The lights of Hoi An (SEA 89)

Last post: On the train – Third class to Da Nang (SEA 88)

The train arrived in Da Nang at 2:30 am. In front of the main station I had to avoid the moto drivers. I´d like to save money and I will take the local bus to Hoi An. So I went back into the main station and had a three hours sleep on one of the wooden seats.

On the opposite side of the main station was a small bus stop and after 10 minutes of waiting I jumped on an old bus in direction Hoi An. The bus was also a school bus and after a while I was sitting in the middle of many boys and girls in school uniform. Especially the girls where grinning about an European looking guy with a backpack and far too little sleep. On the bus it was like in many other Asian countries. There was a driver and a young guy wearing flip flops who was collecting the fare from all the passengers.

In Hoi An I had to avoid the moto drivers for one more time and after a 30 minutes walk I found a small hostel near the city center. From there I walked into the old streets of the UNESCO Heritage city and enjoyed the atmosphere. Sometimes it seems that you are in a small city in south Italy. The city is full of art and souvenir shops and it is full of tourists. You have to search and look twice to find the places where the locals are but you can find them. First I found a small unremarkable café where I was the only tourist in between all the locals. So I enjoyed my Cha Phe there. And for lunch I found a street food stall owned by an old lady preparing very delicious Banh Mi. So I took seat on one of the small plastic chairs and had a Vietnamese style baguette.

On the evening I went out with two or three guys from my hostel and we had diner and a few beer next to the river of Hoi An. It is the best place during the evening when you can see all the light reflecting on the water.

Next post: Relaxing at the An Bang beach (SEA 90)