Hoi An 1

After a long overnight journey, I arrived in Hoi An and headed straight to the homestay.

As soon as I got off the bus, someone wanted to take me to my accommodation, even when I stepped aside to fix my broken pants, the Grab driver waited to drive me. It felt good to walk the distance, and I had to search for the homestay because it wasn't exactly where Maps had shown me.

Upon arrival, I met Jonathan and Nga. Jonathan is from the Netherlands and moved to Vietnam almost 20 years ago because he married Nga.

I had many conversations with them; they even invited me for a meal or to prepare rice rolls that are given to the needy during Tet.

Hoi An has a very charming old town, although it is quite crowded. If you want to have something tailored, this city is a good place to start. Near the homestay, I was able to enjoy a beautiful sunset after a long walk through the rice fields.

I rented a bike and rode along the rice fields. At the beach, I met a German traveler from a tour group. It was exciting that I suddenly was the one who did something bold and could share stories about traveling. I was able to relax a bit on the beach and found very delicious noodles right by the beach.

Later in the evening, I explored Hoi An Old Town in the dark and approached a group of German travelers who were trying durian. They didn't like it and offered it to me, and since I was curious, I actually tried the stinky fruit. Interesting taste!

In Hoi An, I was for the first time more on my own, I also just spent some time in my room, rolled out the yoga mat, and explored the place alone. I took care of rescheduling my flight, even though it would cost me quite a bit more money, but this way I got more breathing space and was able to sort out the organization of my election documents. I waited a lot on the last day, hoping that the rice cake would be delivered on time, but at some point, I decided to really move on. Jonathan and Nga offered me to enjoy Tet with them at the homestay, which very much eased my concern about not being well accommodated during the holidays. The thought of being with them felt very nice, so I resolved to see just a little more and then come back. I was almost alone at the homestay; I had the whole room to myself and there was only one other person there, which shaped the atmosphere for this part very much. And then it was off to Da Nang by public bus. Nga told me where to go and another woman reassured me to wait right there, and then it went smoothly.