Ryan and I shot a ton of video with the GoPro cameras as well as the S100 and d7000. We're going to shoot to edit the whole thing together into a video 15 minutes or less. Here's a little taste of the raw material.
Sunday, January 29, 2012
Thursday, January 26, 2012
This Is The End
Escape from Mr. Bao's was a bit challenging, it had rained for two nights in a row and was even raining when we left. The dirt road was "slicker than snot on a doorknob". With the help of Anh Tuan and several locals we were able to negotiate the slippery slopes.
One guy in particular (above right) was riding a scooter down the mountain and he randomly stopped to help us, working very hard for 3/4 of the trip. The kindness of strangers in Vietnam is pretty amazing. From Marley's accident, to slipping down a mountain many people were eager to help. The contrast between the two guides couldn't have been clearer passing this challenge. With a good guide the task was difficult, but actually fun unlike a few of the earl
Anh Tuan invited our companion on the scooter to come with us to the next home stay and we headed off to Mr. Boi's house (left above). Ryan in particular was really looking forward to seeing Mr. Boi because he stayed there on his last trip. As we arrived, we soon learned that the hot water wasn't working which was a pretty big let down since I hadn't showered for a few days. Everyone in Mr. Boi's house disappeared fairly quickly after dinner rather than hanging around drinking, most likely tired from all of the partying from Tet, which at this point was a minor let down.
Waking up the next morning, I realized pretty quickly that I had gotten into some bad food or water. Luckily I started some meds and it wasn't too bad, and Ryan was fine. Vomiting and motorcycling don't mix. The sickness put a little damper on the last day of the trip, but the most important thing is that we made it back to Hanoi safely. Unfortunately we didn't get to visit Marley, but we are going to try to contact Scott to make sure he's ok.
We definitely made memories that won't soon be forgotten.
The Root Of All Evil
Turns out that "they" were wrong. The root of all evil isn't money it's Phan Van Dan (a.k.a Jean-Claude) our ex-guide.
When Anh Tuan arrived at Mr. Bao's house we had a chance to sit down and chat with him. It turns out that this was the first (and last) tour that Dan worked for Voyage Vietnam. He had good recommendations and our trip was planned to have multiple guides (including Anh and his wife), so he could be observed. Unfortunately, there were eight people who cancelled last minute so Anh Tuan unselfishly allowed Dan to guide our tour. Especially because of the lunar new year celebration and that he had already promised Dan work. I think that he now regrets that decision.
Anh told us that is six years of running Voyage Vietnam he has never had a guide abandon clients. During our chat Anh Tuan revealed conversations he had with Dan along the route and told us that Dan should have replaced Ryan's bike at the first sign of trouble, especially because we were still close to Hanoi. He also advised Dan several times to discuss the plan for the trip with us and to give us options on how to proceed. He easily outlined a route revision for the second day that would have eliminated our huge 240 km day with night riding. Instead of discussing and communicating, Dan made incredibly poor unilateral decisions.
We also learned that Dan completely fleeced us on the boat ride. He charged us four times what we should have paid. Anh was incredibly disturbed, and in a bit of shock as we sat and talked. Anh shared his story with us: how he grew up very poor in a village, has always given back to the community with home stays and donations, and how his tour company was originslly financed ($140k) by a swiss client who has been completely repaid. He outlined his philosophy and his vision which was one of the most customer focused and refreshing interactions I have ever had with a tour company oversees. Over the next few days, Anh showed us that he practices what he preaches. The remainder of the tour was completely different, and if we hadn't been so exhausted it would have been a lot more fun. Meeting with Anh confirmed that Dan was the true root of our problems.
Parade of Homes
After waking up and having a yummy ramen + fried egg breakfast we were invited via cell phone to visit another house in the village. We learned that during Tet, as no one is working they go from house to house talking, eating, smoking, and drinking. Pictured above is one of our hosts smoking tobacco from one of the ubiquitous bamboo water pipes. Despite their limited resources, they were generous with their food, drink, and laughter.
Seeing the differences in construction was interesting. Some of the houses have sheets of bamboo for walls rather than wood, others have sheets of bamboo that are covered in clay. They all followed the same basic layout, but some were definitely more ornate than others including support posts painted bright orange with a little embellishment near the joints.
After visiting a few different places, we were invited to play football with the kids. There was a small terrace near to the village that wasn't yet converted to land for rice or corn. They made a makeshift set of soccer goals with bamboo frames (Ryan has the only pic, sorry!). We had a great time running around with the boys from the village and knew that we would be sore for several days afterward.
When we returned from the football game, Anh had arrived. We learned that Anh has know Mr. Bao for 10 years and has brought numerous people to their little hamlet. The Bao family was so considerate and it was clear that they were accustomed to hosting foreigners. They bought two cases of beer, and a giant case of bottled water for us to drink. That night, with Anh translating we ventured out to another house nearby. The dirt paths were super slick and we decided to have our final meal in Mr. Bao's house rather than elsewhere in the village.
They put together another phenomenal meal for us. As we ate dinner, the beaming smiles were refreshing given all that we had been through. After dinner, Anh sat on the floor with the younger villagers and sang songs late into the night. It was clear that he was a welcome part of their family, a clear contrast with Dan.
After a bit more time with the iPad playing infinity blade, we went to sleep to prepare for our next big day.
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Tet Fiesta
Subtitle: Then There Were Two
For our next home stay we traveled to Mr. Bao's house. His house is in the middle of a Red Zhao community sitting on the side of a mountain. Unlike the prior home stay, the houses were much more spread out. They formed a zig-zag line down the hill, lining the path of the small mountain streams that provide water.
The house sits on a concrete slab and is made out of wood and bamboo with a thatched palm roof and is open to the air on top and on bottom. All of the beams inside are fitted together without fasteners. Even the wooden shutters are cut to pivot without metal hinges. The houses are long rectangles, made mostly of shared space. From the outside you can tell which end of the house holds the kitchen because the roof is stained black from the smoke of the wood fire used for cooking.
Immediately as you walk in the front door there is a small shrine. Because of the lunar new year, the shrine was completely decked out with food, lights, money, stalks of sugar cane, and brightly colored paper decorations. We learned that the sugar cane is important so that the elderly ancestors can walk easily when they return for Tet. A large hutch containing a small, very old television identifies the living space. There are a few partitions, but no real walls. Elevated platforms line the edges of the house where bedding is laid at night. Thin curtains provide a small amount of privacy. It wasn't quite clear to us how procreation would be possible with so little privacy, but there was no shortage of small children.
Upon our arrival, our stellar guide instructed us to "enjoy the culture" and went to sleep off his hangover from the night before. So much for having a translator. After a little while the teenage children started preparing the food for dinner, which was a lot of fun to watch. We shot some great video of the food prep.
During the time that they were cooking, one of the men of the house started the prayers. He prayed in front of the shrine for two hours, a special ritual for the new year celebration (a.k.a. Tet). Tet is the most important holiday in Vietnam. After the lunar new year, people take 7-10 full days off from work. Many services are shut down as people return home to their villages.
Before dinner started, many people from the village began to arrive. We later learned that it is good luck to have visitors stay and that Mr. Bao invited many people to his house for dinner. There were several tables set and lined with people. When the prayers were finished, dinner was started.
Drinking locally made rice and/or corn liquor (basically moonshine seen above) is very important in the culture of the red Zhao people. For every meal during Tet there are tiny shot glasses lining the large metal plate that holds dishes Throughout the meal, people propose toasts and it is impossible not to participate without offending. We developed a few strategies to try to keep from getting completely wasted - including filling our glasses with beer or coke before rice wine could be added. At one point our attempts were thwarted and the liquor was mixed with coke and we taught our hosts a new word - cocktail. The amount of alcohol consumed also leads to one of the main teen pastimes - driving scooters like maniacs, usually with at least three and sometimes four people per scooter.
Our guide Dan had been bragging constantly throughout the trip about how much he could drink. He would tell stories about drinking 7 liters between he and a friend, and boast "I'm a tank, they don't know, but I'm a tank". Throughout the meal Dan's gregarious boasting was becoming uncomfortable. He would shout toasts to the entire room, something that Mr. Bao didn't even do. Eventually, Dan proclaimed to us that he was drunk. Ryan lightly teased him a bit saying that he was embellishing and more of a scooter tank than a big water tank. Dan seemed offended that he was called-out, even in a joking manner.
Dinner went on for a bit more before the next proclamation from Dan. He stated that we offended him and that we were disrespecting his culture. He then proceeded to stand up and state that he was leaving. He went outside and called Ahn Tuan, the company owner and informed him of his intention. Tuan talked with Ryan and assured us that he would leave his own family's Tet celebration and join us for the remainder of the trip.
Despite protests from us and assurances that we were joking; Dan put on his helmet and drunkenly rode off into the night. When we returned to the house the tables had been cleared and Mr. Bao handed me a cell phone. They had called one of their daughters, who told us in English that we should not worry and that we could stay in their house for the night. The entire family was very understanding and gracious, especially because we don't think that they understood why Dan decided to leave.
From then on, we communicated mostly through pantomime and gestures. It really wasn't much different from when Dan was there.
Ryan stayed up for awhile playing infinity blade on the iPad with some of the boys. I crashed, sleeping under a massive pile of blankets to protect from the cold.
Then There Were Three
In the morning we set out through the mountains to rural villages to distribute clothes. The people were generally thankful for the clothing we were giving to them. But many of them looked-on with more shock than thanks.
About half way through the mountain trip Marley dropped his bike again. For some reason his head was out of the game and his riding skill was regressing. We covered some super rough ground with limited traction including a few areas where they were in the midst of building the road. The road-to-be consisted of numerous pointy football-sized rocks loosely packed together across the path. This was all on the side of a mountain and, at times, without any sort of guard rail or berm for protection.
After navigating football road, the riding surface was solid pavement and the tight switchbacks opened up into sweeping turns. Marley's confidence in the bike was continuing to suffer without clear reason. Ryan, Scott and I broke away from the pack for a spirited ride at a faster pace. Dan, the guide, stayed with Marley. We went on for a bit (maybe 20 mins) and stopped at the next town. Scott turned around and headed back to find Dan and Marley. Ryan and I were enjoying tea from the local shop when the chase car driver came by and pantomimed that a rider had gone off the road. With a pit in our stomachs, Ryan and I backtracked until we came to the scene. Marley had apparently lost control and took a gravitational excursion about 10 ft down into a rice patty.
By the time we arrived, they had pulled him out and he was laying flat on the ground by the side of the road. He was complaining of back pain, but was alert and able to move all of his extremities. Despite multiple local people trying to get him to sit up we were able to keep him laying flat while we waited for what seemed like an eternity for the ambulance to arrive. The ambulance was minimally equipped and didn't have a back board. So we lifted him on a sleeping bag and transferred him to the stretcher without bending him in half. Overall, given the steep mountain passes that we have been riding down, he was quite lucky to only fall a short distance to a muddy water landing.
With heavy hearts we got back on the bikes to ride to a late lunch (3:30pm). Feeling sick and coming down from the adrenaline rush, we barely ate. A bit later we got a phone call from Scott saying that Marley was feeling better, but that the ambulance ride was frightening. They skipped the district hospital and took him directly to an international French/Vietnamese hospital in Hanoi. We haven't heard much more, but plan on stopping to see him in the hospital if he's still there when we return to Hanoi.
After lunch we rode into the evening (again, grrr) to arrive at our first home stay. The home stay ended up being pretty disappointing, bordering on bogus. It was in a "tourist" village where the houses were super close together on the outskirts of a larger town. In addition to our hosts, there were several Vietnamese guys gathered for a guys-only no-vegetable meat-only Tet meal. For the meal we were the spectacles rather than guests. It was clear from the start of the meal that one goal was to get us rip roaring drunk. The only beverage available was rice liquor, no water or coke.
The other sport of the evening was to watch for looks of horror as they served us pig heart and liver, which was rather tasty. We made it through dinner without getting too drunk mainly because it was late and a few of the visitors bailed.
We also managed to turn the spectacle back on them by teaching them a new american saying. They were already familiar with saying "bottoms-up" so we added "pinkies-up". They thought it was ohh soo cool with no idea that the joke was on them. After dinner the remaining guys challenged Ryan to arm/knuckle wrestling and challenged me to leg wrestling. After they were soundly beaten, we had earned a little more respect...but not much.
We went to sleep while our hosts and our guide continued to drink, basically in the same room where we were trying to sleep, until around 3 am. Luckily, we were so tired from the flood of emotion during the day that we fell asleep quickly.
Unfortunately, our sleep was interrupted at 4 am by the slaughtering of a pig. I won't go into detail here. But I will mention that it didn't sound too humane and was pretty tough to hear anything else.
We were definitely happy to roll out of there in the morning, headed for our next home stay.
Bánh cuốn
Ryan has two favorite Vietnamese foods - you have already heard quite a bit about bun cha, so this is to introduce you to banh cuon.
It turns out that both are fairly hard to find, mainly because it takes some specialized equipment. Basically a large flat piece of metal is heated with a wood fire. With true artisanal skill our chef ladled a thin rice flour and water mixture onto the disk and placed a lid on top to let it steam. What results is a huge floppy rice noodle that the chef skillfully tears with chopsticks and laced with crumbly meat goodness.
They are served on a plate and accompanied by a bowl of broth with two white sausages. It takes a bit of practice to be able to eat without unrolling the soft noodle, spilling the crumbles everywhere and making a huge mess, but it is oh so worth it.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)