{"id":2149,"date":"2020-05-22T18:24:16","date_gmt":"2020-05-22T10:24:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thesmartlocal.com\/vietnam\/?p=2149"},"modified":"2020-09-14T22:24:48","modified_gmt":"2020-09-14T14:24:48","slug":"vietnamese-french-couple-charity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thesmartlocal.com\/vietnam\/vietnamese-french-couple-charity\/","title":{"rendered":"Vietnamese-French Couple Who Cycled From France To Vietnam To Raise Money For Charity Are True #CoupleGoals"},"content":{"rendered":"

Vietnamese-French couple raises money for charity<\/h2>\n
\n

With the COVID-19 pandemic affecting the entire world, many travel plans have had to be postponed, and people are resorting to taking online tours or looking through old pictures of their past travels to satisfy their wanderlust.<\/p>\n

This Vietnamese-French couple, however, had more than just traveling in mind when they set out in April 2019<\/strong>\u00a0on a cycling expedition that took them from France to Vietnam to raise money for charity. <\/strong>Now, over a year later, they\u2019ve finally reached their destination.<\/p>\n

\n

A special honeymoon going from France to Vietnam<\/h3>\n
\n

Thibault Clemenceau<\/strong>, 29, was born in France and grew up a bicycle enthusiast. Prior to coming to Vietnam, he had already done a 4,000KM trip through Europe with his younger brother.<\/p>\n

In 2015, Thibault settled in H\u1ed3 Ch\u00ed Minh City, Vietnam, where he met his would-be wife Kh\u00e1nh Nguy\u00ean<\/strong>, a 25-year-old woman hailing from the southern province of V\u0169ng T\u00e0u.<\/p>\n

\"\"
\nImage credit: Thibault Clemenceau<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

The two became close and got married in 2018. Over the course of their relationship, they have been very active in contributing to “Poussi\u00e8res de Vie”<\/strong> (“Dust Of Life”), a charity organization that aims to create sustainable change in Vietnam by providing disadvantaged children with access to education<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

After their wedding, they decided to go on a special honeymoon where they\u2019d cycle 16,000KM from France to Vietnam<\/strong> – something Thibault had wanted to do for a long time – to raise money for the charity organization.<\/p>\n

\"\"
\nThe two prepare their bicycles for the journey<\/em>
\nImage credit: N\u00f3n L\u00e1 Project – Bicycle Adventure<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Spending a year to train and prepare themselves for the journey, Thibault and Nguy\u00ean set out in April 2019, and last Wednesday, after more than a year since they embarked on this extraordinary journey, they finally reached their final destination in H\u1ed3 Ch\u00ed Minh City.<\/p>\n

\"\"
\nImage credit: Thibault Clemenceau<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

\n

16,000KM journey to raise USD16,000 for charity<\/h3>\n
\n

Thibault and Kh\u00e1nh Nguy\u00ean originally aimed to raise a total of USD16,000, <\/strong>meaning USD1 for each kilometer they traveled<\/strong>. In the end, though, they exceeded expectations by a decent margin, bringing in a total sum of USD17,415<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

On his personal Facebook page<\/a>, Thibault described the journey as \u201ca lifetime experience with a billion memories to share<\/strong>. [His] entire life won’t be enough to truly digest what happened.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"
\nThibault described the journey as “a lifetime experience”.<\/em>
\nImage credit: N\u00f3n L\u00e1 Project – Bicycle Adventure<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Kh\u00e1nh Nguy\u00ean, on the other hand, shared a particularly difficult time during their errand on the Facebook page of their project<\/a>, which they named \u201cN\u00f3n L\u00e1\u201d after the iconic cone-shaped Vietnamese straw hat.<\/p>\n

According to her, this difficult time was brought about by none other than the COVID-19 pandemic. She recalled that it was in March this year, when the couple was in the central Vietnamese city of H\u00e0 T\u0129nh, having just crossed their 15,000KM milestone, that they had to make a difficult decision: to give up or to continue their journey when the COVID-19 situation had made it increasingly difficult to travel<\/strong>. At that point in time, they were a thousand kilometers away from Nguy\u00ean\u2019s house in V\u0169ng T\u00e0u.<\/p>\n

\"\"
\nThe journey got increasingly challenging after they crossed the 15,000KM mark in their journey<\/em>
\nImage credit: N\u00f3n L\u00e1 Project – Bicycle Adventure<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

The couple, in the end, decided to persevere, and the next two weeks was described by Nguy\u00ean as \u201ca race against time\u201d, where they tried to go as fast as they could. The two of them had to camp outside on several occasions as no hotel would accept Thibault, believing that foreigners were the ones carrying the virus to Vietnam.<\/p>\n

Thankfully, friends who were following their journey were willing to lend a hand, and with their help, the couple made it to Cam Ranh City, 350KM away from V\u0169ng T\u00e0u, on 22nd March, where they were picked up by Nguy\u00ean\u2019s parents on a car. That was just a week before Vietnam implemented nationwide social distancing rules.<\/p>\n

\"\"
\nImage credit: Thibault Clemenceau<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Thibault and Nguy\u00ean stayed at her parents\u2019 house for over a month, until the COVID-19 situation was brought under control here and it was safe to travel again. So last Wednesday, the two cycled the last 75KM from V\u0169ng T\u00e0u to H\u1ed3 Ch\u00ed Minh City to officially complete their quest<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

\n

Vietnamese-French couple cycles around the world for charity<\/h3>\n
\n

With an adventurous spirit and a will to help those in need, Thibault and Nguy\u00ean have achieved an incredible feat. Not only did they have the honeymoon of a lifetime, but their efforts will no doubt help improve the lives of countless children. Massive props to them for their resilience and courage.<\/p>\n

For more stories, check out:<\/p>\n