Hot for Hoi An

We are back! Boy, much to update about this hot trip. Firstly, it was a tad short. Probably my fault for not checking out the flights as we had wasted about 2hrs taking this flight as it had a connection to stopover at Siem Reap.

Direct flights to Danang is available and is about 2hrs plus. Secondly, I can't ride a bike. It was just overwhelming for me, but I love being a pillion rider as long as someone is willing to take my load. It was super fun but I'm sure it'd be much more fun if I had and could ride the bike myself. The feeling of wind blowing your hair and face plus Hoi An is 'deserted' enough to ride quite safely and almost recklessly, it was fun, fun, fun! At first, I had to hold on to Sim but gradually, I mustered up the courage to just hang myself via the back of the bike without having to hold on to my dear life by wrapping my hands on Sim's f(l)abulous shoulders. We wanted to extend our bike rental for the last day but unfortunately, we couldn't come to terms with the prices the store was charging us so we opted to return the bikes and travel by taxi. Taxi wasn't cheap - we paid about VND350,000 (USD20) for a 30mins plus ride from Hoi An to the bustling Danang.

I wish there was more time so I can laze by the beach. It was great that we chose an off peak season as practically the hotel, beach and restaurants were like 'exclusively' ours for the 3 days we were there. But that means, I don't have much people to watch, which is typically what I like to do on the beach - bum oggling as I call it. Nevertheless, we had fun pretending the 'island' was reserved privately for us.

If we had more time, we could explore more places in Hoi An but that would mean poor Sim would have to take me along as his piggyback rider. He must have missed out the joy of riding dangerously by himself if I weren't pillion.

Thirdly, the food was quite a disappointment. Didn't have anything that excited our palates too much. The water spinach cooked in garlic was just about the highlight for the trip. Duh. Even the pho was good to great and not even excellent or maybe we had our expectations set up too high?

Fourth, we figure this area is going to be quite a hot tourism place in about a year's time. When we were there, so many constructions were going on by 'branded' hotels such as Le Meridien, Hyatt etc. Most of the establishment were local branded ones but gradually, you see the foreign forces coming in. This oughta tell you something. We found out that it costs about USD95,000 to own one's personal (retirement) pad in Hoi An. Not a bad idea if you think about it - provided it doesn't become overly commercialized like your Phukets and what nots. We joked around we should consider buying and investing in real estates here... Probably Hoi An is the next retirement paradise? The pace and lifestyle is easy and laid back. It is great if you have dough in the bank and looking for simple and peaceful life.

All in all, it was fun for me. Might have missed out some details here and there but can't wait for next group trip with the rest.