By Zoé David
May 7, 2018
Photos: Nine David
Vietnam: A Watery Road Trip
After this first part of my trip, which was rich in encounters, I needed to get out
and explore the roads I had loved so much.
So I decided to go for a ride with Mark, my former roommate, and Nine, my little sister and
photographer. With two off-road motorcycles, we set off.
We woke up at 5 am and decided to head east of Hanoi, but, as usual, nothing went as planned. Surprise when opening the house gate: A Vietnamese-style wedding, with a marquee, karaoke, kitschy decorations, and an orgy of food! In short, we were stuck with our two bikes in the middle of the wedding when the rain joined the party.
Not Even Scared!
The motorcycles were outside, loaded, and we decided to hit the road anyway, hoping the weather would improve.
We hit the road under ponchos. We left Hanoi in a downpour, and the motorcycles were having more and more trouble. Mark's FTR stopped moving; the air filter was waterlogged! My motorcycle started revving for no reason. In short, everything started to get complicated; Mark was broken down, luckily, and at the same time, which is quite common, there was a small workshop on the side of the road.
We spotted a compressor, and at that moment we thought maybe this guy could save our trip. He blew out the air filter and then improvised a filter cover cut from an empty oil can. Their resourcefulness is amazing (they got me out of a lot of trouble). So we set off again with one motorcycle working and the other still acting up—a tough day.
It was hell; the rain wouldn't stop, but even though our spirits and mood were still good, we decided to stop after 50km to eat something.
We feasted on the flavors and aromas... Outside, torrents flooded the streets, and we weren't sure if it was reasonable to continue our road trip. After two good hours of waiting for the rain to stop, we gave up. We began an epic return journey with two motorcycles that broke down more and more often; on our bikes, we were nothing but sponges.
The return was harder than the outbound journey. Once dry, Nine and I decided to go out again; the weather had cleared up, so we headed to downtown Hanoi. We then visited the temples in the historic district of the city. The Hoan Kiem district is the most typical but also the busiest of Hanoi's neighborhoods. It is charming but also noisy, a real anthill where thousands of scooters intersect.
We had coffee on a terrace and then decided to take some photos of the Gentlemen's Factory women's collection that I designed for them! We headed to the Long Bien Bridge, an Eiffel Bridge that is one of the city's main icons.
The sun was setting, the light was superb. Traffic intensified, making the bridge crossing even more authentic.
This was my last day in Vietnam, and I couldn't have wished for a better day to end my stay there.
Next destination: Taiwan
Travel through Asia, Vietnam with Gentlemen's Factory[/caption]
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Hoodie for women who love motorbikes[/caption]
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Zoé David - Ride in Asia with Gentlemen's Factory[/caption]
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Zoé David - Ride in Asia with Gentlemen's Factory[/caption]
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Zoé David - Ride in Asia with Gentlemen's Factory[/caption]
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Zoé David - Ride in Asia with Gentlemen's Factory[/caption]
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Zoé David - Ride in Asia with Gentlemen's Factory[/caption]
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Zoé David - wearing a Gentlemen's Factory Sweatshirt[/caption]
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Zoé David - Ride in Asia with Gentlemen's Factory[/caption]
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Zoé David - Ride in Asia with Gentlemen's Factory - Motorcycle road trip in Asia, vintage motorcycle with girls. Women's Collection Gentlemen's Factory by Zoé, fashion for bikers - Ruby Motorcycle Helmet distributed by www.gentlemens-factory.com[/caption]
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Zoé David - Ride in Asia with Gentlemen's Factory[/caption]
