A tale from Nha Trang...

We hired a scooter and asked directions from a local to some waterfalls just outside of Nha Trang.

Brad assured me earlier that he was a competent motorbike rider so I had complete faith. There was only one small hiccup, when he wasn't sure on how to start the scooter... The bike hire guy and I exchanged a nervous smile and prayed for the best.

We drove in the opposite direction to the falls for a good couple of kilometres in the busy Nha Trang traffic, too scared to do a u- turn.

When is the perfect time for a 25km scooter ride? Sure, some might say the afternoon and early morning are much cooler and better to avoid sunburn. Not us though, we set off at 11am, in the dead heat of the day. 36 degrees in the middle of the wet season, perfect biker weather... Right?!

We drove the coast road north of Nha Trang and the views were spectacular! Paddy fields to the left and ocean to the right. Having pulled over once to buy some water and play charades trying to get directions from a non - English speaking local (how do you make a waterfall with your hands anyway?), we decided we might well be lost.

We pulled over for some refreshing freshly squeezed sugar cane juice with lots of ice and worked out we were well off the map and would turn back. It was bloody hot and the thought of the beach back in Nha Trang was tempting.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, a gorgeous English speaking university student came and sat with us. He gave us directions and some local insight into the area of Nha Trang. We sat for ages with him chatting, he was really enjoying practicing his English and we were re-energized by his enthusiasm.

Next we stopped for some lunch at a random shack on the side of a road. No one spoke English here but we just pointed and rubbed our tummys a lot and ended up with a delicious bowl of pho.

Another game of charades ensued - one elderly man in the corner just kept saying 'Vietnam! Hanoi! Saigon!' amongst other words we didn't understand. It was time to whip out the Vietnamese language app on our phone - which they thought was hilarious. I told them their soup was delicious and that I didn't understand, in my best Vietnamese accent. What fun, and we hadn't even made it to the falls!

A few minutes later we were at the falls, which were amazing and had refreshing swimming holes under the jungle canopy. There were even tiny little fish that nibbled at your feet, very cute. We settled in for an afternoon of swimming and relaxing....

...Then the thunder started... Having not really experienced a proper wet season in Cairns last year, we were unprepared for what this meant and kept on swimming.

"Should I put the rain coat on the camera?" I asked Brad.
"Nah, it will pass soon," was his reply. And I agreed.

WELL, were we wrong!! This was real torrential jungle rain. We sheltered under a tree waiting for it to pass and then made a run for it back to the shelter. We had to wade back through the river and then sprint down a path that was now a river in itself. All the while the thunder cracked loudly and we could see fork lightning everywhere.

Luckily everything in our bag was completely dry - thank you, Kathmandu! We, on the other hand, looked like drowned rats and the locals laughed when they saw us appear.

Under the shelter we met another young boy who found the Vietnamese language app as amusing as the last people. We ended up being surrounded by a whole family trying to understand what we were saying. We laughed and gestured like crazy to each other.

We left in a break in the rain, having spent all of 15 minutes swimming in the falls. Slipping and sliding along the quiet village road made for a fun ride back to Nha Trang.

This has been our favourite day yet. Mingling with the locals - that's what its all about!