Success!

Day 27: Sunday 80 km.  The final leg into the capital Hanoi. 

There was no evidence of Easter here but that wasn’t surprising. It was a nerve-racking final cycle through the city suburbs, a continuous road of markets, houses, people and buses which began as soon as we left Hoa Binh. The standard of driving fell steadily and was the worst we have encountered. I had no patience with it after being up in the night with a vomiting bug. On any other day we would have taken a rest but we had a target to meet so we soldiered on. It was a relief to arrive in one piece and fall into bed.  

   
We have found an NGO that donates bicycles to poor school children so our bikes will go to a good cause. My sore bottom is not sorry to see them go but I do feel a little nostalgic that the routine is broken. No new roads to explore today.  It will take some time for the achievement to sink in. Before our trip I hadn’t spent two days in a row on a bicycle. Now we’ve covered 2,000 km. In the meantime I want pizza and sleep!

   
The real holiday starts now with a 3 day boat cruise around Halong Bay before we fly home on Friday.