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Vietnam Travel Diary #07: Visiting Po Nagar and eating a whole lot of Indian Food!

We had a chilled out morning and then got ready to head to Po Nagar Cham Towers. It was a really hot day, but it wasn’t quite as humid as Ho Chi Minh City, which was a relief! The walk from the apartment to the towers was about 20 minutes long and it was great to soak in the atmosphere of Nha Trang.

Nha Trang Street

Eventually we got to Po Nagar cham towers. Entry was 22,000 vnd each which is about 70p or $1. It was a really impressive site and the there were lots of people there, so I would definitely consider it one of the main tourist attractions in Nha Trang.

Po Nagar

Po Nagar

It was a really impressive site and as you can see it was surrounded with beautiful green trees. We looked around the grounds and found a gorgeous view of the river, the bridge and the fishing boats.

Nha Trang View

It was quite busy at Po Nagar, so it was nice to sit in the shade of the trees for a while and enjoy the gentle breeze and the gorgeous view! We also explored the surrounding gardens of the site.

Po Nagar Gardens

Po Nagar Gardens

After Po Nagar we went to Omar’s Indian restaurant which you can find by clicking here. I would 100% recommend this place! The restaurant was about a 15 minute taxi ride from Po Nagar. From the start of our visit we felt so well taken care of by the staff. I left my sunglasses outside by accident and our waiter found them for me and brought them in which was really nice of him. We were also brought cold flannels and these were great for us because we had been so hot outside. It was a small details but meant the world to us two overheated Brits!

We ordered the set menu which I believe was 150,000 vnd (about £4.90 or $6.40) for: papadam with chutneys, a starter of onion bhajis or samosa, a side of rice, a side of garlic or plain naan, one main course either chicken or vegetable, and a beer. It was all incredible! The beer came nice and cold and we had them in these cool golden beer mugs.

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The naans were HUGE and everything was delicious. Just be aware that it is very authentic in terms of spiciness. Even the chicken tikka masala (which is what we had) has a kick to it and is quite hot. If you prefer something milder go for a Korma or maybe a butter chicken. I would definitely recommend anything with chicken because this was some of the best chicken I’ve ever had in a curry!

Omar's Restaurant food 1

Omar's restaurant 2

We loved our meal and couldn’t believe how much food we got for 150,000 vnd, which is under a fiver in English money! I actually gave them a very similar review on TripAdvisor and their manager replied with a lovely message of gratitude. If you’re ever in Nha Trang I would definitely recommend stopping by Omar’s Indian restaurant.

We were pretty stuffed, so we decided to walk off the meal a bit and take a stroll along the coast.

Nha Trang Coast

Nha Trang buildings

We got back to the apartment and did a lot of people watching out of the window. We saw some kind of flag parade practising. There was a drummer playing a beat and a child playing a little symbol which was really sweet! It was a really interesting thing to watch. I’ve realised that people watching is one of my absolute favourite things to do!

Nha Trang Beach

Later we went down to the Vinmart to get snacks for our upcoming all day train journey the next day. Next stop… Da Nang!

To read my previous travel blog click here!

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Vietnam Travel Diary #06: An amazing Airbnb, a day by the beach, and a thunder storm!

After getting into Nha Trang station we hopped in a taxi and headed to the ‘Hon Chong Center’ to meet one of the staff members of our Airbnb host. It was so beautiful and sunny, and our taxi driver was listening to K-Pop, so this was a really happy and upbeat introduction to Nha Trang. We waited outside the Hon Chong Center for a little while and admired the surrounding area.

Nha Trang StreetThe area we were staying in was right on the coast, and it was surrounded by lush mountains and colourful buildings. When we got to our Airbnb we were amazed. Every room had a beautiful view of the coast and the surrounding mountains and islands.

Nha Trang Sea View

Nha Trang Bedroom ViewI sat by the window for a while just watching the fishing boats bobbing on the water. As you can see, the water was beautifully clear!

Nha Trang Sea View 2The apartment had a clean modern kitchen, two bedrooms, two bathrooms and a big living room with a large smart TV that had Netflix installed (always a bonus).  It also had a balcony with an air drying rack, and washing facilities! This meant that we could do all of our washing from the previous week for free! We packed light, so had only bought about 7-8 days worth of clothes with us that we had always aimed to wash during our stay. So having a washing machine was a massive bonus and helped us to plan ahead. We hung all of our washed clothes on the rack and left them to dry in the warm sun, which meant we had fresh, dry clothes within a few hours!

20180827_0712370.jpgAll the way up until the day of our arrival I had been chatting with the host, a lady called Mai, who was incredibly sweet and helpful. She allowed us the chance to check in early, and gave us a huge amount of information about the surrounding area; things to do, the cost of certain activities, taxi costs and journey times. She even continued to give us recommendations for our continuing journey after we left Nha Trang! This was our first ever Airbnb experience and Mai made us feel so safe and comfortable. If you’re at all interested in looking for accommodation in Nha Trang I would 100% recommend Mai’s place. You can find it here. We were actually sad that we only stayed there for a short time, and wished we could have stayed longer!

Since we got to Nha Trang so early we decided that we would make the most of the gorgeous weather and head down to the coast. The sea was only a 5 minute walk from our apartment, and we were so close that we could actually see our Airbnb from the beach!

Beach View 1The beach was absolutely stunning. We rented two sunbeds with comfy cushions and a big shady umbrella for 100,000 vnd (about £3.30). We ended up getting about 2 hours use of them and we thought the price was reasonable and it meant we had some shade and a place to leave our things.

Beach View 2The water was a beautiful greenish-blue. It was crystal clear and I could see small fish swimming around me. The water was calm and tranquil, and I spent a lot of time just floating in the sea and staring up at the beautiful blue sky. It was blissful. Truthfully, I could have stayed there for hours.

After about 2 hours we were ready to get some lunch. Since we could now take full use of a kitchen we headed to a local supermarket to grab some ramen, drinks and snacks. We cooked, ate and chilled out in the apartment.

As we were settling down to watch some Netflix the weather outside suddenly turned. The wind began to pick up and we could see the palm trees waving in the wind, and the sky suddenly clouding over.

Wind in Nha TrangIt began to rain heavily and then thunder. We felt so cozy and safe up in the apartment. And we felt fortunate that we’d headed inside before it started to pour with rain!

Rainy Nha TrangGrey Skies in Nha TrangWe decided it was probably best not to venture out in the rain and we’d luckily planned most of our sight seeing for the next day, so we just had a chilled afternoon. After that we headed out to find some dinner. We headed to a place called ‘Caleen’ which was right under the apartment block. It was primarily a coffee place but it also had a good selection of food.

CaleenThe decor was modern and clean, and it was a calm place to eat that didn’t feel too stimulating or busy. I had pork and noodle broth which was delicious, and some peach tea.

Pork and Noodle BrothAfter having dinner we headed back up to the apartment. The views of Nha Trang from our Airbnb were just as gorgeous at night. It was wonderful to be able to watch such a beautiful vista change from a day of beautiful blue skies, to an afternoon of rain and thunder, and then finally end with a calm and crisp night sky.

20180827_211115Although we didn’t do a lot of sight seeing on our first day in Nha Trang, we had a well needed day of rest and relaxation. We were able to do our washing, spend some time on a beautiful beach, re-charge, eat cheap and delicious food and generally take in the surroundings of an absolutely beautiful city. Nha Trang was already shaping up to be a wonderful experience.

 

Click here to read all about our experience travelling to Nha Trang on the sleeper train!