The worst bus journey in the world and gorgeous Hoi An.

We were booked on a 7.30am bus from Dalat to Hoi An (with a stop over in Nha Trang) but the bus we were meant to be on had broken down so we waited two hours for another. It turned out to be a minibus which would have been fine if we weren't in the mountains and driving at 250mph on a cliff edge, and if we hadn't drunk too much Dalat wine the night before, and possibly if there weren't 24 people squished into a 14 seater bus. Oh, and it would have been preferable if people weren't vomitingeverywhere too. God, if it hadn't been so disgusting it would have been funny. I was sat there completely wedged in between Jen who has a serious vomit phobia and who was squished next to the window rocking, and two Vietnamese girls puking into plastic bags. It was delightful. Anyway...i think you get the picture.

We got to Nha Trang (and I shouted at some moto drivers) and booked ourselves on the sleeping bus to Hoi An. We had a few hours in Nha Trang and although it seemed nice enough - beach town but really touristy - we only really have limited time in Vietnam so decided to skip it and keep going North. The overnight buses in Vietnam are fantastic! they are like the overnight trains with 3 rows and bed/seats on top of each other. some are more comfortable than others though and that night was an interesting one for me. Basically at the back of the bus there are four seats right next to each other on the bottom, and then four directly on top. I was on the bottom, in something of a coffin, with a Vietnamese family. Actually it was quite sweet as I kept waking up with the little boy lolloping on me. We arrived early morning in Hoi An and checked into our (gorgeous!) hotel and went for a wander. My god Hoi An is beautiful! Its a really old sleepy town and World Heritage now I think, and full of these delicious yellow old colonial buildings and tiny cobbled lanes. It has a river running through it and it is just lovely lovely lovely. We hired bikes and cycled around 'for most of the day. Hoi An is famous for its tailors and well obviously I couldnt resist could I? Got a pair of jeans, a pair of trouser, some shorts and two dresses made for around 50 pounds. good quality too, although im sure there are some rip off merchants we went to a great place with a hilarious lady who took quite a fancy to Jen and pinched her bum. We only had one night in Hoi An this time, although we eventually went back for some more. We went out for a proper Vietnamese dinner - my god do they like their garlic - and counted 6 rats on the way home!

Loving Central Vietnam!
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