13985 km Ninh Binh
Door: Erik en Tjeerd
Blijf op de hoogte en volg Erik en Tjeerd
24 Januari 2008 | Vietnam, Ninh Bình
When we left Yangxi we still had some easy days ahead of us in China. Unfortunately the weather decided to make things a little tougher for us. From nice sunshine the temperature suddenly dropped getting close to about 5-10 degrees Celsius. Luckily we did not have to much rain and we still had our warm gear in the bags from the travelling to Nepal so we managed to stay warm. Other then cycling we have spend most of our time in China eating and it's a little miracle that we have not gained too much weight yet. Southeast Asia will sure prove to be a challenge from that perspective because the food seems to be delicious everywhere you go. Guess the best remedy is to enjoy it all and just make sure we keep on cycling to get rid of those extra kilo's. Cycling through China it seemed like we are one big tourist attraction. People seem amazed to see white people. Some people told us they never saw a "real one" before. We have posed for countless pictures that people just keep on making with their flashy mobiles. Sure there's lots off phones everywhere, but in china 50% of all shops seem to sell mobile phones :)
When we arrived at about 40 km before the Vietnamese border we suddenly saw a checkpoint and our passports where up for a review. We were not sure what it was all about, but just keep on smiling and hope for the best (that usually works best) The official took a good hard look at our passports and after at least 30 minutes he and his 4 colleagues that were called in especially for the occasion, finally decided it was ok. We were on the move again and arrived in Dongxing the Chinese border town on the 18th. We spend a day in Dongxing and after that we headed for Vietnam. No problems this time, just the ussual forms at the border and we were set to go.
First thing we noticed is that Vietnam seems to be poorer and less developed then China. The scenery changed as well but for the better. The scenery was nice in China but in Vietnam it all seems to be even greener. That's no real wonder because there seems to be water just about everywhere here. It's to bad the weather has been so foggy for us, otherwise we would sure have had some beautiful views on top of the countless small little hills we climbed in the North.
First goal in Vietnam was to reach Halong bay, famous for it's scenery and a splendid view of Karstmountainformations rising from the bay. Halong means dragonback in Vietnamese and the place derives its name from a legend that says a dragon came from the hills and swept the scenery into place with his tail. We arranged a boattrip for the next morning to go across the bay and enjoy the views. Unfortunately our "guide" tried to raise the price by asking us to pay for admission tickets (which we clearly agreed to be included in the price already) More sadly it seemed that the group he arranged and promised us there would be was not there at all and suddenly our only option was to get a really expensive private boat. By then we'd had it with the little $%#$ and we decided to take a raincheck and do some cycling instead. The weather was not great anyways, so maybe we did not miss out to much on this afterall and we will probably see much more of the Karstmountains later in Laos and Thailand among others.
The Vietnamese are very kind people. All are smiling welcoming you into Vietnam and people offer to share some ricewine frequently (they sure like their drinks). But when it comes to money it can really be a pain to deal with people. Most people we met are notorious overchargers and you constantly have to be on your toes. i.e. never order anything before agreeing on the price. In China it felt a little more relaxed when it comes to this.
After Halong bay we headed for Hanoi. That's not so far away and we made it there in a day and a half. In Hanoi we went to see the etmonology museum. A nice visit which provided us with everything you might want to know about Vietnamese life. All different tribes and people that live in the country and all there customs. It was a very nice visit. After that we headed back towards the centre to visit the temple of literature. This is basically a school/university where people got taugtht in Confucianism. In the evening our brain needed a bit of a break after so much cultural intake and we had a nice dinner and some beer till the early hours in the center of Hanoi. We met a couple of dutch students and it was nice to be able to talk to some Dutchies again for a change.
After an obviously late start the next morning we headed of again. A change in direction because having been travelling west for a couple of days its now time to head more south. We have heard it's a nice 35 degrees down in Ho Chi Minh City. a.k.a. HCMC or Saigon.
Its "only" a measly 1650 km from here....
So good weather here we come !!!!
More news will follow later...
Yours Erik and Tjeerd
http://s197.photobucket.com/albums/aa310/erikopdefiets/25%20Vietnam%20-%20Halong%20Bay%20-%20Hanoi/
When we arrived at about 40 km before the Vietnamese border we suddenly saw a checkpoint and our passports where up for a review. We were not sure what it was all about, but just keep on smiling and hope for the best (that usually works best) The official took a good hard look at our passports and after at least 30 minutes he and his 4 colleagues that were called in especially for the occasion, finally decided it was ok. We were on the move again and arrived in Dongxing the Chinese border town on the 18th. We spend a day in Dongxing and after that we headed for Vietnam. No problems this time, just the ussual forms at the border and we were set to go.
First thing we noticed is that Vietnam seems to be poorer and less developed then China. The scenery changed as well but for the better. The scenery was nice in China but in Vietnam it all seems to be even greener. That's no real wonder because there seems to be water just about everywhere here. It's to bad the weather has been so foggy for us, otherwise we would sure have had some beautiful views on top of the countless small little hills we climbed in the North.
First goal in Vietnam was to reach Halong bay, famous for it's scenery and a splendid view of Karstmountainformations rising from the bay. Halong means dragonback in Vietnamese and the place derives its name from a legend that says a dragon came from the hills and swept the scenery into place with his tail. We arranged a boattrip for the next morning to go across the bay and enjoy the views. Unfortunately our "guide" tried to raise the price by asking us to pay for admission tickets (which we clearly agreed to be included in the price already) More sadly it seemed that the group he arranged and promised us there would be was not there at all and suddenly our only option was to get a really expensive private boat. By then we'd had it with the little $%#$ and we decided to take a raincheck and do some cycling instead. The weather was not great anyways, so maybe we did not miss out to much on this afterall and we will probably see much more of the Karstmountains later in Laos and Thailand among others.
The Vietnamese are very kind people. All are smiling welcoming you into Vietnam and people offer to share some ricewine frequently (they sure like their drinks). But when it comes to money it can really be a pain to deal with people. Most people we met are notorious overchargers and you constantly have to be on your toes. i.e. never order anything before agreeing on the price. In China it felt a little more relaxed when it comes to this.
After Halong bay we headed for Hanoi. That's not so far away and we made it there in a day and a half. In Hanoi we went to see the etmonology museum. A nice visit which provided us with everything you might want to know about Vietnamese life. All different tribes and people that live in the country and all there customs. It was a very nice visit. After that we headed back towards the centre to visit the temple of literature. This is basically a school/university where people got taugtht in Confucianism. In the evening our brain needed a bit of a break after so much cultural intake and we had a nice dinner and some beer till the early hours in the center of Hanoi. We met a couple of dutch students and it was nice to be able to talk to some Dutchies again for a change.
After an obviously late start the next morning we headed of again. A change in direction because having been travelling west for a couple of days its now time to head more south. We have heard it's a nice 35 degrees down in Ho Chi Minh City. a.k.a. HCMC or Saigon.
Its "only" a measly 1650 km from here....
So good weather here we come !!!!
More news will follow later...
Yours Erik and Tjeerd
http://s197.photobucket.com/albums/aa310/erikopdefiets/25%20Vietnam%20-%20Halong%20Bay%20-%20Hanoi/
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24 Januari 2008 - 15:33
Truus:
Och die slordige 1650 km is toch niets meer voor jullie!!! Ik denk dat jullie niet alleen een bezienswaardigheid zijn vanwege jullie blanke huid, maar ook zeker omdat jullie denk ik groter (langer) zijn dan de gemiddelde man/vrouw daar. En nu leer je pas echt wat afdingen is, kan nooit kwaad. In Indonesië als je niet afdingt dan beledig je de mensen, dus zie dit als een leerschool. Veel plezier verder, enne van rijst wordt je niet dik. Hier regent het bijna elke dag. Hou je haaks, groeten T. -
24 Januari 2008 - 15:34
Maaike:
Nu al in Vietnam? Wat is het plan na Azie? Gaan jullie Amerika door? -
24 Januari 2008 - 20:02
Joep:
hoi Erik,
Goed te lezen dat alles naar wens gaat, op sommige "minor things" na!
Je mist hier weinig kan ik je melden, kut weer en troosteloze boel: typisch Holland zoals we het kennen :-)).
Wij wensen jou en je vriend nog veel lol en (gezellig) avontuur. Ik blijf je volgen,
liefs, Joep -
25 Januari 2008 - 09:19
Marjel:
Hoi Erik, groetjes uit Nederland. Gaaf hoor al die mooie foto's! Wij zijn verhuisd naar onze nieuwe huis. We zijn bijna gesettled. De verwarming doet het nu weer dat scheelt! Maar het wordt allemaal heel mooi. Chris' oma is naar een hospice verhuisd. Gaat allemaal niet zo heel goed. We missen je, hoor... Maar nog veel plezier in al je avonturen met TJeerd!
Liefs, Marjel -
25 Januari 2008 - 18:31
Sharon Marciniak:
Eric,
This is the first I've heard of your trip! How incredible! Will you be riding through North or South America? If so, which part/cities???
Best of luck!
Sharon -
25 Januari 2008 - 22:20
Gerard And Gloria:
What an amazing sight all that Delft blue at the market stores! It seems our ancestors copied the art from China or was it Vietnam. Did you drink out of the bottle with the snake or is it just a horror picture! Are those bottles on sale at the market. It seems one tries to earn a little money extra. What a struggle for live do you meet.
Good luck and take care, with love,
Gerard and Gloria -
28 Januari 2008 - 15:15
Istvana:
hello Eric,
Nice to read your stories, really amazing what you 2 are doing. Have fun!
Kiss -
29 Januari 2008 - 13:30
Maarten:
Ha Erik en Tjeerd,
Ben benieuwd of Vietnam nu zo druk is, of dat het in vergelijking met China meevalt.
Geniet van de mooie natuur.
Groeten,
Maarten en Kristina -
31 Januari 2008 - 13:03
Marielle:
Hey Mupke!!!
Echt ongeloofeloos dat jullie al zoveel hebben gezien en meegemaakt. Ik krijg zo'n donkerbruin vermoeden dat jullie door blijven fietsen totdat echt alle centjes op zijn en jullie wel naar huis moeten :)
Maar ben erg blij dat jullie het nog steeds zo goed naar jullie zin hebben!
En 1650km daar doen jullie toch 3 dagen over? ;)
Dikke kus en knuf
Marielle -
01 Februari 2008 - 08:51
Didi:
Dear Erik and Tjeerd,
What a fabulas experience you have!
And a lot of courage, travelling through unknown areas with a bike!
I only know Vietnam by war movies.
Enjoy, lots of luck,
Didi ( daughter of oom Bart and tante Minnie)
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02 Februari 2008 - 16:42
Maaike:
Ziet er prachtig uit daar. En veel betere weersomstandigheden dan hier. Het ontbijt zag er ook prima uit. Leek helemeaal niet op noodle soep :-)
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