The ninth week

Day 57-63

On December 4th we arrived at the Cát Tiên National Park. Unfortunately, my backpack holder on the scooter broke on the way. I thundered a little too fast over a bumpy slope. So we took the scooter to a workshop. I won't need it the next day anyway because we'll be spending the whole day in the national park.

The national park was very beautiful! Finally more national parks to our liking! Even if it runs through an asphalt road and trucks drive past every now and then. We borrowed bikes and rode along the road.

There were designated interesting sights on the right and left of the road. The first stop was rapids from a river. Then we looked at a few more trees. We were particularly impressed by a ficus. The tree has 7 trunks. Gnarled and intertwined, the trunks twist upward and then unite.

We kept driving, even when the asphalt road ended. In between we saw monkeys. Gibbons also live in Cát Tiên National Park. But the monkeys we saw were a different species.

At some point, at the so-called "six-pack tree" we stopped and ate a few cookies. Unfortunately we discovered something else. Ivar saw it first and panicked slightly. Leeches have been feeding on us! But in tropical countries you really get milked! Mosquitoes, leeches... let's see what happens next!

The stupid thing about leeches is that they secrete a substance that reduces the clotting of the blood. So you bleed a lot from the bite.

I also found a wet spot on my pants on my knee. At first I thought it was water, but the stain got bigger. We picked off a few more leeches. Then we made our way back.

In between we walked along another path. Ivar thought: if you keep moving, the leeches won't be able to jump on us. Ha! Ivar thought God was laughing! After the walk, we panicked and picked off leeches again.

We left the park around 4 p.m. and checked each other for any remaining leeches at the accommodation. Although we didn't bring any with us, we still found bites.

In the evening we went out to eat. As a local you know where the good food is. The favorite pizzeria or the preferred ice cream parlor. We always look at where many locals go to eat and found a restaurant that had an endless number of scooters in front of it. As we stood in the restaurant, we had the feeling that we were at a party. But by then it was actually already too late. We were waved over to the first table and had to have a drink with the gentlemen. We were passed from table to table and had to drink everywhere! We would have found it too rude to refuse. At the last table we were allowed to sit down and eat. We already had a seat there. And we always had to have a drink. The liquor came from a large canister. It was probably homemade. The food was super delicious! We tried to communicate with the translation app. At least we found out that we didn't stumble into a wedding, but into an association of farmers.

Some other tourist looking for food was dragged off the street and sat at the table with us. We were repeatedly asked to continue eating. Have I mentioned how nice and hospitable the people in Vietnam are? :)

At some point we managed to jump off and slowly drove to our accommodation.

On December 6th we continued to Bảo Lộc. The route there was awesome! It went up into the low mountain ranges of Vietnam. First we drove through a lot of forest. It was wonderful to see these beautiful green slopes with the tall trees, the lianas.

The forest gave way more and more and we drove past coffee plantations. There were cashew trees too! The asphalt stopped and we drove along gravel roads, past a reservoir, a waterfall and always fantastic views!

We arrived at our accommodation in Bảo Lộc in the evening. Our host invited us to dinner at 7 p.m. We showered, rested and went to dinner in our usual T-shirts and shorts. As soon as we got outside, we went straight back into the room. It was cold!!! Welcome to the mountains! So we had dinner with long pants and a sweater.

We enjoyed the climate, the spring-like temperatures and the wonderful wind so much that we extended our stay. It might also be time to take a break.

Our host surprised us with a different Vietnamese dish every morning. We mostly eat noodle soup. Firstly, it is a dish that we know (and like) and secondly, Phố is a word that we can read, pronounce and understand as what is said! In Vietnamese, “do you have anything else besides soup?” We can't say (maybe the translator app) and even fewer understand the answer. Therefore, I believe that a lot will remain hidden from us. But our hostess has brought little treasures out of the shadows and we really appreciate that!!

We liked everything so much that we extended our stay.

From December 6th to 10th we explored Bảo Lộc and the surrounding area. What we liked best was a beautiful waterfall near the Dí Da monastery. He fell about 10-15 meters into a pool. There were moss-covered rocks all around. The spray created a humid climate. Some of the flowers seemed to like this very much, because they grew in large numbers wherever the spray went. The area was very woodsy, with tall green trees growing on steep slopes. Just lovely!

But we also liked the other sights, such as a tea plantation or a monastery with Japanese torii gates.

Another thing from everyday life in Vietnam: the scooter is the means of transport of choice. So the whole family has to get involved. 4 people on one scooter? No problem! Small children? Be secured between the adults. Or on chairs like this:

Sometimes the small child simply sits in the front of the seat. If the neck muscles are not yet very developed, that is not a problem. Because then the head is simply held with one hand and the adult drives with one hand.