Off to Komtum today, I think.

14/5 - Up loaded up and of to the bakery to pick up some tasty stuff for breakfast. We had to go through the market. It was heaving. People don't get off their motos, just pull over and check out the merchandise and decide whether to buy. The housewives all turn up early to get their fresh food, none of this refrigeration lark here, then it back home to get cracking. We got through and picked up some tasty looking pastries and Khien told me to pick on e up that looks dec idedly li ke a cake to me. I don't usually do cake for breakfast, but I never used to do noodles or chillies either, cake should be less of a wrench. The market wasn't so bad on the way back. The photo lady from yesterday was there at the roundabout, but I saw her too late to shout and make a fool of myself. Will that last the day? I very much doubt it. Out of town a few K's and we pulled over at a cafe for tea, coffee and YES it is a cake and bloody lovely too. It was a loaf cake, no ceremony, snapped in half and get stuck in. The pastries were filling too, even Khien kept one for later. We set off yet again, di thoi big boy, we passed through rubber plantations. The plants are not like the rubber plants you see back home. It looks a laborious task to collect the sresin, but the Vietnamese are good at them jobs. We pulled into a rubber plantation for a gander and bounced around a bit. It's all clever stuff, the collection method. A nick here a pot there and resin everywhere. Di thoi again and through a few villages, there's street/roadside markets in most of them and loads of the little tractors with long steering arms, pulled over at the markets. They double up as taxis for the farm workers. We've passed loads on the way back from the fields loaded up with people, most wearing the nun las. We pulled into a monument to the mail men and women. Lots of these monuments have statues of several people all in different ethnic clothing. Khien always tells me the different types. He also pointed out some shy grass, the leaves close up when touched. He comes across as a real country lad, but I think he has picked a lot of it up from the farmers he speaks to along the way. After a bit of clowning around, Khien is an expert, it's back on the bike. The scenery around here is more rolling, so not so stunning, but still eye catching. The resin from pine trees is being collected too, so I asked about it. There was something illegal going on, but I'm not sure wh at. Something to do with making it into explosives and fishing with it. There is a legal side too, but I missed it. Khien was clowning around again, h e did Kung Fu for a couple of years, so was kicking at a dead tree when he spotted a mouse hidden in a hollow branch. He nearly wet himself. Big, hard Kung Fu fighter. He legged it when I went to scare it out. Di thoi lady boy and we pulled over at a roadside cafe for some sugar cane drink. We hit the hammocks. Khien tried to mother me into a low one, but I lounged next to him and the lady brought a table over in between us and put the drinks on it. Anything to make life relaxed and easy, they are smashing people. We had a bit of crack with the lady, he's a real charmer. He knows most of the answers to the questions about me now, so I don't get too involved. It is the Vietnamese way to ask and I quite like being celebraty. We finished off the pastries, the sugar cane was nice too, we had a bit of a swing and then left with a big smile from the lady. We are passing through poor places now, with mostly wooden houses. The housing material seems to be the only difference, the people seem to be doing the same thing, but look poorer.
The schools always seem to be going in or coming out in dribs and drabs, but when we hit peak hour time we both wave and shout and it's like a Mexican wave as we pass. It lifts my heart to see it, a real boost to morale. Like Carol said, I'm just a crusty marshmallow. Morale isn't low, but the kids do make life even better.
We passed a wedding in full swing. They look to be good fun.
Next stop, a pepper plantation. It tastes great straight off the plant. We jus wander into all of these places. If anyone is around they usually have a quick word, then just get on with their business. You may not believe this, but there was somemore clowning around and then we are off again. I've suspected bus drivers are crazy when I have been on them, but being on the outside, more than confirms it. We had to pull off the road to avoid one. They dont give a toss about the motorcyclists.
There are lots of the babyslings in this neighbourhood and the woven bamboo baskets too. The minoirty peoples have a completely different look to the run of the mill Vietnamese. More like Peruvians. Perhaps it is a mountain thing, or jungle thing, as they mostly hale from th juingles. We pulled over to give Jack a rest and for a bit of a clown around. 3 ladies sat over the road h ad a good lauigh. They were sat on the step having a good old chin wag. It reminded me of my Mam and the other miners wives standing at the gate nattering at the end of a shift, waiting for the men to come home. While we were there, 3 lasses with babies in slings walked passed, one had the bamboo weave basket no her back too, another an umberella for a sunshade and the last was smoking a pipe. We set off again, with a cheery goodbye from the doorstep ladies and headed for Sea Lake, so called because of its blue colour. It looks man made, but is a volcano crater, it must have been a big volcano, the lake is a big one. An old fell came dashing over to show us a big centipede or millipede, either way it was big. I had one in my room the other week. This is another romantic setting and there are starry eyed couples, but I soon put the mockers on that. An addictive ca phe da, iced coffee and we are off again, headed back to BMT city for the night. We are sharing a room from here to save dosh, so there was a super clowning moment when Khien spotted my fins, mask and snorkel, he was like a kid in a sweet shop. and disappeared down the corridor wearing them. We got shifted eventually and caught a taxi to a BBQ testaurant. A little wrough iron BBQ is put on your table and you do it yourself. Keeping the adventure going, we had wild boar, it was better than the porcupine though that was OK too. A few beers, abit of charming by Khien and back to bed. He cam sleep for Vietnam. He always tells me not to set my alarm, hel'll wake me and I end up waiting for him to wake up. He wakes up lively though, so we don't have to hang about long. The worst thing is he wakes up singing.