We are now flying our way back North to Hanoi for the final
few days of our trip. Our stay in Hoi-An was brief, which is unfortunate as its relaxed vibe makes it the type of place that deserves a longer visit to allow you to
slip into its mode. But that’s in an ideal world, a world that would have us
bounding with enthusiasm for the trip right up until the last day, but the
great whirlpool that has been this trip is now draining us back on home and we are relenting to its pull.
We arrived in Hoi-An on Friday (23 Nov) in another one of those dreaded buses
form Hue. Although four and a half hours was a manageable amount especially
considering we know it will be the last significant bus journey we take on this
trip. We got dropped off right outside of a hotel, which was a bargain. The hotel
was clean, had satellite TV, a swimming pool, air-con and hot water for only $10 a night, quite
possibly the best value of our trip.
Hoi-An is an old port city that was founded by the Nyguens
in 1595. In its hayday it was one of the foremost ports and with trade
flourishing it became a very cosmopolitan city. However the river estuary on
which it stands silted up making entry to the port difficult and the traders
moved to Da Nang just to the north along the coast. The result to Hoi An was
that it stagnated and was left as it was with all the 19th century buildings
and temples preserved.
It’s a lovely quaint and quiet place these days and most of
the old buildings appear to cater for tourists. Restaurants, hotels
and tailor shops line its streets, the latter of which are famous for fitting
out visitors with cheap suits. We declined this along with most of the other vendors
offers, which were the only fault in beautiful old Hoi-An and with three months
on the tourist trail we are pretty much deaf to their cat-calls by now so it
mattered little. The combination of the preserved buildings and forgotten status
give the town a lovely relaxed atmosphere and we could have spent a few more
days wandering its streets, recharging our batteries, but Hanoi and Ha-Long Bay
were beckoning.
Our taxi right to the airport this morning (Sunday 25th Nov) was an indication
of the current boom that Vietnam is going through. The coastal road between Hoi
An and Da Nang is not dissimilar to PCH (Pacific Coast Highway) in California
and is lined with resorts, holiday homes and golf courses. Da Nang itself is
also a gleaming city, with modern buildings, new bridges and the airport that
we flew out of is modern and efficient. All this modernization appears to be
driven by the private sector and is in sharp contrast to the shoddily
government maintained Highway 1. Perhaps a real indication of what is driving
the economy of this officially communist country.
Strange as it may seem to those of you who are immersed in a
daily routine, but we are at the point now where we are yearning for one.
Although we are still trying to appreciate how lucky we are to be experiencing
these countires, we are pretty much fed up shifting from hotel, to bus/train,
getting ripped off and risking a swift bowel movement every time we have food
and drink. Yes, we know it is freezing and raining in Ireland at the moment, but
all we want is some familiar food and manners. Mashed potatoes, sausages,
decent meat and a pint of stout are a few things that spring to mind. My standard
breakfast of porridge is also near impossible to get in SE Asia, their version
is a rice porridge with a few pieces of meat thrown in – Not my idea of
breakfast at all. So great as this trip is, it will also be great to get back
on some familiar turf.
With all that said we still have the city of Hanoi and Ha Long
Bay to see before we set off for home on Wednesday. So for our last few nights
we have booked into a slightly nicer place to at least try and give us a
comfortable base to generate enthusiasm for both of these places that I have
had a great desire to see when immersed in a routine that I now crave.
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