So the over night train to Hoi An. Even though all the good company's were fully booked, our bus turned out to be fine, even thought the toilets stunk!!! Steve and I got seats at the back which meant we got to sit together. Got chatting to a brother and sister traveling together from Oz and shared a beer with them, which was a good start to the long journey. Managed to actually get an alright nights sleep, apart from some very bumpy parts.
Arrived around 8am and had a bit of an epic time looking for a place to stay. Walked past a sign for Lemongrass Homestay, and I remembered a friend from work saying she stayed there. It was a good choice, very cute, set on one of the side streets surrounded by lush green rice fields. Dropped our bags into the room and made use of their free bicycles and took a ride back into town.
Hoi An is truly beautiful, and is actually my favourite town to date. There's a heavy Japanese influence, with its tiny maze of streets and yellow buildings all set by a river and just lanterns EVERYWHERE!!!
Steve and I spent the day walking and getting lost round the streets. We went to the Japanese Covered Bridge and some temples. Also went into a cute tea shop I spotted called Reaching Out Tea Shop, which was actually an organisation supporting and employing only staff with a hearing impairments. Was a really nice and calming experience and turns out Steve knows some sign language. Some more walking around and we stumbled across possibly the best wine bar I've ever been to. So fancy, it had one wall which was a waterfall made of crystal rocks and plants hanging from the ceiling, so low you ended up sitting within them. We moved to the balcony to enjoy our wine with views of the town and river while the sun set, before riding back to the guesthouse.
The town comes to life at night, as all the lanterns begin to glow and people set floating candles off down the river. It's a very cute romantic town.
Next day we signed up for a cooking class with Thuan Tinh Island Cooking Class. We met early and Mo, the girl running the class took us round the local market to get all our ingredients and explained it all to us. This was an experience in itself. So many locals just going about their day and such a buzz about the place. Mo was amazing, so enthusiastic and really made the course. We took a short boat ride over to Thuan Tinh Island to begin our morning of cooking and eating. We were in a really good group and I really enjoyed myself. Leant to cook so much: Goi Cuon (Vietnamese Salad Rolls), Banh Xeo (Sizzling Vietnamese Crepes), Bun Bo Nam Bo (Beef Vermicelli) and some sauces. And yes I tried all if it, and actually really liked them all. Feel far less intimidated by the food now.
Went for a drink after at a place called Cocobox with an Aussie couple from the class. Was a super cool organic smoothie place, loved it. We ended up going out for dinner with them too, which was nice. Steve and I had a short final walk round the town after dinner to take in the gorgeous atmosphere. We even set of our own lanterns off down the river, very cute!
Leaving in the morning to head to the capital. So until next time Hoi An.
Ps. Broke another pair of sunglasses....