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Sometimes travel becomes tedious. A unique adventure feels like just another chore, and we wistfully think of the creature comforts from home (think washing machines and a pillow that's the same night after night). It seems counterintuitive: we're "living the dream", doing what we want when we want. How can that be anything but joyous? I probably can't articulate it very well for someone who hasn't experienced it, but know that around the time we arrived in Central Vietnam we were - not bored or homesick - just a bit apathetic.
To fill the time, Sjane had been planning for months to have some clothes made by the girls at Yaly Couture (the tailors who were also responsible for our wedding attire), so three of the days we were in Da Nang were spent either taxi-ing (370,000 Đ one way, rip off merchant!) or cycling (sore butt cheeks!) the 25+km to the old town of Hoi An. It was great fun seeing the tailors reactions when we showed them our wedding photos, and Sjane thoroughly enjoyed picking materials and deciding on cuts with her assistant Hanna. We slurped our first Vietnamese Egg Coffee (yum!), we strolled the old town and snuck into the historical sites without paying admission (such rebels!).
Sjane hypothesised that we could overcome our tedium by getting active again (her solution to nearly all of life's problems: Got a sore tooth? Go for a run!). So, along with the 50+km bike rides to Hoi An, we also committed to walking the 7km to Da Nang's famous Lady Buddha statue. The fact that we set off in the heat of the day with little more than 1L of water between us only added to the pilgrimage feel of the experience. Physically the walk wasn't taxing; it was just f***ing hot! We skipped from one side of the road to the other trying in vain to use the sparse shade to protect ourselves from the ambient furnace. As we rounded the bay the huge form of Lady Buddha gradually got closer and we got progressively more dehydrated. Near the end of the trail we had to choose between following the road as it wound its way around and up to the top of the hill where Lady was, or cut straight up the mountainside via an obviously disused staircase that was overgrown and madly steep. Keen to get to the top as soon as possible (and sensing that a detour was in order), we headed up the mountain face. We had to sneak around thorned vines, avoid black "wasps" (they weren't wasps Sjane!), climb under a fence and scramble over a slippery cement face before finally taking in the close-up view of Mrs Buddha. She was massive (47m tall to be exact). We staged some culturally insensitive (but funny) photos mimicking the Bodhisattva poses, and Sjane cracked it when a miniature tree snake cheekily waved his tail right in front of her face. It's all fun and games until Sjane spots a snake. Then we just had to brace ourselves for the return walk. I could practically feel the skin cancers forming on my arms and neck.
Not exactly Indiana Jones stuff but it reinvigorated us a little as we continued our way north through Vietnam.
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