Over the Cloud Pass to Hoi An

The travel bug has once again bitten us. We are excited for the tour over the legendary Cloud Pass. It's raining. Fortunately, we upgraded our motorcycle ride upon arrival in Hue – now we're heading to the mountains by car.

Our driver was punctual, at 10 o'clock, in front of the hotel and promised us an individual journey. Curiously, we took over the back seats and swayed southward.

Exiting Hue, Vietnam didn't necessarily show its sunny side. Among chaos, garbage, and unidentifiable odds and ends, shops were lined up - making us wonder who actually buys all this stuff here? Most likely, most of the businesses are conducted between 7-9 o'clock in the morning, and probably, as Central Europeans accustomed to structure, we will never understand this market order defined by anarchy.

Ahead of us lies 130 km. Once reaching the Cloud Pass, we have a great view of the South China Sea and the long beaches; we stop at one beach and get almost swept away by the next huge wave. Lastly, we can marvel at the Marble Mountains near Da Nang. These mountains were once used by the Cham people as a place of worship. Today, there are beautiful pagodas and temples in the mountains, some of which are built inside caves. To this day, the location is a pilgrimage site for Buddhists and still a functioning monastery.

There are some Buddhist wisdom on a few plaques. As always in Buddhism, highly philosophical.

In Hoi An, a super nice small hotel awaits us, located right by rice fields. We are amazed when we are greeted by a water buffalo as the first thing 😀

We receive a lot of information at the reception – there won't be enough time here 😀 and decide to start with an exploratory bike tour.

Off we go - once we reach the main road, we end up in the afternoon school pick-up mode. And here's how it goes: around 200 children are picked up by their parents on mopeds (what else), a few cars, and two minibusses. Parking spaces in front of the school??? Not available – everyone is standing in front of the school entrance on the street. We would call it a traffic jam and surely be very annoyed - but for the Vietnamese, there is always room - there are always enough gaps to squeeze through. The children come, find their parents as if guided by invisible hands, get on or in, and off they go - as mentioned, there is always a gap 😀 It's amazing how the hustle and bustle resolves without any stress or shouting. Ok, there is a lot of honking, but it's never aggressive, rather, BEWARE vehicle behind, sideways, right, left - above, below 😀😀😀

After participating in the traffic, it was time to find a parking space. That was taken care of for a small fee.

Wow, the travel guides didn't promise too much. The calm and beautiful old town of Hoi An is stunning and a paradise for shoppers. It's a good thing our backpacks are already packed. The architecture is influenced by Chinese and Japanese styles. Stores line up in a pleasant mix, interspersed with small restaurants and cafes. Lanterns hang everywhere, casting a pleasant light on the streets and buildings. The tropical climate and gentle breeze add to the ambiance. Happily, we head to the next restaurant and find a beautiful spot by the open window with a view of the street. The interior is tastefully done, and the service is extremely friendly as always. The various spring rolls on my plate are not only delicious but also a visual delight - my seafood platter is simply amazing. When I pierce my dessert, warm chocolate flows out of the dough, melting the ice cream and making me happy.

Before we start the return journey, fully energized, we take a few more rounds in the neighborhood. The street by the river is already flooded. Today, it can still be passed.

The day comes to an end in our very nice hotel with its extremely friendly staff.