So after two wonderful weeks in Cambodia, I headed across the border into Vietnam and took a (rather crazy) ferry ride to Phu Quoc Island. The ferry ride was rather crazy because half the ferry was occupied by tourists (Vietnamese? Chinese? not sure) wearing orange hats and obsessed with sitting in assigned seats. At one point an argument broke out between three women in the group. The third woman got up to move seats and the other two women started spitting on her! (I caught some of the cross fire). The two spitters were held back by two other women in the group, while the third woman remained incredibly calm, despite the saliva being hurled her way. When the ferry arrived in Phu Quoc, some of the folks in orange hats were pushing and shoving their way down the aisle to get off the boat--even before we'd docked. One guy was climbing over seats to get to the front. I started to wonder if Vietnam had always been like this and hadn't noticed... Nah, like I told my new German and French friends who sat wide-eyed in amazement: "I've never seen this before. This isn't typical for Vietnam."
I swear I've seen this photo on a postcard somewhere...
Thankfully Phu Quoc is your typical island paradise. For one, it's pretty quiet. Sure, the main town has a lot of neon and karaoke, but there's not much honking on the roads and it's pretty dead after dark. You can hop on a moto and travel 20-40 kilometers to the south or north on red dirt roads hugging empty beaches and feel like you've got the island to yourself. You can also head inland and explore lush green jungles and look for monkeys. Indeed, Phu Quoc is a lot more laid back and relaxed than anywhere else I've been in Vietnam.
fishing boats along the empty beach
a very large piece of driftwood
yet another stunning scene
looks like a nice spot to stop for a while
forest walk
the view from the beach chair where I spent the majority of my last day on the island
I stayed four nights in Phu Quoc. I had only planned to stay two, but it was impossible to get a flight back any sooner to Ho Chi Minh City. Since I had showed up right at the end of Chinese Lunar New Year and right in the middle of tourist high season, it was difficult to find ANY room that was available. I lucked out and found a basic little guesthouse near the ocean (overpriced, but it beat sleeping outside--especially since it rained at night). In the end, I'm so thankful I got to explore this little island before the big hotel chains and Lotte Marts move in. They'll never compare with the sunsets.
