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“in a reaction completely opposite to what I would do in a non-biking situation, we ran towards them, literally chased ... ” |
We took a plane from Saigon to the coast half way up. Mainly because I have limited time, and we wanted to get to this incredible part of the country before I ran out. Partly because it was getting heee-ot and we knew there were mountains up here this way.
We first went to Hoi An, which is one place that, despite war and government "cultural cleansing", has great architecture from its time as a trading port for the French and Chinese. They are also famous for having very talented clothes tailored. They have built a whole industry around tourists coming to get clothing made. The incredible thing is, you can arrive in the morning, pick anything you want out of the 3 year old catalogs they've collected, pick some fabric, and pick up your new clothes (pretty cheap) in the evening. Sounds like the stories my grandmother tells about her family's tailoring skills. Linda got a few things made, and while they didn't get a funky collar quite right, she was still generally impressed. They also made the greatest shoes and purses...luckily we cant carry much weight on our bikes or we'd be the Imelda Marcoses of Vietnam right now.
The next day we started up the coast. Wow. Mountains to the left of me, ocean to the right, here I am! It felt great to be back on the road, and the scenery got better and better as we rode. Rice paddies and harbors with fishing boats were squeezed between sea and rising rock. Also, we met other cycling tourists for the first time! First we met 2 Belgian friends on their 3rd bicycle trip through this area. We originally saw them in Hue – 2 middle aged men in tight lycra shorts, and, in a reaction completely opposite to what I would do in a non-biking situation, we ran towards them, literally chased them down, and arranged to start out with them the next morning. It was really fun to swap tales, but they turned out to be not-so-great cycling partners, due to their need to stop frequently for colas and flirting with Vietnamese shopkeepers. At the top of the biggest hill though we met a Canadian couple cycling south through Vietnam in a route that mirrored ours. We had a great time sharing info about road conditions and how to avoid kids swarming the bike (eh?).
We ended this segment in Hue, another Old Historic City. We toured some Old Buildings, lots of Chinese influence. Linda started to get sick (cold #2!), and it started to get cool and drizzly, so we retreated to a cozy café where an Indian chef (first good Indian food outside of India) made us naan with lots of garlic and tea with lemon, and played gentle Jack Johnson on the stereo. Of course, I owed her a spell in this soothing setting after the post office ruckus I’d caused earlier in the day. I think I’ll save this story for the next entry, in a section entitled Bribes, Cheating, and lack of Consumer Rights in Vietnam, Where’s Ralph Nader When You Need Him?
previous travel blog entry
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