With all the everything else I've mentioned that's (to put it rather mildly) horribly sucked this trip, I never got around to mentioning that I broke out in allergic hives from an unknown something. Based on the last time I broke out in hives, I suspect the soap powder I borrowed when I did my laundry in China. Now that I'm finally in a city where it would seem there are English speaking doctors to show my impressive patches of please try not to claw my skin open itchy red blotches to, they've very nearly completely gone away all by themselves. (Other than no prior food allergies, that's another reason for suspecting the soap powder rather than something in Vietnamese cooking.)
I actually went to the hospital nearest my hostel last night. They basically told me "yes, that allergic rash you have on your thighs and stomach, the back of your knee and the insides of your elbows, it looks just like an allergic rash". Then they tried to order me a cab to take me to the specific hospital they thought has English speaking doctors. I'm not Chris Pountney level crazy to think that I should never ever take a motorized vehicle when I'm on tour but I also didn't see any real point in taking a cab at night when I could bike over in the morning. The rash was still a little itchy when I went to sleep last night and I'm very nearly completely out of Benadryl so I thought I'd go this morning... but this morning, other than a few faint pink splotches and the sensation of non smooth skin in places that ought to be smooth, it's all better.
Smartly dressed Vietnamese people wandering about the streets
I'm 102 kilometers from Hanoi which means that if the sun set later than 6pm or if I got on the road earlier than 9am there would theoretically be no problem in doing this in one day. Of course, I'd have to take the straightest route along the fastest roads with the least scenery and the most truck exhaust. And I'd get to Hanoi tired out and cranky with a sore bum. But I totally could do it. Could. That is to say not would nor will.
I'm loving this whole minimalist packing thing. Especially now that I've already lost just about everything that isn't absolutely essential, it makes getting ready to go in the morning a much more pleasant task than it normally is.
It's truly amazing the things people carry on the back of bikes
The breakfast included with my room was a big bowl of ramen like noodles, a banana, a cup of coffee, and a mini baguette with butter. Based on what I spent in the cafes and street corners wandering around the streets last night, the breakfast alone is a reasonably large percentage of the cost of my room.
Me being me, I'm incapable of traveling the shortest distance between two points. Furthermore, since I'm still navigating entirely with Google Maps, I have a certain freedom of motion that I don't tend to have on my more planned out trips. This is both a blessing and a curse. I like being able to know in advance about the potentially interesting detours I may come across throughout the day. Of course, my total lack of Vietnamese beyond "cảm ơn bạn" (thank you) makes anything I find a complete mystery.
I liked the gate at this temple. I notice it has the same two door guards as in Hai Phong.
Not wanting to constantly be pulling my phone from the handlebar bag, I've adopted a strategy of biking until I get to something that looks like a big turn and then making a decision when I get there. It means that I'm not sticking to the route I kind of sort roughly sketched out in advance but it also means that I'm not burning through my battery by constantly turning the screen on or running the GPS.
As a result, I've gotten to go down a number of larger paved farm roads, I've taken a small ferry, I've stopped to look at a scant handful of the many many temples, and just generally had a good time of it. Eventually, I found myself in Hải Dương having, much to my great surprise, only gone about 10km farther than if I'd taken the direct route.
China, please take note that this closed Petrol station on a farm road in the middle of nowhere has a sit down toilet, a clean floor, and toilet paper. If Vietnam can do it, you can too!
If I was reading the Chinese script donation stones correctly, the oldest standing building in this temple is from the 19th century but it's been here since the 17th century
I can't make up my mind whether or not the pomelos were tied to the tree because this isn't actually a pomelo tree, or if they were tied to the tree to keep the heavy fruit from breaking branches
I circled through the city a number of times trying to make up my mind if my general goal of 50+ km per day really counted on days when the terrain was this flat and the sunset still so far away. Ate a light late lunch while reading more of The Kings Blood then ate a second late lunch at a fast food chain when I suddenly found myself desperately needing to go to the bathroom now. Not finding anything especially fascinating in the city, I decided to keep heading in the general direction of Hanoi even if it meant riding on a dual carriageway for a while.
I should have given up earlier and picked one of the many motels by the side of the road but I pressed onwards and in pressing onward, I got very close to full dark before I found lodging. The first hotel was closed. The second hotel was expensive. The third was just right.
I get the feeling these people are probably Christian
