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After a surprisingly OK journey on the sleeper bus, we arrived in Hoi An at around 8am. We didn't know how to get to the hotel we'd booked so we got a taxi. Unfortunately, we couldn't check into our room until noon, so we left our bags and used the free computers to look up where to go to get some clothes made which is what Hoi An is famous for. We decided to go to the place that Emma got her dress made when she came in December. Dave wrote down the name of another tailor that had good reviews for suits.
We decided to go straight to the tailors - Nhat Lan, as we didn't know how long it would take and we only have 2 nights here. After a short walk we found the tailors and met Long, the lovely lady who owns it with her husband. We told her that Emma had recommended her to us and that I was looking for a dress. She was really nice and helpful and we eventually decided on a dress for me and a suit for Dave. As we got them both made there she gave us a discount and we got them both for $115 which we were very pleased with. We got measured up and she told us to come back at 8pm for a fitting, then we could collect them tomorrow. It's amazing how fast they can whip them up!
Now time for some breakfast! We found a cafe down the road and enjoyed a set breakfast while watching people walk past on the narrow street, and more tailors across the road - apparently there are around 500 tailors in Hoi An, it's amazing they can all stay in business!
Hoi An is a very pretty little town which received Unesco World Heritage status in 1999. The old buildings have stayed intact which makes the town look the same as it has for over a hundred years.
After breakfast we bought our ticket for the Old Town which gets you into 5 out of a possible 18 attractions. We planned to do a full day of sightseeing tomorrow as we were still quite tired after the overnight bus. We wandered along the picturesque riverside and browsed in a few shops on the way back to the hotel to check in. In the afternoon we had a nap and relaxed in the hotel for a few hours before heading out again at about 3pm.
We decided to visit one of the five attractions this afternoon, so headed to the Assembly Hall of the Fujian Chinese Congregation, which the Lonely Planet says is the best of the assembly halls in Hoi An. It began as a traditional assembly hall and was later transformed into a temple for the worship of Thien Hau, a deity from Fujian province. One of the small alters inside has small figures representing the 12 midwives, each of whom teaches newborns a different skill neccessary for the first year of life...apparently. Childless couples often go there to pray for children.
We still had a few hours to kill before our fitting so we wandered around a bit more and found a restaurant selling beer for 4000D (12p!). It was the local Bia Hoi which is Vietnam's own microbrew. It's brewed daily and delivered to places all over the country - meant to be drank straight away as there are no preservatives. So, we thought it would be rude not to stop for a couple! 6 beers and a packet of peanuts later and our bill came to $1.50!
Later on, the town came to life as we were lucky enough to be there on the night of the full moon which is 'Hoi An Legendary Night'. On this night of the month motorbikes are banned from the Old Town which is transformed into a magical land of silk lanterns and paper lanterns that you can pay a few Dong to send floating down the river. We ate dinner at a restaurant overlooking the river and watched the lantern stalls setting up. One was run by a very cute little boy and his mother. We saw people walk past and stop to take photos of him as he was so cute, and noted that the other stallholders stood no chance against him! At the restaurant we had a set menu of Vietnamese food including Cau Lau, a local speciality of thick noodle soup with pork, and fried wantons which were delicious! After buying a lantern each from the cute little boy (we had to!), we wandered around a bit more before going back to Nhat Lan to try on our clothes!
We were amazed by the work Long had done since that morning. My dress was gorgeous and fit perfectly, and all that she had to do was tidy up some of the stitching. Dave's suit also fit perfectly and all she had to do was hand sew on the buttons. We left feeling very happy with our purchases and arranged to go back tomorrow afternoon to collect them. We stopped at a bar for a few drinks but were both very tired so went back to the hotel for an early night.
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