Hoi An

After a very busy week in Hanoi, myself, Caity and Mathilde were very excited to be spending a long weekend away in the charming town of Hoi An. A little setback involving immigration meant Mathilde had to join a bit late but all was rectified by a few 'helpful' friends in the industry and on Saturday we were all together. Caity and i spent the first day getting some much needed rest and relaxation. This involved some very affordable massages, facials and mani-pedi's.

We then spent the rest of the afternoon at the beach having rented bicyles and braved the hot sun to cycle there. We found a quieter spot away from the Vietnamese tourists who were all grouped together. Feeling suitably relaxed and a bit too sandy we headed back for town to meet Mathilde, stopping on the way to sample some coconut doughnut type treats. We caught up with the Mathilde at the hotel and then ventured back towards the main bit of the old town for some dinner by the river.

We spent the majority of Sunday at the tailors getting clothes made. This was a great experience! You can get pretty much anything made or clothes copied. You just choose the material, they take all your measurements and you either pick from one of the many catalogues or show them what you want. Everything is whisked off to the nearby seamstresses and after a few fittings to check sizes, you have you very own made to measure new clothes, a fashionista's dream!!The family of sisters were very friendly and gave us dinner and plenty of water during the hours we spent in their shop.

The rest of our time was spent visiting some of the oldest houses in Hoi An which are made up of a combination of Chinese, Japanese and Vietnamese architecture. It was interesting to look around and see how well the houses resemble the original designs. Before our evening flight we had a final meal of Cau Lao - a pork noodle speciality of Hoi An - and then packed up our things and said goodbye to the lovely town.