From Dalat we made our way to the Vietnamese coastal town of Hoi An. We had to take two buses, one 4 hour and one "sleeper" bus which was 12 hours. We definitely had a traumatic journey, we were the westerners put at the back of the bus on the top level. We had to sleep 5 abreast and couldn't lie flat with a bright fluorescent light right above my head, so I managed a whole 20minutes sleep!

Arriving early in the morning the first thing I did was book our flight for the next leg of our journey to avoid the 19 hour bus to Hanoi.

Hoi An is a beautifully preserved historic city with good beaches and amazing food. The ancient city is definitely worth a visit an night to see the coloured lanterns light the sky.

Cooking class
We decided to take a Cooking class whilst in Hoi An as I loved the Thai cooking class so much earlier in the trip. We chose a Bay Mau cooking school located on the riverfront in the beautiful Cam Thanh Hamlet. We were picked up early from our hotel where we met our tour guide. We visited the local markets with a shopping list to select the freshest local ingredients to use in our own dishes throughout the day.

The tour continues from the market directly onto a boat where we cruised along Thu Bon River. This river meanders from Hoi An old town into the ocean about 5 km away. We then transfer into smaller Basket Boats. We're we helped paddle and along the way the lady taught us how to make hats from the water coconut trees that play such an important part of the local economy and ecosystem.

Now it's time to cook!!
Vietnamese cuisine has a number of popular dishes from North to South with each region having their own signature dishes. We made a selection of appetizers, main dish and soup that portrays Vietnamese cuisine from all three main regions: Banh Xeo from the Central region (prepared Hoi An style), banana flower salad, vermicelli with grilled pork and Goi Cuon Tom, or prawn spring rolls.

The best part of the day was getting to taste all of your creations throughout the day. My favourite was definitely the Banh Xeo (Vietnamese pancake). You will all be pleased to know I was given a recipe book as a souvenir so I can try to recreate the dishes when I am back home.

Next stop Da Nang