Impressed by artist Le Huy Tiep’s breathtaking oil-painting, Mien Trung, a foreigner makes an attempt to recreate the beautiful piece throughout his latest journey to Mui Ne.

“My hometown is the ocean,” explains artist Le Huy Tiep. With a profession spanning fifty years, the gifted painter’s work usually options varied beachscapes from throughout Vietnam. One in all his work, set amongst iconic sand dunes, is a surprising depiction of Mui Ne’s beautiful panorama. This portray impressed me to journey to the seaside city of Mui Ne so I might witness the attractive view for myself.

Le’s incredible panorama is seen on the Vietnam High quality Arts Museum. Supply: VNFAM

Entitled Mien Trung, Le’s portray is known as after Vietnam’s central area however celebrates all the nation’s idyllic 3,260-kilometer shoreline. The piece completely encapsulates the fun of strolling in the direction of the Pacific Ocean from Mui Ne’s mountainous dunes.

Within the middle of the portray is a broad-shouldered Vietnamese man, donning pink swimsuit and a conventional nón lá, shielding him from Mui Ne’s blazing, unforgiving solar. Coils of heavy rope dangle on his proper shoulder imbue the person with a way of journey. He’s taking his first steps on virgin sand dunes, undaunted by the tough terrain.

“For my part, the piece expresses the harshness of the central land,” Le defined to me through electronic mail. “In the meantime, the person expresses the industriousness of the folks in that area. I wished my work to debate the situation of a lonely one that dares struggle nature to outlive.”

Whereas Vietnam’s shoreline is beautiful, it comes with its personal set of distinctive challenges. Photograph by Nick Russell.

The remainder of the portray particulars the beautiful panorama of Mui Ne. Regardless of the seemingly empty area, Le features a refined steadiness in his work. A transparent blue sky within the higher left nook mirrors a peaceful, white cloudbank. The shadows of one of many dunes parallels the jagged, darkish rocks additional down the coast. A scrubby bush stands out of the textured sand within the foreground. Within the background, we glimpse a transparent, blue ocean and a inexperienced, faraway mountain. Each time I view this piece, I can nearly hear the mild crashing of waves and my thoughts is immediately put relaxed.

On each seaside I go to in Vietnam, I look for a similar magnificent view formed by Le’s paintbrush. My sundrenched days on the seashores of Dang Nang, Hoi An, Phu Quoc, and Cat Ba have been definitely memorable however I nonetheless desperately wished to stare throughout breathtaking dunes. Finally, I made a decision to journey to Mui Ne and recapture Le’s beautiful portray. Although I lack Le’s abilities, I had a digicam and a few mates prepared to assist me out.

Making an attempt to get the right shot at sundown. Photograph by Annie Blackburn.

Sadly, we didn’t give ourselves quite a lot of time for our mission. Most of our time in Mui Ne was spent appropriating the seaside bum way of life. Through the day, we rested in hammocks and drank beer and coconuts whereas at night time we danced on the seaside and chatted endlessly about nothing by a bonfire. Solely 4 hours away from Ho Chi Minh Metropolis, Mui Ne is the right city to flee to if one wishes clear seashores, epic sunsets, and dunes that rival the Sahara.

The intricate sample of sand dunes. Photograph by Annie Blackburn.

Moreover, Mui Ne has loads of engaging choices for foodies. Loads of eateries serve dishes impressed by the bounty of the Vietnamese shoreline and the city’s giant European and Russian populations. The Yo-Yo Seaside Cafe, positioned just a few meters from the ocean, is a scrumptious, vegetarian choice. I began every day there, sipping cà phê sữa and having fun with some high quality ratatouille. Within the evenings, younger {couples} and cheery households would collect additional down the seaside at Glamour Espresso. Illuminated by Christmas lights, the aptly named restaurant whip ups savory pasta, fruity cocktails, and dwell music from native skills. For vacationers with extra high-priced tastes, the Cargo Distant resort gives an appetizing menu close by a splendid freshwater pool.

On our final day in Mui Ne, we lastly got down to see the dunes on rented motorbikes. Driving alongside the coast, previous an armada of fishing boats, my mates and I excitedly sped in the direction of Mui Ne’s iconic Crimson Sand Dunes. After arriving round 5pm, we started to trek throughout the miniature desert. Fortunately, the night air was a lot cooler and the close by ocean offered a refreshing breeze. The solar started to set behind the dunes, illuminating the pink sand into shades of sizzling pink. We scurried to discover a good place to take our picture earlier than dusk.

Stepping onto an otherworldly terrian. Photograph by Glen MacDonald

Whereas breathtaking, the dunes have an odd ambiance about them. We felt as we have been strolling on the moon. The silky sand, whereas enjoyable to play in, it’s a little bit of a exercise to climb over. At one level I kicked off my sandals to extra simply maneuver across the dunes. Sand caught to our sweaty pores and skin as we collapsed on the height of the tallest dune.

When our impromptu photoshoot started, I spotted some apparent errors with our recreation. For one, our mannequin was not Vietnamese however British. For one more, I had him put on his girlfriend’s bucket hat in lieu of an nón lá. As a substitute of coils of heavy rope, he held a plastic sled which we later used to slip down the spectacular dunes.

A poor recreation of Le’s superb work. Photograph by Glen MacDonald

My picture comes nowhere near Le’s portray, wealthy in colours and well-balanced particulars. As his portray is a profound testomony to the hardworking Vietnamese folks in a relentless local weather, my picture merely showcases the laid-back bliss of any backpacker fortunate sufficient to go to Mui Ne. Regardless of this, the elegant great thing about Vietnam’s shoreline remains to be current in each items. As I directed my buddy to stare into the deep blue horizon, Le’s phrases come to thoughts.

“I like the ocean as a result of standing in entrance of it all the time makes me free, particularly in Vietnam. The seashores listed here are all lovely, be they yellow, white, or grey, flat, sandy, or gravelly; all are lovely and engaging to me,” writes the artist.

Mui Ne’s beauitful solar, sea, sand, shadow, and sky. Photograph by Annie Blackburn.

Later, we drove again to city and shared our photographs with one another over a seafood dinner. We gasped on the vibrancy of the sand and sky. #nofilter, certainly. Although solely an hour handed, our journey to the dunes already felt like a distant dream.

After dinner, we went for drinks at a close-by seaside bar. As I conversed with my mates, I disregarded some sand clinging to the again of my knees. The pink sand from the dunes blended with the alabaster sand from Mui Ne’s sunkissed seaside, like an artist mixing paint earlier than a ready canvas.

Watching the dawn after a enjoyable night time on Mui Ne’s lush seashores. Photograph by Glen MacDonald.

Glen Macdonald, an American journalist