My plan for today was to take a break from my motorbike. I would rent a bicycle and leisurely ride around the beautiful rice fields. I had breakfast at my guesthouse. When I was finished the lady running it kicked me out. Seven people were coming and wanted to stay in the same guesthouse. She would rather get all of their money, even though I had told her I was going to stay three nights. I wasn’t too happy about that.
I figured if I had to pack up, I would just hit the road. My destination for the day would be the town of Pho Chau, 170 km away. There’s really nothing there. It’s just a a convenient stopping point.
My route stayed inland, following the Lao border. The first half of the ride was nice but not spectacular. I’m really spoiled now from the amazing views two days ago. I went past more limestone mountains covered in green trees. There were some good views. Then there were more and more towns, and more signs of industry and agriculture.
I stopped to eat my banh mi, and a weird Dutch guy stopped too. He had not idea where he was going.
The final approach to Phố Châu was not interesting. The town itself is very small, and also not interesting. I checked into a dingy but cheap guesthouse. Unlike most towns in Vietnam, this town has no cafes to hang out in. So I just went back to my room after dinner and listened to the blasting karaoke.
