Morning in Danang

Wow...sometimes it's quite hard to get a good connection to post photos...so back to Danang...while going to the hotel my "knowledgeable" taxi driver was showing me the sights of Danang...like China Beach...the pagoda and the sculpture store. I was getting to feeling that I was being taken a for a ride. So when we pulled into the Sandy Beach Resort...which looked like a 5 star htoel I wasn't surprised...after all if you read the guide books...they give you these little tips. So trying not to think the worst I showed my driver the business card again for the hotel and he was visibly upset with himself for going to the wrong place. We turned the car around and wandered down some of the streeet which were building new apartment complexes and came upon the Sunny Beach Hotel...which looked a little more my style for this trip...Nice but functional and a bit on the cheaper side. After all I don't need to stay at Jack Nickolas's hotel anyway...:)

 

Right...so the driver asks me to pay....and expected to full fare...for the cab ride. It's quite consdierable and almost as much as my stay at this hotel...so I decided to stand my ground. The cab drover throws a fit and apolo9gizes but still wants me to pay him the full fare. The hotel onwer comes out to help sort it out....but when I tell him i showed the driver the business card for the hotel when we left the airport he just laughs...and now he know this guy is trying to take advatnage....after a big debate...I only pay him half the fare and walk away...But this little disturbance is well worth iot once I enter the hotel. The hotel owned by a Mr Huy...was opened about two months ago. Mr Huy is a regular guy who decided to join to open up his own hotel in the neighborhood, he has been open 2 months. I take a standard room(15USD) and go upstairs. My room number 201...which seems to be my standard room number at each hotel is pristine and brand new...no one has even stayed in this room yet. It's that new...with lots of hot water and even coffee and tea...good internet for blogging...:)

 

In the morning, ....I get up early to blog...amd after i'm finished I start chatting over a Vietnamese coffee(coffee with condensed milk) with Mr Huy...he used to work for Vietnam Airlines and said he could check me in from the hotel for my flight and would call me a taxi. We sit at the local cafe next to his hotel while I wait for my taxi. He has a little daughter who is really shy, but it's Sunday and he tell me she's out of school. But normally he says she's in school from Monday to Saturday. Also he tells me that  kids can be put in school as early as 1 yr old for "busy" parents...wow that's early. We start chatting about my trip and what we spend most of our time talking about is futbol...footie....(not the Bears vs Packers:)) He tells me his favorite team is....Barca...(like everyone else) but he's been a fan for about 15 years...He asks me about my favorite team...and I say...Real Madrid...:) Somethings don't change...he also tells me he likes Chelsea....and of course I say Liverpool...:) Footie is something universal that everyone can talk about. He asks me if I ever saw Real Madrid play...and we chat about when I saw Real Madrid play Sevilla in 2004...:) Fun times..:)

 

He sees me off to the airport to make sure I'm taken care of..:)

 

The Buddha a China Beach

Mr Huy and his daugther