Zen and the art of ... motorbikes?

Less horsepower than a motorcycle ... a little more hardcore than the rubberband and gear system that is a scooter ... somewhere in the middle lies the motorbike - the preferred method of transportation in Hanoi.

Since my first trip to Hanoi, I've developed a healthy respect (fear?) for the motorbike.  I heard a statistic that there are 8 million people in Hanoi and 7 million motorbikes - and I believe it wholeheartedly.  It's chaos at rush hour - but there's an order to the chaos ... like - everyone realizes it's going to be a crappy commute with a gajillion motorbikes on the road at the same time - and they just power through.

Here are some examples:

Homeboy has a TREE on his bike.  A tree.  

Kids get in on the action too!!
BTW - does anyone else notice that the little girl's wearing a plastic bag
over her face?  I'm all for keeping the bugs out, but don't people fear suffocation???
Oh - and dig the SARS mask on the mom.  Commonplace in these parts.

Having been here for 5 weeks, I realized my two options for transport are walking (great exercise, but not feasible to walk to work every day, particularly in the heat of the summer) and taxiing (slower than motorbikes, and you're at the whim of the driver - who doesn't always know where you're going).  While both are viable options, being able to quickly get where I need to go without having to hail and pay for a taxi (oh, that's the other thing - can get costly) is key.

And so enters the motorbike.

David and his wife, Julienne, recommended VIPbikes.org, the rental group they go through for their bikes.  I made an appointment for Saturday morning ... took a taxi by 9 a.m. ... signed on the dotted line - and voila!  I had a motorbike ... 

My new ride!

I like the blue racing stripes -- adds a little something extra, dontcha think??

... that I didn't know how to drive.

Thank GOD for the guys at VIPbikes.org ... one of the technicians drove my bike back to my house (with me on the back - first time I've ever even been on a motorbike), and spent 2 hours with me, teaching me how to use the bike - accelerate, brake, take turns, put the kickstand down (more complicated than it sounds!), etc.  He was a WONDERFUL teacher, and at the end of the lesson, I was cruising down Quang Ba on my own with the wind in my hair and bugs flying into my teeth.

Let's just say ... I have a long way to go.  The highest speed I've clocked so far is about 37 kilometers per hour (about 23 mph), and that was fast enough for me.  I go extremely slowly in congested areas, and am more likely to stop completely and let a car pass than try to move forward when they're barreling down the road.  I'm limiting myself to the lake road in my neighborhood - relatively little traffic - but am hoping to branch out a little bit each day until I have the full swing of things.

Happy motoring!!

Dig the helmet :)
Clearly, I'm jazzed!