Hoi An - the city of tailors and lanterns

In the last entry, we told you that we want to take it easy for the next few days. Fate helped us with that.

Due to a small accident in the shower, Flo got a serious cut on his forehead. Since we didn't have anything except band-aids, we asked at the reception for a first aid kit. They promptly helped us and since the injury looked very bad, the staff called us a taxi to the nearest hospital and the nice man from the pool bar accompanied us as support. On site, the wound was cleaned and Flo was confirmed that he didn't need to see a doctor. We were relieved that no stitches were necessary and happy to go back home. We have to commend our hotel here. Without hesitation, they called us a taxi, helped us, and assured us that the treatment costs would be covered by the hotel. Fortunately, it only resulted in taxi expenses.

We planned for the next day to be a day of relaxation and rest. The constant rain outside helped with that. It was pouring rain and all the streets were full of water. So we spent the day in the room watching movies and series, tending to our wounds, and eating at the hotel restaurant.

Hoi An - the city center: worth seeing but takes some getting used to

Contrary to our expectations, the next day was blessed with pure sunshine early in the morning. First, we visited the old town of Hoi An to take a closer look at some of the tailor shops. The city was part of the Silk Road and is divided into a Chinese and Japanese part. Many temples and antique houses shape the cityscape. For little money compared to Germany, you can have tailor-made suits and dresses made in a short time. In the evening, when the sun sets, the streets of the city center are closed to cars and scooters, and the night market begins. Here you can admire and buy the beautiful and diverse lanterns. It's a wonderful sight everywhere.

Unfortunately, the mood is slightly tarnished. Many traders and providers of massages, manicures, jewelry, and street food are quite loud and rude when promoting their goods. They don't give up and accompany you for several meters, pressuring us. In return, it's difficult to negotiate. Just by attempting, some saleswomen rudely leave us standing. Overall, everything here is a bit more expensive than in Vietnam so far. The city is crowded with Korean tourists who are spit out by the tour buses from Da Nang early in the morning. Offers are presented in Korean. The prices here seem to align more with the level of Koreans. There's a lot of jostling, shoving, and shouting. We don't like it very much overall.

The Hidden Beach

To escape the stress, we enjoyed a few sunny hours at the pool the next day. And because it was so comfortable, we remembered that there is a beach belonging to the hotel, which a shuttle bus regularly drives to. Since the next bus came in 10 minutes, we quickly packed our things and after 10 minutes of driving, we arrived at the Hidden Beach. The beach was a few hundred meters away from the main road through a narrow alley. With a few other people, we spent a few hours in the sunshine, the sound of waves, and a cool beer. The water was almost too warm and the sand soft and clean. It was a really great day!

A bike ride through the rice fields

On the way to the beach with the shuttle bus, we passed rice fields with buffalos and duck farms, which we found very interesting. Therefore, on the last day in Hoi An, we grabbed the bikes that we could borrow for free at the hotel to explore nature on our own. Just as we were about to start, it started raining lightly again. After a while of riding, we were soaking wet but satisfied with our decision. Due to the high temperatures, the rain was actually quite pleasant. We quickly got the hang of the Vietnamese driving style (close your eyes and go for it) and once we arrived at the fields, we were alone on the dirt roads. When you're in Hoi An, you should definitely explore the surroundings and enjoy the area off the beaten path.

We are very happy and satisfied and had a few great days. Even though we didn't like the city itself too much due to the many tourists, the sometimes unfriendly vendors, and the crowds. Our great hotel, the surroundings, and the weather made up for it.

And we also had several days of enough peace and quiet, so we will start well-rested for the flight from Hoi An to Nha Trang tomorrow afternoon.

We were told that there isn't much peace and relaxation in Nha Trang due to the many Russian and Chinese guests, but there is a beach not far away... We will be surprised and will keep you updated!