Tales to tell

The whole sordid tale:
Well, I thought I could get a visa extension in Vihn. It is actually a bigger city than Hue. But. They don't have much in the way of the backpacker tourist things that Hue does. And Hue is pronounced whey as in little miss muffet and her curds. Even my coffee mix was hard to find. I am somewhat ashamed to admit that I'm starting to like coffee mix....I don't really want to talk about it.
The fact that Vihn doesn't have a tourist office that does visa extensions leaves me in a small bind. I have to really push it to get to Hue before my visa expires.
I leave Vihn early, and keep going Ky Ahn is the next town according to the km markers. I hoped it would be big enough for a hotel. Before Vihn there were a lot of towns and even hotels that were on the side of the road, but after Vihn not so many. It was miles of not much but lots of bright green broken up occasionally by the darker green of trees. They have almost finished planting the rice and there are so many shades of green here. I think green should be Vietnam's national color.Very beautiful but a bit worrisome when looking for a place to stay for the night.
I finally get into Ky Ahn, and they do have ONE hotel, with karaoke. I am so tired I don't even care. I get up early yet again and head for Dong Hoi. (95 km) I make it to Dong Hoi, and get a room, but I'm so tired I can't tell you much about the town. It seemed nice enough. And I had a great view of the rice fields in the sunset. I get up early and head for Dong Ha (90km)
On my way to Dong Ha I get two flat tires. They were easy enough to fix, but I was worried about the time. I think there is something about the roads that are bad for tires here. Sometimes there are more tire repair shops than cafes by the side of the road. Anyway. I moved on and moved on. About 30 km from Dong Ha I'm going slowly because I'm in a crush of other bikes, mostly school kids. A woman makes a right turn and crashes into my back tire. She is angry because she thinks this is my fault ( I think that is what she was yelling about.) Meanwhile I'm dusting my self off assessing the damage: skinned elbow and knee, and a chain that will need a real mechanic to fix- I just don't have the tools. So I leave the woman who has since gotten back on her bike, and I start walking because I know eventually I will find a Hon Da shop and they can fix the bike. The school kids of course follow (what's your name? where are you from? how old are you?) annoying but... I do find the shop, I do get my bike fixed, and I do keep going. I get to Dong Ha. ( I am going to have to watch for dehydration, I think that was part of the problem)
I think it is Saturday. I have to be in Hue by Sunday so that I can get my visa extended on Monday.
It is not Saturday. It is Friday.
Hue is only 60 km away. I sigh in relief. I still head out early, but I have time for a little more leisurely breakfast. I teach the cafe guy to make eggs with tomato. And then I'm off. I even stop at the cool little cafe for some sugar cane juice (not as sweet as it sounds and very refreshing).
I get into Hue and get into another minor spill on my bike. And by the way, sunburn on a skinned elbow, is the new definition of suck.
I decide, I really need a nice place and a rest. So I go to a "nice" hotel, and pay 30.00 us for a room. ( a quick note, most rooms I've been staying in were 6-8 us) but I wanted a treat. Hmph.
Well, the room didn't have a window (ok because I wanted to sleep in, and I usually wake up at first light) The hot water was over before I could shave my legs. ( I admit it takes a bit longer with all the dings and scrapes to my legs, but...) I go downstairs because I don't want to go anywhere for dinner. I decide I want a drink. They don't have Kahlua. They don't have rum. I want to cry. Dinner was so-so. I ask for an 8am wake up call.
7:30 the maid asks if she can clean my room. The cable had only one English channel. ( usually I don't care, but that night, ...treat...) :( I leave.
I do find another hotel. This one is 8.00 us. It has hot water long enough to shave my legs and get a few kinks out of my shoulders. The staff are really friendly. And the tv has way more channels in English. This is very good because I am in Hue until Friday morning.
I found a place to get my visa extended, (60.00 us *sigh*) and I found a post office to mail my winter clothes I started with. I will find some good shorts, I found a bike repair shop to get my bike tuned up again.
Actually I think the break will do me good. I don't even want to look at that bike until Friday.
Till I post again, be good, be happy, and have fun