A day of getting to know beautiful Da Nang.
Our hotel definitely provides a room with a view. Waking up to blue skies, a white sandy beach and a clear turquoise sea just can’t be beaten.
We are in Da Nang at the height of the Vietnamese summer, however due to the intense heat, it’s over 36c today, the beaches remain relatively empty. It’s only later in the day when the temperatures start to ease, that the locals arrive and take a dip in the sea. In the meantime the only people we spotted sunbathing were Europeans desperate to soak up the sun and top up their tans!
Da Nang is a growing city and the number one place where Vietnamese people want to live. As a result the skyline is changing at pace and we witnessed dozens of new developments along the seafront, many aligned to hotel chains such as Radisson, Hilton and Holiday Inn.
Our walk along the beach brought us into contact with local fishermen, whose small circular boats sit on the sand, they still wear traditional dress as they fish as they have done for hundreds of years. All this against a backdrop of a burgeoning modern city skyline.
Having witnessed the locals fishing on the beach, we walked less than a few hundred yards to the main beach where palm trees and beach clubs sit and you have lifeguards doing their best impersonations of their Aussie counterparts!
Nowhere in Vietnam is changing as fast as Danang. For decades it had a reputation as a quiet provincial town, but big changes are ongoing. Strolling along the Han riverfront we saw gleaming new modernist hotels, and apartments and restaurants are emerging. Spectacular bridges now span the river, notably the Dragon bridge which we crossed when arriving from the airport a day or so ago.
The entire Danang Beach strip, where our hotel sits, is booming with hotel and resort developments.
After a walk around the neighbourhood, grabbing lunch, sorting out our laundry (now fresh and clean again) we decided to book tonight’s dinner on the hotel roof to watch an international firework festival between China and Finland. Yes you’ve read that right, Da Nang is hosting the festival where countries from around the world compete to show off their skills.
Before then Andy had an appointment at the hotel gym to get his 5k run fix.
Our evening dinner appointment on the hotel roof proved to be a night to remember. Perched on the 25th floor with unspoilt views across the Da Nang skyline we settled into our dinner of tapas and unlimited drinks for the next 2 hours.
China was first up with a 20min display of their firework finesse. It was very impressive, especially to the uninitiated, but did go on a little longer than expected and we struggled to understand how they are judged….!
Next up was Finland, similar format, although not surprisingly it wasn’t as impressive as China, who’s reputation proceeds them. Well that’s what we were told by one of our fellow dinners who knew a little more about the whole affair.
As we sat and watched this spectacle we had to smile, if someone had said this morning we would be watching competitive firework displays we would have never believed them, as we didn’t think such a thing existed. Anyway we can add this to the crossed off bucket list!
Next up was Finland, who performed well, but our enthusiasm had started to diminish and instead we focused on the fast flowing wine and beer included within our dinner package.
By just after 10pm it was all over and we strongly suspect China had the victory in the bag.
As things came to a close we found ourselves chatting to a friendly couple from Japan, the guy was English and originated from Accrington, but has lived near Tokyo for close on 30yrs. He was soon giving us useful tips of places to visit and things to do when we visit in October. As well as the offer to stay in one of their chalets in the mountains of Hakuba.
A fun night all in all and a real experience to watch competitive firework displays!!!
@travellingwiththeateam 