Having explored Dong Hai last night and partook of the excellent street food at the nearby bridge area I was able to overcome my tendency to explore – 80km is not so far now my legs are getting stronger. Arnie Mk2. I went through the bustling street market at the foot of the main southbound bridge and then saw another a few km down the AH1 road.
I popped in for some banh my for coffee later and peanuts. A very friendly man wanted a photo with me – he was 54! The ladies were selling their home produce and there’s a definite change in dialect now. The next thing, I meet Canadians Randy & Anita who even had business cards – they were going Hanoi to Saigon. They’d met Dutch Michelle (northbound) who’d told them she’d met me a few nights prior. Small world.
I was heading off to the seaside Hai Ninh so we parted company. Hai Ninh was 8km away over the Ql1A highway and along a traffic free road with sand banks either side. My hope was to travel as far as possible along the shoreline. It was a pleasant linear holiday town and at 1030am there appeared another swarm of home-bound kids, this time I managed to get to the far side of the main entrance and rode the wave rather than having to push through it.
I asked a builder if there was somewhere to get Caphe Den and he took me to Cafe Dan which was most welcome. I was soon joined by some of the swarm who helped me to count to ten then they had a go in English. The kids were young and start school at 7am.
Sadly the road petered out into a sandy track. The adjacent road had brand new street lighting and another commune’s foundations were going up. The local golf course was to my left. The Ql1a was newly tarmaced, 4 lanes wide plus bike lanes either side and empty. Plus this was one of the most deserted pieces of road I had been on with sand dunes and windmills either side of me Plus no linear shanty town shacks. BLISS.
Just about the right time I saw a large roadside eatery on a lake so tootled back and took a breezy window seat. Wonderful service and amazing food Ret Nguon. The lake was full of hungry catfish who enjoyed my rice. I wonder if catfish S of the equator circle anti-clockwise?
The trucks are longer here than at home and I did see several broken down. With around 25km to go I found a mum and dad Cafe, we chatted via Google translate, they took pity on me and gave me quite a few biscuits to help get me there.
A second swarm erupted a few km from my Nha Nghi. Last image is of a bird enticing tower to lure birds in so their nests can be turned into gold – birds nest soup. Bird spit soup does not entice me – just like live oysters!
Tomorrow is an easy ride to Hue for two nights. There I’ll plan to avoid Denang which has been described to me as the Sihanoukville of Vietnam.