day seven: dec 22 Hội An - Huè

Citadel

The three hour drive from Hội An to Huè over the mountains and along the coastline can also be done by train. Oh - and if you're crazy that way inclined you can do it on bicycle (we met people who were). Either way you'll travel through Đà Nẵng, across the Hải Vân Pass, "Pass of the Ocean Clouds" which was once under the control of the US military and for centuries has marked the distinct border between north and south Vietnam. The trip is spectacular.

Once in Huè we checked in to the Camellia Hotel. With the slogans, "beyond expectations" and "we serve everything with heart" and smoking permitted in the foyer I had the feeling this wouldn't be our favourite stay. Smoking was also allowed in the breakfast dining room (and people did, while we ate). The staff were attentive but the lobby, pool area and 'oriental' over-styled rooms, desperately need a modern makeover. Some rooms included a plastic fantastic, and very dusty, bamboo garden in the corner of the room. Thankfully we required a larger room so ours came without.

The best thing to do when the hotel is bad is to get out! We attempted to walk from the hotel to the citadel but with broken paths and excavating of drains we opted for a rickshaw ride which was fabulous!

* Note: if you're heading to Huè be sure to have a rickshaw tour of the Old Town on your arrival. We left it to our last day but we should have done it on our first. The tour (depending on your guide) will give you invaluable insight into the America War according to North Vietnamese but, just as significantly, give you the bearings of this city.

We ate dinner at the Dong Ba Market. Whenever we've travelled in the past we've made certain we've learned a few key phrases. This time, probably because we were so focused on a relaxed flight (is there such a thing with children) we didn't but that didn't mean we couldn't make ourselves understood.

We watched a few stalls and noticed numerous take-away dishes being taken away by motorcyclists to nearby homes as well as diners frequenting this restaurant so we pointed at what the locals were eating and this is what we were served.  The ladies never left their foot-high stools as they grabbed at the prepared food at their fingertips. They assembled these dishes for us - pork skewers and peanut sauce, beef and noodles (chilled) with peanut sauce and you can see the stacks of fresh salad!

It was good and it was cheap.

day six: dec 21 Hội An (Mỹ Sơn tour)

We were desperate to get out of town and jumped at the suggestion of our guide to visit Mỹ Sơn "a cluster of abandoned and partially ruined Hindu temples constructed between the 4th and the 14th century AD by the kings of Champa" (wikipedia, n.d.)."

The site itself is beautiful and even if you have a few spare hours in your schedule I'd highly recommend a visit. The architecture is not dissimilar to ruins I've seen across Asia - reflecting the dominant religion over various periods - Buddhist, Hindi. Across Mỹ Sơn are those tell-tale craters - where the US forces carpet bombed during the war.

Back in Hội An we feasted on the local noodle dish, Cao Lau, although I think B was still dreaming of his toasted sandwich!

Silk lanterns

Later I had the final adjustments made on my tailored clothes at Yaly. And, for the record, they are worth every Australian dollar I spent on them. I've worn all three dresses and it won't be long before I wear the blouses too.

day five: dec 20 Hội An

There's plenty to see in Hội An and one thing that we missed seeing (and I wished we had have) is the town's well. The water from the wells is used to make authentic Cao Lau noodles.

What better way to broaden a culinary adventure and take home Vietnamese cooking techniques than to attend a cooking class? Red Bridge Cooking School is one of the two famous cooking schools in Hội An. We mentioned, in our booking, that we'd be bringing our children so they gave us the afternoon class. That way our kids didn't get in the way of other attendees and the staff could watch our kids when the kids lost interest in watching us cook. 

The Red Bridge Cooking School class began in the town where we visited the Hội An Cho (market) with a guide who talked us through the produce and some equipment used in Vietnamese cooking. I can just see and smell and dream of those fresh, fresh herbs!

From the market we took a boat along the river to the cooking school which is situated in superb, lush grounds.

We made 

• Seafood salad with Vietnamese herbs (from the garden) served in half a pineapple - Goi han san trong thuyen thom 
• Fresh rice paper rolls of shrimp - Chà giò tuoi
• Fresh rice paper - bánh uot (though, like so many things, it would be far easier to buy these than repeat the process of making, cooking and drying for two days.) 
• Hội An pancakes - Bánh xèo
• Vietnamese eggplant in clay pot - Cà tím kho tô
• Food decorations - trang ti

We were also given the recipes for sweet and sour sauce (sõt chua ngot), peanut sauce (sõt tuong dâu) and fish sauce (nuóc mam). 

An early dinner was served with a beer and the kitchen brought out a steamed ocean fish (cá hãp Viêt Nam) on a bed of fresh vegetables (even better than it sounds) once we'd devoured what we'd made. The setting was magnificent with the river flowing on one side and being enveloped by tall palms.

The meal was very satisfying, especially knowing we would take these recipes home to make later. We sipped our beer and rubbed our bellies and our children, still mildly interested in Lego, built towers at our feet. *Sigh* This is the life. 

Oh, except that when you have children most things don't go the way you think they will. B suddenly jumped up and starting running towards the river so I did too, towards him. All of a sudden he stopped and there, at the entrance to Red Bridge Cooking School, with its fine ornamental vases (and prefect lawns) he peed. 

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The thing about having tailor-made clothes is you are required to revisit the tailor for fittings so J suggested that after the cooking school he'd take the kids back to the hotel so I could visit the tailor. 

I was told later that when J ordered room service of toasted sandwiches and hot chips B exclaimed "Dad, this is the best dinner ever!" 

As I wandered through Hội An the town became dark and the streets buzzed with activity. It was later that night that I discovered the convenience of a rickshaw but I was happy walking. I came across a great shop, Metiseko. It was the fabric that caught my eye and drew me in.

Metiseko is owned and run by a French couple - she designs the prints but all are made in Hoi An - and each piece is made from natural silk or organic cotton certified Global Organic Standards. As well as clothing and accessories (the quilts were so beautiful but too heavy to take home - they do deliver) they sell fabric by the metre but beware, according to the owner (his name escapes me but he was lovely) their workshop closes at 5pm. It's "not a sweat shop.... And that's a good thing!"

From Metiseko I was pointed in the direction of another meal. I was getting hungry so I asked after a place, not too touristy, but with great, affordable Vietnamese food. Only a stones throw from Metiseko is Mai Fish. The owners (who also own Green Mango and Mango Room) want to serve good Vietnamese food - not street food and not fine dining - somewhere in the middle. This restaurant isn't like most 'restaurants' we frequented. It was far more Westernised - very comfortable with mood lighting but just what I was after.

Although it was now dark, it was still warm and humid so I ordered a fresh coconut and a mojito. Most places in Hội An have half price happy hour each day so the mojito was cheap but I resisted having two.

My duck curry came with an accompanying baguette. The curry was just perfect. It was fresh, the duck melted in my mouth and it was the right balance of spice and sweet. The only thing that left a sour taste in my mouth was knowing that J was having to get the kids through that messy part of the day (getting ready for bed) and that he wasn't there to share the meal and drinks with me.

Metiseko
Address: 03 Chau Thuong Van, Minh An
Telephone: 0510 3929278
http://www.metiseko.com/en/index

Red Bridge Restaurant & Cooking School
Address: Thon 4, Cam Thanh
Hoi An, Viet Nam
Tel: +84 510 3933 222
Mobile: +84 905 452 092
Email: info@visithoian.com
http://www.visithoian.com/redbridge/

Mai Fish
45 Nguyen Thi Minh Khai

day four: dec 19 Ho Chi Minh to Hội An

Lunch at Hội An markets.

Hội An Cho (markets) where you can buy anything from trinkets and souvenirs to meals, fruit, veggies, fish, freshly carved meat (slightly off-putting at the end of a hot day) and offal.

Hội An is beautiful. It's a ancient town making a living by catering to tourists and it does it well. You can see Hội An on foot or hire a cyclo rider to take you around for a small fee. Be sure to barter. I reduced the fee of one cyclo rider by two-thirds by bartering.

Prior to leaving for Vietnam I'd decided I wouldn't have any clothes tailor made. J had a bad experience in Thailand where he wasn't happy with the end product and consequently never wore his suit which eventually ended up at the op-shop. You can read scores of bad experiences online about tailors in Hội An.

So when I changed my mind (its hard when, in Hội An alone there are over 400 tailors) I decided I wouldn't compromise. After all if I was going to spend a portion of my holiday time at the tailor I wanted the best. I asked around in our hotel and a woman recommended Yaly Couture.

It wasn't going to be the cheapest place to have clothes made but I knew it would be cheaper than Australia and costs usually does reflect quality.

According to the recommendation Yaly has a 'label' (and she was literally referring to Yaly sewing their own label inside the clothes) and have operated in Hội An for thirty years. Yaly has three shop fronts and I went to Yaly 2. Once I showed interest in having clothes made I was shown a tower of magazine clippings and from there I literally tagged a few designs I liked, chose fabric, they took measurements and I was on my way. I was paired with Rebecca who was attentive and competent. Each time I visited (four times over two days) Rebecca would be there to take onboard suggestions for example the collar on the silk blouse looked much better in the magazine and was removed and replaced with a low cut round neckline in an hour.

I came away with 2 silk dresses, 1 chiffon dress, two silk tops and a cotton skirt for $280 AUD. All are fully-lined and the best thing about the silk is that I can wash it in my machine on a gentle silk cycle.

Yaly Couture

47 Nguyễn Thái Học, Hội An, Quang Nam province, Vietnam  

+84 510 3910 474