Uneventful journey here & arrive at the Hoi An Glory a 10 minute walk from the old town. Hoi An has been inhabited since 2nd century AD & was until the 17th century a major trading port with India, China, Japan, ,Holland & latterly the French. The port was more or less abandoned when the harbour silted up & trade moved 20 miles to DaNang. As a result the old town (4 x 4 blocks) is a time capsule of buildings in a mix of Vietnamese,Chinese & Japanese style with a culture to match. The town at night is dotted throughout with thousands of paper lanterns & a fairytale atmosphere. It was also very quiet as the shopkeepers seemed to outnumber the tourists and we found it difficult to understand how they could all be making a living. Stand out meal was a tasting menu of local dishes at Miss Ly's Cafe 22 all of which were beautifully presented & tasted wonderful.
The town is set amidst a delta of small agricultural islands joined by an assortment of ferries & bridges of various types. These we explored on a half day cycling tour with Heaven and Earth Cycle Tours ( http://www.vietnam-bicycle.com/ ) withour excellent guides Lan & Lin. Our tour started with a 45 minute boat trip to an island in the delta where we had demo of straw mat weaving ( in a typical Vietnamese home) by an 86 year old lady who had been doing it since she was 10 ! We then saddled up for a ride across a series of bridges and a 3 foot wide sandy & rutted path with a shrimp farm on either side - no place for the unsteady we thought. We then arrived at the floating bridge a 100yard long 3 feet wide path undulating in all directions & with 2 way traffic - not for the faint hearted i.e. Jenny. This was followed by a cool drink & a demonstration of : the construction of a basket boat similar to a coracle ; then how to paddle it & a chance to try it ourselves which is not as easy as the demo looked ! Next up was a cycle to the brick factory to see that process ( 10 hours a day for $2.50) & then the process of inlaying shell in furniture ,etching & polishing it. Our final visit was to a boatbuilders yard for a brief look at the structure of the local boats before getting 5the ferry back to the old town. We only cycled 10 kms but it was a fascinating trip & great value for money.
The town is set amidst a delta of small agricultural islands joined by an assortment of ferries & bridges of various types. These we explored on a half day cycling tour with Heaven and Earth Cycle Tours ( http://www.vietnam-bicycle.com/ ) withour excellent guides Lan & Lin. Our tour started with a 45 minute boat trip to an island in the delta where we had demo of straw mat weaving ( in a typical Vietnamese home) by an 86 year old lady who had been doing it since she was 10 ! We then saddled up for a ride across a series of bridges and a 3 foot wide sandy & rutted path with a shrimp farm on either side - no place for the unsteady we thought. We then arrived at the floating bridge a 100yard long 3 feet wide path undulating in all directions & with 2 way traffic - not for the faint hearted i.e. Jenny. This was followed by a cool drink & a demonstration of : the construction of a basket boat similar to a coracle ; then how to paddle it & a chance to try it ourselves which is not as easy as the demo looked ! Next up was a cycle to the brick factory to see that process ( 10 hours a day for $2.50) & then the process of inlaying shell in furniture ,etching & polishing it. Our final visit was to a boatbuilders yard for a brief look at the structure of the local boats before getting 5the ferry back to the old town. We only cycled 10 kms but it was a fascinating trip & great value for money.
This place sounds absolutely enchanting. So enjoying your blog posts and photos!!lots of love xxx
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