Five flavours: Day 7 Hoi An

Soundtrack: “Fashion”, David Bowie

A quiet day in Hoi An. We started with the hotel breakfast, not a huge buffet but a small menu freshly prepared to order. We started with some yogurt and fresh fruit: watermelon, pineapple, dragon fruit and banana. I think that this hotel, and many hotels in Hoi An, get a lot of western tourists wanting western food, as when I was asked for my coffee order and I replied ca phe sua da, our server’s eyes lit up. I went for a banh mi for breakfast, the delicious crunchy bread, nicely filled with pork, scrambled egg, vegetables, herbs, and a little spicy sauce. I happily munched away while watching my coffee drip slowly into a glass. Once done, in went some ice, and I was presented with heaven in a glass. It took me a while to get my head around ca phe sua da: strong black coffee, sweetened condensed milk, and ice, as I tend to prefer my coffee unsweetened. But here in VN, in the heat, it just works so well.

We had a bit of a wander to walk off breakfast, following up on a rumour that there was a bookshop just down the road. There wasn’t, but the walk was good as it’s a bit damp and overcast today, dropping the temperature into the high 20s though with some humidity. Definitely more comfortable that Hue’s mid 30s and humid. L wanted a pedicure so we found a place that also did foot massages, so I had an hour of wonderful bliss while another lady took to L’s feet with various scary implements.

Then it was nap and reading time.

We emerged in the afternoon to do further fittings with our tailors. I got to try on my other shirts, and my new jacket is coming along nicely, it looks fabulous and is just a little snug in places. I also got to try on my shirt creation, with multi coloured panels just for something different. I think it will be fun to wear. Just another fitting required on a couple of items and out new wardrobes will be ready to pack on Sunday.

There was a little excitement as we wandered old town, various locals on bicycles suddenly zoomed past, including one whose basked was a cooking grill full of coals. A whisper went through the crowd, “Police”, and several other street vendors started quickly packing up and moving on. Shortly after a little police ute came around the corner and had to work its way through the crowd. We didn’t get to see any results, but that ute wasn’t going to catch up with anyone given the crowds. Maybe they had other officers waiting at strategic points, who knows. Maybe the officers just wanted to appear in a few of the tourist photos.

Hoi An is picturesque place definitely, and some tourists bring serious hardware to try and get the perfect shot. Every tree with flowers on it has a queue for picture opportunities, every alley, and many shops too. There’s a tea place that every afternoon has crowds flocking to it, both for a takeaway cup complete with bamboo straw and flower sticking out, and to take a picture with the tea. Does the tea match the hype? Who knows, we haven’t been able to get close enough, but online reviews suggest it’s a pleasant herbal tea based around lemongrass and ginger, then sweetened with honey.

After a little bit of shopping we headed for dinner, one of our regular places known simply as “the porch place”, as it’s literally four tables at the front of a house, and informal dining at its finest. There’s a kitchen area somewhere out the back, but they also have random fires going in corners of the house, too. I love a place where if you order a beer, they bring you the bottle, bottle opener, and a random piece of glassware. Sure I appreciate a craft beer, served in a special glass that has never been near any sort of film-leaving detergent to impact on head retention, but sometimes a cold local brew served in a spotted glass that’s likely been washed in soapy water more times than I’ve had banh xeo is all I need. That and a plate piled high with Hoi An’s local noodle, cao lau, fried with pork, prawns, and vegetables. If I’d made it to Hoi An on the 7 Nation Noodle tour cao lau would have been included: it’s only found around this part of the world, and is made with local water and local ash, giving them a meaty, chewy texture. They are also slightly alkaline, so definitely not sour, though combine well in so many dishes. Beer and noodles for me, stir fried squid and a mango smoothie for L, dinner came out to around $11 AUD.

We’ve got a couple of ideas for tomorrow, there’ll be more clothes fittings, food, and possibly a trip up to check out some things in Da Nang. Nothing formal or organised yet, we’ll see how we feel in the morning and see what the weather has in store. I’ve still got some books to read, and there is still much food to be re-sampled, as I’ve only had one banh mi so far, and no sugarcane juice yet.