Traveling in a country where few people speak English requires patience and a sense of humor. Our interaction with locals looks very much like a game of charrades; lots of pointing, drawing, and hand symbols. Yesterday I managed to communicate with the woman at our guest house (fancy name for a room with a bed and a shower in someone's house) that a) it was just me in the room, b) I did not need a towel since I had brought my own, and c) I could hang my laundry out to dry downstairs out back. All that without speaking a word of each other's language. It is a lot of fun when you both have that 'ah ha' moment of understanding. A few days ago we played the 'what is this kind of meat' game with a woman in a very small town between Sa Pa and Lai Chau. While we were never certain what type of meat it was, we were able to determine that it had horns and it was not a dog, on account of the fact that there was a dog right beside us and she did not point to it (process of elimination). I am getting a bit sick of pho and fried rice though, which is the only thing we are able to order in restaurants that don't have a menu (most don't).
It' s been a few days without internet, so I will give a condensed version of what we have been up to. We left Sa Pa a few days ago on the 76 km trip to Lai Chau, where we went from 12 degrees and dense fog, to 26, hot and humid. On the way we climbed up and over tram ton pass, Vietnam's highest alpine pass. The ride down the other side was tons of fun, and reminded me that I love going downhill at high speeds...what a rush! The next day we did a 105 km ride from Lai Chau to Muong Lay, one of the most difficult rides any of us has ever done. The road was meant to be paved, but it turns out that 'paved' is a euphimism for 'might have some pavement on it'. We rode over gravel, dust, and pot holes while dodging huge trucks in sweltering heat for much of the day; the entire road is under construction as the Vietnamese government is installing a series of dams along the river. We arrived after dark in Muong Lay to see the sign for our hotel on the other side of the newly formed lake. We then had to bike down the hill, cross the lake on a land bridge, and then hike-a-bike up a steep gravel road to our hotel. Needless to say, we were all exhausted and covered in dirt. The story of how people's lives are changing because of this dam is another blog post entirely, but it reminds me of what is happening in northen BC with site c dam. Here in Vietnam, they are flooding the valley, relocating entire towns, and abandoning farm land. It is probably for the best, since it will provide the country with large-scale hydro electricity, but has been very interesting to see it first-hand. One thing the vietnamese are not good at...erosion countrol. Entire sides of mountains have slid as they created roads above the new water line.
Yesterday was meant to be another 90 km day, but after the 105km day from hell, we decided to forgo a rest day and split the 90km into two days. In hindsight we may have been able to pull it off; the road was in pristine condition the entire way and it was much cooler. We covered 55 km today and arrived in Dien Bien Phu before noon. We stayed last night in a guest house and had the great fortune of meeting a Vietnamese woman who spoke English. We went out to a restaurant with her and had pig's intestine. In case you're wondering, it's very chewy. Tomorrow we have opted to cover some of our 95km day by truck. Peter has arranged for two trucks to carry us and our bikes to the Laos border, saving us 35 km and a grueling 1000m climb. We still have another 60 km and 600 m climb to get us to our destination.
A few fun facts about the Vietnamese: it turns out that curly hair and a voluptuous behind are a rarity here. Women, particularly in smaller towns, like to touch (or spank) both. John is also a hot commodity with his huge flowing red beard; people stare or laugh at him, some even take photos. It makes for a great conversation starter. People hand us things (money, food, etc) with two hands, though I'm not sure of the significance and I keep forgetting to reciprocate.
Next stop, Laos.
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