Let me take you for a leisurely stroll around the
neighbourhood......
Heading down the street from our hotel towards
the Old Market:
It was early morning and unnaturally quiet......
sites:
Lots of new construction taking place:
From what I gather, properties are assessed on the width of
the frontage so Vietnamese homes, both old and new,
tend to be tall and narrow.....
Colourful plants......
Pre-school and Kindergarten.......
One of the many vendors selling street food.
The Vietnamese tend to eat out a lot, street food is inexpensive,
tasty and you can just pull up to your table on your bike! It's
also a great place to socialise.
It's getting busier! Bikes are often left on the sidewalk and pedestrians end
up walking on the road!
I'm getting really good at spotting the good fortune and
prosperity shrines! Do you see this one?
Lots of flower sellers......
The pavements are often used as an extension of the store...
And, a sign of the horrific air pollution that is prevalent both
in Vietnam and Cambodia.....
Most kids and adults wear these masks when travelling.....
Although I doubt they offer little, if any, protection.
By law, it's compulsory for adults to wear helmets although
many don't bother. No such law exists for young children, so,
you also often see this.....
Four-on-a -bike, parents with helmets and kids without!
Lots and lots of fabric stalls and sewing centres......
You can get an outfit made in a few hours!
And then buy the jewellery to go with it!
We were heading to the Old Market.....
The traffic rules are made up as you go along.......
The power lines fascinated me - I'd hate to be the hydro guy!
This is a photo taken in SaiGon but it's the same all over.
We passed this shop selling beautiful hand-painted silk
lampshades:
and a husband who was being put to work, and yes, they
do drive like this!!!
Scary thought!!!
Stores selling beautiful crafts of every description.
The problem with shopping in Asian countries is that
you can't just browse like you do back home. Even if
you just walk by a store, the owners will come out and
try and get you to buy something." Madam, Madam" is
a frequent cry. And then if you do buy something, they're
after you to buy something else and so it goes on......
And that's even before the haggling begins!
So, knowing what we were heading into.....
We headed here to have our java jolt for the day:
The Hoi An Roastery where we went for our daily cup
of java. We met the owner and his partner, he from
Holland and she, from South Africa, and she kindly
showed us how to tie colourful scarves as headgear! Note to
self: need to get some practice in!
We were heading here......
A tailor shop in the Old Town where Anna had ordered several
articles of clothing, bespoke and made of pure silk.
Here she is signing the contract with ALL the family
looking on. It almost looks like the Paris Peace Accord!
Agreement was made on a price and a deal was struck!
I don't know who came off the better!
Not to be outdone of course, I had this brocade
shirt made for me:
Which I love - now.......where will I wear it??
Across the road, this riot of colour:
Scarves of every description- but which one to choose?
No wonder shopping here gave us a headache!
We headed back to our hotel, past more flower stalls:
At first I thought the yellow flowers on the left were
tulips - but look closer.....
They're a variety of chrysanthemum and the heads are
each individually wrapped in plastic netting:
All that shopping was stressful -:)
So......before heading out again in the opposite direction....
we stopped off for a little de-stressor..... or two......
Later on that day........ and heading in the opposite direction:
It was getting colder......
Lots of rice paddies....
Another bad hair day. That's my new silk and cashmere scarf
from Cambodia - love the colour!
Each rice plug is planted individually by hand - back
breaking work.
But lots of encouragement from the billboards.........
A walk along Hoi An beach..... look what we found:
and lots of small vegetable gardens belonging to
home owners....
Green beans and lettuce are popular...
and hot peppers of course:
And then back for dinner.....
Pork ribs- I could have eaten more!
And, an early start in the morning, as this is where we
were heading:
To catch a flight to our final stop, Hanoi.
Talk soon
Zoe
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