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With nearly 30,000 miles between both bicycles, we would like to share our thoughts on the Marathon Mondial tires from Schwalbe: model type - Evolution Line, Folding Bead, ETRTO 50-559 (26x2.0), weighing 740grams. The information that we will provide in this article is based on our experiences.
19 August, 2015 /

Guys beware! If you are a bicycle touring girl, you find out quickly, that there are a few questions you will find awkward or difficulty to ask the guys at the local bicycle shop. Unfortunately, it is not much easier to find answers online, which will...

16 August, 2015 /

Visiting Phong Nha Cave

Before settling down in our guesthouse, we decided to check on a few tours to the Phong Nha National Park and its famous caves. Apparently it is not necessary to actually book a tour ahead of time, as long as we know what we want to see and return before 8:00 am. So we snap a couple of pictures of the information chart by the kiosk, grab a bite to eat at a local hang out, which seems to be popular with western backpackers, and go to sleep at the guesthouse.
13 August, 2015 /
Like most people we dreamed about taking a year and see the world, but the hardest part is trying to figure out how to save enough money to travel. We would read stories and articles of other travelers and ask, “How did they do that?” and like most people, we figured they probably came from money, won the lottery, or had a ton of help. We even met Rick Steves in Rothenburg o.d. Tauber during our 2002 vacation to Germany and my first question to him was, “How do I do
10 August, 2015 /

Cycling the Ho Chi Minh Trail Part One: Partying with the Police

From Dong Ho it is only a short skip and a hop to reach the Ho Chi Minh Trail. Or at least one of the many former Ho Chi Minh Trails that has been converted into one of the most pleasant roads in South East Asia to cycle on. This one is going to lead us to the Phong Nha National Park. For the next few days we will be bicycle touring where over 40 000 North Vietnamese Soldiers and farmers worked under the harshest conditions in a dense, tropical jungle. During the war it was their job to keep thousands of miles of supply roads and fake supply roads clear so weapons, supplies, and troops could be brought to Southern Vietnam. The soldiers were not allowed to return home unless they either A). won the war, or B). their bodies made it home and were buried. This philosophy made the Northern Vietnamese Army very resourceful in
02 August, 2015 /
It is still early, when we hurry up and get a bite to eat before we hustle over to see Mr. Tinh. After a short briefing we are ready to roll. Mr Tinh and his driver sit in the front, the three of us in the back seat. Today we are going on an excursion to visit the former DMZ and the Vinh Moc Tunnels.
“DMZ,” which means demilitarized zone, is a military term that refers to a combat-free area between two enemies. The boundary between North Vietnam (officially the Democratic Republic of Viet Nam) and South Vietnam (officially the State and later the Republic of Vietnam) was established as the Ben Hai River. The river ran approximately east-west, approximately on the 17th parallel. The DMZ extended five kilometers on each side of the river. (http://www.u-s-history.com)
26 July, 2015 /
Before cycling from Hue to Đông Hà, we spend an extra down day in Hue. Besides wandering around the newer part of town, where most of the tourists stay in their hotels and hostels, we stroll along the river and we treat ourselves to a double and triple serving of kem cay (soft serve-ice-cream) and pizza...sometimes it is just nice to get to eat something familiar and with less than 10 cents per ice cream it is easy to go a little bit overboard!
16 July, 2015 /
Today we are going to visit the Imperial City of Hue. It is said that the Imperial City of Hue is the best-preserved remnant of a vast citadel and royal quarters that once existed on the site. Apparently in 1802 ,Nguyễn Phúc Ánh took control of Vietnam and declared himself as Emperor Gia Long. Like any other emperor he was in great need of a citadel, so the Imperial City was founded. We were told that the Imperial City of Hue is about 2.5 km by 2.5 km wide, it is surrounded by a moat and within it lies the Purple Forbidden City which is separated by an additional set of walls and moat within the citadel.
13 July, 2015 /
It is going to be a long bicycle ride to Hue. The start from the guesthouse along the beach area to where the peninsula meets the mainland is very quiet and has very little traffic. As we cross one of the bridges leading back to the main land we watch fisherman bobbing up and down with the rhythm of the waves as they are fixing a buoy. We also spot a few boats that are tied up near the river's edge, waiting to go out for the catch of the day. It seems that blue is "the" color for boats. Not sure why -- maybe for camouflage -- but so far most of the fishing
12 July, 2015 /

Bicycle touring food differs in various locations.

One of the questions we frequently get asked is: what do we eat while we are on the road, how do we prepare our meals, and what makes for good bicycle touring food.

The answer can be a little tricky, because it varies depending on where we travel and whether we are going to stay at someone's house, at a campground, or whether we plan on wild camping. Also, it differs whether it is summer or winter time. Olive oil or butter become hard to use when it is freezing outside but our bodies still crave fatty things, especially when wild camping in the snow. We found "Schmalz" to be a great substitute because even in freezing conditions it is still spreadable. On the other hand, when it is hot and steamy, we'd rather have juicy fresh fruit and we end up eating an entire watermelon at once for lunch.

09 July, 2015 /