As we crossed the Cambodian – Vietnamese border we were tired from our long ride, however the anticipation of new adventures kept our spirits up. Exploring Vietnam on a Motorbike was, undoubtedly, going to be as exciting, and as colourful, as our exploration of Cambodia. We were looking forward to every new experience…. and then we reached the outskirts of Ho Chi Ming City! Our excitement flagged a little as we hit the horrendous traffic. In Vietnam there are 37 million motorbikes…. Ho Chi Ming City must have 36 million of them! Seriously! The traffic in HCMC was horrendous. We were exhausted and we hadn’t booked accommodation ahead of time. We needed a bar with free wifi!
Riding a motorbike around Cambodia was an exhilarating and hair-raising experience. It wasn’t always smooth sailing…. or in this instance trouble-free touring! Near death experiences were never far away! Such as the time, on a two lane narrow road, we had, coming straight for us, a van overtaking a bus that was overtaking a truck. So… two lanes, three vehicles and no room for us. Just managed to slow down enough before leaving the road and hitting the dirt! And then there were the breakdowns… and there were a few of those, but they were all part of the adventure…
As Exploring Cambodia on a Motorbike continues, so to do the adventures and dramas… including being taken to the wrong island and the near death of our beloved motorbike! Sihanoukville and Phnom Penh were the last two places we could visit before our time constraints compelled us to cross the border into Vietnam. For me, the highlight of this part of our journey was Phnom Penh, Cambodia’s capital city. The eclectic array of buildings – including French colonial and Khmer architecture made riding around Phnom Penh very colourful and interesting.