Hoi An

Beautiful Hoi An, quaint lantern lit streets, colonial buildings, Japanese covered bridge... the perfect place to be when you suddenly realise your visa is about to expire and an urgent extension is required.

We decided to enrol in Mrs Vy’s cooking school determined enhance our culinary skills. The class started with a walk around the market where we learnt about some of the weird and wonderful ingredients that contribute to unique Vietnamese cuisine. We learnt to make fresh spring rolls, crispy pancakes, marinated chicken on a scewer and green mango salad – Proudly still our best meal yet!

The South Africa vs. France game took place while we were in Hoi An. Prior to the game an unfortunate Englishman called Andy joined us for dinner and before he could even protest was smothered in South African tattoo’s, cheering for Bafana and downing jagerbombs for every goal scored. Following our big win we ended up taking the party bus to the beach and continued the celebration until the early hours. Gayle paid the biggest price the following day as her hangover confined her to the hotel room the entire day. Not even a papaya fruit shake could coax her out of the air-conditioned sanctuary.

Between all the fun and indulgence we managed a trip to the Cham Towers of My Son, a trip to the beach, a group pedicure and practically filled an entire backpack with tailor made impractical clothes and shoes.

Hue

Travel fatigue momentarily got the better of us and arriving in the heat of the day did no favours for our initial perception of the cultural capital of Vietnam. After camping out in the hotel room we woke up the next day full of motivation to give Hue is due.

We hired bicycles and spent the day exploring the impressive Citadel and the Imperial city as well as the Thien Mu Pagoda. Feeling inspired by these impressive sights we finally decided to sample the dreaded birds nest tea, supposedly good for the skin but not so appealing to the palate. We then boarded yet another night bus Hanoi bound.