skysworldadventures

Today was a struggle for me. I woke up feeling a little off. I got breakfast and found I couldnt eat it. I only had a couple slices of toast and those sat poorly. Not a good start. It only took us a couple kilometers to get to the boarder, but the luggage transfer, switching out bikes (the bikes we rode in Vietnam did not cross the boarder so we had to take our seats and pedals off the Vietnam bikes and put on the Cambodia ones after the border crossing). We got a bit of a late start. It was hot today and with my queasey stomach, the heat was rough. Cambodia riding was mostly wider roads, some paved, some dirt. There was one section that lasted maybe 2 miles that was some technical single track and the upper limit of mountain biking ability. We stopped at a lovely little resort town that was at the ocean for lunch. Some people got in the water. I just enjoyed my hammock. I passed on lunch and had only a small bowl of rice. I was feeling really off. I felt a little b...

The bike riding today was pleasant but really hot. We spent most of the day on a road that was actually wide enough for two lanes of car traffic to pass eachother. Easier said than done with the bikes and scooters but possible. The road parallels a canal that is the border between Cambodia and Vietnam. Tomorrow we cross in to Cambodia. The canal has rice paddies on both sides and we saw the first hills of the trip. Ha Tien has a beach and is supposed to be a tourist destination for Vietnamese people. I think I've talked a bit about the sights of this country, but to experience Vietnam, you must smell it. As previously stated, Vietnam is still fairly primative in some ways. Most of the cooking done in the home is done over open flame or in a wood stove. Wood is expensive so they dry and burn everything they can. Coconut husks are often lying in frount of homes to dry along with fruit rinds. There is a fair amount of smoke in the air from the cooking fires. There is t...

Day one of riding, what a packed day! We loaded on to our airconditioned bus, and got out of Saigon and to the Mekong River Delta. As we were driving to the ride start, we watched the city scape morph in to jungle and rice paddies. Once we started riding, the "roads" were a mix of pavement and packed dirt that was roughly the width of a narrow sidewalk for 2 directions of traffic. The roads was continuously twisting and turning. All types trees over hung the road including banana trees and durian trees. Motor scooters we passing us and we were passing bicycles and people waking. It was crazy! We also were criss-crossing over small waterways on narrow arched bridges without any railings. We crossed the Mekong river for the first time on a ferry at the very start of the ride. The ferry was a big slow moving thing jam packed with bikes, motor scooters and pedestrians. the Mekong river is huge, more than 2 kilometers across in places. After a bit of riding, we st...

Today started early! We were up and out the door by 6:30. We went to the floating market. Boats come to the market to buy and sell. The sellers have a pole that they attach and example of what they are selling to so you can find the boat you are looking for. We also saw many fishing boats along the river. Some looked like they were about to sink. We saw more than one bailing out water. The engines were facinating as well. The small boats ran on little 2 stroke engines (reminded me of weed wackers) and some of the big boats used modified car engines. Whirling parts exposed to near by fingers. We saw more than one gas tank made out of an old water jug. Safety doesnt seem to be the main priority. The Vietmanese people seem to be extremely resourceful. Their solutions may not be elegant, but they work. We stopped off to see the "snake man". He takes a poisonous snake, drops it in a jug of rice wine and lets it ferment for 4 year. He said it was Vietnam viagra....

We met up with the rest of the group over breakfast and enjoyed hearing their adventures in getting to Vietnam. Half of the group missed connecting flights due to the freezing rain in boise on thursday. After breakfast, the group split up and scattered. Jeff and I continued to explore the city on foot. We found it to be an interesting mix of very pretty and rickety. We had an amazing lunch of Dim Sum.  Then met back up with the group to get our bikes set up fot the start of riding tomorrow. After the bike fit was more walking and more eating.  Time for sleep before tomorrows bike ride! This is a flower that we saw in one of the city parks. This is a park that is a memorial for the monk that lit himself on fire in the late 60's. Apparently it had a big impact on the treatment of Buddists in Vietnam. This is a fairly regular sceene, electrical wire spagetti! I have no idea how it actually works. This was the Xa Loi pagoda. Was a long walk but worth it. ...

On the cab ride back to the hotel I was amazed at the scooters. Once we had a chance to drop off our bags and walk around, I was completely blown away! There are scooters everywhere. There seems to be no rhyme or reason the the traffic pattern, they drive on the wrong side of the street, on the side walk, they stop randomly in the street, I have no idea how they decide who has the right of way at intersections. Crazy scooters everywhere.  To make it more exciting, they also load those things up! 3 people on a scooter is a common sight.  I saw one go by with 2 guys and a ladder. Others piled high with huge boxes. This was a crazy scooter with a bunch of balloons. While randomly wandering, we also happened to see this beautiful pagoda in a park.

All flights went good, the luggage showed up. Had a little snafu with meeting the guide that was supposed to take us to the hotel. Almost took one taxi but decides he seemed suspicious. My gut said don't get in his cab. So we pulled the bags out of the trunk and found a more reputable looking cab, and are now at the hotel. Next on the list is finding a map and checking things out. Yay! Will take camera and pictures!

I've been asked (repeatedly) "how long does it take to get from Boise to Saigon?" Let's find out! I'm currently sitting in the Boise airport. Timer starts ... Now! Next stop is Seattle, then Vancouver, then HongKong then (finally) Saigon. So excited to finally be on my way!!!

Enough with the negative temperatures!!! I so excited to leave these -2 degree mornings and go sweat my butt of in 93 degrees! I'm completely baffled when people say the heat sounds awful. I can't wait to thaw out!

This is the part where I wish I had the super fantastic Indiana Jones arrow following me along on my trip. And with today's technology, I'm sure that is actually possible. However, I'm far too lazy for that. So, I have the ghetto picture of a paper map version. I'm sure you are terribly impressed!

Ready... set... go!  I'm finally started with this blog!  Now I just need to figure out how all this stuff works *sigh*. I'm currently surrounded by piles, to do lists and laundry.  I'm trying to get ready for an anazing adventure.  Today is my last weekend day to get ready for a 3+ week trip to southeast Asia.  Where?  Why?  you might be thinking...  I'm going to ride a mountain bike from Ho Chi Mihn City to Bangkok along rural dirt roads and then spend a couple days diving in Thailand.  Hence the list, laundry and piles.  Packing for this type of adventure is a bitch!  This is my last weekend day to get it all done and I'm feeling the pressure. Proof of concept for blog... Check!  I can mark this off my list, woot!