Ba Vi

March 3, 2013


We started the day going motorcycle shopping in Cau Giay with Stan and Marilyn. We searched through seas of scooters for a while and found a few interesting rides but didn't buy anything.

Afterwards, we went to lunch and all of us decided to make the trip to Ba Vi (even though Stan wasn't terribly keen on the idea he still said yes) So, we got on our little scooters and set out on about an hour and 45 minute ride to a town/mountain called Ba Vi.

None of us were really planning on going right away, so we didn't have all the gear we needed. We had to stop about 20 minutes into the trip to pick up some rain gear on the side of the highway.

 We saw lots of interesting scenery along the way.

One of many rice fields outside the city

Local kids' soccer game

We eventually got to the mountain, and then it really started pouring down rain. We stopped for tea to wait out the storm. Then, we rode up the mountain.

There was no guardrail of any kind going up Ba Vi. If you went off the road, you fell down about 1,000ft (I really have no idea how far it was, but it was a long way down) before you stopped falling. The road was constantly curving and was very steep. Our little 125cc motorbike couldn't go over 22km/hr. on the ascent.

All the plant life was amazing and a refreshing break from the city air.  However, Stan and Marilyn neglected to inform us that the were riding on a bald back tire (and I do mean bald) so they didn't have as much fun as us :) They went into a slight skid on one of the turns, and Stan realized just how dangerous the road was with bald tires. (Remember the 1,000ft drop) So, before we reached the summit, our biker gang decided to head back down the mountain.

The motorbike couldn't hit 22km/hr. on the way up, but the way down was a different story altogether. I know you're not supposed to ride you brakes, but I didn't care. Every time I let off the brake, we were flying down that mountain.

We had a great time. We will go back again soon. It was nice getting out of the busy city of Hanoi.

As one of my students put it, "Hanoi is a noisy chicken that never stops clucking"

It's a good thing we love chicken ;)

Operation: Save Jerry

One night, during the Tet Holiday, a bat found it's way into our hallway and perched above our doorframe. He flew in through an open window, we were worried he wouldn't find his way out.

I wanted to name him Benny or Berry the Bat. Jenni wanted to name him Gerald the Bat (what kind of name is Gerald for a bat?) Anyways, after several minutes of debate over what to name our pet bat, we both settled on Jerry the Bat. (Hopefully, when we have kids it will be easier to come up with names we both like)

After two days, Jerry hadn't moved and inch... or as they say here, Jerry hadn't moved approximately 2.5cm :) We decided to take action and attempted to release Jerry back into the wild world that is Hanoi, VN. We documented this catch and release effort in a few short videos. We think they are funny... but then again, I thought my 1 inch = about 2.5cm conversion joke was funny too :)

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3