Hoi An, A Clothing Mecca

Julie and I have been enjoying the last few days in Hoi An. After our 18.5 hour trip from Hanoi...Yes, you heard that right, 18.5 hours...we thought it was going to be a shorter trip, but alas, there must have been a "language barrier" issue. Regardless, our train trip was fun as Julie and I hunkered down in our 4 sleeper cabin with two guys from Japan. They spoke limited English and the extent of our knowledge of Japanese consisted of Siyanara ("goodbye"), so it was a short conversation. They were great cabin mates up to the point when they woke up at the crack of dawn, because they were getting off the train earlier than we were, and didn't go back to sleep, leaving little hope for Julie and I to catch additional zzzzz's, while they moved around and chatted away. Anyway, they debarked at the city of Hue and we thought we were only an hour from Danang, our destination (our ulitmate destination was Hoi An, but the train doesn't stop there). Well, an hour passed, then two, then three and I continued to nervously look at the train attendant who didn't speak a lick of English in the hopes that she might give us a "This is it!" glance...she never did that. Well, after 3.5 hours we pulled into the station at Danang. We then take a taxi about 45 minutes to the sleepy seaside town of Hoi An. This town is a UN-designated World Heritage Site as many of the structures were unaffected by the wars with the French and Americans and they are still in fairly good shape. Julie and I decided to "splurge" and went for the hotel room that was 45 bucks - yes, this means you get a 4-star hotel with 5-star service...complete with a tennis court and swimming pool. [Insert Julie's comment: although many of you may think that the 4 star hotel was my suggestion, I assure you it was a joint decision, as are all on this trip! I think we both liked the idea of a never-ending hot shower!] It is pretty nice and we spent the day at the swimming pool. Later that evening we ventured out into the streets to discover one of the things that distinguish Hoi An for most travelers...tailor made clothes. Yes, we shopped....and shopped...and shopped...resulting in a number of new clothes for both of our wardrobes (how we are going to pack the clothing into our backpacks with the already limited space, we are not sure). [Insert Julie's comment: Ryan was a great bargainer and it was fun to pick out our own fabrics and liners. . . truly custom made.] It was a lot of fun and we had a good time talking with some of the shopkeepers.

Yesterday, we went to the beach for some relaxation...because things have been really stressful...right! We rented bicycles and rode about 2 miles of town until we ran smack dab into the beach. It was a beautiful, idyllic setting, with palm trees overhead and very few people on the beach. Except, of course, for the individuals selling goods...then I realized why there weren't many people on the beach...because it wasn't all that relaxing when a new person comes up to you every 2 minutes and asks you if you want to buy the exact same goods his friend asked you about 2 minutes ago!! It was crazy. I was sitting there wondering if these people really get people to buy there stuff or services when I look over and, sure enough, Julie was getting a foot massage from one of them!! [Insert Julie's comment: I'll be honest, it was one of those mistakes that I will learn from. . . I could only say "No" so many times, it was exhausting! Needless to say, a foot massage on a sandy beach isn't really relaxing (think sand rubbing on your skin a la massage!)]. We left soon thereafter, as the others started gathering once they saw us pay for the foot massage.

We have been walking around this beautiful city, taking in all the sights and sounds. We went on a, Old City Heritage Tour today, which was more interesting not for the contents of the buildings, but the buildings themselves. They are so well-preserved and offer a glimpse of Vietnamese life, centuries ago. After the tour, we went back to the pool and relaxed (another stressful day!).