Vibrant Vietnam (Part 5): Ho! Ho! Ho! Christmas in Hoi An!

- December 25, 2024, Wednesday, Christmas.

- After spending the past four days in bustling Saigon, it was time to see a different side of Vietnam. My Christmas morning started with an extremely early flight to Danang, in central Vietnam. However, Danang was just a stopover since I was really on my way to Hoi An. Hoi An is a UNESCO World Heritage Site known for its well-preserved old town. It has been in my travel bucket list for more than a decade now, as it is not only historical, but also picturesque.

- Getting to Hoi An from Danang is easy as one can take a Grab car (advisable) or cab (but not advisable since rates need to be haggled). The trip from Danang to Hoi An lasts only 30 minutes to an hour. Many people choose to visit Hoi An from Danang as a day trip, but I really wanted to take my time and immerse myself in the old town (especially since my family will be joining me soon which meant I needed to slow down my pace). Speaking of which, the old town is a PEDESTRIAN AREA, so only walking and small vehicles like bikes or motorbikes are allowed. Cars and buses must be parked in designated parking spaces just outside the old town.

- After leaving my things and changing my clothes at the wonderful and cozy Ivy Hotel (located just beside the old town area!), I began my journey in the old town. One thing I need to clarify is HOW TO BUY TICKETS to visit the main sites of the old town, which often confuses visitors: 

1. Tickets are not sold in each location (like most other places around the world). They are only sold in ticket booths (easy to miss) strategically located near the border of the old town and the outside world, or very near popular tourist sites (some conveniently located ticket booths: Cong Nu Ngoc Hoa St. corner, Ba Mu Pagoda, middle of Le Loi Street). There are around 10 of these around the old town.

2. Each ticket is worth 120,000 Dong (as of writing this blog), good for 3 days, but only good for 5 sites total. Once you use up your ticket, you need to buy a new one. (It's easy to finish the 5 sites within one day....or half of the day, if you want to see a lot.) -- No, you can not buy a ticket to * just * one place of your choice. It's either you buy this ticket for 5 sites, or you don't buy a ticket at all (and you won't get to visit the sites). 

3. The list of destinations is grouped into categories. Per ticket, you can enter one museum, one major tourist site (the Japanese Covered Bridge, Quan Am Pagoda, Quan Cong Temple), and three more from the rest of the list (you can visit any of the old houses or assembly halls). There may be some additional activities that are part of the ticket. The ticket is scanned each time you use it so the system will have a record of the places you've been to.

4. The ticket comes with a map, with the ticket seller explaining these things to you. You may ask the ticket seller for more information.

- I bought my ticket at the ticket booth located in front of the Ba Mu Temple. The Ba Mu Temple is one of the sites that doesn't require a ticket.) Tucked in the middle of Hai Ba Trung Street, the Ba Mu Temple used to be a big temple from the 1600s, but only its ornate gate remains after so many wars and natural calamities. 

Trying to recreate a pre-aodai Vietnamese look.

Even though it's just the gate, it still looks nice! Can't imagine how the actual temple looked!

It's hard to find a photo of how the temple looked like back then!

- After getting my ticket I walked back to the Japanese Bridge to take photos of the facade. I'm glad I arrived really early because Hoi An can get really packed regardless if it's high or low season. Tour groups often arrive around 10AM, and I was there around 9AM (Hoi An pro tip!). The Japanese Bridge was built by the Japanese traders who resided in Hoi An in the 1600s. 

With a Nguyen Dynasty style aodai.

From the bridge across the Japanese Bridge.

- I dropped by Mot to have some cao lau (pork rice noodles) and mot (a special tea blend with lotus leaves, ginger, lime, lemongrass, and other ingredients). Soon after, I paid a visit to the Tran family chapel along Le Loi Street. The Tran family chapel was built by 19th-century diplomat Tran Thu Nhac, and is used as a worship hall by the family. The family still uses the hall until today.

The most famous mot spot along Tran Phu Street.

Mot and cao lau.

Tran Family Chapel.

Sitting area.

- Le Loi Street, based on my observation, appears to be the main artery of the old town, especially the part where it intersects with Tran Phu Street. Le Loi Street is also where majority of the prominent stores making custom clothes can be found. (These kinds of stores can be found all over the old town, even inside the market. However, the ones with excellent reviews tend to be found along this street.) Hoi An, by the way, is known for its extremely fast tailoring. People often have dressed, coats and trousers, and traditional outfits made. Me being me, of course it had to be an aodai! I found Peace Cloth Shop, which had the kind of fabric I wanted, and could make an aodai for me within a couple of hours. By the way, make sure you haggle a bit before settling on a price, but also be reasonable because it will depend on the complexity of the design as well as the kind of fabric to be used. As much as possible, do not pay full price, or do not pay at all before you see the final product. However, they often will ask clients to pay a 50% downpayment (which is still better than paying in full immediately.)

I was quite satisfied with our negotiation.

- Once I was happy with the transaction. I went to see the Hoi An Museum. Established in 1989, the museum concentrates on the history and culture of Hoi An. I'm not sure why, or maybe it was because of some renovations, I felt the museum didn't show too much despite its size. However, it was still an educational visit.

Hoi An Museum.

The lion head at the back was really really big!

Gallery featuring the effects of the Vietnam War on Hoi An.

- Next, I passed by the Trieu Chau (Teochew) Assembly Hall, though unfortunately closed (for the day?), the Hai Nam (Hainan) Assembly Hall, the Ong Pagoda (Quan Cong Temple / Chua Ong) and the Quan Am Pagoda. I then passed by the Hoi An Market, and the Phuc Kien (Fujian) Assembly Hall. If you notice, there are so many assembly halls and they are connected to different groups of Chinese people. These halls serve as meeting places, banquet halls, and venues for rituals for these specific groups of people. By the 1800s there were so many Chinese traders who came and stayed in Hoi An, so it made sense to them to find their own kind to form a support system.

Trieu Chau (Teochew/Chaozhou) Assembly Hall. It was closed when I went.

Hai Nam Assembly Hall.

Ong Pagoda (Chua Ong).

Main alter.

Quan Am Temple at the back part. I thought I didn't take a photo of the temple and I'm glad I did (this was the only photo I had, just realized.)

Hoi An Market.

It was a small market with many souvenirs, and some food stalls. It felt a bit stuffy but had many interesting things.

Phuc Kien (Fujian) Assembly Hall, the largest and most ornate assembly hall. (Bonus: I am Fujianese as well!)

I like their twin ceramic dragon statue!

Love the pracock doors! Would love to have this in my house.

Banquet table in the main hall.

- Later that afternoon I had lunch at Me Hoi An, it's a restaurant that also has a rooftop spot, but it was raining so couldn't enjoy the rooftop. However, I enjoyed my meal there (and had fun hiding from the rain). I killed time by going to the free cultural show that came with the Hoi An tourist ticket. They have three shows daily, and I wanted to see the 3:15 show before I go back to Peace Cloth Shop and fit/get my aodai. Unfortunately the show had just started when I arrived and it was a full house. I was willing to wait, but I helped the receptionist with a Korean family who didn't know where to buy the tourist ticket with my English, Korean, and my (extremely) broken Vietnamese. After that encounter, she allowed me to catch the show. It was standing room at the back, but I didn't really mind. I really just wanted to watch the show. Some people left early maybe because they got bored or didn't want to stand too long, so I had a bit more breathing space at the back. (Not complaining since I didn't need to wait for the next show!)

I couldn't remember the name of this cafe I saw randomly, but thanks to Google, I found out its name: Me Hoi An. I liked their mi quang (pork noodles with some broth.)

At the show.

Champa-style apsara dance.

Folk opera.

There was some sort of game at the end, and this guy in the blue jacket won and got a prize! (Also, Santa Claus looks like he's on a diet haha.)

- Once I got back to Peace, I was led to the fitting area at the second floor with other clients. The other clients were very happy with their custom clothes with minor to no adjustments. This was a good sign since going to Peace was a risk for me; it wasn't actually in my original list of tailors to have clothes made. Lo and behold, after fitting my peacock-motif aodai, it was perfect and I didn't need any more alterations! Extremely happy, and I paid around a million dong for this custom aodai. 

IT'S PERFECT!!!!

- That early evening, I went to the night market at the island right across the old town. The night market is accessibly by the pedestrian bridge near the Japanese Bridge. My priority was to have photos taken at the stalls selling traditional lanterns. They set it up in a way that is suitable for a photoshoot, and they often charge a minimal fee for guests who want to have their photos taken. (It's worth it, trust me!) 

I'm so happy that the staff was good at taking photos. I love how I look here!

She also knew how to direct me!

It was a rainy rainy evening.

- Finally, I wanted to try the lantern boats that allow people to release small paper lanterns to the Hoai River. There are many people selling tickets and paper lanterns (separate payment); you don't even have to find them because they will find you! There are several kinds of lantern boats, but I opted to get one with a roof because it was drizzling. The whole boat ride is around 30 minutes. (TIP: best time to book a boat is just around sunset, so around 5:30 or 6PM. There won't be too many people lined up yet, and easier to take photos because it's not too dark yet, but dark enough to see the light from the lanterns and the candles. Then towards the end of the ride, the will will have set and you'll see the lights from the boat's lanterns, the streets, and the floating lanterns. By the time you end your boat ride, that will be the time when people will form long queues to wait for their turn.)    

I was told that the paper lanterns are made of biodegradable material, and workers clean the river round the clock to make sure that the Hoai River will not get polluted. I think they have also installed some nets near the part where the river goes out to the sea (beyond the tourist area) to catch stray lanterns and other trash.

Wish before you release: I wished that my boatman had patience to take my photos HAHA. It took so much time for my boatman to get the hang of taking (nice) photos of me.

See, it's not too dark yet but you can clearly see the beautiful lights from the other boats, lanterns, and the streets.

My boatman. He's amazing (but can use help taking better photos heehee.) He seemed quite shy at first because he didn't speak much English, but thanks to Google translate we were able to have a nice conversation after he took my photos. He's actually really nice.

- After the boat ride, the rain stopped and I spent the rest of the early evening strolling through the streets and looking at the colorful lights, surveying the streets for interesting street food, and eating a banh mi for my actual dinner.

Hoi An at night.

I got this sticky rice banana thing. I liked it! It's like Thai sticky rice mango, but with banana instead. The only thing different, apart from the banana, is that they make a "sushi" (at least it seemed to me) out of the rice and banana, then grill the roll first. Once grilled, they chop the "banana sushi" and drizzle it with coconut milk.

Hoi An from the riverbank.

I really love this town so much.

I can stare at the lights all night. (As long as it's not raining and I'm not hungry.)

Japanese Bridge at night.

More lantern boats.

- I later found my way back to the hotel to dry off and rest. I'm so happy I had the time to see Hoi An with my own eyes and at my own pace before my family joined me. I knew I had limited time in Hoi An and I really just wanted to take as many memories as I can. However, I am glad that unlike most people who visit Hoi An for a day, I have two more days to spare to see the rest of Hoi An!