I spent my first morning wandering the quiet streets of Hoi An. I love the feeling of walking anonymously in a foreign town, with my camera in hand, photographically inspired. Hoi An reminds me a lot of my first years of childhood. A little personal history, I was born in Guang Zhao aka Canton, China. My parents relocated to Hong Kong where I started pre-school shortly after and then I started kindergarten in the States at Grattan Elementary in Cole Valley, San Francisco. I don't remember a whole lot from those years but the memories I do have are very vivid. Like in preschool, they would line us up in our sherbet orange colored uniforms and ask us how to spell something they just taught. If you forgot, you got a whack on the hand with the ruler. I got whacked many times. The streets of old town Hoi An are reminiscent of the ones where I used to play with my cousins at my grandparent's wooden house in the streets of Canton, which my granduncle still owns. To the envy of my dad, I grew up with all boys, so naturally, I would tag along with them playing on the streets and rooftops.
Hoi An doesn't really wake up until about 10am when the day tourists come in by bus loads. Prior to that, it's calm and quiet. Actually, it stays calm and quiet if the power goes out in the town like it did my first day here. Aside from that, once 10am hits, it's organized chaos everywhere until about 2pm, then it starts up again in the evening when they allow the motorcycles back on the old town streets. On the streets, nonstop streams of motorcycles, bikes and people cohabit. I've seen families of 4 on a single scooter, kids riding adult sized bikes, 3 people on a single bike and in the background of it all are stalls of old school street food randomly spread out through town. By stalls, I mean, a local, usually a woman, with their portable station of local home cooked cuisine, small red plastic tables and chairs in close proximity and plastic utensils to serve it up! Speaking of food, I had my best meal thus far at Cafe 96, the recommendation of my friends, Ray and Megan. I was going to order this noodle dish when Bup, the owner directed me otherwise. Out came this dish called Banh Xeo for under $3 which was a platter consisting rice paper, herbs and pieces of fried dough with pork and shrimp. This is what Ray was talking about?! Bup came over and showed me the proper way to tackle the deliciousness!
Organized chaos is also evident indoors and definitely evident inside the Yaly custom tailor shop where I had a few things made. When in Hoi An! At one point, I sat there waiting for Barbara, my tailor and my eyes were just over stimulated trying to absorb all that was going on in the shop. I made eye contact with this nice Aussie gentleman and we both just started laughing. I had a vision of combining different features of two dresses I saw on Pinterest into one. My vision prompted a lively discussion among three tailors, the supervisor and the seamstress. I didn't understand a word of it but I walked out of there with them telling me it can be done and come back tomorrow for a fitting. I went back the next day and they replaced the seamstress but my dress was done!
Bicycles are everywhere in Hoi An, so it was fitting that I too hop on one, in the form of a bike tour with Heaven and Earth tours. Only three of us showed up, so it was like a private tour with our guide, Linh. The highlight of the bike tour was riding through the rice fields and having kids running out yelling, "hello!" It was refreshing as kids in Africa and Colombia come out running with their palms out. I suppose tourists have equal fault in that. English is taught here at a young age yet I think swimming is something they should teach here as well. 80% of the people in Hoi An don't know how to swim. Did I mention this is a port town surrounded by rivers and often floods?!
With the full moon festival, I am told the evenings were extra vibrant! Many locals with their children sell wish candles for you to light and make a wish as you release the floating candle in the river, I made a couple. What can I say, it was a dollar a wish though I probably paid fifty cents too much per one. Actually, I wish I had a dollar for every time I was asked whether in Vietnamese! My trip would pay for itself! Evenings also bring out the night markets though there are enough shops for your heart's desire during the day. I'm proud to say, my bargaining skills have sharpened! In Siem Reap, shop owners are aggressive and I walked around with my ears open listening for the final price as the customer walks away so I go in with a lower price as my starting point. The same works for Hoi An! My highlight experience came from a turquoise necklace. The cart shop owner started at $560,000 Vietnamese Dong which is $28 US. I was thinking more like $8US which is what I countered him with. I tried walking away a few times but he wouldn't have it, which was funny because he hung a sign on his cart that read, "looking for free. no pressure. no pushing. take easy, be happy." I walked away with the necklace at $14 US.
As much as the people of Hoi An are enamored by my burlap Tom 's shoes and the dimples on my cheeks (apparently, some people here have surgery to get dimples..go figure), I am equally enamored by the charm of their town.
I will end this blog with a quote from the Frenchman I met over lunch, who decided to do something nice for his mom and brought her along for his three week trip, which he says is two weeks too long. "You're from San Francisco?! From the news media, your people is crazy getting naked running. Large gay community...you're what do we call..very open minded. But only in San Francisco, the rest of your country not like that."
Next stop, north to Hanoi to embark on my two day cruise on Ba Tong Bay!
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