March 20 HCMC to Cu Chi plus 10km

I got underway at 12:00 noon and I rode my bicycle through HCMC. It took 1 hr to get through the city by bike. Not bad, since it takes 30 minutes by taxi. I looked at my map and their was a road which seemed almost direct, so I headed that way. It was closed in several places because of construction covering the whole street. But I followed the motorbikes and hopped up on the sidewalk and away I went. I’m riding a mountain bike so I can navigate the construction sites better than the motorbikes. I sort of like this lawlessness on the roads.
By one o’clock I was feeling the heat so I stopped for a coconut drink. They trim a coconut shell so it stands upright and when you ask for a drink the chop the end off and give you a straw. The inside juice is watery, with just a mind coconut taste, and there is about a litre of liquid. It’s very refreshing and cheap. An hour later I stopped for my afternoon tea and had a nice green tea with lemon drink. The first one went down so quickly I had two. The temperature was about 33 °C and very humid. But I expect it will get much warmer before I finish. I’m going to be careful with hydration.
After 30km we finally entered the rural area. The space opened up and the fields were full of workers and water buffalo. I wanted to stop in Cu Chi for the night but I couldn’t find a hotel. When I did I was obvious that Hotel is not a Vietnamese word – it’s Khack (I think). I might need to learn some more Vietnamese to survive. The lady at the desk doesn’t speak English, but she’s taking good care of me and I have a nice room with a hot shower for $10 a night.

March 18 HCMC

Today I bought a bicycle and what a beauty it is. I went up to the bicycle district in town and visited about 5 bike stores. I was looking for a typical Vietnamese bike – single speed and a basket on the front. I found them for 2,500,000 to 3,500,000 VND (about $200 US). Then I went down a alleyway and found a used bike. It was love at first sight. It was dirty, rusty and good quality. The brakes worked, the chain didn’t slip, and the balance was very good. It also had 2 bells. I tried my best negotiating skills and failed miserably. I offered 700,000 VND and he countered with 1.8 million. We agreed on 1.6 million after about 1 hour. I did get a new saddle and an extra tube thrown in. When he came out with my new saddle, all the onlookers (about a dozen) started to laugh. They all thought I was getting conned because the replacement saddle was so small. I couldn’t be happier – it’s the closest thing to a racing saddle I’ve seen in Vietnam. They fixed it up and I rode home straight away. I went around 2 traffic circles and crossed one major highway on my new bike just like the Vietnamese. I didn’t stop once. What an exhilarating ride.
Oh, we also saw the Reunification Place this morning. It was nice.

March 17 HCMC

We have returned to HCMC. This is the final stop before Joan flies home and I go for a bike ride. Joan did some final shopping and I picked up a Laos visa and some maps today. The visa was a challenge to my good humour. I went to the embassy twice, I sat in the waiting room for 2 hours, I paid $50 US, and I got a visa – all without speaking. The guard was sullen and the staff at the embassy didn’t talk - they just pointed and handed me papers to fill out. When they brought my visa out, they just stood there until I guessed they wanted money. When I left there I looked at the guard and we didn’t even acknowledge each other. I hope the real Lao people are different.
I am riding through Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos. I am having trouble finding decent maps of the area. I have a good map of Vietnam but I lack maps of Cambodia and Laos. I went to the recommended book store today and they had 1 map. I bought it because I’m desperate, but I’m hoping I’ll find a country map when I cross the border. The map I bought is good because I can cut out the part I want and it will fit in my wallet.

March 16 Hoi An to HCMC

We did not fly back to HCMC until 6 PM so we had time for a bike ride in the morning. We rode out of town and down a road to the rice paddies but before we had gone 2 km we found a Buddhist monastery. The grounds were so well maintained we went in for a look and spent over an hour wandering around. The buildings were in very good shape and the grounds were covered with bonsai plants. Everywhere we went the buildings seemed to be new or freshly painted. We were approached by a guy wanting to show us the Japanese tomb, once was enough. We did wander out back to the graveyard and we saw lots of tombs – maybe even Japanese. The afternoon was rest and relaxation at the hotel pool before we flew to HCMC. The flight takes 1hour and 45 minutes, but it only cost $42 CDN. I like this flying in Asia travel.

March 15 Hoi An

Having clothes and shoes made is an interesting learning experience. We got some things right and some not. Kath and I each had linen capris made that we both really like although we needed a bit of alteration which is included, of course in the price [$13]. I had brought a blue dress with me that I have always liked and had it copied . The tailoring was fine but my choice of material and colour leads me to believe that I will not wear this dress as much as I did the original. Kath had two shirts made in the same style copying a shirt she had brought with her . She is happy with one but not the second as the material is too heavy for a summer shirt. The best story is of Tim’s bicycle shorts which we brought to our tailor to have copied. They have a thick seamless lining to prevent seat sores. The first pair came back with regular cross seams –ouch for a long distance bike rider. We asked them to redo them with no seams –as they spoke very little English, there was a lot of gesturing on how those seams would hurt. They did redo them seamlessly but the lining is much thinner and Tim is pretty sure that these will not be good biking shorts. Hopefully, he is wrong because Kath and I actually ordered two pairs for him – good thing we are not spending big sums!
Kath has trouble finding shoes to fit her in Canada never mind in Vietnam so she had several pairs made.She got two pairs of really nice evening heels that she really likes and which fit well. She also bought two pairs of more casual shoes that were a little tight but we both said –they will stretch won’t they ? Kath wore a pair home on the plane and her feet were killing her so I am now the owner of those shoes as I really like them and they fit me well – I take one shoe size smaller than Katherine. I had a pair of my shoes copied and they seem to fit ok but have not been truly tested yet. So, our shopping experience was fun but not totally successful.
And we await the outcome on Tim’s bike shorts!!!

March 14 Hoi An

Katherine has joined us and the shopping is in full swing. Joan and Katherine are having clothes and shoes made to measure today. While they were shopping I took a ferry to an island where they specialize in boat building. The ferry ride was an adventure to watch - all the locals seemed to have motorbikes to load on. The loading was quick and dirty - run them up the plank and put them on the kickstand. If we ever hit a big wave I'm sure we would have lost all the motorbikes. Later I joined the shopping spree and am having 2 copies of my favourite bicycle shorts made. I hope they understand what I’m asking for. I gave them my best pair of bicycle shorts to use as a copy. After ordering 7 pairs of shoes and 12 articles of clothes we still had the afternoon. We did a walking tour of the old town. There are several heritage buildings from the 16th and 17th century open for viewing. The first one we chose we the Tran family chapel. It has been in the family for 8 generations and it seems the 8th generation is doing the tours today. The tour was exactly 1 room and then the 2 different sales rooms. All this after we paid admission. I was so impressed I bought two coins from the 13th century. They are genuine and only cost $8 for both coins.
Shopping and walking is such hard work we stopped early for happy hour. Here in Hoi An they serve a beer called fresh beer. (draught beer in Canada). There seems to be a price war on with all the locales advertising the beer for 30 to 45 cents per mug. The fairest thing to do is share my trade around.

March 13: Hoi An

Another day in Vietnam – Another lesson in life. Joan and I got bikes from our hotel and rode down the road looking for rice patties this morning. We were successful at last and we ended up in a large field of rice patties with rice growing all around us. There were several people working in the fields and the first lady posed for pictures but couldn’t answer any of our questions. Then we came across a man pulling up rice plants and he spoke a little English so he was able to answer some of our questions. He showed us some rice almost ready to harvest and the could see the rice forming. Then we got a lesson in the Buddhist religion. There was a Japanese tomb close by and the man led us there and showed us how to pay out respects. We lit incense, we bowed 3 times, we planted 3 incense sticks here and one there and then he told me to give him some money for the alter. I had often seen the worshippers putting money on the alter to burn so I took out a 2000 VND bill (about 15 cents) and handed it to him. Quick as a wink he gave me back the 2000 and extracted a 100,000 VND dong bill from my wallet. I protested and he gave it back but then he made me go through so rubbing, kissing, and touching the gravestone until the bill was buried under the urn and I was wondering how come I’m such a sucker. When we finally parted company guess who made a beeline for the grave and emptied the urn. I never took my wallet out of my pants the rest of the day.