Our initial impression of Hoi An was of absolute tourist craziness, but the next day we got to see some of its quiet charms, in addition to seeing more of the tourist craziness. We went out before noon to stroll around the streets, and there were far fewer tourists out so that was a relief. The old town is beautiful, filled with lovely historic buildings.
The streets and alleyways are filled with restaurants and shops, and merchants are eager to make a deal. Chris bought some lovely silk scarves. Lonely Planet remarks that custom tailoring is “out of control” in Hoi An, where something like 500 tailors can make you (and your entire family) custom tailored outfits. We saw quite a few families comprising parents and children all wearing clothes made from the same fabric and pattern…was kind of funny. Women were pretty decked out with what appeared to be custom made dresses, strolling next to their guy dressed in a t-shirt and shorts. Sigh…this is not an unusual situation!
We also were happily parted with a few dollars when some smiling ladies put their shoulder poles on us for pictures and sold us some fruit. It was all very charming, really.
Old Town Hội An, the city’s historic district, is recognized as an exceptionally well-preserved example of a Southeast Asian trading port dating from the 15th to the 19th century, its buildings and street plan reflecting a blend of indigenous and foreign influences. Prominent in the city’s old town is its covered “Temple Bridge” or Japanese Covered Bridge, dating to the 16th–17th century. It’s all quite beautiful.
April 30 is a national public holiday, marking the reunification of South and North of Vietnam in 1975, following the end of the American/Vietnam war and the conquest of South Vietnam by the North. Many Vietnamese combine the holiday with Labor Day (May 1) to travel or return to their hometowns. Hoi An was packed with people, and it’s hard to know if the crowds were bigger than usual. While there were some non-Asians, most of the people seemed to be from Vietnam, China, Japan and Korea.
After we strolled around in the early afternoon, we rested in the hotel for a couple hours and then went out for dinner at a place that had “buy 1, get 1 free” glasses of wine for happy hour and ended up having dinner there on the balcony overlooking the river. As twilight set, throngs of people went out on boats lit by lanterns, and it was truly lovely to see them floating slowly on the river with the reflections of the lanterns. Hundreds of people queued up for the boat rides. Dinner was great and we had a relaxed and pleasant evening in Hoi An, which pleased us.
On the way back to our homestay, we passed performances blasting music to crowds, but we wanted to get home early to get to bed so we could escape the next day in the relative cool of the morning.
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