Hoi An

While in Hue we toyed with the idea of skipping Hoi An and going straight for Nha Trang. But some how, Hoi An won. And I am glad it did. Hoi An was my favorite town we visited in Vietnam. It is located about three kilometers from the South China Sea, allowing us to visit the beach for most of the time we were there (renting a bike for $1 a day is the best way to get there). The town of Hoi An is a UNESCO heritage site, because of the many 16th and 17th Century buildings and the famous Japanese Covered Bridge. It really is a beautiful town. The buildings are a fusion of Dutch, Chinese, and Vietnamese architectural and interior design. Lanterns, flowers, textiles, souvenirs, and tourists spill out of the dark wooden doorways and pane-less windows. If you are looking for a giant straw hat, a VC cap, or a nice suit, this is the place to come.

We had originally thought to stay in the center of town in one of those older buildings. But the rooms are quite expensive for a damp, hot, windowless room filled with funky smells and lord knows what else. So we stayed in a hotel on the edge of town. It was a great hotel, the guide book labeled it as "Asian kitsch," and it was in some ways, but it looked like any of the hotels in Asia. The main thing is that it was clean, comfortable, had hot water, and a pool. The guide book also said it looked out over rice patties--and it did, on a clear morning you could see a sliver of a rice patty on the horizon.

Mainly Hoi An was spent lounging on the beach or at the pool and eating Vietnamese food. I had a very "South Pacific" moment when a little lady came up to me with an arm full of bracelets, rings, and necklaces looped through shoe laces. She undid one shoe lace and pulled out a jade (or maybe glass) bracelet. I was hooked and I wanted it. She said "Very beautiful, very lucky, you buy?" I ask her the price and it was well over the price I wanted to pay for a probably glass bracelet. I told her it was too expensive but she pointed to one of the islands on the horizon and said, "Come from that island. Very special island. Bracelet special. It lucky. Make you lucky. You buy?" With the wind and the mist I was ready for "Bali Hai" to start playing. Matt negotiated the price down to a bargain deal and I got the lucky bracelet and Matt had to listen to me hum "South Pacific."