Last week, I was lucky enough to spend a few days staying less than 100 meters away from the gorgeous beach you see above. This is Non Nuoc, aka China Beach, where American soldiers would come for R'n'R during the war. I doubt it's changed much since those days, and although development of a stretch of 5 star resorts is already underway, it's still blissfully free of tourists, and locals continue their lives undisturbed.

This includes fishing, of which there were two methods that I found particularly fascinating. The first was fishing from coracles, that, when not out at sea, were picturesquely strung along the shore.

I love the paraphernalia of fishing, and these boats are especially beautiful.

Though I never had it confirmed, I guessed from the presence of nets in the boats that the fishermen use these to catch fish from the coracles, which included sardines and swordfish...

...and I also guess that they fish way out in pretty deep waters, because I never saw any fishing near land - only carefully negotiating the waves for the return to shore.

The second note-worthy fishing at Non Nuoc was for sea snails, called oc in Vietnamese.

These pearly, tiny snails were caught right in the surf, barely 50 meters out to sea, and using an extraordinary tool a bit like a broom with a long, narrow net instead of bristles,

which two men would drag along the seabed...

...and then empty into waiting buckets.

Oh, I do like to be beside the seaside...If I hadn't been forced to move on by my guesthouse's closing for the holidays, I think I'd have never left...