Matthew Wegner

Today was the first day on the unicycle. You could tell everyone was eager to stop milling around–as relaxing as that is–and get in some miles. But first, we had to get ourselves out of Hanoi.

Early to Rise

We woke at 3:15am. There are only two flights to Hue, split between morning and evening. The morning flight departs at six, which meant an awfully early morning for everyone on the tour. It wasn’t too bad, thanks to the remainder of the jet lag. I didn’t have any trouble falling asleep early.

Sight-Seeing

After a tasty breakfast, tour orientation, and unicycle assembly, we were off! The riding was very light, and spread out, with the goal of the day to visit the forbidden city and some tombs. While these tours were great, it was also a little bit too serene on a day where we all woke up hours before dawn. It was much nicer to be on the road mingling with traffic. At least that keeps you awake!

Unicycling in Vietnam

So riding around in Vietnam is completely amazing. We’re still in reasonably touristy areas, thanks to the tombs and such, but our route did take us away from that. It was awesome to be in the flow of traffic, pedaling through the city, and watching the reaction of the locals.

I was regularly struck with thoughts on how awesome/bizarre/amazing/exhilarating/mad the whole thing was. It’s a combination of everything: The sights, the people, how they live, the fact that I’m even here, and of course the fact that I’m seeing it all at 13mph on a unicycle.

Existence by Attention

One of the common themes in my thoughts, while riding, was that this stuff exists. It’s not just something I’m seeing while I’m riding by. Tomorrow, those same people will be working the same shops. The kids will again be walking home from school. That cow, or chicken, or dog, or whatever, will still be there, doing what it does.

I think in America we have this worldview that something only exists if people pay attention to it. If the news isn’t talking about an event or person, then it just doesn’t count. By implication, I–and you–need to be experiencing something for it to actually exist. It goes past that people not caring; it’s like they no longer allow a thing to be realized.

That seems different here. For instance, the newer houses in Hanoi have western kitchens. Nobody’s actually using them, though. They still go cook in the street, to talk to their neighbors and be a part of the world. It’s almost the exact opposite–you don’t exist unless you participate in or pay attention to the world, not the other way around.

Persistence and Reactive Reality

I think this points to one of the aspects of unicycling that’s so compelling. For instance, if you come here as a tourist on foot, you don’t make any indentation on the persistence of the city. Everyone’s routine is the same, whether you were there or not. Your day is no different from any other.

But when we unicycle through, we make a fairly wide ripple in reality–the people who live here–and cause quite a disturbance. It combines the two worldviews in this strange way. This stuff exists whether I’m here or not, but what I’m experiencing really is just for me, in a very severe way. When the next bus load of tourists comes after us, they’re back to the off-the-shelf, static experience of the city.

But when we roll through, we get our own experience, crafted specifically for us by our very bizarre circumstances. Kids run alongside just to watch, people come out of their shops, adults stop and stare, and curious motorists slow down for a longer look. The country itself is responding to us and actively contributing to us. It’s not the attention that makes it great; it’s that this experience is totally and uniquely ours and ours alone.

I just got back from a trip to Halong Bay. It was pretty foggy throughout our time there (check my photos on Flickr), but even so the place is just amazing. It was remarkable to spend two days on a boat—eating, sleeping, and just sitting up on deck watching the islands drift by. The weather was a perfect, unnoticeable mildness.

Fun Activities

The full itinerary: four-hour bus ride from Hanoi, take a tender (small ship) to the big ship, steam over into the bay, disembark to visit a cave, go kayaking, before returning to the ship for dinner and karaoke. All meals and activities were included, although alcohol was not. They charge a little more, being a tourist trap and all, but it’s still about $1 per beer. You can find $0.10 glasses of beer on street stalls.

I Ate Seafood

Of course, seeing as this whole activity is centered on the ocean, much of the food was seafood. So I figured, hey, do what you feel. And the ocean feels like making all kinds of edible creatures. The food overall was very good, with a lot of variety and tons of small courses. I doubt I’ll be seeking out seafood when I’m back, but at the same time I expect I’ll be eating more on the trip (as it is along the coastline, after all).

Riding Tomorrow!

Tonight marks the official start time of the tour, although it’s all orientation and meeting people. We had 13 people from the tour in Halong Bay, so there are another 15 people to meet still. Tomorrow is the first riding day—a short 20 miles after we fly out of Hanoi to escape the crush of the city. I’m looking forward to getting into the saddle! It looks like I’m pretty squarely in the middle of this group’s skill set. There are some very skilled riders here; we’re talking 25mph max speeds without any kind of gearing. That’s something like a ~230 rpm pedaling cadence.

I probably won’t have Internet access after I leave Hanoi, but I’ll post updates as I can!

I was wandering around last night when I came across this stage. The honking is a little worse because of the crowds, but overall this actually a good indication of traffic, too. If you want to cross the street you just slowly and methodically start walking; the endless stream of motorbikes will just form around you…

Mind? Blown.

The view from my hotel:

And again, the whole Flickr set.