No Fixed Abode: An English Easter Monday

Mon 28 Mar 2016 - Easy Rider Motorcycle trip day 5

We set off for our last day with Hai and Harry, togged up in jumpers and jackets in the unseasonably cold air of the mountains, along the Ho Chi Minh trail. Winding through lush green rainforest swerving to avoid the odd roaming water buffalo and with the sound of cicadas chirruping in the air they stopped a couple of times to allow us to walk for a while and enjoy the beauty and serenity of the jungle.

At a corner of the road we stopped and Harry took us into a pineapple field to show us the fruit growing on the stalks of the plants, their saw edged leaves scratching at our legs - they must be a nightmare to harvest. Around the next corner we pulled over at a small wooden shack to sample some of the delicious fruit and watched the serving girl expertly remove the skin and all the seeds with a large sharp knife. It was deliciously refreshing and came with a small saucer of salt that we learned the locals dip their fruit in before eating. It sounds odd but it did change the flavour. For the better? Not sure.

A short while later we pulled off the road and Hai showed took us down a track blocked by a barbed wire gate that we simply stepped around. This was a preserved section of the original Ho Chi Minh trail. He explained that the trail had rest stops every 20km with places to sleep, repair things and eat. The kitchens were set into the hills and had a series of tunnels that carried the smoke from the fires deep into the jungle to prevent the camp from being spotted by US planes. A short way down the trail were the relics of some old vehicles, typical of the type that used the trail.

With a light but steady rain now starting to fall we donned our waterproofs and began our slow descent out of the mountains passing through small towns with larger and larger plots of rice fields as the valley floor broadened.

Today's lunch was being taken at Hai’s in-laws and after twisting and turning down some rural lanes we arrived at their home. They are farmers and while they are not wealthy they are not poor either. Hai’s father in law farms rice and mother in law makes soy milk which she sells for children. The living room of the house was quite smart with a tiled floor, a large wooden sofa and chairs, a TV in the corner and huge portrait wedding photos of their two daughters and of the family hanging on the walls. But stepping down into the dining area revealed a different world. A basic concrete shell of small rooms, the kitchen area was dark and shabby with a rice pot bubbling over a small wood fire (evidently similar to the houses the boys live in and typical for Vietnam) and Hai’s father-in-law gestured a metre or so up the wall indicate where the highest flood water had reached. A very different world. We ate the tasty meal they had kindly prepared for us conversing via sign language and the odd translation from the boys and then retired to the lounge to look through the wedding photos of Hai and our host’s daughter. Weddings over here are big business with the bride renting several dresses. The album contained mostly shots from the long glamourous session the couple have with the photographer a couple of weeks before the wedding, with just a few of the ceremony itself. Afterwards we showed them photos of our wedding and family on Glenn’s phone. Smiles all round.

Saying farewell we wound our way through the rural villages until we came to a brick tower, which Hai explained had been built by the Cham people in the 11th century. The brick work was amazing and, with no visible mortar course, scientists from around the world are still trying to find what sticks them together. For a temple, the tower was quite small and Hai explained that, as the Chams were hindu, only the priest would be allowed inside to prepare holy water which he would then bring out for the ceremonies.

Now in acres of flat rice fields we started seeing km markers showing Hoi An was getting close and our adventure would soon be over. After winding through the, alarmingly touristy, streets of Hoi An we reached our hotel nestled on the side of a small river channel. The helpful staff filed out and took our bags from the bikes as they were unloaded and we were left to say our sad, tearful for Yvonne, farewells to the two guys that have given us such a great 5 days and showed us so much of the real Vietnam. We really had such a brilliant time with them and saw and learned so much about Vietnamese culture.