Vietnam biking adventure
Discussion
AceOfHearts said:
In the Mekong Delta I did get the seat rebuilt with new foam and cover but it did not make a great improvement unfortunately. Worth a shot for 70,000 dong though (£2.30)
.
Rightly or wrongly, when I read Mekong Dela, I think of the Yanks on their attack boats going up the river during the Vietnam war, not seat upholstery!.
Great pics and write up as usual.
AceOfHearts said:
I will also try and get some photos of the more interesting bikes round here. I have seen a few Suzuki RGV120 scooters which are a sporty 2 stroke and look like a hoot!
I was talking to an American expat the other day as well and he said with the import duties you can pay up to 100,000 dollars for a factory Harley here!
BMW GSA is US$44KI was talking to an American expat the other day as well and he said with the import duties you can pay up to 100,000 dollars for a factory Harley here!
Ducati MUltiStrada Enduro USD $42K
Triumph Tiger 800 USD$30K
Yep, all about the "luxury tax" Honda XR150 is $3K XR250 is $12K.......Anything over 175cc gets hammered tax wise. Rumour has it they're dropping the tax in 2018 but that remains to be seen....
Ilovejapcrap said:
This really interest me few questions =
1 how does insurance work do you even need it if so how do you get it
2 do you need a motorcycle licence did you take your British one
3 how safe is the place, are you likely to be stiffed for some fake crime trying to get home ?
4 how safe is it in terms of the people is mugging \ theft an issue ? Do you need to lock bike up loads on a night ?
5 do you plan a route or play it by ear ?
6 do you find lodgings as you go . Hotels or random rooms ?
Thanks
Some answers in my opinion, of us riding Hanoi -> Cat Ba -> Hai Van Pass, -> All the way coast road to Saigon1 how does insurance work do you even need it if so how do you get it
2 do you need a motorcycle licence did you take your British one
3 how safe is the place, are you likely to be stiffed for some fake crime trying to get home ?
4 how safe is it in terms of the people is mugging \ theft an issue ? Do you need to lock bike up loads on a night ?
5 do you plan a route or play it by ear ?
6 do you find lodgings as you go . Hotels or random rooms ?
Thanks
1, Insurance, Didn't bother with it, not sure if would have been worth the paper it was written on given the Vietnam riding.
2. Licence, I only had UK car and bike, her had none at all.
3, Safety, always felt really quite safe, no fear of being mugged.
4, Bike safety, Normally the bikes are brought into hotel foyer, or courtyard at rear, always locked with a bike chain / padlock.
5, Route, Basic, A to B, with a bit of diversion
6, Lodgings / Hotels, around 3 pm or 4 pm, start knocking on hotels for a room for the night, there are thousands, so no need book, there is always a room, thats the easy part.
R1
.
.
Edited by Register1 on Saturday 23 December 16:02
Edited by Register1 on Saturday 23 December 16:03
podman said:
Rightly or wrongly, when I read Mekong Dela, I think of the Yanks on their attack boats going up the river during the Vietnam war, not seat upholstery!
Great pics and write up as usual.
I will try and get the photos that I took from the War Museum here in Saigon (I broke my phone in the first week and had to buy a new one over here) Great pics and write up as usual.
Very interesting place and well worth a visit. There is an entire floor dedicated to Agent Orange which is very sobering and seems to be something missing from a lot of the western (American
) documentaries that I watched before I came hereAceOfHearts said:
I will try and get the photos that I took from the War Museum here in Saigon (I broke my phone in the first week and had to buy a new one over here)
Very interesting place and well worth a visit. There is an entire floor dedicated to Agent Orange which is very sobering and seems to be something missing from a lot of the western (American) documentaries that I watched before I came here
I've been to that museum, you get a completely different perspective to the war, the agent orange stuff particularly horrible. Very interesting place and well worth a visit. There is an entire floor dedicated to Agent Orange which is very sobering and seems to be something missing from a lot of the western (American
) documentaries that I watched before I came hereIt’s great to read this thread, bringing back memories of my trip in 2016.
With two mates we started off in Hanoi with bikes rented from Flamingo Travel (highly recommended), went down to Ha Long Bay, which the government have realised is a big tourist draw so is expanding it like mad. From there we headed up towards the Chinese border and up to Ban Gioc Waterfalls. From there we made our way across to Sapa, and up the highest peak in Indo China, Fansipan, where the local H
tribe women act as mountain guides.
Then we headed back to Hanoi.
In the war museum in Hanoi, there were more French Army trophy items than American, which I wasn’t expecting.
Once out into the countryside it was sometimes a couple of hours before we saw anyone else on the roads. Up near the Chinese border I’m sure the locals hadn’t seen many Europeans, we were 3 days without seeing any non-locals, until at Ban Gioc we bumped into the same couple, Dutch chap and Australian girl, we’d chatted to in Hanoi. He swam across the falls and got out in China before swimming back. We were welcomed wherever we went.
I was using offline Google maps on an android phone, the others had Garmins.
We had a rough destination in mind each day, in a big anticlockwise loop, but we would stop where ever we were before it got dark and it didn’t take long to find a guest house or ‘Nhà Nghỉ’ of varying standards, and roughly 5 US dollars a night for 3 with breakfast. Our bikes were normally parked in reception overnight on their insistence, but we never worried about any crime.
In fact, the window of the Flamingo Hire shop in Hanoi, they had a pile of small denomination bank notes on a traditional small shrine to past family members. ‘Won’t someone take the money though’ I asked. ‘Why would someone take it’ came the reply.
My holiday insurance covered injuries received whilst riding motorcycles as long as I have a licence for the bike. At that time technically, you needed an International Driving Permit to ride in Vietnam, but no one ever asks for a licence, I just needed to ensure that after any mishap that led to a hospital stay it wasn’t further complicated by my insurance company failing to play ball, so I got an IDP via the AA postal service. This month Vietnam stopped recognising the IDP and officially to get a Vietnam bike licence you would need a Vietnamese address. I’m told the Top Gear bike test was just for good TV. The other riders we met, from all over the world, didn’t even have bike licences for their home countries, they were just out for an adventure.
We originally wanted to hire Honda Waves, but we were uncertain of the roads up north so pushed the budget and hired Yamaha XT125s. Mine was brand new, and the mechanic happily fitted my Ram Mount and phone charger to the bike before we left. They also supplied a full selection of spares to take with us, knowing that where we were going, although there are ‘bike repair shops’ everywhere, none would carry spares for the XTs. We had the engine oil changed in Sapa, and suffered one puncture, otherwise the bikes were faultless.
Whereas the north is quiet and the roads are empty, Hanoi is absolutely mad.
On the main roads, might has right, whether it’s your side or the road or not they're coming through, and we had a couple of near misses with lorries and buses, stray dogs, water buffalo, ducks and pigs.
A fantastic adventure, have a great time.
With two mates we started off in Hanoi with bikes rented from Flamingo Travel (highly recommended), went down to Ha Long Bay, which the government have realised is a big tourist draw so is expanding it like mad. From there we headed up towards the Chinese border and up to Ban Gioc Waterfalls. From there we made our way across to Sapa, and up the highest peak in Indo China, Fansipan, where the local H
tribe women act as mountain guides. Then we headed back to Hanoi.
In the war museum in Hanoi, there were more French Army trophy items than American, which I wasn’t expecting.
Once out into the countryside it was sometimes a couple of hours before we saw anyone else on the roads. Up near the Chinese border I’m sure the locals hadn’t seen many Europeans, we were 3 days without seeing any non-locals, until at Ban Gioc we bumped into the same couple, Dutch chap and Australian girl, we’d chatted to in Hanoi. He swam across the falls and got out in China before swimming back. We were welcomed wherever we went.
I was using offline Google maps on an android phone, the others had Garmins.
We had a rough destination in mind each day, in a big anticlockwise loop, but we would stop where ever we were before it got dark and it didn’t take long to find a guest house or ‘Nhà Nghỉ’ of varying standards, and roughly 5 US dollars a night for 3 with breakfast. Our bikes were normally parked in reception overnight on their insistence, but we never worried about any crime.
In fact, the window of the Flamingo Hire shop in Hanoi, they had a pile of small denomination bank notes on a traditional small shrine to past family members. ‘Won’t someone take the money though’ I asked. ‘Why would someone take it’ came the reply.
My holiday insurance covered injuries received whilst riding motorcycles as long as I have a licence for the bike. At that time technically, you needed an International Driving Permit to ride in Vietnam, but no one ever asks for a licence, I just needed to ensure that after any mishap that led to a hospital stay it wasn’t further complicated by my insurance company failing to play ball, so I got an IDP via the AA postal service. This month Vietnam stopped recognising the IDP and officially to get a Vietnam bike licence you would need a Vietnamese address. I’m told the Top Gear bike test was just for good TV. The other riders we met, from all over the world, didn’t even have bike licences for their home countries, they were just out for an adventure.
We originally wanted to hire Honda Waves, but we were uncertain of the roads up north so pushed the budget and hired Yamaha XT125s. Mine was brand new, and the mechanic happily fitted my Ram Mount and phone charger to the bike before we left. They also supplied a full selection of spares to take with us, knowing that where we were going, although there are ‘bike repair shops’ everywhere, none would carry spares for the XTs. We had the engine oil changed in Sapa, and suffered one puncture, otherwise the bikes were faultless.
Whereas the north is quiet and the roads are empty, Hanoi is absolutely mad.
On the main roads, might has right, whether it’s your side or the road or not they're coming through, and we had a couple of near misses with lorries and buses, stray dogs, water buffalo, ducks and pigs.
A fantastic adventure, have a great time.
Sweet news.
Is your mrs of Asian descent op?
Regarding the war. Cambodia was bombed to within an inch of it’s life during the Americans anti communist era. There’s more UXO here than anywhere else in SE Asia and probably anywhere in the world.
The yanks are paying to clean up their mess but there’s monthly reports of UXO going off or being found.
Sadly some people in US politics continue to ask Cambodia for the money loaned to it under Lon Nol.
Is your mrs of Asian descent op?
Regarding the war. Cambodia was bombed to within an inch of it’s life during the Americans anti communist era. There’s more UXO here than anywhere else in SE Asia and probably anywhere in the world.
The yanks are paying to clean up their mess but there’s monthly reports of UXO going off or being found.
Sadly some people in US politics continue to ask Cambodia for the money loaned to it under Lon Nol.
bongtom said:
Sweet news.
Is your mrs of Asian descent op?
Regarding the war. Cambodia was bombed to within an inch of it’s life during the Americans anti communist era. There’s more UXO here than anywhere else in SE Asia and probably anywhere in the world.
The yanks are paying to clean up their mess but there’s monthly reports of UXO going off or being found.
Sadly some people in US politics continue to ask Cambodia for the money loaned to it under Lon Nol.
Interesting, I should be going to Cambodia after so still have a lot to learn! Is your mrs of Asian descent op?
Regarding the war. Cambodia was bombed to within an inch of it’s life during the Americans anti communist era. There’s more UXO here than anywhere else in SE Asia and probably anywhere in the world.
The yanks are paying to clean up their mess but there’s monthly reports of UXO going off or being found.
Sadly some people in US politics continue to ask Cambodia for the money loaned to it under Lon Nol.
And no I'm 28 and single so just here on my larry
By the way if anyone has Instagram my page is @aceofheartsclassics as I will be updating that with more travel photos and not just bike stuff
yep they are great aren't they Haha I will remember that for next time!
Bit more tinkering today. Got a new spring and stop fitted to the centre stand to stop it rattling around over bumps (20,000 dong - £0.66p), and got the oil replaced again but with Shell oil this time (80,000 dong - £2.64)
I then decided to look at the rear suspension and found it had adjustable preload although only 2 settings. I turned both shocks to pillion setting so hopefully it will stop them bottoming out on the really rough stuff again.
Later on the throttle slide stuck wide open though, I managed to free it off but it still feels sticky, so will get some carb cleaner and give it a good jetting out tomorrow.
Bit more tinkering today. Got a new spring and stop fitted to the centre stand to stop it rattling around over bumps (20,000 dong - £0.66p), and got the oil replaced again but with Shell oil this time (80,000 dong - £2.64)
I then decided to look at the rear suspension and found it had adjustable preload although only 2 settings. I turned both shocks to pillion setting so hopefully it will stop them bottoming out on the really rough stuff again.
Later on the throttle slide stuck wide open though, I managed to free it off but it still feels sticky, so will get some carb cleaner and give it a good jetting out tomorrow.
Edited by AceOfHearts on Tuesday 26th December 16:00
Went to the local Royal Enfield and Triumph dealer yesterday. I am very much missing my real bike at home
For anyone still interested on pricing a Bullet 500 is about the same as the UK (£4600) and a Triumph Thruxton R is £25,000!
I then got cracking on stripping the carb last night. All totally cleaned but slide was still tight. I think the top cap has been over tightened in the past distorting the bore.
I took the carb to a mechanic this morning to see if he had a new one but he just pulled the slide and starting attacking it on the bench grinder and with sand paper!
To his credit it actually worked, and he wouldn't even take any money off me for doing it! I bought a new carbon effect air filter from him at the same time which was 35000 dong (£1.15)
All back together and working well
I had to tweak the pilot jetting which I assume is due to the slide now bypassing a little bit more unmetered air but all seems good so far.
For anyone still interested on pricing a Bullet 500 is about the same as the UK (£4600) and a Triumph Thruxton R is £25,000!
I then got cracking on stripping the carb last night. All totally cleaned but slide was still tight. I think the top cap has been over tightened in the past distorting the bore.
I took the carb to a mechanic this morning to see if he had a new one but he just pulled the slide and starting attacking it on the bench grinder and with sand paper!
To his credit it actually worked, and he wouldn't even take any money off me for doing it! I bought a new carbon effect air filter from him at the same time which was 35000 dong (£1.15)
All back together and working well
I had to tweak the pilot jetting which I assume is due to the slide now bypassing a little bit more unmetered air but all seems good so far.
Great write up so far.
Thanks.
Brings back all the fantastic memories of when my wife and I did the Hanoi - Cat Ba - Then all the way south to Saigon.
We loved every day.
Locals so very helpful.
So friendly, but I have that feeling for most of South East Asia.
I can feel a "re-run" creeping up on me here.
r1
Thanks.
Brings back all the fantastic memories of when my wife and I did the Hanoi - Cat Ba - Then all the way south to Saigon.
We loved every day.
Locals so very helpful.
So friendly, but I have that feeling for most of South East Asia.
I can feel a "re-run" creeping up on me here.
r1
317km to add to the tally, now at 1417km total.
I am currently back at Cat Tien National Park, done some exploring on the bike, hiking, kayaking and today went fishing with a local which was awesome fun and even caught myself some dinner!
Tomorrow I am moving to Dalat.
Keeping it bikey related, I saw a very nice Honda copy on the way to Cat Tien with a 100cc manual engine. I was very close to buying it but the dealer wanted just a bit too much IMO. With another day on the scooter looming though I wish I had just bought it
I am currently back at Cat Tien National Park, done some exploring on the bike, hiking, kayaking and today went fishing with a local which was awesome fun and even caught myself some dinner!
Tomorrow I am moving to Dalat.
Keeping it bikey related, I saw a very nice Honda copy on the way to Cat Tien with a 100cc manual engine. I was very close to buying it but the dealer wanted just a bit too much IMO. With another day on the scooter looming though I wish I had just bought it
AceOfHearts said:
To his credit it actually worked, and he wouldn't even take any money off me for doing it! I bought a new carbon effect air filter from him at the same time which was 35000 dong (£1.15)
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Dong is the brand of air filter, right? [/URL]
Looks like a tow bar cover but id want all those mods as well!Enjoying the write up and pics still, keep it coming.
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