Phu Quoc Island

After leaving Can Tho we headed south for three hours by bus, then boarded a boat for a three hour trip out to Phu Quoc Island which sits at the very southern tip of Vietnam. Phu Quoc was paradise.... an unspoiled tropical island. . . . Once there, we didn't want to leave. We stayed for four nights. We could have stayed right there for the rest of the trip.

The island is quite large, 30 miles long, maybe 20 miles across. . . . beautiful beaches and little fishing villages surround the edges, in the middle are mountains and jungle. We didn't meet any monkeys. Phu Quoc has only one real town, complete with a market and fishing fleet.

I don't have much to write about. We didn't do much, just kind of hung out. We went motorbiking around the island the first day. . . . my first time on a motorbike. It was easy. I'd like to buy one when I get home. It was a good day. Everywhere we went children chased after us screaming hello! hello! It was fun. Lisa is a soldier. She fell off her bike a few times but kept right on going. . . . After a long day of biking, clouds rolled in followed by a short but intense storm. The dirt roads turned to mud slides. Suddenly motorbiking became treacherous. Again, Lisa, while attempting to go up a hill, slid in the mud, and fell, with the bike on top of her. . . . she got burned, but, like I said earlier, she is a soldier. As it turns out, every western tourist in South East Asia has a motorbike burn on the inside of their right calf. I haven't gotten mine yet. . . . Its still early. We'll see. Its impossible to avoid using motorbikes to get around in this part of the world.

Aside from that, no great adventures or stories, just hanging around our guest house, right on the beach, exploring the island, and generally relaxing. We met an awesome girl from Holland, who also fell off of her motorbike, some cool peeps from France, and a few locals. They all made for great company.

The view from our guesthouse porch:

Merritt from Holland



Our Guesthouse beach:

Motorbike Adventure:






Typical Island house by the beach:



Fishing Village:






Meeting some friendly curious locals:


This is what a gas station looks like on Phu Quoc:

We said hi to this lady, she smiled, and pulled this squid out of a bucket, then preceeded to pose for photographs. . . . people here are some of the friendliest I've ever met.
Duong Dong, the only real town on the island: