Quaint Little Town of Hoi An

Hoi An wasn't as exciting as the other cities. You know what they say.. when you've reached the top, all that's left is to go down. (okay, I don't know who said that but it sounds familiar!)

We reached Hoi An in the morning and holy crap it was cold over there (by Singapore standards :P). Hoi An was small too. I was amused at how the lady at Sinh Cafe told me they didn't have a map when I asked for one because the town's very small. Later on, I realized it wasn't at all THAT small.

Anyways, I was down with the flu and a bad throat (from walking in the rain Nha Trang the day before and having to endure the air conditioned bus for 12 hours). Honestly, I wasn't feeling too great. We checked in at some hotel and I got to take my much needed hot bath. I don't remember what happened next. I swear this time it's got nothing to do with alcohol. I must've slept the rest of the morning or something. I know Shane, Shuyi and I spent the afternoon eating and walking around for a bit. I also got to spend some time on my own in Hoi An just walking down the streets and making some office clothes at the tailor's. Oh, the tailors, they were everywhere! I also managed to get Vietnamese flag t-shirt I've always wanted.. only to realize later on that another shop was selling it at half the price I paid. Gaaahh, story of my life. :/

Not long after, Shuyi and Shane joined me at the tailors, where Shuyi got hooked as well and started ordering work clothes as well. The owners, these 2 ladies, were so pleased we were making something from their shop. They kept stroking out hair, I felt so loved. :P We did fool around a little by telling them we were Shane's wives and I think they might've bought the story. I couldn't tell, really. 

At night, the 3 of us attempted to look for a decent bar but most of the bars we found were relatively quiet! We decide to settle with a bar called "Treats". Got myself a bottle of Saigon beer (despite my flu and bad throat) and ended up not being able to finish it. You know what they say.. when you can't finish a bottle of beer, it's a sign you shouldn't be drinking. (again, I don't know who said that but I swear I've heard it somewhere!)

The next day, Shuyi and I did some last minute souvenir shopping, during which we realized that right after you ask the question "How much is this?", they'd almost always answer you with another question: "Where are you from?" So Shuyi and I figured telling them we're from Singapore wasn't the smartest thing. . (I can't believe we only figured this out at the end of the trip!) and since telling them we're locals would backfire seeing we can't speak Vietnamese, we decided we should tell them we're from Cambodia instead. I don't think they'd charge a high price for Cambodians, yes? ;)

My highlight in Hoi An was when I spent a few hours of the afternoon sitting at an outdoor cafe in the nice windy weather, with a cuppa hot tea and a book in my hand. That was preeeettttyy chill and for once, I felt like I was taking it allllllll in. I got the peace I needed in my life! Whahaha. Jokes aside, it's rare that I get to spend some time on my own in such a quaint setting and good weather, reading a book and occasionally people-watching. Hoi An was definitely a nice retreat, a perfect place to just sit back, relax and think about the meaning of life (hahaha!).. but seriously, it was a nice ending to my relatively chaotic (but enjoyable) trip. Well, other than the flu of course.

At 6pm, we said goodbye to Shane and took a cab to Danang, where our flight to Saigon awaits. ;)