Hoi An

I've been having a hard time finding the motivation to plunk myself down in a stuffy Internet cafe amongst throngs of other sweaty travelers to think of witty and intelligent things to say about all the amazing things I've seen. I've found it much more tempting to buy a beer or two, sit on my balcony overlooking palm trees and the beach, and read. Lucky for me, and unfortunately for you, I've been giving in and torn through several novels already - and alas, I have over 2 weeks of catching up to do.

Tonight, in Backpackerland, Saigon, I've managed to find a quiet, empty, air-conditioned Internet cafe (with fully-functional keyboards too!) in the back of a "24" Shop (something akin to 7-11), so I'm back to rambling on about my travels...

Hoi An

I will definitely have to add Hoi An to my growing list of "Favorite Places in Vietnam" for a vast wealth of reasons, mostly for the cafes, the riverside market and the laid-back atmosphere. Hoi An is considered a UNESCO world heritage site due to it's French colonial architecture, narrow streets, and a vast number of antique buildings and structures along the quaint river. Popular with and older crowd of European and American tourists and Backpackers alike, it is known for it's great food and custom-tailored clothing shops. I spent much of my time in Hoi An in fittings for clothes or in this great little cafe - the Cargo Club - having Vietnamese Coffee and treats from their patisserie, while writing or reading and watching people pass by.

I spent my first day wandering around and trying to get my bearings in the old part of town, and was overwhelmed by the number of clothing shops to choose from. After talking to lots of pushy little sales ladies I settled on a tailor shop with the friendliest seamstresses and decent looking clothes in the front windows. With way too many things to choose from, I was tempted to get all kinds of clothes made, but limited myself to a dollar value and was amazed what I could get within it. I spent quite some time in the shop with the seamstresses picking out fabrics and designs for a new wool coat, 2 dress shirts, a silk cocktail dress and some casual travel pants. At a shop next door I splurged and had leather winter boots made as well!

I decided I'd treat myself to a nice dinner, though I didn't realize when I walked into the restaurant I picked that it would be quite so expensive - but for about $8 I had the most fabulous meal of my trip, including a decadent chocolate truffle cake and a whole pot of earl grey tea for dessert. I realized then that spending a little extra once in a while is totally worth it, and vowed to take better care of myself after being so sick in Hue the previous day. I was so happy that evening I felt almost bi-polar in comparison to my self the day before.

Knowing that I would have to wait until the following evening for my fittings and to pick up the clothes, I went against my own common sense and booked an organized tour to the Cham ruins at My Son. Early the next morning as I waited for the bus, I chatted with 3 girls from New Zealand and a Vietnamese man who was staying at the same hotel and joining the same tour. We all travelled out to the ruins by bus with an excessively enthusiastic Guide who provided too much information (repeated more than once) in overly emphatic and mispronounced English. At least he was funny. I stuck with the New Zealand Girls, Katy, Kimberly and Laura and discovered that we were all following a very similar itinerary for our southbound journey through Vietnam. After wandering through the disappointing ruins - what seemed like a pile of bricks after being bombed by the USA in the Vietnam/America war - we all noticed that our Vietnamese buddy was constantly close on our tails. When we tried to wander off elsewhere he noticed and quickly followed... even when we tried to sneak off to the Ladies' room.

It got to be a bit much when he literally stared at us for the whole bus ride back, and didn't get off at his stop. We tried to escape by hopping off the bus before it reached our hotel, but he tried to join us and waited for us to make a move before going anywhere. When he followed us into a restaurant we told him off and asked him to stop following us because we didn't want to travel with him, but I'm not sure he got the message. Later that afternoon when I was running between cafes and clothes fittings I spotted him again and he practically chased me down the street to invite me in to a restaurant for a drink. I said no firmly and carried on my merry way to hide in a restaurant and write. He somehow found me while I was picking up my finished clothes and boots and waited for me outside the shop. I explained to the sweet seamstresses what was going on and in between giggles, they agreed it was a very big problem. Each of them went outside and told the guy off, though he didn't budge. Finally they devised a plan and had a motorbike ready to whisk me back to the hotel without him. I gathered my shopping bags and hopped onto the back of a motorbike with one of the giggly seamstresses and together we drove through back alleys and side streets to my hotel, leaving Stalker Buddy standing back at the shop.

I met up with the girls that evening for a cheap but great dinner along the riverbank and we all met up with a couple of Sweedish guys to hit up a little backpacker bar that night. The Swedes and I bantered a bit over hockey (mostly just how Canada killed them in the World Juniors, which they were NOT happy about) and fishing, before beating the NZ girls at a friendly (and terribly crappy) game of pool. With Stalker Buddy still lurking around every corner the girls and I booked an overnight bus to Nha Trang from a travel agent independent of our shared hotel. My last day in Hoi An consisted of relaxing in the cafe over coffee and desserts (I couldn't resist for less than $2...), and going on a photography mission through the local market. I chose to go in the late afternoon when the sun was making everything golden, and got some great shots of the ladies donning conical hats in their boats along the river or selling their fish and produce inside the grungy market square. That night the 3 girls and I met up at the hotel and climbed onto a bus quite unlike the one in the travel agency photo for a long (13 hours) and sleepless overnight bus ride to Nha Trang... Without creepy stalker buddy!!!!