Da Nang and Hoi An

We can enjoy our longest journey on land by night train. We spend the night in a slightly shabby but definitely more comfortable compartment than in the night bus. The cry of the children of the family below us wakes us up occasionally, but other than that, the trip is the most pleasant so far.

Well-rested but also a bit dirty, we arrive in Da Nang. We immediately run into two locals who want to take us to our hotel on their motorcycle. Since their price is quite cheap, we decide to go for the adventure. The two of them quickly load our heavy backpacks onto their luggage racks and we take a seat on the back. The ride is surprisingly comfortable and we arrive safely at our hotel.

When it comes to paying, the two mention that they also offer tours in the area. They show us reviews/texts from other travelers in a notebook who have taken a tour with them. Some have done multi-day tours through Vietnam with them. In any case, the texts are consistently positive and the two guides are very nice. Therefore, we decide to book a tour for the next day. Even though it is slightly more expensive, we hope to gain a deeper insight into the culture of Vietnam through the tour.

For the rest of the day, we explore the surroundings on foot, especially the beach. This is the first time it is warm enough to go swimming in the sea.

Our tour with the 'Easyriders' starts at 8:00 a.m. Our first stop is Marble Mountain. Mountain is a bit exaggerated though. In any case, there is a beautiful temple on the hill which we visit, and around the hill, there are many shops selling souvenirs made from various stones. The many stone masons who carve artistic sculptures out of the stone are impressive.

Our next destination is a temple complex that is over 1000 years old. Along the way, we are well fed and receive interesting information about the country and its people. For example, that the rice fields are cultivated three times a year and that this has only been possible for about 40 years. Furthermore, a lot of manual work is still done today.

After visiting the temple, we have lunch and after a short break, we visit a small 'farm'. They show us how rice flour and rice paper are made. We almost feel like we're at the Ballenberg, because most of it is done with simple tools. This applies to almost everything that is produced agriculturally in Vietnam.

Finally, we visit the historic old town of Hoi An. We are immediately dropped off in front of a tailor, where Marcia has two pieces of clothing custom made. Unfortunately, the rest of the city is quite touristy and after about an hour, we decide to return to Da Nang. We have to come back here anyway tomorrow to pick up Marcia's clothes.

The tour with the Easyriders was definitely worth it, but we don't want to ride a motorcycle for more than a day. 

Since we really like the area, we book two more nights in our hotel and stay a total of four nights in Da Nang. We rent a scooter for two days and explore a large part of the city and the surrounding countryside.

The city has grown incredibly fast in the last 20 years, which is reflected in the architecture and infrastructure. For this reason, it is probably the most modern city in Vietnam.

We really like Da Nang and could easily stay here for another week. However, we now continue to Da Lat and are looking forward to seeing the highlands.