Oh Sweet Jesus

Today’s three hour journey began bright and early — 6am to be exact. We were off to a small Vietnamese resort town and made the world’s most interesting rest stop along the way; shockingly, the station lacked both toilet paper and above-ground toilets.

Finally, we made it to the widely-anticipated resort town of Vung Tao. After exiting the bus, we mentally prepared ourselves for the 1,000+ step journey ahead. The heat, which seemed hotter than usual, added an extra level of intensity to our adventure up the looming mountain. After climbing the brutal 800+ steps, we finally reached our destination: a giant Jesus statue.

The climb through Jesus was almost as rough as the initial journey up the mountain (it was MUCH hotter than I anticipated). However, the view was absolutely incredible. Standing on either ends of his arms allowed for an indescribable picture of the town and surrounding coast. Despite the hard climb up, every minute was worth it and I can’t believe I got to discover it with my own eyes. Afterward, we ate the most fantastic dinner at The Imperial Hotel’s restaurant. We dined on crispy crab dumplings, soup, Thai fish, spicy beef, shrimp fried rice, vegetables and some deliciously fresh fruit. It was an amazing meal unlike any other food we’ve had prepared for us in Vietnam before.

Afterward, we spent the afternoon lounging around and hanging in the pool / beach area. Despite the storm later, it was nice to have some time meant for relaxing and enjoying the scenic view of Vietnam. Unfortunately, my skin was not so lucky. Wish me luck as I spend the rest of my night applying multiple layers of aloe!