Category Landtravel
Before this trip started I made a rule for myself that I should not ride more than 200 kilometers a day. Today I broke that rule by a large margin. You see, in order to get more time in Hoi An and Hue I needed to get there as fast as possible, so instead of staying over in some beach town I decided to go as far north as I could in a day, hoping I could reach Hoi An by nightfall. My backup plan, in case I got too tired, was to take a hotel in Quang Ngai.
I … Read the rest
There are a few sights inside Daly city but the main draw is the surrounding nature. The general recommendation for seeing said nature is to join an easy rider motorcycle tour, but since I have my own bike I decided to combine the motorbike tour with the ride to my next stop for the night. Before setting off however, I went sightseeing in the city, starting with Hang Nga Crazy House. It’s a building with very unique architecture and while the architect still lives there you can walk around and explore it.
Photos of various angles of the Crazy House
The goal for the day was to reach Dalat up in the highlands and since it is fairly close to Mui Ne I decided to take it easy and do some sightseeing along the way. I started with the Po Shanu Cham Towers, three ancient brick towers west of Mui Ne that are still used for worshipping. I know I will see lots of old temples during my travels but these were the first.
The small tower… 
…and the big one.
I found out yesterday that there are actually two large sand dunes in Mui Ne, the red one and the … Read the rest
This morning I set on the 200 kilometer slog to my next goal along the way north, the small beach town Mui Ne. Geting out of Ho Chi Minh city was hell, first I got lost and when I finally found the way it turned out to be a highway where motorbikes can’t go so I had to find a way around. Once I got out on the main road though, things got better and by the afternoon I was riding through lush landscapes with mountains in the far distance.
Sometime around three … Read the rest
The main draw in Can Tho is the Cai Rang floating market. I think it’s possible to do a one day hit and run tour from HCMC but the market opens before sunrise so to get the most of it you should be there early. You also need a boat to be able to see the market up close, I took the easy way out and booked a tour via my hotel. As it turned out it was just me, the guide and the driver in a small wooden skiff with an outboard. Our boat was a bit slower than … Read the rest
When I woke up today it was pouring rain, a real monsoon shower, but I packed up my stuff anyway and waited for the rain to let up. Once it did I set out to the main goal of the day, the Cu Chi Tunnels. This is a vast network of tunnels used by the Vietnamese to hide, first from the French and later from the Americans. According to the guide they are about 250 kilometers long and they even reach Cambodia.
It sounds really cool when you read about it and I was really excited to go there, I … Read the rest
Today was my first full day of tourism, and I aimed for the main tourist spots of HCMC starting with the War Remnants Museum which has a small but good collection of tanks and aircraft outside and a whole lot of photos and such inside. Hollywood has produced I don’t know how many films about the Vietnam war (or the American war as they say here) and even though many of them have been anti war, they have all been from an American perspective; it’s interesting to get the Vietnamese perspective on it. I highly recommended it for anyone with … Read the rest
I spent the last two days in Taiwan packing my stuff. I tried to minimize the amount of stuff I brought but still ended up squeezing it into my bag. I feel pretty well prepared however so I’m happy I could fit it in.
Everything laid out on the bed 
Packed and ready to leave
I arrived in Ho Chi Minh city late yesterday evening and I spent most of the day today trying to buy a motorbike. There were plenty of bikes for sale but none of them were to my liking; if the engine and gearbox worked … Read the rest
For several years now I’ve had a dream to go traveling in southeast Asia and, being a fan of independent travel, I wanted to do it the way the locals travel, that is by motorbike. After many years of dreaming about it I finally decided it’s time I actually do it, so I took three months leave from my job and bought some flight tickets. I will try to post at least something every day of the journey, but first, some things about planning and preparation.
The route:
I don’t have any exact plan, all I know for certain is that I … Read the rest
Today we continued our sightseeing in Tainan county, starting with Zengwen reservoir, a large man-made lake that provides irrigation for the Chianan plain (one of Taiwan’s most productive agricultural regions). We came up the river valley and our first view of the reservoir was the big dam with floodgates open and water flowing out. Luckily there was a viewing platform nearby and we stopped to snap a few pictures.
We made a quick stop at the top of the dam before continuing on to the main tourist site, a … Read the rest