I'm in Hoi An now, a hour's bus ride from Danang, south down the coast. This is a World Heritage site because of it's Old Town, filled with distinctive, intact architecture that was not damaged in the American war. It is situated on the Thu Bon River and usually floods during the rainy season each year. Old Town is filled with shoe shops, made to order for your foot, and has over 400 tailor shops, clothing made to order.
I'm having an Ao Dai made (the national dress of Vietnam) and a Chinese cheongson jacket, along with several less formal blouses, Asian style. It's not your usual going to pick out something at Costco/Target/Nordstrom experience as you feel multiple bolts of fabric and choose colors and style. Silk is the fabric of choice here. If you don't like what's in the tailor's shop, there is a central market warehouse in Old Town that's filled with only bolts of fabric. The turn-around time for having a completed garment is 24 hours, which includes a 2nd fitting.
The town has beautiful old houses, and you can buy a ticket to tour 15 of these. There is a short informative lecture given at each location and then you can walk around the house.
Several bridges cross the river and there are many islands nearby. This is the Japanese bridge, which is for pedestrians and bicycles only. There was some kind of a celebration happening with people walking single file.
Old Town is for pedestrians and bicycles only, although a few motorbikes sneak in.
There is a marketplace next to the river. I ate at a food stall there and it was similar to a Hawaiian plate lunch style food.
The usual Communist propaganda vehicle, blasting out the Party line. It's totally ignored by everyone except the cadres. There are also loudspeakers throughout the community, again with the Party line. They temper this with musical interludes.
There is a very interesting trash pickup system. The trash truck has a musical jingle which blasts out as they move along the street. Everyone runs out and puts their trash on the sidewalk, usually in smallish plastic bags. The workers then pick it up and load it into the truck. They do both sides of the street at the same time. It's kind of like the mobile ice cream man and his truck.
Hoi An is a very beautiful spot, with it's riverside setting and all the old buildings. It's a treat to walk down the streets and enjoy the architecture without being run over by a motorbike.
Facebook Update: On January 3, 2011 the Vietnamese government again blocked Facebook access here in Vietnam. Speculation is that it will be blocked until after the upcoming elections and perhaps the blocking will be relaxed after that.
The result for me is that I can access Facebook with a work around, but cannot post any photos there. All photos will be on the blog until further developments with Facebook here.
No comments:
Post a Comment