Mai Chau, Hoa Binh Province, Vietnam
June 14, 2014
So this was it. The start of an epic long adventure down the length of Vietnam on Dora the Yamaha. We had to give the bike a name and Dora was the best we could come up with. We secured our smaller bags and snorkels on the make shift rack at the back and climbed on. I was nervous as well as ridiculously hungover, maybe not the best way to start a 2,000+ km bike ride through a foreign country out of one of their busiest and most congested cities but hey grin and bare it and crack on.
The lad we had bought the bike off arranged for a guy to guide us out of the centre of the city first as Hanoi is total chaos when it comes to riding the roads. I wouldn't have had a clue which streets to go down to even get out of the old town in the right direction let alone pick up the road we wanted out of town to take us west to Mai Chau.
We grabbed some petrol once we cleared the old town and then mazed our way through city streets. You need eyes in the back of your head to ride round this place, it's an absolute swarm of motorbikes, cars, buses and lorries and the general rule here is that the bigger your vehicle the more authority you have on the road. That really reads as, if you have a big truck you can plow through anything in your way, great fun!
An hour later and we hit a more major road through the city. Three lanes of chaotic tarmac and suicide drivers. It was this point as we were motoring along that our guy said his goodbyes and pointed down the road. What? This is it? We were still in the sprawling metropolis of the city, but he just pointed then spun round and was off in the distance. Follow this big road I guess, and it was indeed a very big road. It stretched for miles. Over bridges, through roundabouts and times I was unsure we were even heading in the right direction but we stuck with it.
We had to pull over at one set of lights as the bags on the back were starting to come loose already and we needed to adjust the bungy cords when all of a sudden an old guy popped up from no where out of his shop with some string and started to help us secure them better. Brilliant, this was all very friendly I thought and the locals here really know what they are doing when it comes to this stuff. Within minutes he had all our gear in a nice tightly fastened bundle and waved us off with a smile. Another hour later and the big high-rise buildings of the city finally started to give way to some greenery and smaller buildings and houses. Three lanes became two and then two became one as we eventually escaped the city of Hanoi.
We settled in a little. The roads still had plenty of traffic but not quite the same swarm like effect that you had further back. Now it was a different game. A game of huge trucks hurtling at you on a single lane road at a much faster speed than they did in the city. the hangover faded into the background and at times sheer terror and adrenaline took over as I adjusted myself to Vietnamese road skills. But I was relieved we were out of the city and well and truly on our way now. This was it, the long ride down the Ho Chi Minh trail was underway.
It was pleasant once we settled in. Beautiful countryside all around and small single road villages dotted along the way where we could grab water and snacks to keep us going. We weren't sure if we would make Mau Chai by nightfall as the dude said it was a good six-hour ride so our route there passed through a small town called Hoa Binh if we needed to stay there if time was getting on. We arrived in Hoa Binh at 4pm and grabbed a drink while we checked the map and decided if we should crack on further. Mau Chai looked as though it was possible so drinks down our necks we hopped on the bike again and went for it. We left Hoa Binh and the main road we had taken from Hanoi and headed up into the mountains.
The road climbed and snaked its way through the hillside. 10% gradients pushed the bike a little and it handled them admirably climbing well. The traffic became noticeably lighter and before we knew it we were high up in the clouds with hardly another soul around. As we kept climbing the scenery kept getting better and better. Some unbelievable valleys and mountains revealed themselves and I really wish I had stopped to take some photos as there were some truly amazing views to take in but I was aware of the sun lowering itself in the West and I did not want us to be still up on these secluded mountain roads in the dark. As we reached what appeared to be the highest point of the road we were joined by a lady on another bike who asked if we were headed to Mai Chau. She guided us down the rest of the way. Not that we needed it really as it was just the one road with nowhere else to go but it was a nice gesture all the same. The fact that she wanted us to stay at her homestay may also have had a little something to do with her generosity well.
As we descended rapidly down through the clouds Mai Chau came into view to our left and was a welcome sight. It looked beautiful. A large valley nestling between the hills and mountains patch worked with rice fields. Smoke rising up from various buildings in the small town added to the atmosphere and, well, it was all rather pretty really. We rode into town with the lady and after establishing that her homestay was too expensive we said our goodbyes and went in search of cheaper accommodation.
It didn't take long to find as there appeared to only be three places to stay in the town. One expensive and two cheap so we haggled down one of the cheaper ones and unloaded our small bags from the bike. We had made it through day one relatively comfortable and without any issues or drama. It had been a great day and truly felt like the motorbike adventure to Ho Chi Minh had begun. Checking on the map we had hardly moved South at all but at least we had now hit the Ho Chi Minh trail road that went through Mai Chau. Tomorrow we will start to make some headway South. I think I'm going to enjoy this.
