We got an early ride. Today, our pace was pretty fast, from 26-32Km/h. Perhaps, there are few downhill. We departed at 11am and arrived at 630pm.
From Ha Long to Haiphong, we saw so many farms. But from Haiphong to Hanoi, this time, we saw factories. There are many garment factories in Vietnam. I felt the economy booming in Vietnam. Maybe, your clothes are probably made in Vietnam. Both Vietnam and China are communist countries. But, the factories are different. In Vietnam, the factories are really westernized. The outlook is same as in the Euro and USA.
Besides the garment, we saw a Ford Factory. That’s why we saw many Ford on the street! In China, the Ford with made with cooperated Chinese Factories; yet, not in Vietnam. Cycling on the national highway in Vietnam is not allowed. But, they have a nice cycling path. It is smooth and nice. Cycling Path in China and Hong Kong are really bump. At this route, there is no attraction. But, I enjoy it because it made me see the real culture in Vietnam. I could see how the people live and work. At around 1pm, we feel hungry, but, we couldn’t find the restaurant or food stall. We were struggling to ride. Then, we arrived at an Industrial Zone. Since we missed the lunch time, the food stall did not have any hot meal. Then, we only ate the tasteless and cool rice, but with a hot soup. Thanks for the hungriness. Otherwise, we could not eat.
Then, we were keep pedaling. 10KM far to Hanoi, we met the local students. We feel impressive because they can speak English. I recall in Mong Cai, and Haiphong, there are less people can speak English. One of the students, Lien, she can speak a pretty fluent English. We took some photos. We both felt fun.
We eventually saw the Hanoi area sign broad. Then, we are excited to take picture there. But, maybe, we were too amazed; my camera was hit with my bike frame. Luckily, it’s fine. From the Hanoi border to town center, there is 7km far. And because we arrived at the peak hour, we got stuck on the road. All are motorbikes and bicycles, but were moving with slow speed. After checked map, I realized we had to cross the bridge. Just arrived the entry, we got stopped by a police. He said, the bridge was not allowed for two wheels vehicle, which is bicycle and motorbike. He said we should move to another bridge. We felt frustrated because all people were busy to drive. But, thought twice, it’s only my foolish thought. Why didn’t I trust them first? Then, I asked a young lady. She said we should take the old bridge. Then, we feel fabulous that there are massive of motorbikes and bicycle. Suddenly, I heard a noisy engine sound and felt the bridge was shocking. There was an old-diesel train moving just with a meter far. Train let me talk about the design of this bridge. The bridge has three lanes. The middle is train track. The other two sides are for bikes. The crossing bridge experience is really fantastic because we just came out from chaos.
Caution: Bicycles and motorbikes are not allowed to us new bridge. We MUST use the old one, which is the railway one.
I saw two cyclists at the train station. Then, I said hello to them. They have two men to pedal in Vietnam. They have an expensive and light road bike. One is American Vietnamese; another is American Taiwanese. I do envy them because their corporation allowed them to travel around Vietnam for couples of week. Then, they can work. In Hong Kong, the possibility of getting a leave for traveling couples of week tends to zero. For this trip, I have resigned the banking job. By the way, this is not my future career. And, I do not like it.
Then, we started the guesthouse hunt at old quarter. Old quarter is a guest house area at Hanoi. The rate starts from around USD12 per night. Spent for one hour, we then found a hotel, but it actually is a guest house.
Why we did spend over an hour to find old quarter? It is only an area, where called by people. But, they don’t have any official sign. So, we arrived; but we didn’t know. After found hotel, we were hungry to have dinner. Since we stayed at the old town center, there are many people, both locals and foreigners, on the street. The food stall owners are really aggressive. Well, at old quarter area, there is a food stall, which runs by teens. They are really aggressive! Whenever you crossed the street, they would stop you motorbike to have dinner there. Maybe, it is yummy; but, I don’t like their selling skills. But, honestly, they offer an expensive price, fried rice costs VED30,000( USD1.7). Then, we had a dinner at a nice restaurant. They are very friendly. We realized they are listed at Lonely Planet Book. We ordered the fried rice(VED35,000) and pizza(VED80,000).
