Tag: Travel

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Day 20: Are we there yet?

Day 20:

It seems as though we are destined to stay in Nong Khiaw.

Woke up to a completely flat rear tire. Luckily motorcycle repair shops are plentiful, and Shawn managed to push Groot to a shop about 100 meters away.

Breakfast at Q Bar while we wait. It’s going to be another slow start.Luckily we have Sammy to keep us amused, playing the guitar and keeping us company.

It seems as though the locals take precedence, as Groot keeps getting pushed back in the queue.

Finally! After an oil change and new tube, we are off. It’s 11:50 am, so we are going to have to make good time to make it to Muang Khua.

Later…

Arrived in Muang Khua at 5:00 PM. The 220 km ride was another perfect ride. The road was the best we have come across in Lao and Vietnam. Wide, paved and even some good passing zones. The first 120 km was curvy roads through dry, forested mountains, with a nice, fresh breeze that was even cool! The landscape was a nice change from the mountains in Sam Neua. More dry, the greenery was more reminiscent of forest than of jungle.

Stopped in Muang Xai for lunch, a large and modern town in comparison to the small villages that dot the highway. After lunch, the final 100 km was a spectacular road that wound along the river. The villages became old world again. Ducks, water buffalo, dogs, chickens and children crowding the highway. We stopped to take pictures from a bridge, where a young boy awkwardly watched us from a safe distance. When we had returned to our bikes, he had the courage to bicycle past us, shyly giggling as he passed.

In Muang Khua checked into Doinouboun Guesthouse. They let us park our motorcycles inside the lobby, a bonus. No hot water, a negative. Overall an ok place. Somewhat clean.

Dinner at Sabaidee Restaurant and Bar. It’s no Q Bar – we miss Sammy. Good Tom Yum soup and fried noodles, and a good place to find other tourists.

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Day 19: Same Same, but Different

The Plan

Started off at Q Bar for breakfast where we learned a new phrase from Sami (the charismatic young owner), which I quite like. “Relax Lao style, not Gangnam style”. This is definitely the Lao attitude. They go about their day in a relaxed, easy way.

Today we have decided to tackle more off-road fun. We are going to take the short cut to Muang Khua along the river. Sami assures us this road would be slightly faster than the longer paved way, and would offer us more views and more fun. This might impact our ability to cross the border today, but if it’s more fun….

The Children

We had read in a blog before coming to Lao to bring small candy for the children in the villages. After stopping to give candy early on in our trip, we both felt there was something wrong with this. Although we loved to see the children happy – our instincts told us that what we were doing was selfish and not helping in any way. The children seemed frightened of us. Yesterday we chose to buy the village children milk, with permission from the adults. The children were just as delighted, and our sense of guilt was lessened.

We finally found a local with good enough English, Sami, who agreed this approach was better. There is no access to dental care here, and the teeth of the adults and children are noticeably rotting. We agreed that providing food with nutritional value was better than candy. We also all agreed it wasn’t good for the local children to get used to receiving candy from strangers. Pencils, notebooks and healthy snacks given with permission from adults and in the presence of adults is the way to go.

Same Same, but Different

There is a popular saying in Vietnam and Lao. “Same, Same, but Different”. This catchy phrase is used to describe things to tourists (for example pigs brain and tofu are “same, same, but different”) and has even made its way onto souvenir t-shirts.

Today was our SSBD. The plan was to take the short cut road to Muang Khua, with hopefully enough time to cross the border into Vietnam at Dien Bien Phu. At first this plan seemed promising. The road was in great shape, wide and had hardly any traffic at all. It seemed too good to be true, and google maps showed us ever so slightly off course. Hmm, continue on or turn back? Being the responsible adults we are, we turned back to the previous y intersection, only 7 km back or so. After getting to this intersection we were fairly certain we had been going the right way. The alternative road was nothing more than a dirt track. It was busy, but hardly seemed like the new road we were looking for. To be even further sure we asked a trucker, stopped at the intersection. He had no idea what we wanted, so off we went in the same direction as we had been going.

After 30 mins or so we checked again. We still showed no where close to a road on google maps. But this had to be it! A beautiful road, twisting along the river. This was definitely going to lead somewhere!

After another 15 minutes we arrived at a gateway arched across the highway guest announcing “China Power”. Hmmm, this must be that new, big dam the locals had mentioned. We drive a little further to a security checkpoint, and that is where this adventure ended. There was no way the guard was going to let us pass, not even for a brief glimpse of the new dam. C’est la vie. It must have been the last intersection, 22 km back.

Back we head to the intersection we had already double backed to once before. This time instead of a trucker, we find some local young men partaking in a lunchtime Lao beer. We had left Nong Khiaw at 10:30 am and it was now 1:00 pm. We confirmed that we had gone the wrong direction and that the dirt track was the way to go. We had the sandwich Sami had made us, and took off on the road to Muang Khua!

It wasn’t long before we reached another intersection. Again, one direction looked to be in better shape. This must be it! After 10 mins on this new track something seemed wrong. For a major road, this was in rough shape. Fun, sure, but at this rate we weren’t going to make it to the border. We decided to learn from previous mistakes and ask the way. Again we had taken the wrong turn. Back we go.

Alright – now we got it! Up the sketchy dirt track to the left. No problem.

After the first hill, problem. The dirt track has gaping ruts cut deep into it from the rainy season that just ended. Groot and I give’r, but get stuck in a deep rut and over we go. I get trapped under the bike, but two young men on a scooter who had decided this road was shit and were turning back, ran over to lift Groot off me. Luckily bike and rider were fine, besides the exhaust burning a hole into my pants and leg. I loved those pants!

It was now 2:30 pm. With the road in this condition, the 80 km or so to Muang Khua were going to take at least 4 hrs. It was too late to attempt it now, as it’s dark by 5:30. So we double backed to our “same same” intersection for the third time, and this time back to Nong Khiaw.

Upon our return, Sami greeted us with a big smile. “What happened, why are you back?”. I told him the truth. For the last 20 km, all I could think about was getting my hands on one of Q Bars famous passion fruit Lao Lao whiskey shots.

“I missed you Sami, and was craving your famous Lao Lao whiskey!”

It was good to be home.

Checked into the Vongmany Guesthouse (decent place and clean) and after a shower, headed off for happy hour (two for one whiskey) and Lao BBQ at Q Bar.Same same as yesterday. But different.

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Day 17-18 Nong Khiaw

Day 17:

After a wonderful massage at Angsana Spa, Luang Prabang and lunch at Zurich bread we were off for Nong Khiaw. We left Luang Prabang at 1:00 pm and rode the 140 km in 2 hrs, 40 mins (including a pee stop and a few navigation verifications).

We checked into the Meexai Guesthouse, a basic but clean hotel near the start of the lookout trail. We were greeted with Lao Lao whiskey and friendly conversation with Somit to learn the game of Pétanque.

Dinner at Coco House, overlooking the river. The Red Curry soup with chicken and vegetables was outstanding. Shawn had spaghetti bolognese. If you are craving spaghetti, he gave this a passing grade.

Day 18:

Today we did the one day biking and kayaking adventure with Nong Khiaw Adventure. I can’t really say I enjoyed this tour, other than the exercise. The bikes were terrible. I certainly didn’t expect good bikes – but these were barely rideable. Shawn’s first bike had no back brake, and a very grabby front brake. Within 300 meters of starting our journey, his bike gave up. The chain and gears were done. After replacing his bike with a moderately improved version, we were off. The trail is a mud track that affords some views, but I wouldn’t call it pretty. The road is in bad shape, which would be fine on a decent bike and a riot on the Honda’s, but was horribly uncomfortable for this old gal!

After an hour and a half of somewhat nice riding, it was still cool at least, we arrived at a farm where we were able to help plant garlic. This brief excursion was the highlight of the tour. At least we were off the bikes. After this it got just too hot to enjoy riding. The trail offered no shade, and walking our shitty bikes up hill after hillgot old. Our guide, although nice enough, didn’t speak much English so our questions went unanswered, and we learned nothing about the villages or crops we passed. Lunch was fine, but certainly not memorable.

After lunch we rode another half hour in the blazing heat, quickly losing our guide who was also not enjoying the bicycling. This part was supposed to take an hour, but I was anxious to get to the next town and out of the sun. Arriving in the village of Sopkan early, we were able to meet some of the local children. Sharing candy and buying milk (with permission) for the local youngsters (4-9 years old) was definitely the most fun part of the day, although certainly not on the agenda.

From here we were supposed to kayak back to Nong Khiaw. Apparently the paddles went missing overnight, but by this time we were fine just taking the motorboat back to Nong Khiaw. It looked like the kayaking would have been the most fun part of this tour, as the river offered nice views and some small rapids.

Back at the hotel we realize that Shawn’s sniffle from yesterday has turned into a cold. This means enjoying the hammock on our deck before dinner!

Dinner at Q Bar for traditional Lao BBQ with chicken, pork and beef with Lao Lao Whiskey to top it off. Fantastic! I’m sure there was a “Lao” pinch of MSG in it. MSG is often served on the side like salt. It comes from Japan and the Laotians love it!

Nong Khiaw is an interesting village. It’s not your typical young backpackers crowd. In fact it’s mostly people of retirement age. Given the accommodation is very basic, it’s somewhat surprising. Perhaps it’s because the only thing to do is organized tours -which are relatively expensive and more athletic / cultural in nature – no booze cruises!

Although I have enjoyed our detour to Laos and am glad we came, I am looking forward to continuing on our motorcycle trip through Vietnam. The riding in Laos has been absolutely incredible, but our tourist stops have been just that. Touristy. Tomorrow we will make a run for the Vietnam border and hope that re-entry is as easy as leaving !

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Day 14-16: Exploring Luang Prabang, Pig Brains and Waterfalls

Day 14:

We took a day off the motorcycles to explore Luang Prabang by bicycle. We took the ferry across the Mekong River (10,000 kip each) on our rented, crappy single speed bicycles. I don’t recommend this. Either rent a proper mountain bike for 100,000 kip, walk or take your motorcycles. For off road moto fun, head east on the dirt road. For a paved adventure, head straight. On crappy bikes, call it a day and head back to the peninsula for a beer. They just can’t handle the climbs.

After our brief ride we hit some of the temples, including Wat Xieng Thong. Then we hit the UXO Lao Visior Center. For a donation of your choosing, you can explore this small museum and watch two short films on the history of the bombings of Lao. Definitely worthwhile to appreciate the extent of the ongoing problems faced by the Laotian people from unexploded ordinances. Laos is, after all, the country most bombed per capital in the world.

From here we hit Phu Si for the sunset. Unless you are a sunset junkie with extreme patience, skip this insanely crowded tourist attraction. The views are definitely beautiful, but fighting the crowds  didn’t make this worthwhile. I give this a 3/5 for overall enjoyment. Sunrise or mid-day would be the time to go, when it’s less crowded. To really enjoy the sunset, hire a boat to take you up the Mekong river. If you walk along the Mekong, you can easily find a boat operator to take you on a journey.

Then we hit the Garavek Storytelling Theatre. The storyteller was good, and the music enjoyable but overall not our thing. We had hoped to learn more about Lao’s history and culture. This was fables and children’s story. Another 3/5.

Then the fun began. To make up for our expensive meal last night, we hit the night market for dinner. Pork sausage, whole grilled fish, rice, pigs brain and coconut pancakes. Wait, what?

I really wanted to try pigs brain, but it was a no go for Shawn. I needed a buddy, as I wasn’t game to try it on my own. Luckily for me, a nice Dutchman sat next to us to enjoy the grilled fish, and he was game. I had my buddy! Off we went to try it from a street vendor. Two American women we were also sitting with were convinced to try it as well after somewhat convincing nods from the Dutchman and I as we gave it a go.

It was one of these women who best described the flavour and texture. Tofu. Overall not something I would go out of my way to have again, but certainly not cringe worthy.

It turned out to be a fun night with our culinary adventurous new friends.

Day 15:

Today we went to Tad Sae waterfall. Keep walking past the restaurants for hidden pools high above the main pools. We enjoyed swimming in the pools, jumping off pool ledges and relaxing in the sun. Dinner tonight with new friends from Paris at L’Elephant. We had the Laos Supreme tasting menu. It wasn’t nearly as good as Manda De Laos.

Day 16:

Started the day with yoga at Oasis. The teacher was great, and the setting was lovely, but the class was very basic. This caters more to tourists than those looking for a good workout.

Then it was off to Kuang Si waterfall. We trekked up to the cave, then enjoyed the “log crossing” competition at the upper pool by the cave. If you make it across, you get a free beer. This was definitely more fun than the cave.

After enjoying swimming in the pools at Kuang Si, it was off to a cooking class at Tamarind Restaurant. This was our compromise. I wanted to do the adventure menuoffered by Tamarind (including pigs brain and insects), Shawn did not. Somehow the cooking class became the compromise. It was very enjoyable, and much better than our meal at L’Elephant. If you have an interest in taking a cooking class while in Laos, Tamarind offers a beautiful setting and professional staff to ensure you have an enjoyable evening with delicious foods traditional to Laos.

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Laos – Adventure Motorcycle Perfection

If epic adventure is your thing, motorcycling Laos is a must. 

  1. It’s beautiful. Incredibly beautiful. Never ending mountains and valleys, covered in lush jungle and dotted with  the small villages of the hill tribes. 
  2. Kids running from schools, homes and out of the jungle, screaming with delight, waving and giving you high fives as you ride by. 
  3. Epic roads – paved and off road. Never ending twists, turns and roller coasters. 
  4. Amazing food, culture and people. 

Muang Hiam: Early morning. 

We were awakened early by something other than a rooster for once. The daily morning news that is blared through loudspeakers every day, morning and night in every town we had been in. Apparently a carry over from Soviet aid times.

Well, we wanted an early start. 

After breakfast at Tontavahn Restaurant (which cost 70,000 kip – the same as our hotel for the night), we were off – hoping to make it to Luang Prabang. This was a lofty goal as the previous day we had only ridden 155 km, and today’s ride would be closer to 300km. On the road for 8:30 am we were immediately hopeful. Although the road was still fun twists and turns, they weren’t as sharp as the previous day so our speed was already improved. And it was just as beautiful, if not more so. Low lying clouds hung over the valleys, and as we rode we watched as the sun burned away the cloud cover, first revealing wisps of white clinging to the mountain tops, then revealing lush, green jungle and the brightest of blue skies. The home of the Laotian big cats. The jungle was so thick and vast, I half expected to see a tiger dart out in front of us. 

After 100 km we had a decision to make. Take the short cut to Luang Prabang, a road we could find almost no information on (Pak Xeng – Sam Soun Rd) or stick to the main highway (1C) North towards Nong Khiaw. To help us make this decision, lunch was in order – it was 11:30 am by this time. Luckily for us, there was a small town at this intersection. We stopped and “asked” (I.e acted out eating a delicious bowl of air) if there was a restaurant in town. Happy nods and finger pointing towards a roadside hut a short way up the road led us to an unnamed “restaurant” with a single table (1.5 km past the turn to Pak Xeng). A group of young men excitedly raced over to “hang” with us. With some help from the young men, we managed to order noodle soup with meat. We had no idea what the meat would be, but having darn near run over cows, pigs and chickens for the last 200 km, we figured it would at least be fresh. We weren’t disappointed. The soup with pork and pigs blood was wonderful, the best soup we’ve had in Asia so far. 

After taking a chance on the soup, we decided to take our chances on the short cut. The town had a gas station 1 km past the restaurant, so after filling up we were back on the road for 12:10 m. 

The short cut landed up being another great decision. The next 60 km proved to be the most breathtaking off road riding I’ve ever done. 60 km of hard packed dirt, deep ruts and gaping holes along a nonstop mountain ridge line. Phenomenal views on both sides, as the mountain cut away to reveal more jungle, more crops and more breathtaking beauty. Riding along the top of the ridge line, you could see mountains into the distance for endless miles, rows and rows of mountains growing dimmer until they were almost more imagination than reality. Between the crazy fun road and the incredible scenery, Laos quickly skyrocketed as one of the best palaces to adventure motorcycle. 

After 60 km of fun, more surprises were in store. The last 80 km to Luang Prabang was a newly paved, wide road along a river that sparkles in the sun. The Honda 150’s proved to be a riot on the dirt track, time to see what the 150’s could do on open road. 

Not bad. We kept up to the Honda 250 ahead of us no problem on the dirt, and no problem on the highway. The bikes proved to be the perfect all round bike for motorcycling Vietnam and Laos. 

We arrived in Luang Prabang at 4:30 pm and decided to celebrate with a nice dinner. After checking into the wonderful and quiet Malida Guesthouse ($45 USD for the family suite), it was off to Manda de Laos for a superb meal. We had the Namkong menu and it was devine. Water buffalo, fish, chicken, vegetables, rice and coconut creme brûlée topped off a perfect day in two wheel paradise. 

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Day 12 – Motorcycling Laos – Wow!

Wow! Motorcycling Laos is incredible. Today was by far the most stunning and incredible riding we have done so far in SE Asia. Maybe the fact it was our first blue sky helped!

Started our day in Sam Neua at “Many Coffees” restaurant. A great place to get a proper cup of coffee, eggs and bread with butter and jam. We had read that Sam Neua had plenty of accommodation, but that quality restaurants were lacking. This has recently changed as we were presented with multiple good options for dinner and breakfast – all of which looked new.

Then the real fun began. On the road for a leisurely 10:15 am under beautiful blue skies that made the jungle colours pop. Deep hunter greens and bright greens were dotted with vibrant yellow flowers. The perfume on the air alternated between a light floral scent, to a strong sweet scent as the altitude quickly changed through the steep valley roads.

A motorcyclist’s paradise. The windiest roads you can imagine, up and down lush valley after lush valley. Cool air suddenly becoming hot, stifling air, then cool again as you snake your way to the next mountain crest. Small towns with waving children coming and going, as you keep winding you way through yet another amazing panorama. Wow!

Exactly 35 km out of Sam Neua we had our first stop. Watch for a small sign marking “Saleui Waterfall”. Definitely worth the 30 minutes to get off the bikes and stretch your legs by climbing the steep but short path to the top of the Tad Saleui falls.

The falls aren’t the only attraction in the Sam Neua area. An under rated tourist destination to date, this area will likely boom in the near future for all it has to offer. Besides the stunning scenery and fun roads for two wheelers, ecotourism in Nam Et-Phou Louey National Protected area is growing. The last wild tigers in Laos can be found here, as well as leopard, clouded leopard, golden cat, Asian black bears and sun bears. Try the Nam Nern night safari or a multi day trek (although seeing any wildlife on these tours is rare). There is also the “Plain of Jars” at Phonsavan and the surrounding Ka waterfall and Tham Xang Cave. For a more off the beaten track experience, there is the Hintang Archeological Park and many hot springs to explore!

After an exhausting day of only 155 km over a 5.5 hour period (our average speed was no more than 40 km/hr for most of the day due to the crazy, twisty roads, a stop to hand out candy to some of the local children and some road construction), we checked into the Dokkhoun Guest House in Muang Hiam and dinner at Tontavanh Restaurant with a lovely couple, he from Germany and she from London. After many drinks with our new friends Wolfram and Katarina, it’s off to plan a route for tomorrow’s adventure!

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Day 10 – 11 Off to Laos

Day 10

Drove from Tam Coc to Quản Son, a small town about 50 km from the Laos border, for a total distance of 186 km. We left at 10:00 am.

The ride along Cuc Phuong National Park was beautiful. The traffic thinned out considerably, and we were able to drive around 70-80 km/ hr through majestic mountains and rice paddies. 

We stopped for an oil change in Cam Thuy. We arrived in Cam Thuy at 12:30PM, and left at nearly 2:30 PM. It took only a few minutes for the oil change, and closer to 30 minutes to communicate what oil we wanted. Should be good for oil until we get back into Vietnam. We weren’t sure we would find the right oil in Laos, as apparently they don’t get many Honda Wins or manual transmission motorcycles that way. 

If we are rock stars in Vietnam, I can’t imagine what we will be in Laos. Motorcycles are rare enough, but Honda adventure bikes are almost unheard of in Vietnam. People are in awe of our bikes everywhere we go – they want to sit on them, drive them, take pictures of them – and of us. After three days in Tam Coc, we had become well known by both locals and tourists. We are wearing backpacks that we ironed Canadian flag patches onto – and they stand out. Even at tourist sites our bags are recognizable, and we often here “it’s the Canadian’s on the motorcycles!”  

Following the oil change, we stopped for lunch at a restaurant across the street from the Honda dealer. It has a huge blue sign. We weren’t sure what we were getting besides chicken. There was horse meat on the menu (they had cartoon pictures of animals on each page so you at least knew the meat source of the dish you were ordering). We thought we ordered BBQ Chicken and Ginger Lemongrass Chicken based on Google translate.  

What we got was really good. The ginger chicken landed up being what we were pretty sure to be chicken neck. It was awesome! The lemongrass marinade was really delicious.  We both enjoyed it more than the 1/2  bbq Chicken. I would definitely call this restaurant a safe bet if you find yourself in Cam Thuy. 

After lunch we hit the bank, another adventure, and then off to Quản Son at 2:15 PM. Almost two hours for an oil change, lunch and the bank!

The drive from Cam Thuy to Quản Son was a wonderful surprise. We didn’t see a single tourist, and felt as though we were seeing the real Vietnam. Lush, green hills and small towns filled with smiling children playing in the streets. People waving at us from homes on stilts, and from dusty street side stores. And then quickly rising on a, twisty road through the mountains, before descending into the near forgotten town of Quan Son at 4:30 PM. 

Shawn’s highlight of the day was passing a scooter with a fully grown pig, hog tied on the back. It was still alive and had to weigh over 300 lbs. 

Hotels were limited so the Song Ma Hotel it was. It’s dirty and basic, but the sheets seemed clean, there is air conditioning and the water is hot! Unfortunately the price increased at check out. When we arrived at the hotel, the man at the front desk wrote down 150,000. At check out he demanded 250,000. Luckily for us he just had our passport copies, so I wasn’t worried. Also, he had already given us the copies back, so he really didn’t have much leverage. He yelled a bit and stuck his finger in my face, so we gave him another 50,000 and got out of there. 

Dinner was instant noodles and coconut juice from the local market. Pretty sure there is a Snickers bar in my bag, so that’s next on the menu. Hopefully the Kareoke bar at the end of the hotel hallway has a quiet night!

Day 11

Sitting at the Laos border, so might as well catch up on the days events.

We had hoped to get to the border well before the 11:30 am – 1:30 pm lunch break, but didn’t quite make it. When we tried to check out of our hotel, no one was there so we had to wait for grumpy to return. Upon his return he demanded an inflated price, all of this taking time. We finally hit the road at 9:40 am with a new lesson. Always take a picture of the price you are quoted and the hotel name (in their writing) as proof at checkout. 

The drive to the border was a twisty, pretty drive through several small towns. Today’s scooter fun was what I call the “peacocks”. Scooters loaded up with 4- inch diameter, 25 foot long pieces of bamboo trailing off the back. To me it looked like long tail feathers sticking out the back, like a peacock. They were challenging to pass on the winding roads, as the bamboo poles would sway across the entire road. 

Arrived at the border at 11:10 am. Leaving Vietnam was an easy 20 minute process, costing 200,000 dong each. We arrived at the Laos border right at lunch – 11:30. They were kind enough to process our visa ($47 USD each), but we are now waiting until 1:30 for customs to open. 

While waiting, a very kind soldier offered us some food. We gave him a Snickers bar in return. This must not have been deemed a fair trade, as he returned with yet more little parcels wrapped in banana leaf. The first is a sticky, sweet, tar-like black goo with sesame seeds, filled with what we assume to be a vegetable – potato or turnip. The second is a more transparent, orange goo filled with roasted coconut. Both were good, surprisingly not too sweet, and definitely hit the spot. Despite the one grumpy hotel manager, the people have been incredibly generous and kind. It is a genuine kindness that I can only imagine is part of their Buddhist culture.

Customs opened promptly at 1:30 pm. After completing a form and paying another $3 USD each, we were on our way by 1:45. 
We arrived in Sam Neua, 145 km from Quan Son, at 4:45 pm and checked into the Keochinda Hotel. The room is large and clean, and the front desk was friendly. 

After a shower, went out to get a SIM card. While walking to a restaurant for dinner, two young men stopped their scooter excitedly to chat with us. They wanted help pronouncing “fence” from “France”. After introductions, pictures and becoming Facebook friends, we bid our new young friends farewell. 

Dinner was at Dan Nao Meuang Xam Restaurant. Popular with foreigners for its English menu, it had more to offer than just that. The food was fresh, flavourful and full of vegetables – something our diet has been lacking! 

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Day 8-9 Tam Coc / Ninh Binh

Day 8:

After a wonderful breakfast and send off from our Homestay family we headed off on Groot and Rambo to explore the Tràng An area. 

  • Trang An Boat Tour- A wonderful 2.5 hour row boat tour through caves, past temples and near where King Kong – Skull Island was filmed. The scenery was beautiful and our rower was very sweet. She didn’t ask for a tip (unlike the pushy and rude boat operators in Tam Coc), and she passed other boats to allow us to get great pictures without other boats. There are two options for the tour, route 1 or route 2. Route 1 was mostly caves, which we thought could get repetitive, so we opted for route 2 which had fewer caves, more temples and one of the the sites where King Kong Skull Island was filmed. Definitely recommend this tour.

  • Lunch of Pho at Tràng An. Very decent Pho for 30,000 dong each. 
  • Hoa Lu Ancient Capital. We didn’t spend much time here, but we did enjoy seeing the water buffalo. 
  • Bai Đinh Pagoda. We enjoyed our hour spent at the Bai Đính Complex. An electric car will take you to the entrance where you are greeted by a large bronze Buddha. Following this are the beautiful 500 Arahat statues carved from stone and the impressive bell tower. We walked up the stone steps to the Buddha to enjoy a lovely view over the complex before walking back to the parking lot 1.3 km away. 

  • Thung Nham bird garden. A beautiful bird sanctuary and a scenic drive to get there. We were told to go late afternoon, but this landed up being poor advice if you want to explore everything the park has to offer. For 100,000 dong all we had time to see were the birds and we walked back to the parking lot at dusk. It was dark by the time we left the park. I would go at 3:30 – 4:00 pm if you want time to explore the park (caves, ancient trees) as well as the birds. 

    Dinner at Orchid Restaurant in Tam Coc. We enjoyed the lively patio under a canopy of lit trees. The food was good and the prices very competitive. 

    Day 9:

    After getting little exercise the past week, we decided to explore Tam Coc by bicycle. We rented bicycles at our homestay and headed off to Bích Động Pagoda. 

    • Bích Động Pagoda. I enjoyed this free attraction (we paid the 10,000 dong to park the bicycles). The cave behind the pagoda was interesting to see, and there is a nice viewpoint up the path around the right of the little lake. 

    • Hang Mua. Like most travellers we found the cave to be less than exciting. However we enjoyed the stairs up to the incredible viewpoint. You can see the boats below from the river boat tour. 

    • Thai  Vi Temple. Given the poor reviews, we opted not to see this temple. We enjoyed the temples on our boat tour and decided that would do. 

    We had planned to motorcycle to Cuc Phuong National Park tomorrow to see the primates, check out the floating village and do some hiking. However after seeing the poor reviews for the floating village and being horribly discouraged by monkey island, we have decided to use this time to motorcycle to Laos. Although Laos wasn’t part of the plan – plans were meant to be broken! We have the blue cards for the motorcycles, and we have heard Laos is incredible, so why not! The border crossing might be interesting, but interesting usually means a good story to tell. Will check in and let you know how it goes! 

    Lunch was at Chookies Beer Garden. Very good western and Vietnamese options – burgers, falafel, spring rolls. The spinach smoothie was incredible! 

    Off to figure out how to get to Laos! 

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    Day 7 – Groot, Honda 250 l

    Drove from Cat Ba to Ninh Bình (Tam Coc to be exact), for a total of 195 km. Left at 9:40 am and drove the west coast road of Cat Ba Island to the ferry to Hai Phòng.  Arrived at the ferry terminal at 10:30 am and caught the 11:00 am ferry. Encountered some minor construction which made the ride exciting – detours through narrow streets and some fun off-road. Nothing Groot couldn’t handle. 

    Have I not introduced Groot yet? Groot is a Honda 150 L motorcycle. In Vietnam he might as well be a BMW 1200 GS. He is faster than almost everything else on the road, which makes playing chicken with the trucks and scooters a lot of fun. He also handles the daily construction detours like a champ. Mud, gravel, potholes and caved in roads become fun adventures as opposed to things to dread. 

    So why Groot? We watched Guardians of the Galaxy 2 on the flight to Vietnam. I love the opening scene where baby Groot dances through the mayhem of the battle going on around him. The Guardians are valiantly fighting a monster, while Groot dances and beams with delight. It’s exactly how I felt riding out of Hanoi the first day on Groot. Groot and I danced our way through the streets of Hanoi, laughing away, while completly surrounded  by chaos.

    I have also come to realize that my Vietnamese vocabulary is about as strong as Groot’s vocabulary. Finally, it’s really fun to say “I am Groot” when you need to be aggressive on the streets. 

    We arrived in Tam Coc at 3:15 PM after a chilly and very windy ride. Typhoon Damrey is hammering Vietnam to the south of us, bringing us cloud cover and very strong winds. I was happy to have the bike loaded up to help keep us from bouncing around too much. 

    After checking out a few home stays and hotels we settled on the highly rated Tam Coc Family home stay. They were fully booked, and for good reason. The home stay is very beautiful and is close to many restaurants and the heart of the cute village of Tam Coc. The family welcomed us with bottled water, pineapple and hugs, and found us an equally wonderful home stay with their sister in law at Tam Coc Mountain Lake Homestay. 

    $26 USD per night for a private bungalow with two crisp and clean queen beds, a beautiful bathroom and breakfast. It’s incredibly clean and modern, being very new and still under construction. Tam Coc Mountain Lake Homestay is a bargain and highly recommended! 

    Dinner at Sunflower Tam Coc Restaurant. The owners are wonderful and the service was great. Tried the red wine from Dalat. Had to try it at least once. I’ve had worse! The food was basic, but decent flavour and fresh.  

    Posted on

    Day 5-6: Cat Ba Island

    Day 5:

    Had a pretty good day today. We did a one day boat cruise from Cat Ba (300,000 dong each) to Lan Ha Bay. The tour included kayaking, a wonderful lunch, swimming and a short, but steep, hike on Monkey Island. Although the hike up Monkey Island was short, I highly recommend you wear good shoes if you plan on attempting this hike as it is very steep and technical, and those in flip-flops definitely struggled. Although we enjoyed our day very much, it reminded us that we don’t enjoy touristy attractions as much as other aspects of travel. Monkey Island felt like a zoo. The monkeys are fed by the tour guides, and have become semi tamed. At the same time they are wild, and dangerous. One man in our group was very nearly attacked by a snarling, vicious monkey who was being teased by a tour guide. The attack was unprovoked by the man, and he had to throw a large rock at the monkey to prevent what I’m sure would have been an ugly event. Another woman was bit while feeding the monkeys, something encouraged by some tour guides (our guide had cautioned us again this, so no one on our boat fed the monkeys). 

    So do I recommend this tour? Yes. Cat Ba Island is beautiful and a boat cruise is the way to see it. But with continued development of the area, it won’t be long before this island is nothing more than a crowded, party island with beauty that is overlooked by the drunk tourists who enjoy it. Tomorrow we are opting for solo trekking in Cat Ba National Park. 
    Dinner was at Vietnamese Soul Food again. We wanted to try something different, but no one on our boat of twenty people had anything good to say about the other restaurants in town. So Soul Food it was. And again it was wonderful! 

    Day 6:

    Awesome Day! Much more enjoyable than yesterday. Doing our own thing is definitely our thing. We drove around Cat Ba on the bikes and did the following:

    – Lookout Tower Trail. I highly recommend this hike as the views are stunning. Wear good shoes! Park entrance fee is 40,000 dong pp and another 5,000 dong to park each motorcycle. There is free parking at the cafe directly across the street, next to the animal statues. The hike took us 45 minutes up (steep grade) and about 30 minutes down. We met an awesome couple from the Netherlands who we met up with later in the evening for drinks. I think my favourite part of travelling is the people you meet along the way. Everyone has a story and you learn something from everyone you take the time to get to know. 

    – Truong Tràng Cave. Very worthwhile stop. Take a light if our want to venture through the entire cave. If it’s closed, walk around the gate. The price is included in the National Park fee. 

    – Ride North to Ben Pha Gia Luan. Beautiful ride to the North of the Island. If you want a really epic adventure, climb the green “ladder” to the radio antenna on the top of the mountain. The ladder can be found approx 200 meters south of the ferry. 

    – walk or motorcycle to Cannon Fort and enjoy the sunset. Even if it’s cloudy, the views are wonderful. 

    If you want to do the longer hikes in the National Park, you must start before 10:00 am or you will be turned away. Thank you Chris and Cecile for the tip! 

    Another option is to do the full day trekking tour to Viet Hai village. This got great reviews from the people we met who opted for this guided tour. Note: you can only do this trek through a guide.