March 23 - A Nice Beach

I was close to the coast, my main goal for the day was to reach a nice beach - my book recommended Bai Dong Beach. I was following a major artery, the Highway 1A, running from the north part of the country to the very south. The road had two-by-two lanes, with a division, with moderate traffic and lots of things to be had on the side - bread, chicken, pipes - and then restaurants, cafes, stalls, etc. Urban sprawl at its best.

Flatbread

Cocks

Pipes

Nearing the beach, I turned off to some local roads and after quite some riding, reached the coast. The first sight was alarming: there was nothing but garbage next to the sea...

Darn! So much garbage

I then found a village, called Nghi Son, it was quite scenic from the far, a bit run-down getting closer.

Nghi Son from the far

An ancient cannon

People partying in the village

I still had not found my beach - and asked someone about it. He jumped on his motorbike and told me to follow him. We rode around the village through some narrow alleys and then showed me a dirt road next to the coast. I was a bit unsure if this was the right way - but was not disappointed. I reached a very beautiful - and very empty - beach, I soon was the only one on the entire coast in the water.

Bai Dong Beach

After swimming, I dozed off a bit, then rode back on the dirt road, then through the village and found the 'blacktop'. There were about a dozen kilometers or so on a very scenic, beautifully paved road, which then unfortunately forked into the less interesting Highway 1A.

Riding on, I saw a military cemetery, then a buffalo used to haul a cart.

Military cemetary

Buffalo on the main highway

Around 8 pm, long after the sun had set, I reached the city of Vinh, where there was a large Uncle Ho memorial. For another $20, I booked a fairly nice hotel - less fancy than the day before, but it did the trick. I needed a good rest after the 160 kilometers that I had ridden that day.

Uncle Ho everywhere