Ohhh...Viva Da Nang!

Sorry, but I can't hear "Da Nang" without picturing Robin Williams in the movie Good Morning Vietnam as he belts out the (slightly twisted) Elvis lines "Ohhhh Viva Da Nang! Danang me Danang me, why don't you get a rope and haaaang meeeee?"

That being said, I made it to Da Nang this morning after passing through yesterday. Huh? Da Nang lies on the road (Highway 1A) between Hue and my new home for a few days, the seaside town of Hoi An. While I half-heartedly hoped to see Da Nang (if for no other reason than to put a face to the song), I really had no desire to stay there - it's just a big port city lacking much of interest. But once I settled into Hoi An, a glance at the map showed that Da Nang was just a quick 30km up the road. Why it took our bus over an hour to do that same stretch, I'll never know. At any rate, I decided to rent a motorscooter for the morning, follow a smaller coastal road up to Da Nang, have a quick look around, and cross Da Nang off my "been there, done that" list forever.

In the end, the drive to and from Da Nang was the highlight. Hoi An and Da Nang are separated by a thirty kilometer-long swath of coastline known to most of the world as "China Beach." China Beach or, more specifically the stretch nearest to Da Nang, was one of the largest in-county R&R locales for American troops during the war. It also spawned a mediocre 1980's tv drama that is better off forgotten. While the beach wasn't spectacular, I can certainly understand why soldiers looked forward to their few precious days there. Today, however, there is little to indicate that the Americans were ever here - save for a neighborhood of rundown beer joints, roadside restaurants, and the occassional massage parlor that are all probably in their 20th incarnation.

At its very northern edge, China Beach is bordered by "Monkey Mountain," a name given to it by the American troops getting plastered in its shadow. They thought its twin, jungle-covered peaks resemebled a monkey's head with ears. Its a beautiful mountain overlooking the coast and I managed to follow a recently built road across its face for quite a while before I was turned back by security guards at an ultra-swanky hillside resort. In fact, that's one thing I saw plenty of during my entire drive - construction of high-end luxury resorts. I can only imagine that in a decade (or sooner) there will be wall to wall resorts from Hoi An to Da Nang, which would be a shame, especially for those living in the few small villages currently scattered along the coast. But I can see why people are drawn to this part of Vietnam - great weather (so I hear), beautiful scenery, laid back beach-town vibe. There's money to be made and the developers are swooping in fast.

After crusing around Monkey Mountain, I made the obligatory pass through downtown Da Nang -getting lost more than once along the way - before heading home. Had a mini-crisis when I realized that the fuel gauge on my bike was stuck. I knew I was getting close to the bottom of the tank but had no idea how close - I managed to coast back into Hoi An on fumes. In the end, I'm glad I saw Da Nang and China Beach, but I'll be sticking to Hoi An for the next few days.