Trip over a beautiful mountain pass on the coast - again in a private car!
From Hoi an via Da Nang is not a very long distance but leads through a gorgeous coastal area. Between Da Nang and Hue is a mountain pass with great views of hills and the ocean. Unfortunately the modern need for fast highways prompted the government to build a tunnel through the mountains which does not offer any kind of sights. So the solution was to hire a car and head over the Hai Van pass.
On the way we drove through the marble mountains, which today are no longer exploited but the local town still has some leftovers and produces all kinds of souvenirs.
In Da Nang (does anybody remember the name from the Vietnam war?) has a large Cham museum with many of the statues and sculptures from My Son.
Later in the afternoon, after a lunch in a beach resort, we arrived in Hue. Hue is the old imperial city and was also a major French colonial site. Unfortunately it suffered greatly during the Vietnam war though much of it has been rehabilitated in the meantime. It is here, where so many people suffered greatly from the war, that I became aware of the Vietnamese ability to forget about the past and be content with the present.
Though I am no longer sailing regularly I continue using this blog since I continue to live on my boat at One15Marina, Sentosa Cove, Singapore.
This allows me to keep in touch with my friends and sailing friends without too many disruptions.
As for my background:
I was born in Switzerland [...]
where I grew up, went to school, then travelled through Europe, returned and attended school of social work. In 1954 I emigrated to the San Francisco, California. Here I learned to sail and love it and made the decision to retire on a boat.
I then worked as a social worker and administrator for programs for immigrants, families and finally the frail elderly.
I retired at 65 in 1993, moved onto my boat Dessert First and started cruising. First down the coast through the Panama Canal to the Caribbean where I stayed for seven years. Then onward and back through the Canal to the Pacific and finally to Singapore.
Information about SV Dessert First:
Type of boat: Corbin 39
Built by: Corbin Les Bateaux, Quebec, Canada
Year launched: 1981
Designer: Dufour
Construction: Fiberglass with Airex core
Length: 39 ft.
Width: 12 ft.
Draft: 5.5 ft.
Type of rig: Cutter
Furling systems:
Jib: Harkin
Main: Reef Rite, New Zealand
Auto Pilot: Alpha 3000
Watermaker: Spectra
Solar panels and Wind Generator
Auxiliar Engine: Yanmar 58
Life raft: Viking and dinghy