Rub-a-Dub-Dub... Lots of Griffith's in a Tub!

Sunday, January 15, 2012
Posted by Tootsie
Tootsie here:
Here in Nha Trang, there is plenty for the family to do! We got 2 nights here and made the most of it. Our hotel was the happening place, as mentioned in previous posts. There was more breakdancing last night and other fun games like a balloon blowing contest and people wearing blind folds, spinning around, and then trying to run to and break a clay pot with a stick.

The morning was spent at the beach where most of the group squealed with delight at the fun to be had playing in the shorebreak and Tootsie just squealed with anxiety. One feeble attempt at getting past the break ended in a minor wipeout and that was it for Tootsie! She was quite content sitting or walking along the beach taking pictures of everyone else's occational wipeouts. The water is warm-- comparable to the waters in Hawai'i. NOTHING like the cold waters in California. It was a little cloudy at first, but then the sun came out. Most of the gang were "kissed" by the sun pretty good, even though Tootsie went around barking orders for everyone to lather up in sunblock for fear of the evil Melanoma Monster. (Yes, even she got burned too.)

We found the KFC again and introduced The Travel Agent's family and our bus driver (now dubbed cousin Hai... explanation will come later) to "American" food. The food did come with mashed potatoes that did taste like the real deal... however there was only a spoonful, literally a spoonful, of the stuff.

After lunch at KFC, we were off to the mud baths with a quick stop at the Ponagar Ruins. The ruins were built by the Champa people (an indiginous group, comparable to the Native Americans. They were taken over by the Vietnamese, but there still some Champa's living in the area today) between the 9th and 13th Centuries.The ruins are comprised of many little shrines that have alters inside.

(TwoLively's note: I took a picture of my plate of fish--3rd row picture. Doesn't the onion garnish look like a chopstick? I wondered where my other chopstick was! I will NEVER get this chopstick stuff down!)

Next on the agenda was the Tam Bum Mud bath/Spa. After much deliberation between The Travel Agent and the mud bath staff, we "settled" for the VIP package (about $19 per person.) Most of us were not coerced into wearing the little stretchy terry cloth shorts and shirts that the spa offered, but Monte was all about wearing the terry cloth! We had to get two tubs-- one for four people (Group A: The Travel Agent, her brother and sister, and "cousin" Hai aka the bus driver), and one for six (Group B: Monte, Oz, Glinda, MarcoPolo, TwoLively, and Tootsie). We were led up some stairs (that had some sharp rocks, some big, bulky, smooth rocks laid into the cement to "massage" your feet--owww!) to the top of the mountain. There, Group B piled into a tub the size of a twin-sized bed full of mud the consistency of chocolate milk. (It was a Willy Wonka dream come true!) Then we got buckets and poured mud all over each other. Talk about family togetherness. Tootsie remarked: "This is reeeaaallly awkward but kind of awesome all at the same time!"  After awhile (we were told to soak for 20 beautiful mud-filled minutes), the mud started to settle in the bottom of the tub. It was all slimy and slippery! Next to us, there was a clay pot full of water and it had a dipper in it. We were using it to pour over our faces to get the mud out of our mouths. It wasn't until one of the next stops that we noticed a sign next to the pot and asked The Travel Agent to translate. It said "This water is for your feet." Yep, we had been using the foot rinse water on our faces! Next, we rinsed off in some mineral water showers. Trying to get all the mud from all those crevices turned out to be quite a challenge. (A challenge we are still fighting this morning!) There was mud in places we didn't even know we had! After the rinse, we were led up the ouchie stairs again to more tubs filled with mineral water. After we got into the steaming tub, an attendant dropped in giant scortching tea bags, and told us to steep for 45 minutes. There were bananas, green oranges, and pineapple to completment the bottled water (some brand that looked like it said "Vodka) we were offered. After 45 minutes of that, Tootsie was getting a little loopy and luckily it was time to move again.

We walked down the owie steps to a building where we were each taken into a room for what we thought was a foot and shoulder massage. Tootsie was asked her age, told she was very beautiful (as the masseuse patted Tootsie's face) and then asked if she was married. When Tootsie said no, the masseuse asked "You marry Vietnamese boy????" which was followed by another no from Tootsie. The masseuse also whispered in Tootsie's ear.... Tootsie misunderstood and thought the masseuse was telling Tootsie to take her top off. Turns out the masseuse was offering "You like full body massage? You tip me, ok?" Apparently they are not supposed to do that, thus the reason for the whispering. Meanwhile, in MarcoPolo's room, his masseuse told him how handsome he was and asked if he was married. The masseuse even said our own Marco was as handsome as Ho Chi Minh (because he had a goattee too)! After the massages we all went down to a warm swimming pool and a hot waterfall. The very last station was pretty much a cold human car wash. Glinda, Tootsie, and TwoLively walked right in but got trapped by a guy who blocked the exit. Just as an aside, this fella was rockin' some fancy white shorts that were completely see-through. All-in-all it was a great experience and we all felt completely relaxed and drooled all the way back to the hotel.

LATER:
Tootsie was the only one who brought a camera into the mud baths (someone had to document the muddy-squishy-uncomfortable-family-togetherness). Due to the steam that was experienced during the time spent steeping in the tea, Tootsie's camera took one for the team, and the flash stopped working. A couple days later it started working again...all on its own! It must have been a "sweet baby Giant Jesus" miracle!