19th Day (2nd Day in Mui Ne)

Breakfast was from 7 to 9 am so we had to wake up "early", but it was good because then we had the whole day before us to do all the things we had planned ! First we went to the red sand dunes, which were about 5 km from Mui Ne, so it was a nice motorbike ride. When we arrived we were very impressed : These red sand dunes were just next to the road, and apart from them (still they were very big!) the rest of the landscape was green from the vegetation and blue from the ocean ! The moment we arrived, a bunch of kids ran towards us and offered to rent us some "sledges" to slide down these dunes. But we didn't do it, it was already hot enough and we just wanted to have a look around. We took some pictures and the girls wrote love messages to their boyfriends on the sand and I had to photograph them ! Then Carlijn found a huge stick and from far away she looked like Moses, it was very funny !

It was already 11 when we went down from the dunes and we were feeling very hot so we decided to return to the hotel first to cool off, have a swim, and have lunch. After that we took our motorbikes again and drove a lot further this time (the white sand dunes were about 35 km from Mui Ne!). On the way we had to stop a few times because there was something wrong on Melanie's bike. Also, we passed a few men who were charging some wood on a chariot, and one of the men laughed very hard when he saw us three on motorbikes. But maybe 500 meters after that we had to stop again, and a little while later the same guy passed us by with his motorbike pulling this huge chariot, and he was starring at us for so long that he lost control of his bike and had a little accident about 50 meters from us ! It was hilarious and served him right. We went to help him but he didn't want it, and a few hours later when we were driving back, we saw a big pile of wood at that same place !!

Well apart from that event, we drove further and finally saw a beautiful lake and just behind it : the white sand dunes. It was also a nice ride down there, but pretty dusty and challenging with all the sand on the road ! But we finally arrived and it was so beautiful and most of all, so unexpected ! Suddenly we were walking in the Sahara ! And just a few meters from it was a beautiful blue lake with water lilies and every thing ! We took a lot of pictures (and also very funny ones with the letters HIV in them - yes even if we're traveling we're still thinking of our project!), it was great ! After that there was a possibility to ride some ostriches, and I was very tempted until I saw the ostriches, which didn't look in a very good shake and not happy either, so we went straight back. The ride back was just as gorgeous as the first one, and we came back at 5pm exhausted, but very happy ! We had a swim again and then dinner, and did some work for our project, and well after that nice evening I had to take a night bus to Ho Chi Minh City at 1am ! But the ride was really nice and the bus didn't have any seats but bunks, and so I could sleep until 6am when we arrived in HCMC with the sunrise !!