Hope you can read this, as I can't access my blog anymore! Please let me know by email if this is legible at leslieinp@yahoo.com (My club-internet email address doesn't seem to work well here either!)
This morning I visited the old town of Hoi An, which is a Unesco World Heritage site. A bustling river port in the 17th and 18th centuries, somewhat like Melaka in Malaysia, the town is sleepy today--except for all the hawkers, shopkeepers, and rickshaw and motorbike owners who accost you at every step! Despite this inconvenience, it was an interesting place to visit, as the architecture of most of the wooden buildings is impressive; and the restoration and preservation attempts now underway promise to bring into light even more historic treasures. Around noon, the weather was hot and muggy, so I stopped at a riverside cafe called "the Blue Dragon" and tasted some of the local specialities: White Rose (little swan-shaped dumplings), fried wanton with fruit and vegetables, and Cao Lau (a Hoi An traditional yellow-noodle dish), and a locally-made beer called "Larue". Yum! As my hotel was about 2 kilometers away and it was very hot to walk so far, I paid for a motorbike ride back.
Then, this afternoon, I took the hotel shuttle bus to Cua Dai Beach 4 kilometers away. 'Sat under a parasol and had a swim in the South China Sea, which was as warm as the water in a bathtub.
Tomorrow will be a busy day. In the morning a driver is coming to pick me up at 8 and we're going to visit My Son, another World Heritage site, which is about 40 kms. away It is a smaller "Anghor Wat" and was the sanctuary of Cham culture. Then in the afternoon I've got a 3-hour bus trip to Hue.
That's all for tonight. I look forward to hearing from you and/or to receiving your comments--once I can get back on the site.
Hilary
posted by Hilary @ Wednesday, October 11, 2006
1 Comments:
Hilary - do you find that people understand (or want to practice) English or are you using French? Do you see much evidence of French culture or architecture? When do the monsoons arrive? That should break the humidity, n'est-ce pas? Are there a lot of nail salons?? It seems like every nail salon (so many around) in New England is run by Vietnamese women. And the men have a monopoly on installation of hardwood floors (they do a fantastic job). Keep the trip reports coming! maura
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