North and Central Part 2
Our next stop on the trip was Hoi An. This quickly became my favorite city in Vietnam. Hoi An is an ancient town and a former trading port during the 15th-19th C. It is filled with beautiful, ancient buildings and the town is an official UNESCO World Heritage site. The town itself is beautiful, the old quarter is built along a river and the streets are lined with beautiful shops (mainly tailors and restaurants). It is a shopper’s paradise; there are over 300 tailors in Hoi An, specializing in making custom clothes in less than 24 hours. My original plan was to have one jacket made; this immediately spiraled into a jacket, two pairs of shorts, a beautiful custom-made dress and a pair of shoes. It’s hard to say no!
After the first day of non-stop shopping, we shifted our focus again to the academic side of things. Following a walking tour of Hoi An, including a visit to the oldest house in Hoi An, we head to My Son ruins. Mỹ Sơn is a cluster of abandoned and partially ruined Hindu temples constructed between the 4th and the 14th century AD by the kings of Champa. We also took a cooking class and learned to make the traditional Northern Vietnamese foods that we all loved. Although I wasn’t particularly helpful, it was a ton of fun!
Our last day in Hoi An was spent wandering around the city, swimming in our hotel’s pool (such treat!) and picking up our tailored clothing. The highlight of our time in Hoi An was certainly the time spent at the My Son ruins. Although it did not have the splendor or size of Angkor Wat, it was still incredibly impressive and beautiful.
Photos at: ashleynerickson.tumblr.com