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Published: June 29th 2006
I hate Hoi An. I go out to check my emails and I buy 2 suits, 2 shirts, an overcoat and 4 pairs of shoes, all personally fitted. Apparently this a completely normal reaction to entering this lovely ancient town that happens to also be a notorious frenzy of cheap tailoring- luckily my little spree comes to only 180 pounds though the most highly skilled sales people in the world wait around every corner to part me from even more. Expect a package home.
I do however adore Vietnam even more after the other recent testament to my monetary incontinence- a guided motorcycle trip over the central highlands of Vietnam from Dalat to Hoi An. This was a mere 150 pounds and it rates as one of the finest experiences of my entire trip. No crowds, really nice people, great sights and a real feeling of adventure- exactly what I was looking for. Along the way I learned a lot about Vietnamese history and culture, ate great, cheap food, played weird bamboo instruments with an ancient Francophone tribesman, almost got eaten by a tiger (possibly), took a pleasant lakeside walk in a tropical downpour, went searching for Australians in the woods, got followed down the road by large crowds of children. got told and even received some marraige proposals. It was awesome.
This was with Titi again (his brother was busy). Originally my plan was to do a trip to the beach town of Nha Trang, which basically means doing half the Hoi An route and then catching a bus. However, after the first two days (and thinking about whether I really wanted another beach town after Australia) I decided to go all the way up via the rice fields of the central plateu and the dense, silent jungle of the Ho Chi Minh trail to Hoi An. This is not a decision I regret.
The bad bits- the cost and the fact that my camera battery died on the Ho Chi Minh trail and my spares turned out to be duds. Sigh.
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Jacolai
non-member comment
The thing about life...
...is it's really just a series of interconnected moments. Therefore, it's good to see you're enjoying these moments, money be damned! It's not real, anyways. I want to go to Vietnam. It sounds great. Regards, and such - Jack -