Surfing in Vietnam? Da Nang
Da Nang 2/28/2025-3/8/2025
Coming off the thrill of a life time, our sites were set on relaxing and recuperating. Da Nang is a bustling beach town on the center coast of Vietnam and holds the title of prettiest beach, in Vietnam. We took an hour an a half flight from Hanoi to get there. Coming off a long sleepless night, we arrived to our hostel early and killed time by grabbing coffee and food.
I could barely contain my excitement of being so close to the beach that had some waves. After lunch we still had two hours to kill so we walked to the beach. On a whim, I rented a 8-foot foamy and caught some little ankle biters for an hour. I was so happy to be out in the water and sunshine riding whatever. Camila on the other hand seemed to be pretty worn out at this point.
The room we had booked was occupied but ended up working out in our favor because we got the family suite which had two beds and a killer balcony. As the day went on we walked to a coffee shop and then to some surf shops to see what the board rental situation was all about. After some careful contemplation, I settled on this one shop called LST surf shop. It was there where I would rent a board for the week in Da Nang.
The first night Camila wasn't feeling so good so we were just gonna rest as we thought this was just some exhaustion from the loop and the long travels. We stayed in and didn't do a whole lot. The next day she had an on and off fever and her ear was bothering her which had started on the loop. Most of this day was a lot of chilling and the occasional food run. What was nice about this place was there was a full kitchen we could use and so many markets within walking distance so I made breaky for us every day. It was typically bacon scrambled eggs, passion fruit, guava, nice brown sourdough toast, and the most delicious yogurt I have ever had. Never got tired of it.
Camila was feeling a bit better in the evening so we went over to this dragon bridge to watch the dragon breath fire. We had our little drinks and watched the dragon bridge do its thing. Pleasant evening.
On the third day Camila was really starting to feel sick and fever was stronger and higher. We consulted Dr. Chatgpt on what the symptoms could mean and what actions we should take. We made multiple runs to the pharmacy to get stuff for congestion, fever reduction, and what ever else Dr. Chatgpt told us to do.
I am very thankful for my parents for giving us money to go out to a really nice dinner. We wanted to go to this restaurant called pink salt because they had this plater of different meats, potatoes, sauces, fruits, you name it. I guess I had been craving steak cause once I saw a photo of this platter I was sold. We had to push back the dinner a few nights cause Camila was sick. We settled on the fourth day and Camila was determined to feel better for this dinner. And she did. We went out to pink salt dressed in our nicest clothes that were in our back packs and had ourselves a wonderful night out. While ordering, the platter that I was so fixated on usually serves two to three people but we also wanted to try the pink salt signature pasta which was pink. When we were ordering our dinner, our waitress tried to stop us by telling us this is too much food and maybe we should just order the platter and wait on the pasta. We ordered the pink salt pasta first as our appetizer and then the platter for the entree. She proceeded to come up to us two more time to tell us that this might be too much food. Neither of these dishes stood a chance. We licked the plates clean. And just to show off, we both got desert. We ended the evening with a nice walk on the beach. The beach at night was cool because big floodlights would be on to illuminate the sand and water. A lot of people would just be walking or chilling on the beach at night. Night beach vibes were outstanding in Da Nang. Such an incredible meal and a wonderful date. Thanks mom and dad.
I was feeling great which was nice because it would be ten times worse if we had both been sick. Most of my days were filled with surfing or running and trying to take care of Camila. Speaking of surfing, there was a swell that was coming in for the last two days of our time in Da Nang. I spent a lot of the week just getting my arms back and doing some conditioning in preparation for the 5-7 foot incoming swell.
One of the days, I decided to rent a motorbike and just ride around for the day. I made sure Camila had everything she needed for the time I was to be gone. She was very encouraging of me to go out and do stuff during our time in Da Nang so at least one of us could enjoy it. During this day, I road along the mountainous coast line that looked like Hawaii. Saw some monkeys taking food from a tourist. Went to some secluded beaches. When I got tired of the coast, I decided to head an hour into the country to check out this waterfall. I did a little cliff jumping, climbed the waterfall, and befriended some of the local kids. These local kids had to be between the ages of 10 and 12 but in between there bouts of playing, they would all collectively post up on a rock and take a serious smoke break. I wanted to take a photo but thought this would be too intrusive. Instead, we took a selfie together. I wanted to get back at a reasonable time so I said farewell to my new friends and headed back to Da Nang.
That night, Camila's fever had reached an all time high and we needed to do something. In hindsight, we probably should have just gone to the doctor way earlier but we went to a pharmacy and Camila explained all of her symptoms and everything she had taken so far. They prescribed her antibiotics and probiotics.
This was a big turning point of the week but Camila had another two days before the antibiotics really started to make her feel better. I felt so bad cause she was so sick and really going through it. I'm talking ear infection, sinus pressure, pink eye, and the fever that never seemed to break as the cherry on top. I think finally on our second to last day she was feeling a bit better but there was a huge surf swell I had to take care of. I went out super early to brave these waves basically by myself. No one else in the water. The swell period was pretty short which meant there were a lot of waves in a short amount of time which also means a shit ton of duck diving to get out. I managed to sneak out a couple good ones. It wasn't until the second session after breakfast were the waves started getting good. There were also more guys out which made it easier to tell where I was in the water. I dropped into some sweet lefts. The waves would break like an A-frame but would quickly fade away not leaving much of a face to do turns on. But the drops were all time. Then by the later afternoon session all of the power in the water seemed to have vanished and it was back to little ankle biter waves. The following morning, the size was back and bigger. This was our last morning in Da Nang so I wanted to really make it count. The sea had other plans. I could not get in a good position for a single wave. The current was sweeping me south. I would get to the outside and be waiting for ages then I would go for one, miss it, then the set would be rolling in and I would get hammered. And wind up ever further south. I did not get a single wave that day. I sure did get smoked.
Camila was feeling better but not 100% percent. We were able to begin our trek to Hoi An. What was supposed to be a relaxing week by the beach quickly turned into the complete opposite for one of us.
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