Jan 27, 2012 - Rocker57, his 3rd sister & hubby and I embarked on our 4D/3N journey to Danang, Vietnam. Danang is the coastal area in Vietnam where AirAsia has their stop apart from Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi. We did not stay in Danang but chose to stay at Hoi An instead (river township), about 40 minutes drive from Danang. The distance is not very far but due to stringent speed limits, cars do not exceed 60 kph!! For city folks who are rushing all the time, the ride was a crawl!
 |
| The 4 star hotel we stayed for entire stay. Notice me the 4th star? |
We stayed at Hoi An Pacific Hotel which is situated along side the river. Strategically located along the main street where food & souvenir shops are aplenty. Daily, we just stroll along the main road in search for food. Our first meal upon arrival was just next to the hotel. A simple and tasty local beef noodle soup - Pho. (photo on left)
 |
| Beef noodle....simple yet tasty. |
I like that the food here are all harvested & made locally. Natural and full of flavour & healthy too. In Hoi An, we visited the Lantern road, had a river boat ride and relish their local cuisine both in restaurants and shops. We also stopped by at the bridge built by the Japanese way back then..1900's
Strangely, in Hoi An, almost all the entrepreneurs use a portion of their house to conduct their business, either F&B, souvenirs, etc and live at the back portion or upstairs. Now, that is what I call, SOHO - small office, home office!
 |
| lantern road, many different types of lantern, Hoi An |
 |
| Japanese made bridge behind me. Hoi An |
 |
| Marble mountain, Danang. |
Danang is shopping haven but not the kind of shopping we were looking for. So we spent more time at cafes watching the world go by along the coast but we did visit 1 mall. We also visited the marble mountain, a private beach, museum & also to savour the Pho 24 beef noodle that we had the last time we were in Ho Chi Minh City. We were 'tricked' into thinking that the climb up the marble mountain would be treacherous and difficult. So we opted for the easy way out - paid 30,000 dong per person (I think) to use the bubble elevator two way ticket! Little did we know the climb was a mere 5 minutes down!! So, we rode up but walked down. Looks CAN seriously be deceiving!!!
 |
| Danang private beach, endless sandy beaches & inviting sea |
Next, Hue Imperial City. Similar to Forbidden City in China but many scales smaller. Having seen the Forbidden City, Hue Imperial City was a quick walk for us. But we did have an emperor's meal that costed the 4 of us 1,000,000 dong! It was worth the money for the unique blend of food, creativity and excellent service despite the crowd.
 |
| Entrance to Hue Imperial City |
We made our local ground tours in Hoi An at a fraction of the cost offered online and by the hotel. Unfortunately, all our guides speak no English but with google...we are good as long as we get to visit the sites.
All in all, a good place for relaxation & going back in time. In terms of price? Inclusive flight, accommodation and food, etc...about RM1,200 per person, so cheap yet so rewarding.
The thing that most caught my mind was this ....see pictures below : I love the simplicity and creativity.
No comments:
Post a Comment