Hoi An

Hoi An was my favorite stop on the month long trip. Hoi An is a small, peaceful town, that guidebooks may refer to as a tourist trap, but that did not take away from my experience at all. Yes, the town survives based on tourism, but it did not feel like a Westernized place at all. Shortly after arriving (it was a 4.5 hour bus ride from Hue), Sean, Lynda, Leia and I headed to the tailor shop down the road to browse through magazines to find clothes we wanted tailored for us. (Hoi An is THE place to get clothes tailored...cheap, speedy, quality service). We spent the afternoon getting fittings, picking out fabrics, and developing a relationship with the crazy woman who owed the shop.

That night we met the the group for dinner, at a rather western restaurant because there was a a football game on that most of the boys (all English) needed to watch. That was the first "Western" meal I ate since I began the trip. The pasta was alright, but much appreciated, as I was craving a break from the Asian food (although I know I'm going to miss it a lot!).

The next day, Lynda, Sean and I rented push bikes from the hotel ($1/day) and biked to the beach. It was such an amazing beach. Palm trees lined the back part, and provided perfect shade for laying on our towels, napping and reading. Then there was a large stretch of sand leading up to really warm water and fun waves. There were very few people on the beach, and the Vietnamese that were there, were either selling tourists unnecesary trinkets, or were sitting under the palm trees completely covered in clothing. Because they place such heavy social value on the whiteness of one's skin, the Vietnamese rarely enjoy the beach like we do. (Also, they like large people because it is a sign of wealth, so if you come to Asia and you are pasty and fat, you look like a gold mine to them!)

After the beach, we headed back to the tailors to get our clothes and have a fitting, and then went out for dinner at the same place we went the night before. The night before, while playing pool after dinner in the bar downstairs, a friend who I travelled/skied with last June in New Zealand came up to me. I was shocked to see her, as we hadn't kept in touch since she finished travelling NZ and moved to Melbourne. She was also on her way home, via SE Asia, after spending a year in Australia on a working holiday, like I did in NZ. Unfortunately, we must have missed each other (times like that when you realize how helpful cell phones can be). So, we played some more pool and then headed home to get to bed early since some of us were going diving the next day.

Diving in Hoi An is not world renowed, as there is not much to see, but I was still looking forward to it as I love being underwater and exploring the world under there. The dive company we used was not only really cheap, but provided amazing service. They set up everything for us (gear wise) and we had an excellent guide. After two dives off Cham Island, we motored over to a beach for our lunch. It was the most idyllic beach I have ever seen. There were hammocks set up between palm trees in the shade. A volleyball net on the beach and a little hut/restaruant set back among the trees. Our diving group and the restaruant workers were the only ones on the beach. After an amazing seafood lunch, we had some time to chill in the hammocks before heading back to the docks. When we got back to the docks, the sun was setting as the Vietnamese fisherman were heading out for the night, and I got some spectacular pictures.

That night I joined 4 others in my group for a cooking demonstration and meal. The guy who taught the class was great, really animated and well spoken. He is a graduate of KOTO, a program that trains street kids in hospitality up in Hanoi (we went there for a great breakfast one morning) and was started by an ex-Intrepid leader who was sick of giving money in Vientnam to causes and not seeing any affects. The chef leading the class is an amazing example of how much of an impact KOTO is making in Vietnam! The dinner was great, and I cannot wait to try the recepies...especially the steamed fish.

The next morning the hotel arranged for workers from the post office to come help us ship stuff home (customary as EVERYONE buys SOO much in Hoi An since getting clothes and shoes made is a must do here!). I shipped a couple of things, but not much because I refused to pay a lot for shipping as I had just saved so much money getting things made, and figured that if I bought it then I should be able to carry it. (Now I am slightly regretting that, as my arms are soooo sore from carring my bags around yesterday trying to find the hotel!).

We then got on vans for a 45 min ride to the airport (past China beach, where the US had a huge base) to fly to Ho Chi Minh city (aka Saigon).