Out and about around Phong Nha

Dave and I took a bike ride from our house around Phong Nha and another ride from our house to the pub with cold beer.
Here are some of the sights from our rides.

                                                    The statue at the Phong Nha museum

There are lots of hazards on the road, including buses, many children, piles of sand, piles of large stones, wandering buffaloes, chickens and chicks, the occasional snake(they have been known to get wrapped up in passing bicycle wheels) and cows.

                        Cows on the road. Fortunately for me cows are much smaller than at home!

Buffalo often walk up and down the road to and from the fields. These buffalo were cooling off in the river watched from the road by their owner.

At the start of the road that leads into Phong Nha and the national park is a huge Hollywood style sing that cannot be missed. At night it is lit up and can be seen for miles around.

Rice fields dominate the area. When we first arrived there was just a hint of green across the fields. Now they are vibrant green.

Working in the rice fields.

In amongst the rice fields are hundreds of graves. These are very ornate. 

Graves

The rice fields are irrigated using water pumped from the river. These pumping stations are all over the area.

Pumping station

To get to the pub with cold beer you would usually have to cross the river, either by boat or fording the river on foot. There is now a smart looking suspension bridge that has very recently been constructed and opened for public use. There is still much work going on to make good the ways on and off the bridge. 

Construction worker on the bridge.

The building in the distance is the pub with cold beer. The beer is served cold and the food is really good too. The chicken is caught and killed as you order. Very fresh!

Pub with cold beer in the distance.

Whilst I was waiting for Dave just before we left the pub with cold beer I spotted a snake chasing a frog down the road. The frog didn't make it!

I identified the snake after we got back. It is a red necked keel back. Deadly poisonous. 

On to Bamboo cafe for.....

iced coffee, iced lemon tea, roast peanuts and .....

...wonderballs!

It's a hard life.