Southbound Day Three, Four, and Five: Into the Wild

Day Three

Mai Chau marks one of the beginning points of the Ho Chi Minh Trail on the northern end. It is, however, far from a highway. Our first day on the trail and our third day traveling was a scrappy winding ride through dirt paths, jungles, and villages. We stopped for directions frequently from the start to make sure we were on the proper path and it was one of these stops that introduced us to Nu. 

Nu was about fifteen years old, spoke English very well, and was insistent on showing us her house down the street. She led us across a bridge to a small village where her home sat overlooking a river. She poured us tea, told us to sit down, and began telling us about her life, her school, and asking us questions about America and our travels. She was energetic, pleasant, and one of the nicest people I've met on the trip thus far. Our brief visit with Nu was one of many little glimpses into the lives of the people we pass on the road. Wherever we go, children see us and smile, wave, and shout "Hellooooooo!" It was an odd feeling at first, but I've come to love the small insights into people's worlds that we've been able to experience on this trip.

We found one more that day although under slightly worse circumstances. Around mid-day, Ruby hit a corner too hard, braked on some loose dirt, and took a rough spill, the first (and luckily only) crash of the trip so far. We managed to get her up and going and we soon found a gas station where she was able to get patched up.

At the station, two men about my age brought me into a small room with a bed, a television, and a few windows overlooking the backyard. They served me chicken, soup, peanuts, and beer (which I had to refuse many many times). They showed me pictures on their phone of similar-looking pale-faced tourists that had passed by and it quickly became clear that they wanted to party with me the way these bearded tank-topped travelers had. But we ventured on. 

We stayed in a small town called Ngoc Lac that night, got mended properly by an actual doctor, and fell asleep almost instantly. 

Day Four

The following day was a day of highs and lows. We rode out of Ngoc Lac early in the morning and found straight, open highway for the first time on our trip. No more twisting jungle roads and devilish patches of gravel. There were road signs and guard rails and divider lines painted in the middle of the road and it was glorious. 

As we pressed on, however, Ruby began to feel sick. The weather was darkening and although we only faced a light drizzle, it appeared that a storm was ahead. We took a gamble and blared forward, set on reaching Pho Chau, the next large town on the map, by nightfall. When the rain began to pound, we took refuge in the roadside home of a small family, had some tea, and waited for it to fade. It lightened a bit, but after about an hour, we were once again in the midst of a full-fledged storm. We rode on, edging the turns carefully and flying through the mists as quickly as we could. 

We made it to Pho Chau just as the sun was setting, settled into a hotel, and called a doctor. Ruby was developing a fever and was feeling worse by the minute. The doctor arrived on a motorbike and we began the frustrating back-and-forth of Google Translate messages, explaining what had happened, asking questions, and contemplating sending Ruby back to Hanoi on a bus. 

In the end, we got some medications, checked them out online to be safe, and went to bed. 

Day Five

We both felt better in the morning but took the day to rest and recover in Pho Chau. Nothing eventful happened. I went for a run and ate some Pho. Bye.