28 April 2011

SpiceRoads Cycling Tour – Day 11
Around Hoi An (30 Km)

Ride from the outskirts of Hoi An to My Son for more temples or go shopping in Hoi An for the day for some inexpensive tailored clothing?  The choice seems obvious and yet we feel as though we made the wrong one.  Pedaling around in the blazing heat, shuffling around ancient Cham temples in the blazing heat, chopsticking up another local lunch of mystery meet and noodles in the blazing heat, really, what were we thinking?  Maybe the cumulative hours in the sun have made us daft.  Or maybe it was that darn frayed and crumpled itinerary we’ve been carrying around for the past 11 days, the one that told us once more of the “scenic country back roads past paddy fields and through eucalyptus forest passing many scenic villages” we’d be pedaling for the day that led us astray.  Regardless, the choice was made and probably for the best.  Despite the heat the majority of the ride was pleasant enough, coasting past front yards filled with rice and peppers and corn drying in the afternoon sun, silently contemplating these last few hours cycling in Vietnam, a country that has impressed us and surprised us and often wowed us with its scenery and its people.  Sure, Gina didn’t get herself fitted for any new clothes, but on the positive side, at least there’ll be no excess baggage fees on our way back to Singapore.