Hoi An, a town full of tailors

Hoi An has found it's niche. It's a small town of only 80,000 but I think almost everyone of them is a tailor. Shop after shop of clothing, ready for the tourists. It's just incredible. You can take in any picture and they will make it for you over night. The trouble was finding a quality shop and reasonable price. We felt very overwhelmed the first day.

Each shop had cabinets full of fabric. Silk, wool, cashmere, cotton, polyester....You select the material and style, take a few quick measurements and return the next morning for a fitting.

Alex had been looking forward to getting a suit and tux made. We selected the material after some grief and research on the internet. The fun part was choosing the interior silk lining! For the suit we selected a lovely purple with Chinese good luck symbols and a nice bold red for the tux. He looked like a model at the fitting.

I opted to get an Asian inspired silk dress made. We had some trouble with the alterations but I was happy with the finished product. It fits just perfectly. At one point we actually went to the tailor's home to finish it up. She was a young girl. Apparently as long as you have a sewing machine and work space, you are in business.

We spent most of our time in Hoi An going from fitting to fitting. We did really enjoy the food here. Fried spring rolls were a must at every lunch and we found the best bakery ever. Alex gets the "Opera" cake and I get the White Kahlua. Yummmm!! I've craved it ever since and nothing has compared.

I also had a leather purse specially made and designed an awesome pair tennis shoes. I selected the purple silk flowered material at a fabric stand and took it across the street to the shoe maker. (You'll just have to see them!!) Alex got some tuxedo shoes to complete the outfit. Now we just need somewhere to wear all of this!!!

We did manage to get away to the beach for a few hours in between appointments and take a motorbike ride through the countryside, our favorite thing to do. There was also a large outdoor market. Unfortunately it rained most of the time that we were there but that didn't stop business as usual.