Hoi An | Our Adventures

This is my third and final year in Malaysia. Heidi has returned home to be closer to family and is now the Elementary Principal in Chelan, Washington. We are calling her Principal Busk, 2.0…a new and improved model over Principal Busk, 1.0 (me).

For both of us, this will be a most trying year. We are not used to being apart and it has proven to be a lot harder than we thought (at least harder than I thought…Heidi knew all along) We have Facetime and SKYPE, messaging and e-mail. I have an International Calling Plan so I can call home without the horrific charges. We have Magic Jack where we can call for free. I will be coming home in October and December and Heidi is set to come here in April…but some long stretches in between. But when we start feeling sorry for ourselves, we think of all the service men and women who are away for much longer stretches and often placed in harms way. In comparison, our separation is a walk in the park.

I debated long and hard whether or not to continue the blog, but have decided to continue on. I love documenting our (my) time here and it is just fun to write….. So….here goes.

VISITOR
The first visitor in year three was Kelly Kurz. Kelly was backpacking through SE Asia before heading home to the USA and then back to Africa. As usual, it was fun to show someone around, but Kelly was pretty independent and a seasoned traveler and didn’t need much guidance. The Kuala Lumpur Grand Prix was in town…cars racing through the streets of Kuala Lumpur..Ear plug noisy they careened through the streets at break-neck speeds with stick-like-glue cornering…amazing driving!!! Fun to watch!!!

: Vrrooom, vroom, vroom

: So fast it was a blur

: Kelly at the towers

: They also had a Ferrari and Lamborghini races.

: Watching the races

EATING LOCAL
Went to eat breakfast at a local Dim Sum spot. Dim Sum is a style of Cantonese cuisine prepared as small bite-sized portions of food. A bunch of us from school went to this out of the way spot….wall to wall with local Chinese Malays all hungering for the famous Dim Sum. The servers come to your table with these huge platters of food…each platter different from the one before. You take your chopsticks and grab what you want. I didn’t know what I was ordering..that was part of the fun. I had some pork, some octopus, some vegetable, and the rest I just ate blind. Some delicious, some hard to swallow. It was an experience!!!

: I could not even guess what half the food was.

: Ordering.

: Your guess is as good as mine.

: They used the scissors to cut each serving into smaller pieces.

: Not sure, but it was good.

: Finished!!!

: The steamers.

: Pulling out another platter!!

BACK TO HOI AN
I had a three day weekend so I zipped up to Vietnam and the historic town of Hoi An. This is by far my favorite city and Vietnam is my favorite country. Had to pick up some more lanterns and a few odds and ends. Mainly went to just veg on the beach, a chance to get away from Kuala Lumpur. Road a bike out to An Bang Beach…almost empty. The water crystal clear and warm, the sand soft. An Bang is at the southern end of what was known as China Beach during the war. You could close your eyes and picture the beach swarming with GIs relaxing during a short R&R, a chance to escape from the horrors of war.
Got to watch two fishermen. They used this funny little round coracle to let out about a quarter mile of net. The coracle looks like a ball cut in half. The fisherman used only one oar and feathered it one way or the other to move the coracle through the water. The other fisherman stood on shore with the other end of the net. When all the net was let out, the coracle came to shore a little ways up the beach making a huge arch. Then both fishermen started pulling in the net, making the arch smaller and smaller. Once most of the net was pulled in, both fishermen walked in the area where the fish were trapped and caught the fish by hand. The strangest thing. I thought they would have just pulled the net up on shore and then harvested the fish, but no, they caught them by hand. The whole process took about an hour and a half and they pulled out about 40 fish. They told me their family will have fresh fish for awhile.

: Pulling in the net.

: Pulling in the ned from the coracle.

: Inside the coracle.

: caught the needle fish by hand.

: hamming it up for me!!!

: took forever to get the fish out of the netting.

: part of the harvest.

: Another coracle

: A coracle with a crab/fish trap.

Assorted pictures of Hoi An

: Lotus Blossom drink for sale…very popular.

: Little stools everywhere to sit…just pull up a stool !!!

: The old Japanese Bridge.

: Pretty as a picture.

: A wedding photo shoot.

: Lazing down the river

: Could not figure out the way this game was played..they were serious players.

: Domino game…lots of men sitting around playing games, gambling, having a good time.

: Doughnuts for sale.

: Fresh fruit for sale

: On the river…waiting to give rides to tourists.

: Simple arrangement.

: Easy way to carry things.

: Lots of Japanese in town…love those kimonos

: water buffalo cooling off.

: This is how I cooled off!!!

: The road less traveled

: My spot on the beach…almost empty.

: Nice and quiet, peaceful.

: All to myself!!!

: “China Beach” our of Da Nang

: fishing on the river.

: A Vietnamese scarecrow.

: My new friend.

: Beautiful Lily pads

In a couple of weeks I’m heading up to Cameron Highlands…about a four hour drive and home to large tea plantations and strawberry farms. In October I’ll be going “Down Under” to Melbourne, Australia and December I’m heading to Chiang Mai, Thailand. Not quite the same without Heidi, but someone has to do it!!!

The train dropped us off in Da Nang.

During the 60’s, Da Nang was used as a major US airbase. The airport at that time was one of the busiest in the world. Today the Da Nang International Airport sits on the site of the old military airstrip. Some of the old reinforced concrete quanset hut hangers are still being used to house fighter jets. Da Nang has grown up a lot since the sixties and is quite modern with new glass and steel high rises. A river runs through town and six different bridges have been built over the water including one that looks like a dragon. At night this bridge changes color and each Saturday at 8:30 PM crowds come to watch the “Dragon” blow smoke, fire, and water. Da Nang hugs the coast and is home to one of Vietnam’s most picturesque beaches, a white sandy 21 mile stretch of beach nick-named China Beach by the American troops. Today it goes by Da Nang Beach or Non Nuoc Beach or My Khe Beach. High end resorts have sprouted up along the shore as well as spas, restaurants and golf courses. Very little is left to remind one of the days this beach was used for R & R for the troops.

Our destination is the lovely city of Hoi An. We stayed at Anantara resort, right on the river. We booked riverview rooms and they were exquisite. We all made afternoon plans…Heidi, Nanci and Gregg wanted massages, Jamie chose to lay by the pool, and I went exploring.

Anantara Resort

: Reception/check in area.

: welcome cold towels, treats and ice tea

: Some of the grounds

: More of the grounds

: nice seating everywhere

: Jamie’s favorite spot

: The river below

: Lunch…boy were we hungry

: club sandwich

: Chicken burger

: our deck

: Relaxation

: flower decoration

Hoi An
Hoi An is simply a jewel. A UNESCO World Heritage Site, this ancient city is so well preserved. The “old part” of town is free of cars and scooters, walking and biking only. Tailor shops are EVERYWHERE. Heidi was measured for a dress in the morning and it was done that evening. They are masters at sewing. I do believe Heidi came away with several skirts, some funky pants, and the dress. Jamie chose jewelry and tops. I got art work. And we all selected several silk lanterns. Hoi An is famous for their beautifully crafted bamboo and silk lanterns. Shops are everywhere and the colors mind boggling. We actually had to purchase another suitcase to bring them home. Great places to eat. Art galleries. Museums. A vibrant farmers market. A jewel of a city.

Faces of Hoi An

Lanterns

: In progress

: Selecting the silk

The Market

: noodles drying in the sun

: Best way to carry things

: wide variety

: Fresh papaya

: goods for sale

: locally grown

: Fresh produce

: How many eggs can you fit into a basket without breaking any?

: banana anyone?

: flower vendor

: Chiles drying

: eggs are rarely refrigerated

Free Hoi An bicycle tour
Jamie stayed by the pool but Heidi, Gregg, Nanci and myself signed up for a free bicycle tour of nearby Kim Bong Island. Led by college students trying to perfect their English, the tour gave us a chance to see some local life. Hanh was our guide, a 21 year old student majoring in English. She was adorable, smart, witty, and took her job seriously. She led us through the streets and traffic to the dock and our ferry to the island. Once on the island we stopped at a boat making shop, a wood carving shop, a school, a temple, a noodle making shop, and a home where they make sleeping mats. The trip is advertised as free but we did pay a an amount to present to the people we visited. For all the wonders we found in Hoi An, the reality is it is situated in one of the poorest provinces in the country. Apart from the glamour of the tourism-enriching little town, there is much poverty.

: A ferry similar to ours

: Hanh, the best guide ever!!!

: Boat making…all by hand.

: Carving shop

: Tools of the trade.

: Fish…all hollowed out.

: Working the fields

: in the field

: In a rice field

: Surrounded by rice

: Rice

: rice field

: making rice noodles

: Heidi with noodle mentor.

: Water buffalo

: Gregg getting schooled by a 95 year old mat maker

: strong, a little hard of hearing, but AMAZING

: great hands

: They make a matt in a little over an hour..fast as lightening.

: cows on the side of the road

: town from the ferry

: at the middle school

: inside the temple

: corn drying in the sun

: I ride my bike!!!

: riding through small roads and trails

: walking a bamboo bridge

: local fishermen

Lantern Festival
We arrived on a full moon so we were able to partake in the lantern lighting festival. You purchase these candles in a basket and set them into the river after making a wish. Very lovely!!