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Weşandin: 12.11.2023

On October 31st we continued to Hoi An. We actually wanted to plan our onward journey by train🚂, but we didn't think the stated travel time of around 20 hours was that cool.😵 That's why we booked one of the cheapest domestic flights.✈️☺️

Hoi An is the city of lanterns🏮 and lights.🕯️

It was the most important trading port for the Japanese and French in the 16th and 17th centuries. The special thing about the city's style is the mix of Chinese, Japanese, French colonial and local styles.

The old town is even a UNESCO World Heritage Site. There are still many well-preserved houses here🏠 and especially when it gets dark, it shines in a very special way.✨ You can let colorful floating candles🪔 float along the Thun Bon River.

But don't forget to make a wish when you put your floating candle in the water.

We had fun strolling through the streets and markets🚶‍♂️

or explore the area by bike🚲.

Hoi An is also known for its many tailor shops🪡. You can have tailor-made clothes made within 4 hours for a small thaler.😳 We thought about it for a moment, but then decided on another great souvenir.🏮

The street food here is also impressive and we tried it out!

Cao Lap, Banh Xeo, Vietnamese banana pancakes… hmmm… delicious!🤤

Furthermore, Hoi An has many ancient temples.🛕

We wanted to see the My Son Temple, which is about 20km outside the city, and booked a tour through our hotel. Actually, it should have been clear to us that fixed tours are simply not our thing and we would much rather do our thing, at our own pace.🤭 Well... you never stop learning.🤷‍♀️

The journey there wasn't a problem, but then on site: "hurry up", "come on", "you have later time to take photos".😠🤯😩 Luckily I was able to breastfeed the little one in the carrier while running🤱, the big one was bucking around🐐 because everything was going too fast for him, then a rainstorm came🌧️ and we didn't even have time to peel off our rain gear and got soaking💦 wet. A nice older Chinese man from another group quickly handed me his rain cape.🙏

Bow... we had enough.😤 We didn't get anything from the tour and everyone was in a bad mood! And what works best? Doing your own thing!🤓

So we separated from the group, the sun☀️ came out, we googled the information about the temple🛕 and suddenly we had it to ourselves.

Because the other tourists were rushing after the guides.😄 All of our spirits rose again and we enjoyed exploring the temple complex.

A little information for you about the temple: in the 2nd and 3rd centuries, the Cham culture emerged on the coast of Vietnam, which was strongly influenced by Hinduism. The My Son temple complex includes 70 temples.

The most famous tower was 24 meters high and decorated with sculptures of lions and elephants. It was bombed and destroyed by US aircraft during the Vietnam War. During these bombardments, a total of 50 of the approximately 70 temples previously recorded by archaeologists were severely damaged or destroyed.

The reconstruction work will probably be extremely difficult because the Cham's seamless construction method has not yet been reproducible and the use of mortar leads to unsightly moss growth.

The My Son Temple is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Another day we went to the beach.🏖️ Because Hoi An is located on several larger beaches.

One of the most beautiful beaches in Hoi An is definitely An Bang Beach. We had a leisurely afternoon on this beautiful beach. There are plenty of bars and restaurants here where you can use the beach loungers and umbrellas for free if you eat or drink something.