Motorcycle

OK so the title was a little predictable but hey ho.

Lynn and I have just finished a 3 night/4 day motorcycle tour of southern and central Vietnam. We saw loads and learned even more about Vietnam. I'll attempt to summarise for you now.

July 29th
Our one day in Nha Trang was spent lounging on the beach reading and eating Crocodile steak at night, as well as booking our Easy Rider tour.

July 30th
Lynn turned 32! What a way to celebrate - at 8.30am our two motorbikes and drivers arrived. Our bags were strapped on the back, we got fitted for helmets and off we went! Lynn had Jing as her driver and I had the younger(age 22) Duon. We were also joined by a 22 year old from Doncaster in England called Seth who had bravely decided to rent his own bike and join us.

We sped out of Nha Trang along the coast, the sun sparkled on the water, we had our shades on and the road was ours! I suddenly began to understand why my good friend Kenny Byers is so in love with his motorbike - the sense of freedom, the power, the fresh air.... We headed out into the country passing a colourful graveyard (so nice that people are dying to get in) and then stopping to view a fishing village. After a further ride into the country we stopped at a brick factory, staffed by women, that churned out 10,000 bricks per day. This may sound unremarkable but there was only 4 women working there, the conditions would not meet many health and safety standards in the UK and the equipment was basic to say the least.

For lunch we stopped at a small roadside cafe that received low marks for cleanliness but top marks for taste and we demolished our chicken and fried rice, washed down with a cold pepsiand water -all for 50,000 dom (under 2 quid).

On the afternoon route we stopped off to see a coffee plantation (Vietnam is the third largest exporter of coffee in the world), a rubber tree farm (also aleading exporter) and a pepper tree farm. Vietnam has a vast variety of resources and they are starting to realise their worth after years of underselling.

We arrived at our homefor the night at 4.30pm - a traditional Vietnamese longhouse that we would share with other travellers. It was basic - a mattress, covers and a mosquito net but it did the job. Dinner was nice and we chatted to a nice Canadian couple and Seth before heading to bed at 10pm. Didn't sleep too well as it started raining heavily during the night.

July 31st
We woke at 8.30am and left at 9am after a quick breakfast. The sun was out and we made our way to a national park and a waterfall you could supposedly walk under. The waterfall was incredibly powerful and although you could get under it there was no way we were going to risk walking all the way through.

The rain started again and we got soaked. although we were already wet after our trip under the waterfall.The falls were lovely, as was the park. The only downside being a major one throughout Vietnam - litter. It kind of ruined the park and there is no way that Thailand or Laos would allow their parks to be treated in that manner.

So far we have been very lucky with the weather but the rain started to chuck it down. We put on our raincoats and sped through small towns that had turned into mudbaths. Just as we were starting to tire of riding in the rain we stopped for lunch and had some amazing fresh spring rolls - rice paper, cucumber, green banana, star fruit, fried pork, garlic) - it was DIY and it was amazing. Deeeeeeeeeeeeeeelicious!

The rain was off and our spirits were lifted as we headed back on the road. We stopped to watch people sifting sand and breaking granite stone to sell. We then arrived at the Lak resort at 3.30pm and checked into a nice lakeside bungalow for the night - immediately making useof it's hot shower.

At night the locals put on a music show for us in a traditional longhouse with all kinds of percussion instruments before we had dinner at the lake. The band were fantastic, a real highlight for me.

August 1st
We had breakfast at 8.30am and left at 9am to a minority village at the other side of the lake where life is incredibly simple and it's like going back in time. After that we headed to a silk worm factory that was ver interesting. We headed up into the hills toclimb to Dalat (1,500 metres above sea level). The rain started again and we were pretty wet and cold by the time we arrived at our hotel. After a hot shower wewandered around the picturesque town before having pizza and an early night.

August 2nd
Left at 9am and sped out in the rain to a minority village where I bought a silk scarf and Lynn a bag (surprise surprise). It was quite funny as the women all said I was very handsome! We had 240km tocover today so there was no messing. The waterproofs were on and we headed to Mui Ne.

This afternoon Lynn and I had a lovely stroll along the beach - our roomis about 20 yards from it. The weather is dry but overcast so we booked a bus to Saigon for $4 each for tomorrow. We've been in Vietnam for 3 weeks now so it will soon be time to head on to Cambodia.

We've literally just finished alovely seafood dinner with the highlight being the hotpot I ordered. Our bus doesn'tleave until 1.30pm tomorrow so we intened to have a long lie and hopefully some time on the beach if the rain stays off. It is now officially monsoon season! Our bus takes 4hours and wewill probably spend 3 nights in Saigon as there is a lot of history to find out about.

Hello to one and all from Nha Trang on the coast of Vietnam. It's 7pm on July 29th and it's Lynn's last day of being 31! If Lynn is suffering from a mid-life crisis she will be banishing it to the back of her mind over the next few days as we embark on a road trip by motorbike across the Central Highlands of Vietnam, staying overnight in the jungle and ending up in the fishing village of Mui Ne - not bad for a 32 year old!Check out http://www.easy-riders.net/without_flash/html/index.cfm for details.

Today we arrived in the coastal town of Nha Trang, which is quite touristy. We waved behind to lovely Hoi An the previous night, embarking on our first ever night-bus - an interesting experience to say the least. The bus was supposed to pick us up at 6pm, it eventually arrived at 7pm, after we'd got on the wrong bus. We were the third and fourth last people to get on the bus and as a result we sat up in the back seat with two Irish guys and an American/Canadian girl. Unfortunately for the last two people to get on there was only one seat left so we had to watch the ridiculous spectacle of the Vietnamese trying to sort this out, eventually deciding that the guy out of the couple in this situation could sit on a stool for the entire 12 hour journey! Needless to say this wasn't ideal and he ended up sitting on the floor on blankets instead.

The thought of a 12 hour bus ride wasn't my idea of fun and I decided to blank it out by wearing my eye mask and plugging in my Nano on shuffle. The ride went surprisingly quickly and we made up lost time. I drifted in and out of conciousness to the sounds of Oasis, Charlatans, Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder and many, many more. All in all it was quite a pleasing time listening to music. I was reliably informed by Lynn that it was a good thing I had my eye mask on, the driver was a little crazy.

We arrived in Nha Trang at 6am, making up for lost time and immediately checked into a hotel across the road for $10 per night. We slept until after 11am and decided to find some food. We headed down to the beach and shortly afterwards met a guy on a motorbike who offered to show us the tours his company Easy Riders provided. The day before (July 28th) we had met a couple in Hoi An that we had previously met in Luang Prabang and they were raving about a motorbike tour they had been on. I thought we had had enough of motorbikes but the tours seemed like a great way of getting out and about and seeing Vietnam. Not long after meeting this guy we were in his office and signing up for a 4 day trip that starts tomorrow!

It's $50 each a day but that covers practically all expenses. We'll stay in a jungle hut, walk under and behind waterfalls, meet locals and learn how they produce rice, noodles and silk, learn about the country and the effects of the war with America and see loads including Danang and Mui Ne- sounds like a good deal!

So it's an early night for us tonight!

The two previous days were spent enjoying the charming town of Hoi An that we can't recommend highly enough. It's gorgeous. The old town doesn't allow any cars or motorbikes in, there are amazing restaurants and bars, the beach is clean and quiet and it's quite simply the best place we have been to in Vietnam to date. Lynn got two jackets and a dress tailormade for $95. We have posted the jackets home and I hope to order a couple of suits from the numerous tailors dotted around Vietnam.

After our Easy Rider tour we'll spend a night chilling in Mui Ne before assessing the weather in the island of Phu Quoc. If it's OK we'll book flights from Saigon for a few days as they are only $70 return. Then it's into Cambodia for a whistle stop tour before the beaches of Thailand.

Expect to hear from us in 4 days time after life on the road. I am sure we will have a lot to tell you!

Lots of love
Murray and Lynn
xxx

well, one of the most frequently asked questions to date has been 'what areyou taking?', so here goes, in no particular order.

lower alpine 50litre rucksack
silk sleeping bag liner
a sleeping bag
hand trek towel
waterproof rucksack cover
first aid kit
toileteries (i won't go into detail)
a hammock (folds away to a tiny pack)
hankies
mosquito net and head net
a camelpak
waterproof trousers
north face micro fleece
berghaus long sleeve zip top
trekking trousers
shorts
swim shorts
passport and driving license
tickets!
a travel pillow
eye mask
wallet
head torch
playing cards
vip backpackers pass
glasses
sunglasses
i-nano
sunhat
wooly hat
4 pairs of boxers
2 pairs of walking socks
5 t-shirts
a north face shirt
walking boots
sports sandals

our flight to london is at 2.25pm then we fly out tonight at 10pm

all journeys have to start somewhere, sometime.......our journey starts today.

love
murray and lynn
xxxx