Central Highland's Most Esteemed Graffiti Artists, VT

2/15/09
Eadrang to Buon Na Thuot
Day: 82.22 km
Cume: 2317.5 km
Avg: 15.9 kph
Max: 47.0 kph
Time: 5h8m
Highs: Beautiful vista of coffee tree filled valleys!, coffee beans scattered on the roadside, pine trees lining the road 20 meters deep on each side (with sap taps in them), more rubber tree orchards, heat lessened with cloud cover during the afternoon
Lows: Traffic almost unbearable, malicious honking truck drivers who honk their INSANELY loud horns right when they're next to my ear for no reason, finally paying attention to road paint markings of downed/injured/dead motor cyclists/bicyclists


Today, I begin with a few poems which should set the tone for the days ride (another prolific day):


what looks like gravel
scattered on the road side are
really coffee beans!


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Vietnamese Torture Techniques for American Cyclists Riding Uphill Through Their Country Haiku

I spend my days counting
the deka and hecta meters
marked on the road side


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Cycling in Vietnam Haiku

truck horns from behind
sound like bombs screaming toward
a conclusion


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It's a country I love and hate simultaneously all the time. I will say, the more I ride this road, Highway 14, the more I fear it and the drivers who travel it. Today, because I was a little bored (I get bored when I don't get to speak intelligibly in English for days on end), so I decided to finally pay attention to the road markings of downed motor bikes and bicycles. I'm guessing that one would not paint a marking on a road surface unless the information is important, unless, indeed, someone was injured or killed in the course of the accident they attempt to capture. So, I decided to count road markings for the 40 km (that's 24 miles for us American mavericks) betwen Buon Ha, where I had breakfast and Buon Na Thuot where I would spend the night. It became a sort of game. I placed a bet with myself...how many would I really see in 24 miles...I mean, I've seen maybe a few dozen so far since I've been on this highway. Well, here's the final count of motor bike grafitti markings on the road between Buon Ha and Buon Na Thuot: 16!

This will continue to be a fascination of mine as I endure how the Vietnamese treat me and each other with their vehicles.

I spent the fist two hours of the day climbing steadily for 28km. Fortunately, I made the climb early what it was still cool out and traffic "light." Seeing coffee beans along the highway reminded me of highway 5 during the summer scattered with the guts of tomatoes that bounce out of the tremendous truck loads and end up on the roadside. This is obviously a major coffee producing region, so much so that they don't mind losing a portion of their product to the shoulder.

I was fortunate to have received an excellent suggestion from my French comrade in Hue who told me of a great low key place to stay in Buon Na Thuot. I throw it out there, too, the Family Inn right near the Victory Monument. BTW: The Victory Monument is a huge spire (like many of the Victory Monuments) with an American Tank flying a Vietnamese flag mounted to a pedestal in front of the spire. Pretty impressive display. *****EDIT ADD IMAGES*****