Around the World in Many Days, III: South East Asia
The entire population of Vietnam --- all 100 million of them --- can be divided into three groups: (a) those that ride a scooter or motorcycle, the vast majority; (b) those that ride a bicycle, still a sizeable minority; and (c) those that have forgotten their motorcycle or bicycle at home and are forced to walk the earth. During our stay in Tam Coc we joined the second group, as this rural locality is on a flat plain and there are hardly any hills to ascend or descend, nor too much traffic.
[Vietnam] Chapter XXXIV: In which we at last ride a bicycle
November 19, 2017
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Around Tam Coc, Vietnam, 19-22 November 2017
The entire population of Vietnam --- all 100 million of them --- can be divided into three groups: (a) those that ride a scooter or motorcycle, the vast majority; (b) those that ride a bicycle, still a sizeable minority; and (c) those that have forgotten their motorcycle or bicycle at home and are forced to walk the earth. During our stay in Tam Coc we joined the second group, as this rural locality is on a flat plain and there are hardly any hills to ascend or descend, nor too much traffic.
Riding the bicycles allowed us to be more or less independent and to appreciate the superlative landscapes the region has to offer --- primarily a myriad of karst hillocks jutting steeply from among the rice paddies --- from way up close.
On the first day we visited Trang An, where we took a private rowboat ride (150 minutes) on tranquil streams flowing among the karst hills, through nine tunnel caves (with precariously low ceilings, requiring us to bend low in the boat to avoid hitting our heads) and to three Buddhist temples. Then we rode to Hang Mua, a hill offering stupendous panoramic views of the entire region, once one had ascended the 460 wildly-uneven steps to the top.
On the second day we rode among the waterways and rice fields of Tam Coc, and later visited the Thung Nham Bird Park, where thousands of birds, mostly storks and egrets, flock at dusk to nest on a handful of trees in the middle of a lake, filling the grey sky and the green trees with their whiteness, a serene sight we were able to enjoy from pretty close, by again taking a private boat ride (30 minutes).
From hereon, I shall let N's pictures talk (a small selection of the more than 300 photographs taken over just two days).
Accommodations:
- Tam Coc Mountain Lake Homestay, Tam Coc (3 nights; it's a new place, and they're still struggling with growing pains, not always successfully, but ever willingly and enthusiastically)
Photo captions: (a-k) Tam Coc and environs; (l-ll) Trang An; (mm-ww) Hang Mua; (xx-ddd) Thung Nham Bird Park
1.
[Singapore] Chapter XXIV: During which N and R cross the Indian Ocean
2.
[Singapore] Chapter XXV: In which a slight glimpse is had of Singapore
3.
[Cambodia] Chapter XXVI: In which N and party travel by remorque
4.
[Cambodia] Chapter XXVII: In which we undergo, at a speed of 15 km/h, a course of Khmer geography
5.
[Cambodia] Chapter XXVIII: In which nobody succeeds in making Cambodia listen to reason
6.
[Vietnam] Chapter XXIX: In which certain incidents are narrated which are only to be met on water
7.
[Vietnam] Chapter XXX: In which Vietnamese soldiers simply do their duty
8.
[Vietnam] Chapter XXXI: In which Hue, the imperial city, considerably sates our urban interests
9.
[Vietnam] Chapter XXXII: In which R engages in a direct struggle with mud
10.
[Vietnam] Chapter XXXIII: In which Hanoi shows itself
11.
[Vietnam] Chapter XXXIV: In which we at last ride a bicycle
12.
[Vietnam] Chapter XXXV: In which we land on Cat Ba island thrice
13.
[Laos] Chapter XXXVI: In which our names are once more on an international flight manifest
14.
[Laos] Chapter XXXVII: In which it is shown that we gained nothing much by our visit to Vang Vieng
15.
[Laos] Chapter XXXVIII: In which we and the tuk-tuk drivers forsake each other
16.
Summary of Part III and Onwards to Part IV
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