Today was a great day!! We left our hotel early and went on a motorbike adventure to My Son!!! We got a taxi into town to the Hoi An Motorbike Adventures office, then after signing some paperwork we were off to the garage to meet our guide for the day and pick up our bikes. The motorcycles are old Russian Minsk bikes. They are interesting to ride, and really fun. Our guide was Tony. A really nice guy from Western Canada who's been living in Vietnam for 5 years. He was so full of information during the entire day. A great guide! After a talk about what the day would bring and a test drive on the bike, we were off. We were in a group of 7 people and I rode my own bike as well as one other guy. The rest rode passenger with guys from the garage. I was a bit nervous about riding in the Vietnam traffic, but most of the day was spent in the countryside on smaller back roads so it was great.
Our first stop was a memorial to the North Vietnamese soldiers that died during the war. There was a monument at the top of the hill as well as a memorial to all of the soldiers that died on that hill. It was a peaceful place and had great views of the river.
After that, we rode a bit more and then stopped at a small coffee shop. I had my first Vietnamese iced coffee. I may have to have one every day now. It is strong coffee with sweetened condensed milk. So good!! We sat there for a while and everyone on the tour got to know one another a bit better. Then we got back on the bikes and headed to My Son.
After our coffee break we rode on some dirt roads and came to a really wide concrete road. Turns out it wasn't a road, it was a US Marine Base in the war, and we were riding on the airplane runway. I'm a bit tired and can't remember the name of the base.
Before we went into the My Son complex we stopped at a small roadside restaurant and had an amazing meal of My Quang. It is noodles with pork in a broth. Then you add some bean sprouts, lettuce, chili, and lime. It was amazing. It was also served with a crispy rice bread, I can't remember the name, but it was also great. My Nephew is a picky eater and he really liked it, so he found the right Vietnamese food. So happy that he tried it and actually liked it!
After the lunch break, we rode into the My Son complex. My Son is a Hindu temple complex near Hoi An. It was built by the Champas, who were in Vietnam from the 4th-14th century. All of the temples in the complex were built from the 4th to the 14th century. A lot of the temples were destroyed during the Vietnam war, so that is really a sad thing. But it is now a UNESCO World Heritage SIte and they are restoring the temples. Some of the temples were bombed so badly that it is impossible to restore them.
After the My Son tour with our sweet guide Mr. Quong, we headed back towards Hoi An. We made a couple stops on the way back to take some breaks from riding and just chill out and see the countryside. We stopped on one road in the middle of rice paddies. It was a great view and so pretty seeing all the rice paddies. This was such a fun adventure today. We rode the bikes through the countryside and went through small rural areas. When we would ride past kids they would all wave and yell "HELLO!" Smiles on their faces. Which in turn left a permanent smile on my face all day. Some of the kids would get close enough so you could high five as you rode by. It was just so amazing to see all of the smiling, friendly faces today. It was an amazing way to see Vietnam. Just to be able to get out of town and see more remote areas. Vietnam is such a beautiful country. This area in particular. I just loved today, with all my heart.
We got back to the garage and cold beers were waiting. Then a taxi came and collected our group to take us back to town. Once back in town, we went to a tailor that Amanda and Debbie wanted to go to. They ordered a bunch of clothes. After the tailor, we made our way to Old Town for dinner. I wanted to get a suit, but I kept going back and forth. So, instead I decided to get some boots made. I found a pair of Red Wings that I wanted and stopped at a shoe store. I showed them the photo of the boots I wanted and we haggled on a price. I was happy with our final price, so they took measurements of my feet and I'm getting a sweet, sweet pair of boots that will look exactly like the Red Wings that I wanted for $50. I picked them out, and had measurements taken tonight and they will be ready by 5:00 tomorrow. Amazing!!! I'm getting boots made in 24 hours! Debbie and Amanda's clothing will be ready at the same time tomorrow. So cool. After the boot purchase we had a great dinner and then made our way back to the hotel. Everyone was a bit tired from the long day on bikes. We hung out at the pool for a bit and Adam and I went for a swim. Now, it's blog time.
I'm excited for tomorrow as well. It is a beach day!!! I've been going non-stop since the first day I arrived in Myanmar over a week ago. It will be so nice to just sit on the beach tomorrow and have a day of relaxation. I'm gonna sit in the sun, read, nap, swim in the ocean and just do nothing. It's gonna be great. So, tomorrow's post may be a bit boring, but that's what it's going to be.
Until tomorrow! Thanks for reading again!
Our sweet ride for today, a Russian Minsk. Hoi An, Vietnam
Flowers at the Vietnamese war memorial. Hoi An, Vietnam
My first Vietnamese iced coffee. So good! Hoi An, Vietnam
My Sister and Nephew hanging out at the coffee stop. Hoi An, Vietnam
US Marine air base runway during the Vietnam War. Hoi An, Vietnam
US Marine airbase runway during the Vietnam War. Hoi An, Vietnam
Our tasty lunch. Unfortunately I didn't get a before photo. Hoi An, Vietnam
My Son temples. Hoi An, VIetnam
My Son temples. Hoi An, Vietnam
My Son temples. Hoi An, Vietnam
My Son temples. Hoi An, Vietnam
Pathway at the My Son complex. Hoi An, Vietnam
Rice paddies and grave sites. Hoi An, Vietnam
Rice Paddies. Hoi An, Vietnam
Rice paddies and grave sites. Hoi An, Vietnam