Mie Ne all the way!

Up early, 6:30am to catch the sleeper express. Must be ready by 7:30am in the hotel lobby. Only to be picked up at 8:30am and slowly make our way threw the city gathering a few more foreigners and locals along the way. A trio had hopped on our bus by mistake so we pulled over, they had to give up their seats to allow the driver to give them to a few locals. They were allowed back on minus one seat(bed). We stopped for fuel and watched the bus driver and gas attendant have their smokes (while fueling). Steve told me not to worry as diesel is not as combustable as gas, thank God!!!! We finally started to leave the city, then oh yea we had to actually back up and turn around, drive for a few miles and wait for "the princess" to board. We were told to be ready as the bus will not wait for anyone, they must of meant just for the foreigners. On the road(promptly) by 9:30am. The guide book says it`s a 2 to 3 hour trip but it actually took 5. I'm learning patience, dammit!!! I really am. Now for the bus experience. At first it took me some calm talk to not feel cl0sterphobic as the bus is set up with three rows, stacked two high, and we were on the bottom (focus). If you are Asian or small in size the seats or should I say coffin beds would be fabulous, however both Steve and I are not. After an hour our asses went numb from having our butt cheeks hanging over the sides (not a pretty sight)! We were happy at hour 2 and a half to be able to get off and stretch. The bus drivers here are crazy, they pass on corners or pass whenever they feel like it . It`s the we are bigger than you syndrome. We arrived safely at our destination, Mui Ne(thankfully)!!! Checked into our cute hotel located on the beach with a little pool all for 25 bucks a night. Rented moped, checked out the area, and Steve registered for kite boarding school. Later we drove out to some villages and felt that half of the people are happy to see us, and the other don`t really care.
It's so funny here as everyone beeps their horns, mostly buses. On our way home one night Steve had a beep off with a two local guys on a bike, the other guy started then Steve would copy his beep then the Vietnamese guy would honk three times and Steve would repeat . They would then honk 4 times and Steve would do the same, so funny. The guy on the back was laughing so hard we could see his shoulders heaving. This went on for most of the trip home. These are some of the priceless moments that we will fondly remember.
Day two in Mui Ne and Steve`s first day at school. He met up with his instructor Drew from Whales who's lived here for 5 years and is quite the knowledgeble character, lots of local insight and an awesome instructor! Steve's smart and progressing quickly through the program. He's mastered the basics including body dragging, relaunch, and self rescue. My program includes proper SPF application, photo ops, and correct beer consumption.
Explored and found the red sand dunes. Here we were greeted by a group of children, all offering us the use of their sleds (magic carpets) , but as we got to the top we realize it's only a 20 foot drop so we declined. Steve talked to kids and encouraged them to go to school and get real jobs. The dunes were small in size but quite impressive. The sand felt soft like baby powder. Huge expectations are slated for this area as infrastructure is in place for future developments. On the fine dining scene we went out for some great East Indian food. Upstairs at the restaurant where we sat there was a full on Russian birthday party in progress. This was for the children, toys galore, lots of music, and even traditional East Indian dancing. We were guessing that the Indian mother of the birthday kid married a Russian, they had the moves down and were groovin!
Up before 6:ooam and went for a beach walk . Lucky to catch fishermen and a few women out using their skills while netting. Very interesting and hard back breaking work. What a process they go through so we can eat all this delicious seafood!!! Once they pull the nets in it becomes a sorting process, crabs into one basket, squid into another, larger and smaller fish separated into piles then off to the market they go, or to the fine eating establishments. Well we must hit the beach, it's back to school for Steve.