The best day's cycle ever

What a day.

We set off in scorching heat for the first 20km along a lovely flat road. There was so much to see along the way, it was lovely. The highlight of this section was riding through a small town. There was one hazard after another, including herds of cows, mopeds carrying 15ft poles, all sorts of vehicles going in the wrong direction and people walking everywhere. Never a dull moment.

After a refreshment stop, we set off on the next 20km. More of the same flat road to start with then we slowly climbed into the hills. It was very beautiful and a lovely quiet undulating road. The only negative was it was too hot. I ran out of water which worried me a little, but I turned the corner and there was the bus and truck waiting.

We then drove a short while for our lunch stop, and I tried to cool down. Lunch was in a very small village further up on the hills. We walked about looking at coffee beans drying, enjoying the amazing views and generally life in the village.

Another short drive later and we set off for the final 20km. This was the best bit, and being higher it was cooler. A beautiful road with steep climbs and long downhills. You could not wish for better cycling and I had a grin on my face the whole time. I was sad to see the bus as I would have liked to keep going.

The other lovely part of the rides is that all the way along kids are shouting 'hello' and 'what's your name', everyone seems delighted to see you. At the end of the cycle we stopped at a school and the kids were outside doing some exercises. They were completely distracted by us and loving that we were watching them. When they finished they all came rushing up to the fence to say hello.

I'm writing this on the bus. We're on our way to the hotel in Dalat. It's meant to be a beautiful town, with a lot if French influences. I'm hoping we get there in good time to explore.

Just arrived at the hotel and it's lovely. Shower then walkabout and dinner.