Time to make new friends in Hoi An | Exploring Wanderlust

So we survived our 13 hour overnight bus journey. Phew, was a bit scared I wouldn’t be able to get to sleep, but all in all it was OK. Survived thanks to watching a series on my tablet for 2 hours the from midnight to 6 am got to sleep. We arrived in the town of Hoi An and got a nice taxi driver to take us to our homestay by the river.

We sadly couldn’t check in til 12 and it was only 9 am. Even though we were quite dazed and confused we managed to work our way to the centre of the town. Previously a famous fishing town, Hoi An has now become more famous for the buildings, way of life and of course tailors. Steffi couldn’t resist the urge to get a dress made and although I was a bit sceptical about the whole operation the dress worked out pretty nice in the end. Costing circa €35. Fed and watered we made our way back to the homestay and duly crashed out on the beds for the rest of the afternoon. Our relaxation was later only halted by the need to stock up with food in our bellies. Best fix for that was the restaurant Red Gecko and a good old banana pancake from a street vendor.

Day two is best described in the attached pictures. We met our future new best friends as part if the Hoi An free tour. A trip really worth doing and well run by the local students. We had such a good time and really learned how life is in the rural parts of the country.

Day three was a day for the beach so we rented bikes for one dollar and biked 4 km to the lovely beach. It’s a nice ride and the weather was incredible. On the way back we popped by the dress shop to get the final alterations to the dress for Steffi. They really are quite pushy in the tailors shop so I steered well clear, no suit for me. Happy with that we went back to the homestay for our family BBQ. The family running the homestay had bought some pork and chicken and they grilled up a storm. Add to that some amazing sweet potato and you have an amazing meal. And all that for just about €3! We were really stuffed afterwards. Day four we spent just visiting the sights and old buildings in the city. We also tested out a very random local cinema with a rather strange horror movie, for only €1.50 you can’t complain.
The owners of the homestay were so nice they even brought us to the bus on their scooters, a rather scary experience with 2 backpacks! Just before we left the family had even invited us to have lunch with them. Soooo friendly! Next up, a short bus ride to Da nang!