Quy Nhon

Feeling adventurous, we decided to go somewhere that was not mentioned in the guide book. We arrived by bus late and took two motorbike taxis 15 km to the nearest guesthouse. Everything was closed and it looked like a ghost town. The hotels had shut their metal doors for the evening and we were in need of a bed to rest our heads. Eventually a man lifted the door after a few minutes of knocking. We were relieved!

The next morning we rented a bike and headed out to explore. It was raining, part of the huge typhoon headed for Ha Long Bay. We geared up with our ponchos and headed out in search of an authentic Vietnamese lunch of beef noodles.

Quy Nhon doesn't get many tourists. There is one expat hangout were all 10 of them congregate in the afternoon for a beer. This is the first time we pulled out the food section of the Vietnamese translation section in our book.

The people were very friendly and helpful. After a recommendation, we found a local restaurant that serves what we know as "bun". We figured out that it is called "bun thit nuygen" (meaning noodles with grilled pork) Dishes are severed differently in the north and south so it took us a few attempts to get it right. They also had fresh spring rolls that you roll yourself, and homemade peanut sauce for dipping. The owner kindly showed us how to roll it.

Every morning we awoke and headed to a cafe for our ritualistic "cafe sura daa" (Vietnamese iced coffee with milk) Then we got back on the bike and explored the small country roads.

We spotted a small fishing village along a cliff and headed straight for it. The entrance to the village was a small sidewalk and all of the village children greeted us with "HELLO!!" They lead us down to the shore where their fathers kept the hundreds of fishing boats. They loved admiring my bracelets and looking at the pictures we took of them.

We drove down a small dirt path to a group of bungalows along a rocky beach. The waves were rough that day and they were splashing up 20 feet in the air. We found two hammocks and spent the rest of the afternoon talking over a few beers.

It was nice to get off of the main tourist path and immerse ourselves in true Vietnamese lifestyle.

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.