Hoi An and all that

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Crikey, it's one month until Christmas, and I've not thought about my shopping, weird to be that close to the festive season and still sweating like a pig that's finished a marathon and been stuck in an oven.

Is 7 months on the road too, but sob, only 10 days to go, nevermind.

So the nightbus from Nha Trang, pretty awfull, it had a few twatpackers on it (my pet name for spolit brat types) who prattled on all night, usually about how amazingly pissed they got all the time, yawn! Then I had the much feared person next to me, oversized, overopinionated, overpoweringly sweaty and smelly, the person you fervently fear you won't be sitting next to, but then do. Could the old git keep to his side of seats, could he bollocks, still sharp bony elbows make a usefull weapon in such situations, it may seem mean but my friends, at 3am on a crowded nightbus, I"m not a nice person to know.

Infuriatingly just 10 minutes out of Ho An the bus drivers stopped a at cafe to have their breakfast, causing a tide of Westerner indignance, including mine. But at least i had been tipped of a good hotel by a helpfull manager at my last place so got a cosy hotel room with a good balcony, satellite tv and fridge, so was able to rest off the experience.

Hoi An is undoubtably the cultural and asthetic gem of Vietnam, and it shows in the high volume tourists, these are serious tourists too, not just the backpackers, it's a genuine nice town to potter round as I did. Touting in the street ie all that 'hey you where you go' infuriation is cracked down on so you get asked, but NO is enough making for a pleasant walkabout. Best sight was probally the old Japaneese covered bridge, and simply the activity in the market around the riverside.

I did a daytrip up to the MySon Temples, a dissapointing tour, temples 'interesting' but they were never my cup of lipton tea. Still they are in a very attractive fresh spot so very pleasant to stroll around the greenery not being accosted every five seconds. The trip included a river curise back but it was such a chugging old craft, it was more a river wheeze, they also irked me by stopping off at some shops just before the end, but then I'm a certified skinflint.

One great thing about Hoi An is the food, plenty of good places to chow, not least to try the 3 local speciallity dishes, Cao Lau, a noodle, pork, crouton and vegetalble bowl, scrummy, though in one eatery instead of croutons I kid you not, they used Golden Grahams!!??!!
The other dishes are the crispy Wontons, and the White Rose, if you go to Hoi An, gotta try all three, though best not all at the same time.

Yesterday I took a very pleasant drive up to Hue, just about 4 hours up the coast, here there is a satisfying mix of mountains and shoreline, they stopped at a superb beach spot for a break, was tempted to stay for a night but the hotel did not comply with my strict 20 dollar a day budget.

Hue just a one night stop for me, so have done nothing of note here, i'm sure there is lots to do here but I'm saving the boabies for Halong Bay, so today awaiting my final leg of the open tour up to Hanoi, the last city of this trip.

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Photos

Japanese Covered Bridge
It's Covered and it's Japanese