Yes, husband day care centers, known in other parts of the world as bars. Now go shop!
Imagine Bill Gates walking up to an ATM machine to get cash: Unlimited cash is available, just plug in your pin number. Well Hoi An sees itself as a Bill Gates and you, the tourist machine, as the ATM. And believe me it has your pin number. The town knows how to extract every last penny from you. From selling tickets to old town ‘museums’, to selling tailored clothing, and just selling plain junk. Hoi An is like a Mexican coastal town that completely transforms itself when a cruise ship disembarks. So if you think you’re getting a taste of the local culture, and you want a local taste
The ‘day care staff’ waiting to attend to the husband-child.
of culture, well you’re not.
So how did Hoi An get this way? Hoi An has been recognized as a world heritage site by UNESCO mainly because it’s a centuries old seaport where many of its ancient streets and houses remain intact. OK, we saw them and they were kind of cool. It was also a cultural and economic crossroad from the 16th to the 19th century.
An old and, I guess, famous old bridge built during the prosperous times. You had to use one of your tickets to go across the bridge.
Then in the 19th century the decline began, so why not tap into the tourist trade? We’ve got cool old stuff to see and we can sell them our textiles, which we like to make, and other stuff. We’ll build nightclubs, fancy restaurants, and hotels. It also has many many pagodas, temples, and tube houses. And if you like gawking at old woodwork and ancient architecture, you can find it here.
An example of the cool old architecture in Hoi An. See. I can say something positive.
In all fairness, it is a quaint and attractive small city. Just know what you want to see and do your homework before getting here, so that any superfluous stuff can be avoided. We didn’t and paid the price. But Hoi An is photogenic. So let’s concentrate on the positive.
The temple museum place with ornate statues. Another place you had to use one of your tickets to enter. This one was worth it.
The only ‘museum’ worth the price of admission is the one with all the ornate dragons and stuff. The other ‘old’ house museums offer a few photo moments, but can be skipped. With the photos that follow I try to express the dynamic that is Hoi An. From the tourist hustle, to the true locals just trying to make it.
Another nice spot to visit if you’re not Buddhaed out, is Marble Mountain. It’s on the way to Danang from Hoi An, which is probably where you’ll need to go to catch transportation to your next
Marble Mountain Temple place. On the way from Hoi An to Danang. Worth the stop.
destination.
So if your time visiting Vietnam is limited and you don’t want to feel trapped like a monkey in a cage, skip Hoi An. Spend more time in Hanoi or Cat Ba Island. Maybe even go north of Hanoi, which we didn’t have the opportunity to do. If you do go north, report back and tell us what we missed.
Hike Drink Live Laugh
Tourists getting fitted in local attire. Just trying to fit in.
After acquiring the proper attire, it’s time to see the sites. A proper photo stance is necessary to produce quality work.
Carrie, Jan, and Rich preparing to enter old town. Not all locals see results of all this money inflow.
Locals, doing it the old way. This was near the old market.
Making baskets for the tourists to purchase. I wonder what her profit margin is?
Another local making a local delivery. 30 minutes or less or it’s free.
More locals at work. Preparing tourist wares in an alley.
Hoi An architecture and window decorations.
Just a cool wall sculpture. I think it was an entrance to a store. I just thought that it looked cool.
Traditional furniture exhibit at one the ‘museums’ we visited. This one required one of your tickets to enter. Photo softness added by yours truly (artistic license?)
Another museum piece and another ticket spent. Cool model though.
Walking the streets, looking for cool stuff for photo opportunities.
Broken dinnerware arraigned rather artistically in a pond, I thought.
Just on the edge of town were these beautiful communal gardens that were still farmed using traditional methods.
More from the communal gardens just on the edge of Hoi An. Not surprisingly, they even had tours to see the farmers at work With the price of the tour you got a ‘pointy hat’. It was pretty funny to see all the gringos in these Vietnamese hats.
Looks like hard work, no? We watched him for a while. He would go to the well, dip each can into it until full, then walk up and down the rows watering as he went. Damn!
And lastly, this eerie looking building inside one of the cave-temples at Marble Mountain. Indiana Jones or Zombie Apocalypse?
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Me in lime and you in red. Both in Berets with long cigarette holders (unlit) and canes with silver metal tops shaped like cat heads. Da girls would swoon from Hanoi to Phukit!
Love Love Love the pictures! They are great!
You always were the fashion maestro, Joe! And you’re right, who could resist. Glad you like the picture.