Hoi An

Hoi An's river side. Vietnamese boats have eyes painted to frighten the crocodiles, sea monsters and evil spirits.

The ancient port of Hội An has now shifted it's main activity from trading toward tourism. The town is full of old houses and pedestrian streets that makes it pleasant to stroll. The architecture is influenced by all the foreign traders that had settled there, mainly Chinese, but also a few Japanese, Portuguese, Dutch, Indians.
The town can easily be visited in half a day, so I used the afternoon to go to the beach. I rented a bike and went to the An Bang beach, 5 km outside of town. It was one of the best I visited in Vietnam. The waves were big enough to surf, but unfortunately I couldn't find a place to rent a board.

To go to Hội An, I took a train from Ho Chi Minh city to Nha Trang. I stayed a few days in this city but except the beach there isn't much to see. It's a very popular spot for Russian families and it was fun to see restaurant menus in Russian. From Nha Trang I took a sleeping bus to Hội An. The bus has 3 rows of beds, so it was really cramped.

Bridge in Hoi An with a traditional street vendor selling fruits.


All the fruits that you can dream of. My new favorite is the mangosteen (lower left).


Fresh herbs that makes the Vietnamese cuisine so good.


Meatastic !


Hoi An's market.


Nha Trang beach.


Nha Trang.


Nha Trang can't stop building new luxurious hotel.

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