time who just aren’t here yet.
On the way back along the beach to our hotel, we saw the fishermen bringing in their nets, the ladies selling fruit and we stopped for a massage. For 80,000 VND ($4) each, we both had a 45 minute massage. It felt great. We just came back to wash all the oil off before we go out to the beach again. We’re going to find a little beach restaurant for a bite to eat for lunch.
Finally, we’re caught up on our travels.