REI Mis-Adventures -- A Bicycle Trip Across Vietnam

Let me preface this blog by saying that neither Tony or I will ever take an REI Adventure trip again.  So if you suspect some underlying tones in this post.  Its not your imagination.  It was quite a frustrating trip.  One we tried to make the best of since we paid high prices.  We also kept believing it would get better.  Let me also say that the weather played a key role despite the fact we were assured by James Rodgers (the REI representative) in Seattle, Washington (after sending him an email about the typhoons and flooding) that the weather (according to the local Vietnamese guides) would improve and be okay for our trip.

Meeting Point (Saigon) - We met the crew (16 people total) and the guides (2 total).  Initially everyone seems great and over the course of the trip we would discover this was very true.  Everyone was fantastic and despite everything, they kept positive attidues and helped make the trip enjoyable.  After fitting our bikes and loading them all onto the bus (where we would be spending the majority of our time over the next 2 weeks), we all enjoyed dinner together.

Day 1 (Saigon to Dalat) - It was a very early wake up call!  We had to be packed, feed and on the bus by 7:00 am for our 8.5 hour drive to Dalat.  Once in Dalat, we were suppose to have enough time to ride our bicycles down some quiet back roads.  Instead, we ended up taking a one-hour warm up trip around the lake.  Us and all the other traffic.  Let me just say that riding a bicycle into a roundabout with fifty other motos, five other cars and a few buses and trucks was no piece of cake.  Somehow everyone make it although I saw a few near misses.  This wasn't exactly the calm quiet street that had been described to us.

Day 2 (Dalat to Nha Trang) - Another very early wake up call!  As we would quickly learn this was the routine.  We drove just outside the city before starting our first day of cycling.  In total we rode 69 kilometers today.  For me it was a day of accomplishments.  First, I have never ridden a bicycle that far in a single shot.  Second, I have never climbed a hill on a bicycle as high as we climbed today.  And third, I have never ridden 11 kilometers downhill on a bicycle.  All of this while maneuvering traffic (which included all forms of transportation plus animals) and dealing with weather (mainly rain which caused the roads to be very slick and ourselves to be very dirty).  All of the bicycles used by the local Vietnamese have fendors, but not our bikes.  This meant we got all kinds of road crap spraying in our faces and up our backs.  Due to all of these factors our group had five crashes and one lost person.  Luckily the worst injury from these crashes was a broken pinky finger and lots of scraps and bruises.

At the lunch stop we loaded the bicycles back onto the bus and drove to some nearby Champa temples.  We quickly walked to the temples on the top of the hill and back before it started to rain again.  The temples were quiet interesting as they were built out of brick except the brick has no mortar holding it together.  Unfortunately this construction technique died along with the Champa people so no one is sure exactly how it works and must of the reconstruction has required the use of mortar.  After the temples, we drove to Nha Trang.  We were suppose to stay at a new recreational hotel on an island off the coast but because we arrive so late we ended up staying in a hotel in town.  For dinner we ate at another BBQ style restaurant except this time we didn't have any interesting animals or bugs :)  After dinner Tony and I ventured into the basement of the hotel to the massage parlor where we received a traditional Vietnamese massage.  There is nothing relaxing about a traditional Vietnamese massage.  They push and pull and pop and stretch.  They even walk all over you!  But when your done you feel great!  And at $5 each, its great!

Day 3 (Nha Trang to Whale Island) - We got to sleep in an extra hour today before loading onto the bus for another drive to the Hon Gom peninsulla.  When we stepped off the bus, we were just about blow over from the wind.  The bicycling was along a road surrounded by sand dunes.  The wind was blowing so hard the sand was blasting us in the legs.  Luckily for today the wind was at our backs (most of the time).  After spending our usual 30 minutes unloading the bikes and getting everyone coordinated enough to begin the ride, we set off.  Two minutes later it started to downpour.  Everyone was starting to get frustrated . . . not more rain.  Thankfully it subsided fairly quickly and we enjoyed a rather nice 10 mile ride through a fishing village where the kids and adults wave and say hello.  Plus if you stop they surround you and want you to take their picture.  To them being on the camera screen is like being on TV.  They love it!  After the village, we cycled through lots of sand dune areas.  If it weren't for all the trees that had been planted to prevent erosion, it would be a perfect place to ride ATVs :)  We also cycled along the coast and wow there were some big waves.  Finally we arrived at the pier except we were missing one person.  This left todays tally at 0 crashes and 1 lost person.  After searching for awhile, he was finally located.  The paved road actually curved to the right and we were suppose to take the gravel road straight off the end, but without someone there to guide you, he followed the road.  Once we were all back together, we took a rough boat ride to Whale Island.

It was nice to arrive before lunch and we looked forward to enjoying the afternoon.  Unfortunately, the weather was awful.  The ocean was too rough for diving or snorkeling.  We tried snorkeling near the shore but the visibility was terrible and you had to watch out or the current would throw you right into the rocks.  The wind was blowing so hard it was too chilly to sit on the beach and the only sun was of the liquid variety.  So Tony and I ended up sleeping most of the afternoon and then hitting the bar for a drink before dinner and bed.

Day 4 (Whale Island to Quy Nhon) - If we thought the ocean was rough yesterday it was worse today.  They actually made us put on our life preservers just to ride on the boat.  Of all the boats Tony and I have been on, this was the first time we had even seen life preservers let alone warn them.  We were suppose to cycle 40 miles today on some backroads.  However, because of the rain, the backroads were flooded and not an option.  Instead, they let us cycle back out the road we had cycled yesterday.  This would have been fine except the wind was just as bad today and since we were going the other direction it (and the sand in the air) was blowing directly in our faces.  If I had to guess, the wind was a constant 30-40 mph with higher gusts at times.  I rode about 1 kilometer and got so frustrated that I stopped and told the guide I wanted to get on the bus.  Riding into a head wind is worse then going uphill.  Tony braved it.  He was going to get in as much cycling as possible.  At the end of the road, I decided to give it another go but I just ended up getting wet.  After lunch, they let us have another go along the main road but I simply couldn't handle the wind and rain.  So again I stopped.  Our guide met up with us and assured us that the bus was just around the corner.  The bus is our support vehicle and is suppose to follow behind to pick up people or assist with problems.  Peddling on I thought perhaps I had misunderstood where the bus was.  We continued around several corners on a road similar to Highway 101 on the Oregon coast.  The wind was so strong you had to peddle even to go downhill.  I stopped and asked again, "where is the bus?"  Just up here the guide assured me.  So we kept going.  By this time it was getting dark (which made the road even more dangerous).  Finally the bus arrived going the opposite direction.  Once we loaded on we drove about 2-3 minutes to the resort.  Essentially we had ridden with 1 kilometer of the resort when we had originally stopped over 10 kilometers away.  We were frustrated.  Thankfully the Life Resort was absolutely beautiful.  Because of the weather we were unable to enjoy the beach and the pool.  Instead, I immediately scheduled a pampering session at the spa.  Our lovely salt scrubs, mud wraps and hot stone massages helped us to forget the horrible day.

At dinner everyone on the trip was realizing that this was no ordinary storm.  Tony and I already knew it was a typhoon because we had been tracking the weather since the last storm and floods.  Inside the restaurant the windows were rattling from the wind and the palm trees were bending over.  Outside the waves were crashing on the rocks and the rain was coming down.  How long would this continue we wondered and when would our guides finally admit we were in a typhoon?

Day 5 (Quy Nhon to ??) - The town was so bad I tried to erase it from my memory.  This morning we drove 4 hours in relatively nice weather.  At this point we were considering nice weather anything without rain, we ate lunch and began to ride . . . in the rain of course.  We rode 2 kilometers uphill to a pagoda where we took a brief tour and then rode back down.  After that we continued on to the My Lai masaccre museum.  Along the way we got the worst rain yet.  Despite gortex jackets and pants, everything was wet and cold.  Our shoes were literally small lakes.  As we sat and watched the movie inside the museum we all left puddles on the floor.  The museum was very interesting and enabled us to learn about more horrors from the Vietnam/American war.  My Lai was essentially a village which was attacked by American solders.  Everyone inside the village (men, women and children) was killed and the village was burned.  Later bulldozers were brought to the site to try and hide the evidence from this terrible crime.  Less than 10 people survived and many of those were because an American helicoptor pilot saved them.  Because a journalist had been brought along on the mission to take pictures so the army commander could show that he fulfilled his job, there are graphic pictures of this crime.  Thankfully the journalist only turned over some of the pictures to the American army.  The rest he used to tell the world about what was later termed the My Lai Massacre (where approx. 500 people died).

Because it was still pouring down rain, we opted to forgo the remainder of the ride that afternoon and instead continued on to ?? where we stayed in a not so nice hotel.  Literally we we were eating dinner, a rat ran across the floor.  Not something you expect to see in a 4-star hotel, but according to REI it was the nicest place in town.

Day 6 (?? to Hoi An) - Today we just drove straight to Hoi An.  Just a week earlier, the old town of Hoi An had been cover in 8 feet of water.  Now it was only the riverfront street that remained flooded.  In the afternoon we dressed in our rain gear and took a group walking tour of the old city.  You could certainly tell it was an area plagued by rain as most of the concrete bore evidence of being wet and moldy.  It was nice though to have some time just to wander and shop and relax.  That evening I went to bed at 7pm and slept until the next day.

Day 7 (Rest Day in Hoi An) - Today we were suppose to be able to take a 70 kilometer bike ride to some ruins outside of Hoi An.  Once again because of the weather we were told this wasn't an option.  Instead, Tony and I opted for a cooking class.  We thought it might be fun to learn how to make some Vietnamese food including stir-fry and spring rolls.  The class was great.  It started with a stroll through the local market where our chef showed us various fruits, vegetables, meats and spices.  He also explained how to know the best ones.  It answered a lot of questions we had about "what fruit is that"? etc.  After the market we took a boat ride down the river to a restaurant.  First the chef gave us some instructions and a demonstration and then we got to actually do the work.  As a bonus we got to sample our creations and I must admit, they were quite good . . . especially the fresh spring rolls.  Making your own rice paper and sauce makes all the difference.  After learning to cook we had a chance to try our skills at food decorations including a cucumber fan and a rose tomato.  I was better with the fan and Tony was better with the rose.  I guess this means we'll have to share the cooking responsibilities :)

We spent the rest of the afternoon shopping around town and eating some good italian food.  Ideally we would have loved to sit by the gorgeous swimming pool at our hotel but it was too cold and still rainy.

Day 8 (Hoi An to Hue) - After our rest day, it was time to ride and ride we did.  Our pass today was called the Pass of the Ocean Clouds at a height of 496 meters or 1500 feet.  We literally started beside the ocean and climbed 11 kilometers to the top and then rested for the 12 kilometers back down to the ocean.  It was definetely the longest climb I have ever done and my sore muscles proved it :)  After lunch we continued to ride on a narrow backroad inand out of the rain.  It was the longest and hardest day of riding yet.  Once again we stayed in a beautiful hotel in Hue with two swimming pools.  This was our last opportunity on the trip to go swimming but it was simply too cold and after our late evening arrival, we were too tired.

Day 9 (Hue and the train) - People were dragging this morning at our usual early morning (7:30 am) meeting time.  It was another rest day but that didn't actually mean rest, it meant sightseeing.  We also had several people who were sick with the lovely bacterial infection you get from eating local food sometimes.  Regardless, we loaded onto the bus and were good sports as we toured two tombs of past kings and walked through the old citidel area (similar to the Forbidden City in Beijing except only 1/8 survived all the wars).  After our tours, we loaded onto the train for our overnight journey to the north.  We actually enjoyed the fact that there was nothing to do on the train but hang out and relax. No one was looking forward to our 3:00 am wake up call though.

Day 10 -- stay tuned for more adventures