Posted on

Rounding Second Base: To Hanoi

Scroll down to see more content

Cover Photo: The hills near China’s border with Vietnam #geography=politics

I did not anticipate that road selfies would be so complicated. Here's me, deep in the Guangxi countryside, in front of what I'm pretty sure was a mosque.
I did not anticipate that road selfies would be so complicated. Here’s me, deep in the Guangxi countryside, in front of what I’m pretty sure was a mosque.
While huge multilane highways famously stand empty in the northern provinces, roads connecting more rural towns are often incomplete. They revert to dirt roads in the blink of an eye and bridges wash out, forcing trucks to ferry across rivers like this one.
While huge multilane highways famously stand empty in the northern provinces, roads connecting more rural towns are often incomplete. They revert to dirt roads in the blink of an eye and bridges wash out, forcing trucks to ferry across rivers like this one.
-51551d36513e36ed
I met a few cyclists from the north who were traveling south to the island province of Hainan (海南）. This was the most badass of them–he said he usually travels around 120 km/ 72 miles a day.
DSC_0287
The border region between Guangxi province and Vietnam is wall-to-wall sugar cane and misty mountains. The only smog I saw for nearly a week was one lone coal-burning brickmaker. Most of the farmers in the area were using oxen to pull their carts, whereas in other regions I saw far more tractors
DSC_0318
The old border gate at the crossing into Vietnam
DSC_0325
Downhill, finally.
IMAG0021
Arrival selfie: Crossing the delta into Hanoi

I’ll have a post soon relating my time in Hanoi, where I met with folks from the local 350.org outpost, and detailing my plans for the final two months of this leg of the tour (hint: think elevation).

3 thoughts on “Rounding Second Base: To Hanoi”

  2. Good pix.
    Re badass cyclist: Looks fierce. Have you considered starting a mustache to improve your stamina?
    Re Downhill finally: This is the first time I’ve seen a picture showing what the road is like where you ride. Looks well paved and maintained, with wide shoulders to accommodate bikes. Is this typical?

    Like

    Reply

    1. I have. Showering/shaving regularly on the road can be a challenge, so with each passing kilometer it becomes more likely that I acquire some long-term facial hair. As for the roads, sorta. In vietnam it has been the case, and in most cases in China. In China I’m biking secondary highways. It’s fairly common for them to be nice and new and paved, but equally for there to be large uncompleted sections. It’s fairly common for government projects like that to be subcontracted out to the Nth degree, and for the contractor who actually completes the job to be underfunded and inexperienced. So you’ll be biking along a perfect new 4-lane highway and then after one specific town the road will turn into an old one lane dirt road. good news is I don’t have to share the road that much.

      Like

      Reply

Leave a comment