Hoi An - A Quaint Small Town

We strolled into Hoi An which is a quaint town with old traditional charm, catering what appears to be only to the tourists. We arrived around noon on the 12th of Feb (just an aside to wish our Dubbie a “Happy B-day!) to find that most hotels and guest houses were booked solid for the festival that would be taking place that night. We did not anticipate this and were some what discouraged after walking around town in the blazing sun and heat with all of our bags for about two hours. We finally found a place in town with a pool and it included free internet service, free bikes, and a free breakfast for $18 US. A little out of our budget but we were glad to find refuge from the baking heat and sun. The pool although cold at first was the thing we needed to cool our bodies and our frustrations. Derek, Krista, Rav and I spent the remainder of the day wandering around town to get our bearings, checking local restaurants, and got some clothes made. That night we went to see the festival that everyone around town was talking about. Just after 7 pm as the sun went down, the city streets lit up with traditional lanterns (only with electric bulbs instead of candles). Some streets leading to the river was closed to all bicycles and vehicular traffic and became a sea of people walking towards the River. It was quite the experience. We took in the festivities for about a hour or so, and could not take it any more, and decided to leave, fighting our way through the waves of people still making their way to the main stage. We finally broke through and were glad to be away from the crowd. We strolled by some restaurants by the local market, checking for prices (Beer prices that is… why pay $2 a bottle when you can get some for 90 cents for 1.5 liter?)

We decided to fill our stomachs as well, so we sat down at a restaurant and we were there for the rest of the night. As we ordered our food I overheard a Caucasian man speaking fluent Vietnamese to the waitress. It was very strange to hear. As it turned out he and his friend are two young Russians studying Vietnamese in Da Nang, a near by city about 25 km north of Hoi An. We found out that they have been studying Vietnamese for 3 years in Russia before coming over to Vietnam and have been in Vietnam now for about 4 months. As we sat there talking with Sasha and Ruslan, we noticed Stuart walking by, a friend I had met during my tour of duty through the DMZ, north of Hue. He joined in the festivities. The music and songs of the full moon festival was in full swing and it provided the background noise for our conversations. We were celebrating our own festival with our newly found friends. Toast after toast came and went as did the crowds on the street and we did not even notice as the time dwindled into the night.

(From L-R Krista, Derek, Sasha, Stuart, Chris, Ruslan and Rav at dinner

It was a surreal experience speaking my native tongue with two Russians. Their mannerism and command of the Vietnamese language and vocabulary was impressive to say the least. So what do you get when you put two Canadian Vietnamese and their girlfriends with two Russians speaking Vietnamese and an Englishmen from London, 24 bottles of beers, one bottle of Vodka and one bottle of Vietnamese rice wine? You get one great evening where the borders of all races seemed to disappear; you make new friends from other parts of the world whom you can never meet anywhere else. I can say for all of us Canucks that we were mighty disappointed when the neighbour of the restaurant complained of the noise and we had to shut it down. The entire evening cost 254,000 dong ($17 Canadian) but the friendships made are priceless…. Thank you Ruslan, Sasha, and Stuart for being a part of this festive and unforgettable night (oh and we can’t forget to thank the Austrian who got us kicked out)…

The next day was spent wandering around town checking out some of the old heritage buildings and getting some more clothes made. As we meandered through town we ran into Ruslan and Sasha, as they were getting ready to leave Hoi An. We said our goodbyes to one another and went our separate ways knowing we’d keep in touch.

Ruslan, Sasha, Chris, Derek, Krista, and Rav

Chris and Rav at the JapaneseBridge

That afternoon, we took the free bikes and found our way to the beach and spent some time there before returning for our fittings.

Huhda for the Buddha

On our last day in Hoi An we rented a couple of motorcycles ($4 US for the entire day) and drove to the Marble Mountains where we saw some amazing caves and temples - see attached photos.

Krista and Derek on their bikes

Rav abandoning Chris

Chris Meditating at Marble Mountain

Sunlight shining through a temple in a cave

What a Sight!

Sunlight shining onto a statue in the cave