Days 7,8,9 – Hoi An 1
Condensing all the days in Hoi An into one post, as a way of catching up and also for continuity reasons.
Hue to Hoi An by bus, a fairly long but pretty drive, three mountain passes and at the top of the tallest one remnants of French bunkers and an even older gate.
Lunch stop was at a bakery along the beachfront in Da Nang, had a steamed bun and a vol au vent type thing, nothing special but apparently the baguettes were fabulous. Also had a quick break to take some photos of the little boats the fishermen use to get to the bigger boats, groovy little half balls.
The attraction on paper is that Hoi An is a wonderfully preserved old quarter, lots of groovy old buildings, and some streets where not even motorbikes are allowed. It’s also the place where they’ve dialled up the whole Made in Vietnam tag a notch, where custom and tailor made clothes, shoes, bags, silver jewellery, glasses and other stuff can be produced in a day or two. Sometimes less, L and I had some clothes made in about 12 hours. The unofficial slogan is that nothing is impossible, and they come pretty close to that. They also practice upselling like pros.
Clothes: we were shown an impressive place called Yaly, which our guide assured us made quality goods (apparently some places are a bit dodgy, imagine that) and didn’t have basements full of child labourers. So L and I took the plunge: I’d originally anticipated getting a few custom shirts and maybe a tie, but 8 shirts, 2 ties, 1 suit jacket and 2 pairs of pants later you can see what I mean by masters of the upsell. And all in 2 days, got my measurements taken on the first afternoon (not flattering measurements I’m sorry to say, between all the food and the heat I’m a little bloated), first fitting the next day at 2pm, then final fitting the second day where most were ready, but it was also a good opportunity to get a couple of extra shirts. Everything was then delivered to the hotel around 9.45pm, and under $500.
Clothes: L also got some pants made at another place, and got a pair of shorts. The shorts were supposed to be copies of my cotton shorts for me, and the materials they showed me were cotton. We agreed a price, $15, and then they took my measurements. After taking measurements, they ummed and basically said I was too fat, would need more material, so maybe $18? We said no, and then followed a few rounds where they tried to water down the requirements. We made a couple of small compromises and wondered what the result would be, but didn’t budge from the price. When these shorts turned up at our hotel, they were polyester, and somewhat too large for me. They do work with L’s hips however so they are now hers.
Shoes: guide also showed us a place for custom shoes, again hopefully ethical and not dodgy. L was quite interested, and I saw some funky looking sneakers on the rack. They also have folders full of designs and catalogues they can make copies of. I’m not interested in having copies of real brands but took the opportunity to test the saying “same same but different”, so asked them to make me a pair of sneakers that were different left and right. Got a couple of funny looks, but they said they could do it. And maybe would I like a pair of boots too? Meanwhile L is showing designs and heels and suggesting minor tweaks. Then it’s back for a fitting the next day, and they’re delivered to the hotel by noon the day after. Can’t wear them for a few days while all the glue dries, but they look fabulous.
Glasses: Not everything is possible. The optical shop our guide showed us was shut the night we went looking, but one down the street was open. L was interested as she has a weird prescription and in Aus the lenses cost heaps. My eyes are an easier job. L went through the picking and testing and we figured if I got a pair two we could get a good price for the pairs. Picked out some round frames, not quite Lennon but still round. Talked through a price, got an okay deal but the optician’s initial enthusiasm waned a little at the timeframe. Didn’t say that it wasn’t possible, but we certainly left with the feeling that we might not get a good result here. Turned out we were right, guy came to hotel (we only paid a deposit so they’d have to come to get full payment) and only had my glasses and a lot of apologies. Also the good discount price we’d negotiated for the both evaporated, so in the end got an okay price not a great price.
Stay tuned for Hoi An part 2, the food…