Nah Trang to Buon Ma Thout
The wheels on the bike go round and round.. All day long… All day long from Latrang to Boun Ma Thuot. This was a long hot day.
The main road out was Boring© so we split off and into the heart of rural Vietnam. The road passed little villages and loads of rice fields. The locals use the road as a nice hot flat surface to dry the rice in the sun. It works really well but you get all the worlds vehicles fumes doseing them so I’m not sure how clean/healthy.
Dalat to Nha Trang
Do we go to Nha Trang or not? There were mixed reviews coming from all the travellers we met. Some said it was the best night out ever, others said it was a scummy city with not much going on. In the end the map decided it for us when we zoomed in and found the twistiest road iv ever seen. That sold it to us and then someone reccomended a hostel so we were sorted.
It was a long hot slog out of Dalat passing millions of poly-tunnels. The city is the vietnamese favorite holiday destination in the mountains. It must be a thousand meters or so up and it noticably cooler, helped by the whole town being built around a massive lake. Im not sure if its natural or damed up but its a really lovely place to walk. Its also the city of love and has a massive flower production industry all grown in poly-tunnels.
Dalat canyoning
So… Canyoning is what we were in Dalat for. Yes that’s what was in the news recently, hence I’m writing this blog 2 days behind what we are actually doing (its got nothing to do with not being able to keep up with how much is going on)
I’ll put your mind at rest; the company that took us canyoning were really professional. They knew their clove hitches from their garlic cloves. All the gear was in good condition and rated well by known brands. It was a properly safe experience, well, as safe as abseiling down waterfalls and jumping 10m into rock pools can get!
Mui Ne to Dalat
OMG its 0430am!!! What even is this, where am I?! Why the hell would we get up this early?! Well actually why would I get up this early… The girls bailed and Mike was about as easy to raise as Trumps election campaign funds in the Syrian cuds.
I was awake now and they sunrise would be good so sod it, sleep when you’re dead. I found a comfy spot on some recliners on the beach with a bunch of passed out stoners. They must have slept there after their party because the music was still going. It was surreal to be so sleep deprived, getting whiffs of weed listening to acoustic guitar chill out music watching the sun slowly peek over the horizon.
La Gi to Mui Ne
I learnt a valuable lesson this morning, dont take anti-malarials on an empty stomach.
It was really hot as we walked to find some breakfast. I had taken the drug in the hotel and thought nothing of a quick stroll before some food. It was aweful and came over me really quickly but i felt like i was going to hurl right there in the street! After 10 mins and some water back at the hotel I managed to eat breakfast and felt 100 times better. It came as quickly as it went and I knew what the cause was. Continue reading Mui Ne Bribery
Today was the day. The start of the bike trip proper. Our friendly mechanic helped us find the road out of Ho Chi Minh (Saigon) and then we promptly got lost. After a few sketchy U turns across a freeway we found the right road towards the coast. Continue reading Not Mui Ne, barely La Gi
Russia to Ho Chi Minh
“The weather outside is sunny with a temperature of 32°C…”
WTF!! I’m gunna melt in my black trousers and jumper. Not the smartest choice of attire for vietnam but they were essential for surviving russia’s plane transfer… Continue reading Winner in Saigon
England to Russia
You know when there is a long line of traffic, everyone is waiting patiently, mostly because we all pretend to be civilised. Pretending to be civilised is a pain in the ass because all you really want to do is get to the front, to where you get the lions share of the food or other evolutionary goal.
Out of all the currencies available, Dong is probably the funniest for an immature englishman. It doesn’t take much explaining how countless jokes are created; Just one example conversation,
” I’ve lost my Dong!”
“Can you lend me your Dong?”
“Can I pay in Dong?”
“I pulled out my Dong and gave the waitress a healthy tip”
It’s not mature but had us in peels of laughter discussing our upcoming trip to Vietnam. My mate, let’s call him Mike, has been travelling since Christmas all over east Asia. He has been saving for a long time for this and has now done what most of us only dream about Continue reading Slap your Dong on the table
Since the operation and the time I spent off my feet beforehand, I’ve lost muscle mass and considerable strength in my leg. I compensated, to be able to move around, by over-using my other leg so now my body is a little lop-sided. One marvelously muscular leg and one shrivelled sack of meat being dragged around. Ok so thats a bit exaggerated but I definitely have a difference in capability (and appearance)
I’ve had an assessment and the nice physiotherapist lady at the hospital gave me some exercises to do. There is nothing really complicated about it; tense this, hold that position, balance on one leg. Except one exercise for working the VMO muscle. Its on the inside of the knee at the bottom of the quads and is bloody difficult to tense on command!
Aside from the exercises the interesting thing I’ve noticed Continue reading Knee Rehab
