By the time I woke up I already had one person, eager to view Lilly in Ho Chi Minh City. I knew I had to be out of Cambodia today, so an early start as I also wanted to see Kepp and it’s national park.
All the time, being aware that I needed to make the border, I chose to ride around the National Park at Kepp. The path was narrow and easy to ride. The trees formed a canopy over the pathway but there was a distinct lack of wildlife anywhere. I think it’s safe to say I’ve been spoilt by Vietnams scenery.
A little disappointed, I made my way to Kepp Harbour for coffee. There was a lovely cafe on the pier. I sat drinking my orange juice when a familiar voice said “Didn’t sell your bike then?” It was the Australian lady I had met the day before at breakfast. She explained her husband and his mates had been out drinking all night so she was driving whilst they recovered. There was lots of coffee being ordered. I had a coffee and explained I needed to run. I had planned a little diversion from the main road on the way out of Kepp. It quickly turned to a dirt track and was a fantastic diversion through tiny villages of stilted tin roofed houses. It was difficult to tell what the trade would be. In places it looked like there could be rice grown, water inlets suggested fishing or maybe even croc’ farming. A thought that wasn’t wasted on me as I wound my way along the dirt track with drop offs either side into murky muddy water!
The border crossing came onto sight. It was still early, not even 1pm. I stopped as directed and the dance commenced. Here, there and back again.
I was through and back in Vietnam. This lower left hand corner of the country sees the ever changing estuaries of the Mekong River making their way to the South China Sea. Known as the Mekong Delta its constantly changing form makes it difficult to live in this area without substantial man made waterways. Running arrow straight for 50km at a time, this makes for a very boring ride. Even worse, the road aside the canal becomes a town. A busy, dirty town that goes on forever with a constant flow of smoking lorries, busses, cars and a million bikes. All of them constantly sounding their horns, as is the way in this country. It was hot, dusty and uncomfortable.
I really needed a drink and I stopped at a small roadside cafe. They spoke no English, so Coke is always a safe bet. I chose the cafe over a stall because there was a lot of shade and they would have toilets. I needed a toilet! I made my way to the loo, it was a shack behind the kitchen. The lock was broken, there was no loo roll but the most difficult thing to overcome was the loo itself, well half a loo, the porcelain bowl shattered with less than half the rim remaining. There was no way I could sit on that. Nothing for it I’ll have to hold it a while.
Drink finished I hit the road again. There was nothing of note just endless miles of township. I could see the mapping app said another 190km to Ho Chi Minh City. It was 3pm and I should really just stop and find a hotel but I wasn’t ready to stop. An hour later, it was still daylight and HCMC was closer still. I could just keep going and get back tonight, it would give me time to rest and then prep the bike for sale. I kept going.
At 6.30pm it was getting dark but I was only 40km away from my planned stop. The rules of bike travel include not travelling at night. I’d done it once in Vietnam and that was bad, this time I was travelling on well lit streets into a city. It made no difference, the roads were manic with a lot of vehicles having no lights. I was so close, I just kept going but at a grateley reduced speed and senses on high alert. I was really tired.
7pm, I arrived at the same hotel I stayed in at the beginning of my Vietnam leg. Luckily they had room. No sooner had I been to the loo and had a wash, than I had two more messages from people wanting to buy Lilly. I put both on hold whilst I contacted Phi to see what time he wanted to view the bike tomorrow. He was keen and knowing I had arrived asked to visit straight away. 40 minutes to be precise. I agreed but then had to grab my tools and go to work. Lilly has a phone mount, charger and camera mount that I carried from the UK, they needed removing and the chain needed adjusting. Done in double time I put the tools away and cleaned up again. I was starving hungry so I went across the road to order food. A complimentary bottle of beer was handed to me as I checked the menu. I was about to order when my phone rang. Phi was at the hotel. I quickly handed over some money for the beer and went back.
Phi looked over the bike, drawing breath at the mileage “it’s very high”. “No its 79000km and its a Honda, you know that’s nothing for here”. He looked at the engine “Oil leaks from here”, pointing at the head gasket. “Yes it’s that head gasket which was replaced a few weeks ago but the heat here doesn’t suit a rubber gasket and they leak, it’s not bad and I just do regular oil changes”. He nodded. After a short while, he made an offer. I showed him the two other people who wanted to visit and he accepted there would be no discussion on price. With that he asked for 5 minutes to go to the cashpoint. I wasn’t expecting to see him again, but good to his word, he turned up with millions of Dong and just like that Lilly was gone. Our last journey had been 370km in a day. Lilly had been an awesome bike.
I had a quick shower and went to The Station Bar for food. It was 11.30 when I clambered into bed absolutely exhausted.
Earth, Wind and Tyres 