After about two hours the road goes back to two lanes but we are moving a bit quicker as the traffic has eased a bit, but still the road is bordered by shops, workshops, houses, factories and the little lorry stops which consist of a series of hammocks strung out with those ubiquitous tiny red chairs for dining. This is where the truck drivers stop to sleep. It’s not until about four hours later that the countryside appears. Some rice paddies but the main agriculture here is dragon fruit, that pretty looking but very bland tasting red fruit with white pulpy insides with tiny black seeds. Mile after mile of small individual fields line the road with their cactus like plants, some have strings of lightbulbs wrapped round. My driver has very little English so I can’t ask why – I assume it is something to do with ripening the fruit rather than night time illumination.... Every so often there is a dragon fruit packing plant and loads of roadside stalls with the fruit piled high. But the driver’s lack of English doesn’t mean a peaceful trip – the radio blares out My Way..... Frank Sinatra has a lot to answer for!
Eventually we turn off highway 1 and drive through Phan Thiet the nearest town. We eventually arrive at the Sailing Club, Mui Ne, my home for the next two weeks.
