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December 2016 to February 2017
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World Travel Blog - December 2016 to February 2017
20th February 2017
My New
Honda Winner
Yesterday I bought a new motorbike as I have plans for some major
touring (see January 7th post below) and my Honda Blade was a good
town bike but not a touring bike. The Honda Winner may look similar
but it is completely different - six speed manual gearbox, disc
brakes front and rear, fuel injected 150 cc engine, liquid cooled, wider wheels
with better tyres and it has double the power of the Honda Blade. I
took it for a 50 kilometre run up the coast yesterday and it went
well.
Honda Winner
----
12th January 2017
Vung Tau Trip
I just got home from a three day trip to Vung Tau (about 90
kilometres south of Saigon) which is a popular weekend "Beach
Escape" for residents of Saigon. I went during the week to avoid the
crowds (and to get cheaper hotel prices) and that certainly
succeeded as there were very few people around and almost no traffic
- it reminded me a lot of how Nha Trang was when I first visited in
2010 (before the hoards of Russian tourists started coming). Vung Tau's main beach (Back Beach) is OK but nowhere near as
good as Nha Trang, they also have a sheltered beach (Front Beach)
that is calmer and not as windy. I rented a motorbike from my hotel
and covered a large portion of Vung Tau.
Vung Tau is not that easy to get to as it has no commercial flights
and no train service. I flew to Saigon from Nha Trang and got the
fast ferry to Vung Tau (200,000 vnd) which takes about 2 hours and
was quite relaxing. I decided to get a minibus back just for the
experience (90,000 vnd) and it took more than 2 1/2 hours with lots
of traffic and road works and it only goes to the main bus terminal
on the outskirts of Saigon so I had to get 2 more buses to get me
into Saigon and to the airport. I am fairly sure I will visit Vung
Tau again and I will take the fast ferry both ways.
Vung Tau Back
Beach - Tide Out Vung Tau
Back Beach - Tide In Vung Tau
Front Beach
Vung Tau Beach Road
Nha Trang Beach Road
----
7th January 2017
The Great Central/Northern Trip
In keeping with the idea that I will have a trip per month (Vung
Tau this month,
Phu Quoc next month) I am planning
a motorbike trip mid March from Nha Trang to Dong Hoi coming back on
the train. I have booked all the hotels (at an average price of
$20.50 AUD/night - $15 USD) - which includes breakfast at half of
the hotels and one hotel is rated five stars - "Mr. Cheap") - Day 1
Nha Trang to Tuy Hoa (126 Klms) - day 2
Tuy Hoa to Pleiku
(221 Klms) - Day 3
Pleiku to Quang Ngai (245 Klms) - Day 4
Quang
Ngai to Hoi An (116 Klms) - Day 5
Hoi An to Hue (130 Klms) - Day 6
Hue to Khe Sanh (133 Klms) - Day 7
Khe Sanh to Phong Nha (233 Klms)
- Day 8
Phong Nha to Dong Hoi (45 Klms) -
Day 9 Train from Dong Hoi to Nha Trang (795 Klms).
The route is a combination of coastal and mountain roads and covers
1249 Klms on motorbike and 795 Klms on the train.
----
25th December 2016
Back Home - Nha Trang
Back home in Nha Trang after my 4 day "Coffee Trip" which covered
more than 550 klms. The ride down the mountains from Dalat was cold
and wet - it rained almost all the way to Nha Trang - and there is a
major storm across the Philippines that is heading this way. I had a rest stop at Com Khan Le and
had a Banh Mi Op La (Baguette with 2 fried eggs) and a wonderful
coffee - I was cold and wet.
The road is a disaster area with numerous landslides, washouts and
potholes - the road was in excellent condition in September when I
last rode to Dalat - the continual heavy rain has made a mess.
----
23rd December 2016
Dalat
Still in Dalat spending the night at the
Gold Star Hotel and all is well. I
went on the
Dalat Countryside Tour today and it
involved visits to a
Flower Growing Farm,
Highlands Coffee Plantation, a
Silk Worm processing plant,
Elephant Waterfall,
Linh An Pagoda, a
Cricket Breeding business and
Dalat Railway Station.
I did a couple of new things today - I had a cup of Arabica
Weasel Coffee and also ate some
Crickets.
I will be riding home to
Nha Trang tomorrow and the weather
forecast is good.
Marigolds
Highlands Coffee Plantation
Ripe Coffee Cherries
Coffee Cherries Drying in The Sun
Sleeping Weasel
Silk Worms
Elephant Waterfall
Inside Linh An Pagoda
Happy Buddha
Breeding Crickets
Roasted Crickets
Dalat Railway Station
----
23rd December 2016
Dalat
I have arrived in Dalat after a torrid 200 klm plus ride from Buon
Ma Thout. The first half of the trip was OK then once at the top of
the mountains the road quality dropped dramatically with many rough
areas and large potholes everywhere. It took about five hours
including a coffee break at about half way - my body is still vibrating
from all the bouncing around - you probably don't have to be crazy
to do this trip on a motorbike but I am sure it helps.
----
21st December 2016
Coffee Trip
Tomorrow I am taking my
motorbike on a trip to the main
coffee growing areas of Vietnam. Travelling from Nha Trang
(hopefully the rain will have stopped) to the Dak Lak region,
staying in the capital of the province, Buon Ma Thuot, overnight -
185 kilometres. The following day I will travel from Buon Ma Thuot
to Dalat - 210 kilometres - and again stay overnight. Then on
Saturday I will return to Nha Trang - 135 kilometres.
I have no set plans and am just going for a ride. I have been to Dalat several times and
usually buy coffee when I visit.
----
18th December 2016
Back Home in Nha Trang
I am now home in Nha Trang (and it's still raining) after a great
trip to Hanoi, Sapa and Halong Bay. I already have bookings for a
trips to Vung Tau (south of Saigon) for a couple of days next month
and a four day trip to Phu Quoc, a Vietnamese island off the coast
of Cambodia, in February.
----
16th December 2016
Sapa & Halong Bay Trip (Day Four)
This morning I went Kayaking with the group - we travelled further
than I thought we would and the trip included going "Through" one of
the Halong Bay islands. After the Kayaking the head chef gave us a
fruit carving demonstration and we all got to make fresh spring
rolls.
The balance of the trip involved cruising homeward and simply
enjoying the view. The entire trip was excellent I can highly
recommend it -
Hanoi, Sapa and Halong Bay
Kayaking Halong Bay
Floating Minimart
Halong Bay Cruising
----
15th December 2016
Sapa & Halong Bay Trip (Day Three)
The trip back to Hanoi on the overnight train was a bit rough and I
only got about 30 minutes sleep. After a quick breakfast I caught
the minibus to Halong Bay to board the
V'Spirit Classic Boat for
two days of cruising. The boat has sixteen large cabins, a dining
area, an outside covered seating area and an upper sun deck.
The first day was spent cruising Halong Bay, a visit to Sung Sot
Cave (a large cave within one of the islands in Halong Bay) and some
time at Ti Top Beach. The food on board has been amazing with
many courses for both lunch and dinner (dinner consisted of pumpkin
soup, fried spring rolls, stuffed crab, oysters, prawns, rice and
vegetables with fresh fruit for desert)
Leaving Halong Bay Harbour
Halong Bay
Halong Bay Islands
V'Spirit Cruise Boat
Sung Sot Cave
Ti Top Beach
----
14th December 2016
Sapa Trekking (Day Two)
Thankfully for my leg muscles the second day of trekking was quite a
bit easier than the first - We walked from the
Sapa Vista Hotel down
to Cat Cat village of the Black H'mong people. The remains of a
French Colonial power station consisted of large waterwheels very
similar to bicycle wheels. We then walked on to Sin Chai, a village
located at the foot of Fansipan Mountain, which is the highest
mountain in Vietnam at around 10,000 feet.
Cat Cat Village
Colourful Hand Made Clothes
So - Our Tour Guide
My New Girlfriend
----
13th December 2016
Sapa Trekking (Day One)
I am in Sapa for the first day of my
Hanoi, Sapa and Halong Bay trip.
Arrived early this morning after catching the overnight "King
Express" train from Hanoi - breakfast at the hotel and then 12
kilometres of trekking visiting a couple of local villages - firstly
Lao Chai village of the Black H'mong people and then on to Ta Van
village home of the Dzay minority people.
It was a good day but the first half of the trekking was quite
difficult - very steep (up and down) slopes with wet muddy patches
and also a lot loose rocks etc. and very uneven. Despite the fact
that I walk a lot I found it hard because of the steep uneven
surface.
Tomorrow is more of the same although our guide said the trek
tomorrow will be easier:)
Sapa Vista Hotel
The View From My Room Sapa Terraces and River
Sapa Trekking Group
Trekking Sapa
Sapa Terraces
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