Beep beep

The only rules of the road I've been able to pick up so far are:
1) Try to not hit other vehicles.
2) If the other vehicle is bigger, you move over.
3) Honk your horn. Often.

Any other rule can only be seen as mere suggestion. But somehow it works.

But after a while, one must pull over and take it easy for a bit :)

Easy Riders

We'd been told that a motorcycle tour around Dalat into the countryside was a must, but the day was a genuine thrill from the beginning. Even being on a bike weaving through Vietnamese traffic was an experience, but our guides took us not only to the famous pagoda and waterfall, but also to a several places off the beaten track. For example the local silk factory where we were shown how they harvest silk from the worms, then produce the garments. Or the town where some of the nomadic people of Vietnam have settled, where you can see how they farm and live. The experience was so good that we arranged to travel to Hoi An via the Central Highlands on a motorbike over 5 days - 2 days in and seen some incredible things so far. Will try and do them justice next time, but have posted some pics from the first day below.

Random

As amazing as some of the mini tours have been, sometimes the best ways to experience a country is through the normally routine things in life.

For example - getting a haircut at a small roadside barbers. Shoes off, then sit legs extended on a couch rather than a chair, listening to the banter between barbers (not that I could understand) along with Vietnamese pop music. Or the bus to Dalat which slowly wound its way up and down hillsides while navigating around massive potholes on roads that sometimes were barely there (Kenyan roads I call them now - my Dad will know what I mean!).

Russians apparently are the equivalent of Brits on Ryanair holidays - taps aff, tattooed, loud, on the hunt for their own food rather than local. Congregated at the beach though so all good :)

Went to this great pub last night with not a soul inside except the owner. Drank beer and played Connect 4 with him at the bar and bantered. He beat us almost every single time. And the Pixies were playing on the stereo. It was awesome.

I drank weasel coffee today. The weasel eats the coffee berry, and shits out the the bean. And it was delicious rocket fuel.

Action Man

Felt the urge for a few activities and got a bit carried away. Managed to cover the following in one day:
-bicycle ride through Mui Ne, stopping for incredible sea views and one of the best sandwiches ever
-arranged for a jeep tour of the area, with a Vietnamese guy who showed up in an old school US army jeep. Feeling very GI Joe with my new travel beard
-trip to a fishing village to see the different types of boats used. Looked like something out of an old historical film, incredible
-trip to sand dunes, complete with a quad bike to get up. Stunningly beautiful and vast. Even managed to see the sun go down and watch the sand colour change as it did.

All that with another outdoor seafood BBQ feast and a wee beach bar busting out 70s Motown classics. It was a good day.

Mui Ne

After the madness of Saigon, it is particularly satisfying to be writing this sitting by a beach on the South China Sea. Managed to bag a bungalow for next to nothing, and have been having a brilliant time swimming and exploring this seaside town. Just had an incredible dinner where you basically are shown an aquarium and you pick what you want barbecued. 1kg of scallops, red snapper and a beer for 8 quid. Awesome. They also had toad and snake but not quite ready for that.

Education

I've been filling in lots of gaps in my knowledge of Vietnam over the last few days. The War Remnants Museum was a very interesting, if harrowing, account of the Vietnam War. Considering it used to be called the Museum of American War Crimes you can imagine my southern neighbours do not come off well. Also took a day trip to the Cu Chi Tunnels which show how the Viet Cong fought the Americans using tunnels and booby traps. And regardless of your politics or views you can't help but feel that the Vietnamese were well within their rights to defend themselves, and that the tactics used against them were grossly disproportionate.
Interesting to chat with people to get their views, like the taxi driver who preferred the county before Saigon fell and begrudges Hanoi (i.e. the Communists) while the tour guide spoken of her love of "our great leader Uncle Ho". You can almost forget it is a communist country what with all the commerce but it is still very much present as we've been learning.

So...

I had one of the best steak dinners of my life tonight. 50p, sitting on a plastic seat, in a car park.

Later, beers were had for 33p a go. I'm drunk. I need to catch a bus in 5 hours.

Ho Chi Minh City - I love you.

The Weather Outside is Frightful

Listening to Let In Snow with a 30 degree heat and sunshine is a first for me. Just out of the time warp that is the Reunification Palace where the North conquered Saigon. And saw my first statue of Uncle Ho (seen below)

Scatterbrained

The morning after a long flight - while we're awake, it feels like an out of body experience as the brain adapts to a 7 hour time difference. Waking up to the sounds of horns and cockerels and the smell of incense from a nearby pagoda. Glasgow it ain't! Now fuelled up on coffee and dim sum (for breakfast!!) and ready to tackle Saigon.

Ho Chi Minh City

Have arrived in Vietnam's biggest city, and it has certainly lived up to its reputation for taking your life in your hands when crossing the street. But the buzz in this place is mental. Had two bowls of Pho (one with pig trotters) for £2.50, and then four large lagers for 40p each, sitting on the road amongst a throng of folk watching the world go by. I'm going to like this place!