4th February, 2017

We had a very interesting day with Banh. The sun was more or less out and we set off for Cam Thanh village for our ride on a traditional round basket boat into the water coconut palm forest. Of course we had to be properly dressed, so it was on with the hats and off we went. The boat is similar to a coracle and is expertly driven from in front. The water coconut forest is pretty much what it says on the tin and is used for all sorts of things from food to materials.

Next we were still in the countryside with a visit to an organic vegetable farm and a tour and chat from our host at Kumquat Farm. Rather incongruously we also received a back, neck and foot massage from our host and his mother-in-law, which was very nice if a little unexpected!

After that strenuous morning it was back to the hotel for a rest (!) in anticipation of our historical and cultural tour in the afternoon followed by a particularly arduous foodie evening tour. It’s a tough life! Our hotel was on a small island and only a short walk over a bridge into Hoi An proper. In order to visit the historical centre you have to buy a ticket, though it was not clear if it was simply for anyone visiting the general area or if it was to visit the main tourist buildings . We were doing the latter anyway, so Banh got our tickets and we crossed the bridge into the crush that is Hoi An once the coaches of mostly Chinese tourists have been deposited for their few hours of sightseeing. It was certainly crowded, but great fun and there is a great view every few feet, either a building, house or a person and, possibly more than anything else, the lanterns, which are beautiful in either the day or night.

We visited the very photogenic Japanese Covered Bridge with its little shrine in the middle, originally built in the 16th century and reconstructed a few times since, but always to the same design. Something of a bottleneck!

There are a number of the lovely shop houses to visit and to be honest, I am not which one we did visit or, for that matter, which Chinese temples. They were all very spectacular, anyway. First of the houses, I think,  was the Phung Hung family house, which has been in the same family since 1780 and basically Vietnamese in style with Chinese and Japanese influences. It is fairly typical of the style. The house with the mother-of-pearl is the Tan Ky house.

Then there are the Chinese Assembly Halls or temples with fascinating conical incense burners and writhing dragons everywhere.

Banh gave us an hour off, so we went for a wander through the streets and snapped a few of the local sights.

And, of course there are the lanterns….

And then we sat in a cafe, had a drink and watched the world go by. It is so photogenic that couples come to have their wedding photos taken here. Not forgetting the selfie sticks and some wonderful posing by the girls where they walk a little ahead of their friends and then turn round quickly so that their hair swirls round with them. There are so many great faces here it is hard to pare them down..

And finally Banh took us on a foodie tour including sitting on the usual impossibly small and very low stools where I have to take aim and hope I will hit the target! We sat next to a nice trio, so they too had to have their photos taken. And with no motorbikes in the centre, the bike park had to go into the album too!

A great day in a great town.

More soon!