Hoi An, Vietnam
Hoi An is an ancient city with lots of Chinese, Japanese and later French influence. By day it’s charming, at night it’s magical.
Along with its architecture, and history, this river city is known for custom tailoring - turns out they’ve been working with textiles (silk) since the first century AD.
I spent three nights in Hoi An. I took a one-hour flight from Siem Reap, Cambodia to Danang, Vietnam and then after a 45-min drive I arrived to a celebration of the first lunar moon after the Lunar New Year known as Tet. The city was full of excitement and people everywhere.
ACCOMMODATIONS
I stayed at the Laluna Hotel and Spa in a riverview room. The hotel was good, the service was great and the location was perfect for exploring the Old Town by walking.
ACTIVITIES and EXCURSIONS
During my visit to Hoi An I:
• did a walking city tour with a private guide, Van who is from Hoi An. The markets are fabulous, so vibrant with color, sounds and smells. That day there was a celebration of the day after the first lunar moon where everybody goes to the temples to make offerings and to pray for prosperity. There are LOTS of festivals in Vietnam.
• visited an organic farm, did a cooking demo and had lunch. I was supposed to ride a bike through the river fields to the farm, but the HEAT and HUMIDITY. Nope. My guide arranged for a car to pick us up. I had so much fun with the chef at the cooking demo. I had eaten some street food the night before -I knew better- and my stomach was queasy. The chef asked me how bad it was and took some herbs from the garden for me to have in a salad. He prepared ginger and lemongrass tea which soothes the stomach. Before I left he sent me off with a bit of fresh ginger root to chew on. It really worked, no more stomach issues.
• took a sunset boat ride along the Hoi An river. After we returned, the energy of the city had shifted in preparation for the night time which is particularly special in Hoi An. Floating candles are released on the river every night- you make a wish and send your candle on its way. Small canoes are lit up and available for rides in the town center. It’s like being in a fairy tale.
• took advantage of Hoi An’s reputation as a place for custom clothing and had a few clothing items made. The quality was very good and I was able to customize the patterns to my liking,but honestly the items weren’t as inexpensive as I expected, I think the shop I went to was on the high-end. There are so many options to choose from- there’s a whole street called Clothing Street full of tailor shops..
Oh, yeah I had a couple of massages too. In Hoi An, and the rest of Vietnam, there are massage parlors everywhere with an hour-long foot massage going for $8-$10.These places aren’t fancy, but who needs fancy if the place is clean and massages are good? After a long day of sightseeing, I was so grateful for this treat.
CULTURE and CONNECTION
I had a special experience in Hoi An - my tour guide, Van, took me to her village to meet her family. We did ride through the rice paddies, but this time by scooter. Whew! When I arrived at her parents’ house, her mom ran inside and brought out a cup of lotus tea. So gracious. We then went to her sister’s coffee shop where I had a delicious Vietnamese coffee. I love those because they are basically a dessert that fires you up. FInally, Van took me to her shop where she prepared a traditional dessert of taro, red beans, corn, etc. Not what I consider to be dessert but it was delicious!
Also, through a connection, I also got to meet Viet, a high school chemistry teacher who had visited North Carolina as a Fulbright Scholar in 2019. Based on his stories about high school students, there’s a lot of similarities between teenagers in the U.S and in Vietnam. I think social media is as big an influence there as it is here.
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