Steven Raucher's World Tour
2001-07-13 in Saigon, Vietnam
Friday the 13th Part II
The last time I drove on Friday the 13th it was the 13th of April and we were 100 kms from Kathmandu. I remember it well because we hit an oil slick and went flying.
So should I have been surprised when exactly 100 kms from Saigon I am refueling and I notice oil pouring out of my shaft?
To get the techno babble out of the way this is what happened. The cage around my final drive bearings ruptured and tore up the oil seal that fits around the hub. All the oil that lubricates the shaft and final drive mechanism was pouring out at this point. Exciting stuff. Well it is if you can�t speak the language and have to hire a truck to get you bike into a major city whilst simultaneously trying to source spare parts from Bangkok because if you don�t do this in time your visa will expire and cost you an additional USD60 in charges. Do I sound bitter?
The good news is that I managed to get the parts sent out by Yut from Dynamic Motors (my hero once again) the bad news is that they still haven�t arrived and I need to renew my visa anyway. I find myself asking: �why me?� I am convinced that I am jinxed and that no overlander suffers as much as I do. (Which the whole time I know is bullshit self-pity, but it makes me feel good, ok?) For the first time in my trip I find myself envying backpackers. Can you believe it? Here I am: free. On a motorcycle, having the time of my life, but the backpackers are oblivious to how easy things are for them. Who helps the motorcyclist? Who finds us parking/good oil/mechanics/spare parts? Nobody, that�s who - and that�s why I am doing this, so stuff the backpackers and package tourists and honeymooning locals. I am an overlanding motorcycling freak show and I am proud. (I think this dementia has something to do with being stuck in Saigon, see Apocalypse Now for details)
All this is not entirely true. Yesterday I sat down at a caf� for Lunch in a part of the tourist district of Saigon and overheard a conversation of an ex-pat discussing his BMW motorbike and his mechanic. Within a flash I introduced myself and hey presto! I had a map and directions to my nearest BMW mechanic. So it does sometimes work out. We just need more luck than the others.
With any more luck my parts will arrive today and I will be off to get myself a nice dose of grease stains and strained nerves. If I�m lucky.
 apparently the best way to travel in Vietnam - By Truck! |
 the only way to deal with the local traffic |
 in keeping with my naturalist tendancies - i bring you the Great Vietnamese Chicken Run! |
 If only all old ladies would let me park in their dining rooms |
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