Rock-Awn Hangs in Hoi An

The last few days, DawnO and I have been hanging in Hoi An. I was really looking forward to this place as what I had read about it made it sound quite charming. There seems to be many different Hoi Ans and unfortunately the first one we experienced was the overly touristy, overly commercialized almost Disneyland “It’s a Small World after All” theme park ride version of Hoi An.

Fortunately we eventually discovered the other Hoi Ans, and I found that there was usually this deep contrast between the two. There is touristy Hoi An and charming Hoi An, chaotic or peaceful Hoi An, exhausting or friendly Hoi An and daytime Hoi An …

… versus evening Hoi An.

Hoi An is known for its silk lanterns, and the old city is lit up with them in the evening. Despite being the place most congested with tourists, the old city was my favourite area. It was easy to imagine people living here in ancient times in the (now) old buildings, navigating tight alleyways with nothing but lanterns to light their way.

Some of the other things we’ve gotten up to in Hoi An include my first water puppet show. http://robodawno.com describe this art form perfectly as “endearing” and it was a great night out. It was nice to see the artists at the end of the show.

We also took advantage of the use of bikes at our hotel to experience the dichotomy between the chaotic, noisy city streets to the calm, tranquility of the rice fields.

One morning we got up extra early to go to My Son Sanctuary. My Son is a UNESCO World Heritage Site located just over on hour outside of Hoi An. It’s a grouping of Hindu ruins which reminds me of my time in Angkor Wat but on a significantly smaller scale. Even I struggled to get up that early, but when our bus was the first to the site, it was well worth it. There are also remnants of the war here with some bomb casings and holes left behind from their impact.

We’ve also taken some time to chill out which for me means water time. It hasn’t been overly sunny here (something about the result of humidity), but it has been plenty hot, so time by the water Is always welcomed by me, but it has also been a nice reprieve.

Last, of course, is the food. We have a list and we’ve been making our way through. For the most part Vietnamese food is delicious and we’ve had the opportunity to try a lot of different things and food native to this region in Vietnam. Also, this non-coffee drinker has been having a cup ‘o joe a day – different ones to try and soooooo good! Foodies will have the chance to discuss more with me when I’m back. 😃

Hoi An ended up winning me over in the end, but like the LIttlest Hobo, it’s time to move on. We’re on our way to Hue next, but until then …