Hoi An, Vietnam

PHOTO ALBUM 1: Hanoi, Vietnam (link)
PHOTO ALBUM 2: Hoi An, Vietnam (link)

We drove back the next day to Hanoi and the four of us decided it would be best to start traveling south so we booked a bus trip that night down to Hoi An. Since we booked so late, all the seats on the sleeper bus (the bus with beds and a toilet, $23) had been taken so we had to book seats on the sitter bus (the bus without beds nor a toilet, $15). The sleeper bus was 13 hours direct to Hoi An , but our sitter bus was 14 hours to Hue, Vietnam, a 3 hour layover, and then another 4 hour bus ride to Hoi An. So when we got to the bus station that night it was pouring down rain, so we got a little wet. When we finally got on the 40 seat coach, we found that there were no more seats and that the bus company had overbooked the bus. They expected us to sit on the floor even though we had paid for a seat. Needless to say, we were not very happy with this arrangement. I mean, just by principal, you shouldn’t make people pay for something that you promised to provide and then not provide it. I had heard of overbooking flights, but never buses. After 30 minutes of confusion by the bus company personnel and a very pissed bus driver at having to sit there and work more than he was supposed to, they finally got a van to carry the 4 people that we only going half the way. I got a seat between Carlee and an older Vietnamese gentlemen on the back row. With the honking of the bus’s horn and a crying baby, it was quite hard to fall asleep the first 2 hours. There were no lights on in the town and only every so often would we see some people sitting on the side of the road selling drinks. The only other people we saw were two girls riding a bicycle down the dark street. It seemed quite eerie. I was finally able to fall asleep, although I was awoken every often when the bus stopped for a toilet break. Every time we stopped, the bus would fill with gnats which stuck to our sweat considering there wasn't airconditioning. A couple times there weren’t even restrooms in the bathroom stops, there were just walls that served as the toilet. When daylight finally broke we had been going for 12 hours or so. The numbers on the bus were dwindling as many of the Vietnamese got off on the side of the road before we reached Hue.

When we finally got to Hue at 10: 30 am, we had to wait till 1:30 to catch another bus to get to Hoi An. We decided to walk around the city. We went into the city's center which was surrounded by a moat and had large castle like walls all around the city. It seemed to be very touristy. Once we got near the citadel in the center of town, we realized we had to get back so we tried to get a motorbike taxi, but unfortunately motorbike taxis were not allowed in the city's center and there was not much other option for getting back. Tensions were a little high when it was getting closer and closer to the time that our bus was leaving and we still couldn't find a motorbike taxi. Some guys on bicycles saw that we wanted motorbike taxis so they rushed out to get their bikes and were waiting as we got out. We finally got back for our bus and the company had overbooked it again so one girl had to be squeezed up front. There seems to be a common theme of overbooking buses in Vietnam. The four hour bus ride along the coast was not bad at all. We finally got to Hoi an after a 20 hour trip or so (in total), so it was nice to be done with the buses for a while. We went around asking if the small hotels had room, but everything was full for the night. After searching for 45 minutes, we finally found a place that had one room open which we gladly took. We walked around town and saw the many shops and markets. Hoi An is known for getting clothing tailor made and for its beaches. Next to the river there were small makeshift cafés with plastic tables that served as sugar cane juice. The vibrant orange sunset fell over the river with smaller ferries carrying many Vietnamese with their motorbikes and bicycles down the river to their homes. We ate at this small makeshift eating place on the street with some small plastic tables and step stools as chairs communicating with the lady selling the food mainly with fingers and pointing due to the language barrier. Hoi An's older buildings creates a nice atmosphere.

The next day we rented some bicycles and rode the 3 miles down to the beach. It was quite thrilling riding among tons of motorbikes and them zooming around you. We even got a UNC shoutout from a Caucasian girl riding the opposite direction because she saw one of our UNC t-shirts. That was quite a surprise in the middle of Vietnam. The beach there was beautiful and the water quite refreshing. You did have to watch out for jellyfish, but that was quite alright. There were large mountain islands in the distance and it was really nice in the South Chin Sea. During the night, many westerners had congregated in a part of the town with modernized nightlife with a line of bars and signs on the outside publicizing their “happy hours”. We went around town on one of the Brit’s rented motorbike. It was kind of eerie driving through the streets that late at night because everything was quiet and completely empty.