January 24, 2007
To Phan Trang: Thang Nhat Hotel
At 630am we have our breakfast at the hotel restaurant. We already carried down our gear and at 7 we are on the move again. Out of Dalat we first have some more climbing to do before it is all downhill to the coast.
The scenery is very good this morning which means many stops to take pictures. The hillsides around Dalat are terraced and hold many vegetable farms and green houses. On the hills are pine trees. We see many cyclists today: a group of nine as a part of a supported "Spice roads" tour, a couple on a ten week loop out of Chang Mai and a girl with a Vietnamese guide on tour. Some of the cyclists aren't very talkative but we have a nice conversation with the others. There is a nice downhill, a section of flat, then another huge hairpin downhill to the coastal plain. We feel the temperature rise as we lose 1600 meters altitude.
We still have over 50km to go and there is a strong NE crosswind that makes it a hard ride. The landscape is arid, we see some very poor villages. Several times we pass guys transporting long sticks of sugarcane, some have it tied on both sides of their bikes, riding bowlegged others bind the whole bundle on one side and ride the bike slanted to one side, pedaling with one leg and a rock tied to the other pedal.
Just before Phan Trang there are some nice Cham towers, we ride to the site and while Rachel watches the bikes, Patrick buys a ticket and walks over for some pictures. In the city we find a decent hotel, Thang Nhat Hotel, for a decent price; quickly we clean up, buy some supplies for tomorrow and eat dinner in the hotel restaurant.
Today's ride: 108 km (67 miles)
Total: 4,630 km (2,875 miles)
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