My Life

We arrived here in the dark and stayed in a hotel room with 2 single beds. The breaker box buzzed all night masking a few marauding mosquitos. The next day we walked to a restaurant called the Red Tomato for breakfast. Jill discovered oatmeal on the menu and we both ordered it. It was hot the coffee was hot. It’s almost unbearably hot here.… Read the rest

  Has it been so long? Jill and I made it to Malaysia. Before leaving Vietnam we managed to fall in love with it. I even got a goodbye kiss on my calf from a hot tailpipe. It doesn’t quite match the greeting kiss I got on my other ankle when we arrived. That’s all in the past though. We are making a short term nest in Kuala Lumpur.… Read the rest

Today I drove through sunshine, jungle, through mountains, and over rivers. We were 4 km from Laos at one point. We’ve ended the day in a village called P’rao. A couple Canadians on a trip shared a little rice liquor with us. We chatted about travels and Vietnam. They’ve been to Myanmar and Thailand. I can hardly wait to visit there someday.… Read the rest

Touristy Hue today. We went to the forbidden city and a pagoda. I drove for what seemed like the first time in days. I had to remember how to shift into second, it has gotten quirkier of late. It’s odd because I drove less than 24 hours ago. Driving through the rain was a wholly different experience. It was monotonous so wet.… Read the rest

We are back in Da Nang after a short jaunt to Chu Lai. The drive was harrowing on the highway. It was pleasant on the byway though. It rained on us a few times but we stayed dry in our plastic ponchos. We saw some of the pavement from the American military base which seems to be all that is left of it.… Read the rest

We escaped to Danang today. Hoi An became a trap when bike problems and Chinese visas conspire against us. Danang feels different. There is a dragon bridge that breathes fire. 

Tomorrow we hope to go to Chu Lai and run around a bit. But maybe I need a new tire, mechanics will own us soon. We hope to be in Hue on the second if the bikes hold up.… Read the rest

So here we are in Hoi An. Probably the tourist capital of Vietnam. It’s a UNESCO World Heritage site. Fai Fo, now Hoi An, started as a trading centre for China and India. The Japanese and Europeans came along and the place blossomed. Around 1700 the river silted up and ships couldn’t get in so the place lost its greatest asset for traders.… Read the rest

We left Boun Ma Thuot this morning. We arrived in Pleiku at 5 pm. A chain fell off and we got some oil changes. The road to here curved a couple times. The ride was not exciting but it was nice pavement and a wide shoulder for us. The scenery is coffee farms or rubber farms. Sometimes they are burning. Arriving in Pleiku happens gradually it sprawls out on the plains like Fargo.… Read the rest

Here we are in Boun Ma Thuot. We rolled in at noon or so. We stopped at a gift shop then went to the grocery. Coy and I ate at KFC. Yes they have one here. The last time I ate some KFC was in Virginia. I devoured a bucket with Rob and Leah over the kitchen sink after the beach.… Read the rest