January 15, 2007
To Ho Chi Minh City: or is it Saigon?
We eat our cornflakes, haul all our stuff down the hall to the elevator, and head for the lobby where our bikes await us. In Vietnam most hotels are required to have your passports at the reception, they sometimes get checked to see where foreigners are staying. So, before we leave, we must be certain to get our passports back. Nothing worse than getting down the road and realize the passports are still at the hotel.
The ride out of Mytho is very busy with mopeds and bicycle traffic, all the way back to the intersection with the main highway. We are part of a human snake that pushes forward with no apparent road rules except that size matters. The Asian moped rider sits impassive on his/her bike, head and eyes not moving acting as if there are no other road users. Nobody makes eye contact so you are never sure if they see you, except that you know they must be very aware of their surroundings to survive in this kind of traffic. Patrick thinks it is the Asian way of creating a bubble around them to create some privacy, even though people are everywhere and close too! We have learned to ride the same way and push on forward! Back on Hwy 1 we first head for Ben Luc but even between towns we do not get to see much countryside today. It's all pretty much urbanized. The road is fairly good with a shoulder or bike/moped lane for us. It's dusty though and we both wear our masks.
Two coffee and tea stops later we find ourselves on the map of HCMC and start picking our way through the crowded streets of Saigon. Most times it is safest to just go with the flow. Our goal is the Pham Ngu Lao area where there are many backpacker budget hotels and restaurants and where we also have a recommendation from the Dutch cyclists we met in Phnom Penh. The Han hotel is full though, but the friendly girl gives us some ice water and arranges a room across the street in the Thai Nhi Hotel. A nice bright room, tiled floor, high ceilings, only on the first floor, satellite TV fridge and hot water and good bed, a good place for a couple of nights.
The alley here, called "mini hotel alley" seems quieter than the main street too. We clean up and head out for lunch in one of the backpacker's café. Patrick attempts to mail the DVDs in a small post office and gets told he can only do this at the main post office. We see on our map that it's about 2 kilometers there and the Lao consulate is on the way. Maybe we can kill two birds with one stone. Mailing the DVDs is a bit of a process. First the package is opened and inspected, then sealed with special tape. Patrick fills out several forms that are attached. Then to a different counter to pay. We'll keep our fingers crossed and save the card with the pictures until we hear from Nathan that they have arrived, downloaded and ok.
The Lao consulate is being remodeled, we sign in at the guard station and wander amongst the construction to find an open door. We finally get pointed to the right one, inside a man directs us to a nice couch and gives us the forms. We complete them and are told to wait. Half an hour later both passports are returned with a one month Laos visa. It's $50USD each, more than the expected $35, but how do you complain? We are happy to have the visas so easily and return to the traveler's ghetto. For dinner we have a nice pizza with beer. This is starting to be a tradition when we arrive in a city.
We also book a tour to the Cao Dai temple and the Chu Chi tunnels tomorrow and then check our emails.
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Today's ride: 70 km (43 miles)
Total: 4,225 km (2,624 miles)
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