First Vietnam Pictures!

my updated cycling outfit looks just stunning!

if you ever wonder how stones for driveways are made in Vietnam, here is the answer:
1)choose a big boulder somewhere in the landscape
2) Hammer and chisel big quarters apart
3) Divide the big quarter into small quarters, again just with hammer and chisel!

Great Beaches, green and blue Sea, Palm trees! After some stressful days in the sticks and three days with more than 120km in a row that was exactly what we needed! And thats what you find besides many other tourists in Nha Thrang. So we could get some change to our foe' diet, which is the noodle soup with veggies and some dubious meet which you don't know what it is...sounds not too bad but if you have it for breakfast, lunch and dinner it becomes less appealing and doesn't give you much energy for cycling. We never thought that a normal pizza would be so adorable and it took us 5 minutes to explain to the waitress that we want the biggest pizza they have because we just cycled 135km more or less on breakfast alone.

So on the way between the touristy city's, mentioned in the lonely planet you find the real nice spots and you don't pay the tourist prices if you let them know that you know that a room is not normally 10 dollars but more like 5 for a standard room and after some haggling and attempts to go away you normally end up paying the normal price. Although after a long day of cycling in the heat the haggling bit is the least you want but just to get some food and a shower. So we discovered an old government run bungalow style hotel directly on a wonderful beach where we stayed in a room with 3 beds for 60000VND which is about 4 dollars for the both of us. The lonely planet doesn't even mention this hotel, but, of course the more expensive one's close to the highway where you pay 10 dollars. Of course you rather prefer an air conditioned room close to the highway than a room with sea view but only with fan and a little bit older! So for anyone who is still fond of lonely planet guidebooks, this was just one example for wrong, missing or just overpriced hotels listed and we can really recommend the Rough Guide which at least gives you the chance to choose between the possibility's...so enough bitching about lonely planet for today!

So, we are in the very tourist area of Nha Trang. This is a beautiful but very built up area with a long beach clad with palm trees and coconut trees. We are staying in a fairly cheep hotel that has a slight beach view, and the weather, (well except from today) is just hot hot hot! Yesterday it was so hot we even gave in and paid 40000 dong ( $2.50) to have the pleasure of reclining on a huge sun bed with a palm tree roof for shade, that and a very over priced beer looking out to the aqua blue sea and small islands was expensive heaven!! We have inquired about some snorkeling around these islands and hopefully we will do a trip tomorrow, the pictures look great, and we will def get to see lots of finding nemos. We both feel we are on holiday at the moment, sounds funny prob to you as we have been for a while but we are actually relaxing and doing no cycling or anything for that matter....love it! except eating!

Cycling through Vietnam so far has been beautiful, the landscapes are ever changing from paddy fields to great mountains on either side, we have been doing some very long distances with mostly over 100kms a day but the views have been well worth it, although the traffic is sometimes a little crazy, its part of the fun and experience, and i have fully enjoyed getting fitter and recently giving Nils a run for his money with speed and endurance!!! ha ha I now cycle in the front! well sometimes but its enough to scare him with thunder thighs Cobley and her amazing talents that just get better and better!!!

oh and for the record, would be cool to get some comments from people! no one so far since Asia where are you guys...! Love to hear from you

Love George and Nils