Negotiating the traffic on the way out of HCMC was an experience to say the least. Somehow I didn't get lost and I was soon making decent progress along the motorway. Having planned my route during the days prior, it came as a bit of a shock when the main road I had chosen, out of the city, didn't allow motorbikes to travel on it. After a quick chat with a police officer, who couldn't speak English, I got the impression he was telling me just to carry on then pick up the National Highway at the end of the motorway. More luck than judgement, I soon picked up the originally intended route and it was head down and aim for Mui Ne.
The motorways are different here and better prepared for the amount of motorbikes. The cars, lorries and buses are separated from the motorbikes which makes it a lot safer. Although you still have to be prepared for the odd cow waiting in the middle of the road. Once I had left the motorways, the roads opened up and there was less traffic which made for a great ride. The scenery was fantastic, as were the people who helped me with directions along the way. Everyone was so keen to help and if they didn't know something, they would find someone who did. Somewhere between Gia Ray and Tan Minh, I stopped again, to ask for directions. It was there that I met an old guy who was quick to notice the go pro on my helmet, it was the first time he had seen one and couldn't believe it when he took (I'm guessing) his first selfie! The rest of the journey was good and relatively straight forward. The roads got better towards the coast and fortunately the rain stayed off too.

This morning we were up at 4am to catch the sunrise at the sand dunes about an hour outside of Mui Ne. We made it just in time, despite the ridiculously slow jeep ride- we now know that if you haggle too much, you end up with the slowest jeep in town! In spite of the early alarm, it was definitely worth it and the tiredness wasn't anything Vietnamese coffee couldn't sort out. Next, it was onto a waterfall and then onto a fishing village where we were somehow roped in to helping load up the scooters with the day's catch. By lunchtime the lack of sleep was catching up with us so this afternoon we haven't moved far from the pool, enjoying the sunshine and I've been making a rough plan for tomorrow.

The next stop is Da Lat, in the central highlands, just over 110km away. By the sounds of it, Da Lat is fairly remote and quite high, with Lang Bian mountain just outside the town. Having looked at the maps, the mountain roads leading to the town look like a lot of fun and I can't wait to get back on my bike!