Part 3

Cockadoodledoooooo...

Stiff and sore I peak one eye open. Is it morning already? I roll over on the wooden bed and lightly poke Morgan. Get up we need to get on the road. Hesitantly we peek out of the curtain. Seeing shadows of feet outside the house makes us more comfortable about leaving. We tip toe out cautious not to wake at other people who could be sleeping behind the other curtains.

Outside we are greeted with a warm smile. She ushers us to a small slope that leads to some water for washing. She motions for us to go clean up. Morgan and I giggle at the fact the lady clearly is referring to us as dirty. Something I won't deny!

Stepping over some chickens and a few mud puddles we reach the sink. After cleaning up a bit I feel overjoyed with our experience. It's pretty cool that we managed to find a place to stay in the middle of the night and that this woman would so kind to take us in. This would never happen in so many other countries.

Can you imagine hearing your dogs bark in the middle of the night because two strangers are outside your door on the road? Now picture seeing them dusty and dirty with all of their belongings strapped to the back of a run down motorbike. They don't speak your language and they are motioning to sleep in your house. Truthfully what would you do? Most of us would lock the doors. But these people don't have the news stories or horror movies we witness in our home countries. They know only kindness and want to help others. It's a beautiful thing that has not been tarnished yet in Vietnam and I hope it never is.

Packing up to leave we offer our sweet lady some money. She shakes her head and pushes it away. I quickly act as if I left something on the bed in the house. Tip toeing back in I quickly sneak some money and one if my bracelets under the pillow peaking out just enough that she will notice it once we are gone. I know money isn't everything and a bracelet won't change the world but its the closest thing to a true thank you I can give her. I could never fully repay the kindness she showed us.

Back on the road I feel wonderful. There actually is a town and we can now see the huts jutting off from the main road in the daylight. Still clearly there are no guesthouse a but there is a town. The dogs are still everywhere but in the daylight they are not on attack mode so they just lounge around the road. 

Approaching a group of dogs in the road I slow down to move around them. Just then two puppies bolt across my path. I slam on my brakes but it is too late. I shiver goes down my spine as I feel the impact. A few feet later my bike finally comes to a stop. I can't even turn around and look. They came out of no where and I was already going slow. My heart is sinking quickly. I jump off my bike and fall to the ground crying.

Behind me I can hear Morgan get off her bike and go to the puppy. By this time I can see on the side some villagers have come to see what happened. They look horrified. They may eat dogs in major areas in the country but in this village they are clearly pets. Morgan urges me to turn around and that it is ok. I reluctantly do so.

I'm sick. I want to throw up. I love animals and I can not stand to be responsible for the death of a pet. The reality of my kitten getting killed while I have been traveling hits me like a tsunami. Up until this point I had blocked out the truth that Ullr was no longer with us. But this single accident made that a reality and combined with what I had just did made me weak.

I turn to see the cute little puppy laying in the ground with Morgan petting him. He's breathing. I can see the rise and fall of his stomach. How is this possible? I try to slow my tears but can't as the bystanders glare at me like I just killed a newborn child. Slowly the puppy stands and falls back down. Come on little guy you can do it! Within the next five minutes he tries again. This time is a success. He is able to walk off to the nearest house. Still mortified but feeling much better that the little guy will survive. 

One of the girls is still glaring at me. She yells to her friend and then points to me a shoos me away. Then her friend begins to motion for the two of us to leave. I remember in the past how I felt when one of my kittens would get hit. I hated the driver so much each time. How could you be so careless? But now with the tables turned I get it. When an animal bolts out in front of you there is only so much you can do. Accepting and understanding her wishes for me to go I get on my bike. 

Morgan takes off and I try to start my bike. No go. I try again. No luck! Please not now. I can't have my bike break after this. Taking a few deep breaths I will my bike to start and it does. I slowly go leaving a piece of my adventurous spirit behind.

As we pass a few villages for the next hour I still feel sick. Every time someone waves and smiles at me I feel guilty. Only a day ago I loved feeling like a celebrity and waving to the children or taking pictures. Today I feel like I don't deserve it. I have to remind myself that the dog survived and I need to move on. The mountain views are stunning but a little more dull in my resent mood.

Slowly I start to relax and enjoy the ride again. It never gets old. The views are always stunning, the jungle bright green, and the path twisting. We only pass a few huts now and then. We pass even less motorbikes. We drive like this for hours and accept the fact we will miss our tour.

Around ten o'clock my chain falls off. Lucky for me we were in the middle of a small village. My bike is fixed by a kind man in exchange for a hug.

Around ten thirty my bike chain falls off again. Two ladies carrying baskets happen to be nearby. The teach me how to fix it. I'm quickly learning a lot. Around ten forty five it happens again and this time repair it myself. 

Around eleven my bike loses its chain once more. I pull over and fix it once more. however this time my bike will not start. No no no no no no noooooooo! The sun is powerful so we push my bike to a shady spot. I quit. Somewhere between frantic and comical I can't decide. I look to Morgan and tell her I'm jut going to sit on the side of the road for awhile. Realizing we haven't eaten in 24 hours she pulls out some hidden energy bars and we scarf them down. They taste terrible.

Greasy, hot, tired, hungry, and mad at my dumb bike I walk to the center of the road and lie down. No ones coming so I have the road to myself. Morgan is learning to have the patience of a saint. I'm learning how to stay calm and go with the flow. With no attempt to move or plan a course of action we sit there for about an hour taking it all in. Mainly trash taking my bike because once again we are stuck far from anything in the middle of a jungle road. But hey at least the views good.