Phủ Lý

September 20, 2024

The holiday came to an end this morning. It was time to start cycling. We were on the bicycles soon after sunrise heading down the QL21C to Phủ Lý.

The QL21C runs southwards from Hanoi for about twenty kilometers.

Although the traffic was initially quite heavy, it quietened down after a few kilometers.

Leaving early meant finding breakfast might be a problem. Fortunately we soon came upon a stall selling bananas.

Even though the QL21C is a four lane highway the locals still use it to dry rice.

After about nineteen kilometers the QL21C came to an abrupt halt and we had to head westwards towards the QL21B at Dân Hoà. The QL21B is an older road and is narrow with no shoulder. Perversely it was much busier than the QL21C so we had about ten kilometers of rather hectic riding. At Vân Đình we turned off onto a quiet road along a canal for about fifteen kilometers after which we linked up with the QL21B again. Mercifully it was now wider with a decent shoulder. Incredibly there was less traffic than earlier on when it had been narrow.

As we approached Phủ Lý karst mountains started to appear in the west.

In Kim Bảng, on the outskirts of Phủ Lý, we found a bánh mì stall where we enjoyed a second breakfast and interrogated Google Maps and Booking.com to find a hotel in Phủ Lý. We've got a Vietnamese sim card that gives us 5 gig of data a day for thirty days and it is really useful when needing a data connection to check routes etc.

We settled on the Hoa Dông Hotel on the western side of the Dáy River which means we don't have to go all the way into Phủ Lý and we should have easier access to the quieter route towards Ninh Bình tomorrow.

Although it was only eleven o'clock when we got here, it was pretty hot and humid. A series of thunderstorms started about an hour later and have continued throughout the day and early evening. Fortunately there is an affordable restaurant right next door to the hotel which has made it possible for us to stay fed and dry.

We're booked into a homestay near Chùa Bái Đính for the next two nights. Bái Đính is the largest Buddhist temple complex in Việt Nam. Nearby is the ancient capital of Hoa Lư. We will be tourists again for a day.

Today's ride: 59 km (37 miles)
Total: 91 km (57 miles)

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