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| The boat docked after a night of fishing |
1. "Where to go in Hue in summer?" "To the beach," I answered two faraway friends who had just landed at Phu Bai Airport. The city welcomed Hue lovers with a scorching heat. However, as Hue addicts, every summer, when temporarily saying goodbye to schools, classes, and students, they immediately scheduled a date with Hue.
Temples, mausoleums, and citadels are no longer strange to the friends who choose Hue to return to every year. I took my friends to visit all the temples, and mausoleums, come up the mountain to drop by the pagodas, drift on the Huong River to contemplate the sunset, go down the lagoon to welcome the dawn, come up the mountain to camp and hunt clouds... Sometimes, I myself wondered "Where to go in Hue?" when my friends set foot on every corner from the countryside to the city. But then they answered themselves. Those landscapes, those people are all novel to them each time they meet. So the new and old landscapes are all beautiful. Eating strange and familiar dishes is all delicious.
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| Small crabs |
This time, I took my friends to the beach to spend the night under the early summer moon. One friend is from Vung Tau, and another is from Binh Thuan. For years, they frequented the beautiful beaches of the homeland, but when hearing about camping at the beach, they got excited.
Tan My Beach (Quang Ngan Commune, Quang Dien District) welcomed us with golden sunshine like pouring honey. The road to the coastal village passes the rolling sand dunes and houses along winding alleys full of blooming flowers. On the treetops at the corner of the village communal house, flocks of swallows sang loudly in a patch of the sky.
At 4 pm, the boats lying on the white sand started to quietly leave the shore out to the open sea. The men of the coastal region had sun-tanned faces, but their eyes were bright when looking towards the sea, they got on the boat in hope of a night of bumper sea harvest.
In the pale sunlight, we enthusiastically immersed ourselves in the blue water, letting the cool water disperse the burning heat of summer, and wash away all the fatigue. Sunset at sea was truly the most beautiful and sweet moment. The blazing sun quietly sank behind the poplar trees; a corner of the afternoon sky suddenly radiated dark red. The deep blue sea also dyed the sky red. The loud sounds of laughter were carried away by the waves, fading away in the afternoon wind filled with the scent of the sea.
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| Dawn on the sea welcomed |
I recalled Ms. Nguyen Mong Linh excitedly said that her group decided to stay at the beach overnight so that the next morning they could immerse themselves in the cool water once more, before getting back to Ho Chi Minh City, ending the enjoyable trip.
Ms. Linh said, “I really like Hue because of the green of trees here. Wherever I go, I see green trees, getting the summer sun much cooler. In the clear mornings, I wandered under the tree-lined streets in the Citadel, leaving many emotions in my heart. The biggest gain in this trip to Hue was to reach this wild yet beautiful sea. The sea was clean; the water was blue, and the undulating waves were just enough to play. I loved the seafood here, both fresh and delicious, especially at the reasonable prices”. Linh said that she would definitely return to this place if she had the chance to come back to Hue.
2. The restaurant owner named My with a kind figure is simple and generous. Miss My has a small homestay that was improved from several empty bedrooms. Knowing that we were spending the night at sea, she smilingly said that mats were available in the restaurant, which could be brought down to the beach to lie on. "The wooden bed is in the corner over there, you all can sleep comfortably (of course, there’s no charge) if you are not used to sleeping on the beach." My zealously told us when she turned off most of the lights, leaving only one for us to use, and then returned to her house across the road.
We lit a campfire and grilled fish and squid prepared by My. Most of the squids were caught by her husband at sea the night before. Some potatoes and cassava were brought from the city, giving off a sweet aroma on the wood fire at midnight. The guitar strummed; the melodious singing fell on the lonely moonlit night.
Farther away, the waves murmured like accompaniment to the song echoing in the dead of night. The night sea here was not shattered by the noise of the karaoke loudspeakers. The sea here only had wind, waves, whispers, laughter, and the guitar sounds blended with the sweet singing against the night sky.
The faster the night fell, the brighter the moon was. The fire gradually went out. We had set up tents to prepare to stay overnight on the sand. In the dim moonlight, a few groups of friends wandered around to catch small crabs.
I recollected what Ms. My told me before leaving, “Remember to go catching crabs. It‘s really enjoyable to make a campfire, catch crabs, then grill them with salt and chili.” We brought flashlights and joined the crab-catching group. The flashlights were flickering; the laughter was joyful, and the footsteps were excitedly chasing the crabs. The fun ended, but there was no crab grilled with salt and chili as the restaurant owner in the coastal area had advertised. We released the crabs back to the sea; their long legs ran as fast as lightning, and in a moment they disappeared into the darkness.
Unlike the peaceful moon in the countryside, the moon at sea was a bit magical and mysterious. Far out in the sea, the waves inlaid with dim moonlight were bobbing. On the horizon were thousands of lights from squid fishing boats sparkling like distant stars. We lay on the sand, heard the sand rustling under our backs, heard the breath of the sea wafting in the breeze. The bright lonely moonlight in the sky seemed to wash away all the worries of life.
3. The small café right on the alley to the sea opened very early when the sporadic sound of chickens was crowing somewhere behind the houses. The woman smiled brightly like the dawn just breaking in the sky. Her rough, calloused hands quickly smashed ice, and stirred coffee; she chattered excitedly to faraway visitors. We bought coffee and hurried back to the beach to contemplate the dawn. A few friends ran barefoot on the beach, trying to breathe the fresh air before returning to the city. Fishing boats that had been drifting offshore all night came ashore. How fresh the fish and squid were! Several groups of tourists lit fire to grill fish, enjoying a rustic morning on the beach.
Leisurely sipping coffee, sitting and contemplating young people struggling to capture beautiful moments with the sun, contemplating the cheerful fishermen with the boats of fresh fish that have just docked. Looking at someone's smile spreading to the corner of his eye, I suddenly realized the peaceful dawn on the sea.
My friend exclaimed, "It’s enjoyable to stay overnight on the beach in the moonlit night. Only until now have I experienced it.” I smiled, promising to see her in the next moonlit season. If predestined, together we will come back to the sea and moon here.