The road From Hue to Hoi An

Today we started our 1st day of SERIOUS riding; yesterday was just a practice! We filed out of the hotel and headed out of Hue, into the country.
At last we were in the beautiful picture perfect country-side that we had seen photos of. Lush green rice paddies lined the road, roosters, ducks, dogs, buffalo and herons were sighted. Along the river, women did their washing by the banks whilst ancient boats with fisherman holding long poles drifted past.
Everywhere we went, little children called out, “Hellooooo!”, smiling broadly, and asking for Hi 5s. (I leave that to the others… I don’t want to lose my balance…) The people of Vietnam are very friendly. The group photo we see here is taken in front of an ancient wooden Chinese bridge, beautifully decorated. Were very happy to leave the city with it’s heavy traffic and constant honking. The condition of the road was not too bad; certainly pot holes, but overall pretty good.

It was Max's turn to fall off his bike today. I heard a crash as his head hit the concrete road, but luckily his helmet saved him from serious injury. His breaks had jammed.

We rode the bus some of the way, stopping off at a marble sculpture shop; There were some lovelythings too heavy to bring home! We had hit the coast.

We stopped off for lunch, and rode some more, but I was getting tired, so I went on the 'Sag Wagon", which is the bus that follows the last person. I wanted to have a rest so that I could enjoy Hoi An when we got there. Fred made the whole ride, which was great!
Now for those of you who want to know what Hoi An is famous for, it's the shopping! Emma Boyar was recently there, and showed me the silk dresses and suits that she had made for her within 12 hours, as well as the custom made shoes and silver jewelry.

But alas, our time in Hoi An was too short. We went to the famous Yaly, where any style of clothing can be made out of beautiful silk within 12 hours. After a lesson on how silk is made, (reminded me of 'the Very Hungry caterpillar), we explored the shop. Claire bought some shawls and ties, whilst Janice and Leanne bought off the rack silk jackets for around $45. Janice's needed alterating, and it was ready within 15 minutes. However, we had no time to order anyrthing, so I actually came out of Hoi an with nothing!

After dinner, we walked along the river, where there was a display of Chinese lanterns.