London biker in Vietnam
Discussion
For those willing to indulge me I thought I'd write up a few words about a short bike trip I did a few days ago from Nha Trang to Dalat in Vietnam. With detours and some sightseeing on the way it ended up being around 100 miles.
Arrived at the bike hire shop expecting a Honda Rebel 250 so was a little surprised to be chucked the keys to an enduro. My 'riding test' was to complete one lap of the block and this would signify my suitability for a 100 mile journey through the highlands. I jump on, turn the key and hit the ignition. Bike lurches forward followed by some yelling and running by the owner of the rental place. Not a good start. He's shouting at me that you should always start a bike with the clutch in, my response is you should always leave a bike in neutral. Anyway, bike gets started and I'm off around the block. This thing feels knackered, held together by cable ties with no working instruments. It is so slow I'm convinced it's a 125cc (turns out it really was a 250). Something isn't right as it pulls to the left, I quickly notice it stalls at idle so I need to keep some throttle on which in itself isn't easy as the throttle feels connected solely by the hopes and dreams of the owner. I return the bike asking if I can try the Rebel that's parked up. The owner is visibly a little hurt, explaining the enduro is a much better bike and he has offered it to me as a 'free' upgrade. I try the Rebel, and that's even worse so I bring it back and thank the owner for the upgrade.
I'm traveling with my wife and although we have a guide the original plan was for her to ride pillion on my bike. Now I'm on the enduro it's no longer a great proposition so she goes with the guide who's riding some Frankenstein's monster of a bike made of various curiously assembled parts. Our luggage was meant to be transported for us, but instead now finds itself strapped onto the bikes themselves- good thing we travel light.
We set off, it's nice to be on the bike and it feels so light, more like a mountain bike with an engine than my NC750X back home. It's just gone 10am and we're in a busy city, the roads are packed. I'm surrounded by vehicles of all sizes in a cacophany of blasting horns. Our guide, it turns out will not ease me into the mad Vietnamese traffic. He is off like a shot, a mere spec in the distance in a sea of bikes. I'm suddenly very grateful for the 250cc's, I'm surrounded by bikes from 100-150cc so I drop down into 2nd and twist the throttle. I'm met with much noise and some modest acceleration and I soon start to pick off the riders between me and the guide. The rules of the road seem to be: beep your horn if you're coming through or you want someone to get out of your way, the bigger the vehicle the greater its road priority- lorries and buses rule the roost.
We soon hit a highway and shortly after that we're on the road through the highlands. There's barely any traffic and the scenery is stunning as we climb up the hills. Very little of note happens except for a bizarre moment when I could swear I saw a Panigale going the other way. For nearly two weeks I've seen only scooters so I assure myself I must be seeings things only to notice a Monster and Superduke following in convoy- I wasn't going mad. After that we come across two more convoys of big bikes, we get a big cheery wave each time. We're not on scooters, so we're part of the club.
About two thirds into the journey I get overtaken by two guys on a new scooter bombing it down a hill. I move to let them through and get a wave of thanks. They've got luggage and look like wealthy Chinese, probably doing the same journey we are. I round the next corner and there ahead I spot my new mates. They've overcooked it, telltale skid marks in the gravel at the side of the road. They've landed in a concrete ditch and they weren't going slowly. I pull over and help the lead rider drag the bike out of the ditch. Our guide and my wife pull over ahead as well when they see I've stopped. My attention turns to the passenger who's in the ditch and in pain. I ask if he's ok, in broken English he says he thinks so. Soon after a second bike pulls up, clearly the friends of the two guys who've crashed. They quickly grab their mate to his feet, he's reluctant and limping with badly ripped clothes on his left side. It's clear they don't need our help anymore, added to the language barrier so we leave them to it and head out.
We stopped off for lunch in a local café, we have a meal of small soup, roast chicken, vegetables and rice washed down with a bottle of water for about £1.30. They even have a bunch of hammocks around that we're welcomed to use while we wait for our food.
The rest of the trip passes in beautiful scenery but otherwise uneventful. We reach Dalat which is a much bigger city than I was expecting but by now I'm used to the flow of traffic and quite comfortable in the chaos, I may as well be in London. We drop my wife off at our hotel and leave the bags. I follow the guide back to their local office. It's just us two now and no luggage so he's making 'progress'. We get to the office, leave my bike and he offers me a ride back on his. A bit weird, I've not been a pillion since I was about 8 and that was in the Polish countryside. We make it back to our hotel and exchange well wishes, letting our guide off on his way with a tip and donation of my wife's biking gloves (as he'd explained he'd lost his).
I walk up the steps to be greeted by my wife with a wry smile, I think I'm in trouble. I ask if she has the key to our room and she explains it was a bit early to collect it as I'd booked the room for November
Woops.
Anyway, to anyone who could be bothered to read my incoherent ramblings I highly recommend a trip to Vietnam. It's a great country and although appears chaotic it is actually very bike friendly and great fun.
Arrived at the bike hire shop expecting a Honda Rebel 250 so was a little surprised to be chucked the keys to an enduro. My 'riding test' was to complete one lap of the block and this would signify my suitability for a 100 mile journey through the highlands. I jump on, turn the key and hit the ignition. Bike lurches forward followed by some yelling and running by the owner of the rental place. Not a good start. He's shouting at me that you should always start a bike with the clutch in, my response is you should always leave a bike in neutral. Anyway, bike gets started and I'm off around the block. This thing feels knackered, held together by cable ties with no working instruments. It is so slow I'm convinced it's a 125cc (turns out it really was a 250). Something isn't right as it pulls to the left, I quickly notice it stalls at idle so I need to keep some throttle on which in itself isn't easy as the throttle feels connected solely by the hopes and dreams of the owner. I return the bike asking if I can try the Rebel that's parked up. The owner is visibly a little hurt, explaining the enduro is a much better bike and he has offered it to me as a 'free' upgrade. I try the Rebel, and that's even worse so I bring it back and thank the owner for the upgrade.
I'm traveling with my wife and although we have a guide the original plan was for her to ride pillion on my bike. Now I'm on the enduro it's no longer a great proposition so she goes with the guide who's riding some Frankenstein's monster of a bike made of various curiously assembled parts. Our luggage was meant to be transported for us, but instead now finds itself strapped onto the bikes themselves- good thing we travel light.
We set off, it's nice to be on the bike and it feels so light, more like a mountain bike with an engine than my NC750X back home. It's just gone 10am and we're in a busy city, the roads are packed. I'm surrounded by vehicles of all sizes in a cacophany of blasting horns. Our guide, it turns out will not ease me into the mad Vietnamese traffic. He is off like a shot, a mere spec in the distance in a sea of bikes. I'm suddenly very grateful for the 250cc's, I'm surrounded by bikes from 100-150cc so I drop down into 2nd and twist the throttle. I'm met with much noise and some modest acceleration and I soon start to pick off the riders between me and the guide. The rules of the road seem to be: beep your horn if you're coming through or you want someone to get out of your way, the bigger the vehicle the greater its road priority- lorries and buses rule the roost.
We soon hit a highway and shortly after that we're on the road through the highlands. There's barely any traffic and the scenery is stunning as we climb up the hills. Very little of note happens except for a bizarre moment when I could swear I saw a Panigale going the other way. For nearly two weeks I've seen only scooters so I assure myself I must be seeings things only to notice a Monster and Superduke following in convoy- I wasn't going mad. After that we come across two more convoys of big bikes, we get a big cheery wave each time. We're not on scooters, so we're part of the club.
About two thirds into the journey I get overtaken by two guys on a new scooter bombing it down a hill. I move to let them through and get a wave of thanks. They've got luggage and look like wealthy Chinese, probably doing the same journey we are. I round the next corner and there ahead I spot my new mates. They've overcooked it, telltale skid marks in the gravel at the side of the road. They've landed in a concrete ditch and they weren't going slowly. I pull over and help the lead rider drag the bike out of the ditch. Our guide and my wife pull over ahead as well when they see I've stopped. My attention turns to the passenger who's in the ditch and in pain. I ask if he's ok, in broken English he says he thinks so. Soon after a second bike pulls up, clearly the friends of the two guys who've crashed. They quickly grab their mate to his feet, he's reluctant and limping with badly ripped clothes on his left side. It's clear they don't need our help anymore, added to the language barrier so we leave them to it and head out.
We stopped off for lunch in a local café, we have a meal of small soup, roast chicken, vegetables and rice washed down with a bottle of water for about £1.30. They even have a bunch of hammocks around that we're welcomed to use while we wait for our food.
The rest of the trip passes in beautiful scenery but otherwise uneventful. We reach Dalat which is a much bigger city than I was expecting but by now I'm used to the flow of traffic and quite comfortable in the chaos, I may as well be in London. We drop my wife off at our hotel and leave the bags. I follow the guide back to their local office. It's just us two now and no luggage so he's making 'progress'. We get to the office, leave my bike and he offers me a ride back on his. A bit weird, I've not been a pillion since I was about 8 and that was in the Polish countryside. We make it back to our hotel and exchange well wishes, letting our guide off on his way with a tip and donation of my wife's biking gloves (as he'd explained he'd lost his).
I walk up the steps to be greeted by my wife with a wry smile, I think I'm in trouble. I ask if she has the key to our room and she explains it was a bit early to collect it as I'd booked the room for November
Woops. Anyway, to anyone who could be bothered to read my incoherent ramblings I highly recommend a trip to Vietnam. It's a great country and although appears chaotic it is actually very bike friendly and great fun.
What a great adventure - it goes back to what I said in the “Are adventure bikes boring?” thread. You can have an adventure on pretty much anything, it doesn’t need to be an “adventure” bike at all.
I’ve got some friends visiting Vietnam at the moment, although not by bike. They’ve visited Da Nang and Hue, as well as some other places and have done quite a bit of the “war history” stuff, which they’ve said was really interesting. They’re travelling round by train and coach and their photos of the countryside are similar to yours. They’ve found food/drinks away from the usual tourist traps to be equally cheap, but they’ve said some of the “locals” places has some of the best food they’ve ever eaten (I think that’s probably true wherever you are in the world - places don’t tend to stay in business if the locals won’t eat/drink there, because if quality, price or both).
Great work on the hotel booking - I’ve managed to do similar myself, but in the USA, where they transpose the day and the month, so when I’ve typed in “07/05” for 7 May, I ended actually booked the 5 July. Since then, I tend to click on the calendar, rather than typing the date. That’s works so much better. Assuming you use the right year...
Anyway, a great little adventure and write up and I’m glad you survived the traffic!
I’ve got some friends visiting Vietnam at the moment, although not by bike. They’ve visited Da Nang and Hue, as well as some other places and have done quite a bit of the “war history” stuff, which they’ve said was really interesting. They’re travelling round by train and coach and their photos of the countryside are similar to yours. They’ve found food/drinks away from the usual tourist traps to be equally cheap, but they’ve said some of the “locals” places has some of the best food they’ve ever eaten (I think that’s probably true wherever you are in the world - places don’t tend to stay in business if the locals won’t eat/drink there, because if quality, price or both).
Great work on the hotel booking - I’ve managed to do similar myself, but in the USA, where they transpose the day and the month, so when I’ve typed in “07/05” for 7 May, I ended actually booked the 5 July. Since then, I tend to click on the calendar, rather than typing the date. That’s works so much better. Assuming you use the right year...
Anyway, a great little adventure and write up and I’m glad you survived the traffic!
Lived in Saigon for over 3 years now and whilst 2 wheels are the most popular form of transportation I wouldn't agree that its bike friendly.
The daily death rate is testament as well as the alarming numbers of visitors who don't make it home.
Common misconception is that there's no license. There is for anything over 50cc and pretty much every visitor is breaking the law not having a license which means their insurance is in doubt.
The number of people begging on FB for $$ to repatriate their lived one following an accident is frightening.
Add to that most truck drivers are drunk and on drugs I would caution those that think it's all rosy and cosy.
Currently on a 1200gs which has taken me all over but not what I'd call a great place to ride.
Sorry
The daily death rate is testament as well as the alarming numbers of visitors who don't make it home.
Common misconception is that there's no license. There is for anything over 50cc and pretty much every visitor is breaking the law not having a license which means their insurance is in doubt.
The number of people begging on FB for $$ to repatriate their lived one following an accident is frightening.
Add to that most truck drivers are drunk and on drugs I would caution those that think it's all rosy and cosy.
Currently on a 1200gs which has taken me all over but not what I'd call a great place to ride.
Sorry
Edited by Steve Bass on Thursday 12th September 12:42
Thanks Dibble, the hotel reservation screw up was very out of character so at least my wife saw the funny side!
Steve - I must say having arrived in Ho Chi Minh city this morning it's like nothing we've come across so far! Our guide advised there's 7m bikes in the city alone! I can't say I'd be very keen on riding here. Regarding insurance, this was checked and double checked. Legality wise, I'm conscious the laws here are a bit archaic so our home licences are invalid so on the wrong side of the law. I chose to counter this by hiring a private guide to accompany us, and I was also aware of the extreme prison sentences offered out to foreigners for maiming/killing a local. The roads were stunning and the ride highly enjoyable so truth be told I'd do it again, but I'm aware what I did was very dangerous/naughty.
Steve - I must say having arrived in Ho Chi Minh city this morning it's like nothing we've come across so far! Our guide advised there's 7m bikes in the city alone! I can't say I'd be very keen on riding here. Regarding insurance, this was checked and double checked. Legality wise, I'm conscious the laws here are a bit archaic so our home licences are invalid so on the wrong side of the law. I chose to counter this by hiring a private guide to accompany us, and I was also aware of the extreme prison sentences offered out to foreigners for maiming/killing a local. The roads were stunning and the ride highly enjoyable so truth be told I'd do it again, but I'm aware what I did was very dangerous/naughty.
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