Hoi An

Ok so I am now in Hoi An and it is such a charming and pretty little town, really old fashioned and quite laid back (except for all the tailors trying to get you in their shops and the motorbike taxi's trying to take you here there and everywhere!!!).

We arrived yesterday on the 8am bus from Hue. The bus took 4 hrs and was a lovely ride - we went right down the coast and through Danang. The waves were spectacular, China Beach is supposed to be great for surfing at this time of year so I am hoping to try it again if I have the time/if the weather clears up! There are loads of lovely little arts & crafts shops and a great selection of cafes/bars/restaurants along the river.

Hue was nice but the weather kind of ruined things. We got straight off of our overnight bus from Hanoi and went sightseeing around the Citadel which is an old crumbling city which was heavily bombed by the Americans. There is also something called the Forbidden Purple City here which was reserved for the private life of the Emperor which was interesting. We decided to stay one night and then move on to Hoi An.

We actually ended up spending about 3 days in Hoi An hoping that the weather would clear but it never did! Still, it is a beautiful town with lots of narrow cobbled streets and a real French feel. The architecture is amazing and there are lots of historical sights to see. It is one of Vietnam's main shipping areas and the boats that line the river look lovely day and night. Tailored clothes are what Hoi An is all about and famous for. There are girls all over the place itching to get you into their aunty's shop to have a look at the fabrics etc. I didn't get anything made purely because of financial reasons but the clothes did look amazing. The shops have rows upon rows of different fabrics, colours & textures and they can make anything you like - the prices are so cheap too. You can get shoes, hats, bags, nightwear, suits, shirts, coats, whatever you want... all made up to your specifications!

We met up with Rich & Chris here and also Linn & Amy from our Halong Bay boat cruise. We had a night out with them all but yet again my malaria tabs stopped me from drinking and i went back to bed early! Mike ended up out till the early hours and got in a pickle on the way back when he didn't realise where he was and found himself walking the narrow, scary streets for a couple of hours..! HAHAHAH!!

Anyway... Hoi An was very rainy the whole time we were there unfortunately and the river even broke its banks a couple of times! We still managed to get out to see My Son which is an ancient Cham city and is also a Unesco World Heritage site. The ruins are located in a valley surrounded by stunning mountains. We had a hilarious Vietnamese guide!!! He was so excitable and really over exaggerated EVERYTHING! My Son was great!!! It became a religious centre in the late 4th century and was occupied until the 13th century. After this we got a boat back to town down the Thu Bon River and had lunch but it was raining again so this wasn't as nice as it sounds!!

Next on the agenda was Nha Trang. I had heard great things about this place and was really excited to get there. We missed out on China Beach and the Purple Mountains in Hoi An because of the weather so we were praying for at least a dry day! Our bus left Hoi An at 6pm and was supposed to arrive in Nha Trang at 5.30am but as per usual, we were late! There was an accident on the road which meant we were stuck at the side of the road for a good hour, and then, not one, but TWO flat tyres which had to be changed!!! The 11 1/2 hour journey turned out to be a 17 1/2 hour one!! But we expected it anyway!! Just seems to be the norm in Vietnam!

To be honest, I was a little disappointed with Nha Trang. It was a strange place. A busy city but also a beachside surfy style atmosphere. It rained alot AGAIN which stopped us doing the things we wanted to :( Walking along the streets was a struggle with women, men AND really young kids coming up to you trying to sell you paintings, postcards, books, jewellery or drugs. There were tiny little girls walking around the bars trying to sell cigarettes to old men too. Not good.

You can do island hopping boat trips from Nha Trang which i would have liked to do if the weather was ok. You can also dive here but i dont think it's one of the best sites. We did however find a few little local places to eat along with the locals and a cool bar called Crazy Kim's where we had some cheap happy hour cocktails and continued our pool tournament!!! I was winning 9-7 in Hoi An and after a few cocktail influenced games here i was 12-10 down :(

There are lots of things going around about muggings on the beach late at night and i spotted lots of shify looking girls hanging about so i'm glad we didn't venture down there. There were notices in the toilets too saying only bring enough money for your night out and getting home bcs guys on motorbikes often swipe bags and stuff. Nothing happened to us but I didn't feel completely safe there.

Anyway - after Nha Trang we headed for Mui Ne just a little further down the coast....