Day 3 Trains, traffic, and abject terror

'It was somewhere between 2 am and 3 am that I began to hate Care Australia,' quipped one of our group, who shall remain nameless!

We travelled alot by overnight trains in China, and we loved them. I was not prepared for four bunks in a room that was about 2m wide by 3m long. We shook, rattled, rolled and held onto our bladders all night so we didn't have to use the shared carriage toilet.

We arrived in Hue at about 8.30am with only one or two hours of broken sleep under our belts. After a much needed shower, wee, and quick swim and were fitted for our bikes. I say 'fitted' very loosely. Some of our group own light-as-a-feather carbon fibre bikes at home. Our very clunky and less than new mountain bikes required very little fitting, except for the gel seats most people (except me) brought from home. That is your fault Johnnie Roberts. You said it was a muscle thing and that padded seats make very little difference. I think I beg to differ!

So we headed off for what was to be a quiet day of cycling around the quaint little town of Hue. I need to mention a couple of things here. I don't know why, but it never occurred to me that we would be riding in the right hand side of the road! Obvious I know, but it didn't even cross my mind. Secondly, the quaint little town of Hue has six lanes of traffic. Thirdly, we were riding in those six lanes!!!!!

Within the first five minutes, I had already collided with a motorbike!!! (I'm fine Mum. The lefthand turns are the worst. You need to cross three lanes of traffic to get to the centre
lane. Then you have to cross three lanes of traffic going the other way, all the time also
watching out for people driving on the wrong side of the road. The advice we were given was
the same as for crossing the n road - step out into the traffic and maintain and consistent
pace, hold your line, and keep going. So I saw three lanes of traffic, which went through a
red light, heading towards me and I tried to be brave and hold my line, but clearly, they
don't always go around you!!!!!

I recovered enough keep riding. We rode along the Perfume River to the Citadel and the Imperial Enclosure, before braving the traffic back home.

Then, our guide somehow managed to talk us into dinner at a restaurant where we dressed up as emperors and courtesans and concubines for one of the strangest nights of my life!