Hoi An by day

Hoi An is a town blessed by its beauty.  The Thu Bon River divides the ancient old town from the newer, but only slightly updated, new town.  In theory, tourists are meant to pay a small fee to enter and wander around the old town's sites.  In reality, this is poorly policed.  

Old town by day--magical by both day and night but the day pictures are clearer.  The houses are built in the traditional style and it's like entering a time warp, but in a good way. Sadly, Hoi An is also very susceptible to flooding; in fact the city's residents build with this in mind and can readily move furniture from the ground to first floor.  But many of the historical properties mark where water levels have risen to in the past.  It's a fitting reminder about the futility of mankind. 

Doom and gloom aside, the walking district oozes charm.  

The old town is filled with an array of historic pagodas, houses and delicious restaurants and the streets are bike and pedestrian only.  

 Hoi An is also the home of Vietnam's tailoring trade and every third building houses men and women touting their handmade clothing, shoes and coats.  

Competition is fierce and on one particular wander I made the decision to frequent a small shop on a side street near the river.  I showed my lady a photograph of a dress; we argued about the material.  She took a deposit for half the price of the dress.   When I arrived and tried on the creation the next day, Miss tried to convince me that I could get away without wearing a bra, that half a side boob sticking out  was classy, that the dress looked great.  I looked like a hooker.  We argued; she agreed to 'fix' it.  And in a feat of return to high school dealing with problems, I lost my deposit and never returned.

Lesson: do your research if you plan on having clothes made in Hoi An.  

This was our only negative experience in the city though.  Almost every meal was amazing--we stuck to the mantra of eat as the Vietnamese do and avoided overly tourist-filled, Lonely Planet recommended restaurants.  

Ban xeo and Chinese-style wontons 

On average, we paid $12 total for a meal including beer, sometimes 'Bia Hoi', an alcoholic concoction sure to turn any hypochondriac into an understatement.  Bia hoi is the Vietnamese equivalent to craft beer/home brew only it's not regulated by any health agency.  It can be found all across the country, in small bars, restaurants and your average street side food cart or portable pub:

Besides being delicious, bia hoi also happens to be very cheap.  At roughly 24 cents a glass, we toasted our hosts and downed a few glasses.