Mango Bay

So basically it’s paradise here.

The water is shallow and warm and calm and clear. If I walk out as far as I can while still touching the bottom, I can still see my feet just as clearly as my hands. There are little sand-coloured fish in the water near the shoreline and little sand-coloured crabs above it. It’s the perfect temperature, refreshing when you get in but not bracing, and the air is warm when you get out, so that you don’t start shivering on your way to your beach towel.

Along the beach there are deck chairs; if you want one in a good spot in the morning you have to go there pretty soon after breakfast. We got the last two left this morning. While I was reading there, a girl from the bar came down the beach to ask if anyone wanted drinks. This afternoon we sat above the beach in the bar and watched the sun set into the ocean, the only place in Vietnam you can do that.

This would be a great place to be a kid. You wouldn’t have to hassle your parents to go to the beach with you, because they could watch you swim from the bar. You don’t need cash if you want soft drink or ice cream, and if you feel like playing soccer or volleyball, you can get one of the staff to play with you. The posts of the volleyball net and the mini soccer goals are made of bamboo, as are the coathangers in our wardrobe and the dipper in the ceramic pot of water outside our door, where we wash the sand off our feet.

There are always heaps of staff around – you never have to look far for them if you need something – and they all speak excellent English, are cheerful and seem to be quite happy to be working here. We read in the book in our hut that most of them are locals, that they receive higher wages than those prevailing locally, that in the off-season they receive four months’ worth of English lessons, and that they have free accommodation and a creche for their children.

Last night the bartender introduced himself to us and asked what we like to drink; I said I didn’t like my cocktails to be too sweet and he delivered with an excellent and lime-y Pink Lady. After four days of being served enormous set-menu Vietnamese meals, it was a pleasant change to be able to order as little as we liked, though the girl did look at us a little oddly when we shared a main (we assured her we would order more if we needed to). Of course, it turned out to be more than sufficient when our free happy hour canapes were factored in.

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