"The landscape in Vietnam has been beautiful, and the traffic has been terrifying and annoying. Misty mountains, rice fields, and water buffalo along with non-stop honking and oncoming buses entering your lane to pass out traffic in front of them. As a cyclist, you can’t take your eyes off the road without risking your life.
It seems that in Vietnam there’s one rule of the road: you always have the right of way. You have to be aggressive. People don’t use their brakes, they use their horns; they don’t slow down, they just make a lot of noise until someone moves. Cars, scooters, cyclists and pedestrians who are joining traffic don’t look to see what’s coming before they move in, they just move in and figure if they’re in the way, it’s someone else’s problem.
What I really like is how much the Vietnamese make use of limited space on a vehicle. Seeing a whole family (mom, dad, grandma and maybe a lil' one) on a scooter is so common that I’m not even taking photos of it. In the U.S., it’s pretty uncool for two guys to be on the same motorcycle, but in Vietnam, two or three guys on a scooter is very cool.
I’m surprised by how many people I’ve seen sitting on the rear rack of a bicycle. Sometimes they help pedal, or do all the pedaling while the other steers, or if it’s grandma, she just sits there and enjoys the show."-Eoin
"I’ve been eating Pho exclusively for the past few days. It’s everywhere and it’s hard to find anything else up here in Northern Vietnam. Signs for Cam Pho line the streets and it seems it’s just a family that decided to open up shop to serve Pho and tea and sometimes beer for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
I recorded some of my ride as I cycled out of Hanoi. There’s a lot of honking here, and scooters.
I’m going to be the first one to admit it, there’s a lot of interest in me in Vietnam. I get lots of hellos and spooked looks from strangers as I’m riding by. This is so common for me now after only a few days of being here that I’ve gotten jaded, and I’m picky about who I respond to with a hello or a wave. I’m just so damn popular.
On my first day riding in Vietnam, I stopped at a bridge for a drink of water. Two girls came running up to me. They couldn’t believe I was here. One of the girls handed her phone to her friend, got next to me, and gave a peace sign. Then all her friends showed up. Trend Alert: worn-out thighs on jeans.
After cycling for 4 days through Northern Vietnam, I haven’t seen any other foreigners. And I’ve only encountered two people who speak English with some fluency—beyond “Hello,” and “Happy New Year.” I suppose these girls are so excited to see me because I’m so rare. And because of my beautiful, rare brown eyes. And because I’m crazy cute. Anyway, it’s fun having moments like these, and I appreciate their enthusiasm for me."-Eoin
"I’m feeling a few lifestyle changes now that I’m away from home and starting this bike tour.
I have one outfit. Besides my cycling clothes, I only have one button-down shirt and some navy pants. The pants are too tight actually—the button is strained at the waist revealing the top of the zipper and the pockets are riding out on the sides. I figure these pants are going to get really loose from all the wear, especially at the knees—flopping like your comfy socks on Christmas morning. If not, I guess they’ll be my goal pants—I’ll be losing a lot of weight, why not set a goal.
Hand-washing laundry sucks. I’ve got two pairs of underwear and three pairs of socks. Every night I’ll have to be dunking some clothes in the sink, washing the brown-grey out, and then hanging them overnight to dry.
I didn’t bring deodorant; I brought a crystal. I’m very loyal to Old Spice Pure Sport but the stick is too big. I saw a magical deodorizing crystal on Amazon, so I got it for its small size and magic.
Not knowing the language makes you an outsider. I’m just going to have to deal with being an outsider for a few months. At least when I was in Central America I picked up on some Spanish and could make sense of it, but I really have no chance with Vietnamese. I’m going to learn the basic basics to give greetings and say thank you but there’s no way I’m going to have a conversation.
I’ve been growing a rat-tail for a few months now in preparation for this trip to Southeast Asia. If I want to be all Zen and free-flowing over here I need a Zen Haircut. And Buddhist-Monk-haircuts are totally trending right now. Namaste y’all!"-Eoin
I’m taking a two-month leave of absence from my job at Urban Outfitters to do a bike tour through Southeast Asia. I’ll be flying into Hanoi, Vietnam with my bike and some gear, and then cycling through Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos. And if I have time and I can get a visa, I’d like to visit the Yunnan province of China too. I’ll probably be cycling about 2,500 miles.
This is a solo trip, and I don’t speak any of the local languages. I like the freedom of traveling alone and the exposure—you’re forced into meeting people and experiencing more. However, with solo travel comes some extreme emotional swings. For a couple of days you might feel really lonely, but then you’ll have an incredible experience, like staying with a local family. The generosity of strangers might be the most rewarding experience of bicycle touring.
There are really no specific places I want to visit in Southeast Asia. I’m going to experience the culture, have an adventure and log some major mileage in a foreign land. -Eoin
Maggie Harrsen's films from Montauk look like they are taken straight from a distant memory in our minds, or like leftover footage from an old home movie. They're dream-like, nostalgic, and maybe a little trippy, but they make us feel all warm inside.
#vanlife is a new project from our friend Foster Huntington, who is currently living the dream by living in a van. #vanlife's motto is "Home is where you park it." "I started working on it a month or so ago when I started photographing vans that I saw on the road and saw other people doing the same," Foster says. "The site is made up of submissions from all over the world. It touches on the nostalgia of the VW bus road trips of the '60s and '70s but also shows that people are doing the same thing now." Seriously, who doesn't love a good van?
We've always thought that touring around the world in a band would be the coolest thing ever (especially after watching the bus scene in Almost Famous). In Slow Club's new video for "If We're Still Alive," the band gives us a behind the scenes look at life on the road, and confirms how awesome it really is.
You might recognize these little green packages if you've spent some time at a camping store. Coghlan's produces all kinds of odds and ends that come in handy in camping trips, all packaged in their trademark green and yellow hanging packages. If you're lucky your local outfitter will have a small wall devoted to their products, the egg holder is great! -Bob
Lizzy Oppenheimer's photographs of rest stops in the American Southwest and West evoke all the in-betweenness of road trips and the freedom of being truly in the middle of no where.
We really hope that the Kickstarter project for Bicycle Portraits reaches it's mark! Focusing on the commuter world of South Africa, the book takes a look into the culture and lifestyle of the people living there. Out of the over 500 photos taken, 165 portraits will be divided into three books along side essays, stories, and illustrations. Good luck guys!
Wendy Gold makes beautiful Art on Globes using recycled materials. Each globe is made to order so no two globes are exactly the same. Out favorite is the "Flutter By" globe, shown above.
Our Store On Tour has come to an end and we are incredibly sad that it's over. It was an amazing experience and we want to thank everyone who made the tour possible: Dockers, Dry Soda, Tortoise & Blonde, the employees, and of course, all of you! It's so hard to say goodbye, it feels like we're graduating from high school all over again. Hmm...I wonder where we will end up going for college?
Check out anything you might have missed here on the blog or @UOTour.
The size of the Kyte Tent by Holtkamper is absolutely ridiculous! Can you even consider it going camping when the tent you are in is bigger and nicer than your apartment? Cancel our lease, we're moving in.
