29.03 Day 74 Mai Chau

Friday 29th March - Mai Chai (Day 74)

A full day of nothing in warm, though slightly overcast Mai Chau, which I both love and hate. I love the idea of doing nothing but am terrible at it (unlike Kate). Seb is chomping at the bit for breakfast having skipped lunch and dinner yesterday. He and I head to the bamboo verandah overlooking the rice fields and tuck into the fresh fruit and drip coffee (just me), before scrambled eggs for him and pork noodle soup for me. 

Seb is very chatty with the young German couple that unwisely sit next to us - Seb jumping in conversation from the bus ride here to hedgehogs snuffling under bushes to the fact our first aeroplane didn’t have TV screens (the kids will never forget that - not let anyone else). Over on the next table Sienna becomes more and more animated with the Melbourian retired couple. Their confidence is nice and hopefully they’ll enjoy time with friends in the US with more conversations beyond just our 4. 

Kate cycles off to blindly get a haircut in Mai Chau, the experience of which was described as 40% hairwash, 57% massage and a cursory 3% cut to finish. She says it’s OK, I wear my hair up most of the time anyway….. 

In the meantime Sienna has a call with one of her friends Zinnia catching up on the latest news at Orange Grove Public School, and briefly Seb talking to her younger brother Billy. I just about squeeze Sienna and Seb on the back of one bike and cycle it to meet Kate at Lac Village to view some of the local handicrafts which is followed by a liquid lunch of sorts with mango smoothies and blended ice yoghurt. 

I then follow Kate’s lead cycling into Mai Chau for a haircut, having to wake the barber at the back of the salon. I pick out a clip on for the electric razor which the barber promptly looks at, puts down and goes free hand with the clippers. The first cut (is the deepest) is very short, but hair grows back I tell myself. Kate says she can see moles on the side of my head that have never seen the light of day before. 

Despite belief it was the pool water that made Sienna and Seb sick, it’s hard to resist in the warmth of the afternoon, so Seb and I get in, Seb under strict instructions not to swallow any water. It does feel luxurious wallowing in the infinity pool gazing out over the rice fields. 

And it continues with Sienna and Seb watching the iPad and Kate and I sitting by the pool, beer in hand (for me at least); ciders are a rarer occurrence in the shop’s fridges. 

We cycle to another of the hamlets to get a few souvenirs of items woven locally and onto Mai Chau back to Ban Bakery & Tea, a small three table establishment, that as well as making ornate birthday cakes (plus other standard faves live banana cake - we pick up our third in three days for the bus journey tomorrow), offers pizza and pasta dishes - which are gobbled up by the kids. 

Back to Little Mai Chau before it gets dark - for one we have no lights (and as usual, no helmets) and for two, I got caught out at dusk by hundreds of nighttime bugs hitting my face a few days back. As usual, more card games, reading time, bed.