I never really realized how big Vietnam actually is. When looking at a map, it simply appears to be a short stretch of land along the southeast Asian peninsula but in reality it’s over two thousand miles long, about the distance from Los Angeles to Charlotte, NC. Because of this, our tour operator correctly booked us internal flights to see as much of the country as we could and our next stop was an hour and half flight away to the city of Hoi An.

Hoi An

Hoi An is located in the middle of the country and is essentially part of the Da Nang metro area. While Da Nang houses most of the local population, Hai An is a large tourist community known for its food, nightlife and textiles with tailors and clothing shops everywhere you go. We spent the bulk of our time in the old town, where everything I mentioned above shines in an unique and spectacular fashion especially since old town situates itself along the Thu Bôn River which creates a bright landscape that is almost overwhelming.

Not surprising there are many places to worship alongside a variety of historical sites and indoor and outdoor markets that were bustling with activity and overeager tourists. Of those we visited, a few stand out. The first was the Minh Huong Ancestor Worship House, which a place of worship that isn’t directed at a deity but rather a very successful business man named…Minh Huong. Entrepreneurs, businessmen, clients, Ferengies or really anybody dealing in business come here to offer food, money or incense in the hopes for a blessing or good fortune for their next business venture. I’ll admit that it felt a little weird having a religious type temple devoted to this particular aspect of life but I’d be lying if I said I didn’t give it a go (Christine, if you’re reading this I made a few requests that should help both of us out!)

We also stopped by Ky Nhà cổ Tấn Ký, otherwise known as Old House of Tan that was built in the 18th century and is regarded as the oldest and most well revered house in all of Hoi An. Le Tan Kay was a merchant and trader, working with local and Chinese dealers when he first built his house. While the house itself is a great piece of history, one specific artifact stuck out to me: the Confucius Bowl. Le Tan Kay was part of the Hmong population with a strong belief in the natural balance of life. The Confucius Bowl is a perfect representation of that as when one fills the bowl ~80%, it stays filled but once one fills it completely, the water all drains out through a hole in the bottom. A reminder to keep all things in balance and that excess will only lead to emptiness.

Sunny (our local guide) gave us notice that Hoi An was known for its excellent tailors and I knew I had to capitalize on it. With his help and consultation with Lauren we visited Yaly Couture so I could get measured for a sports jacket that I’ll hopefully have an occasion to wear. In short, the place was incredible. My sales assistant Elina conducted 15 different measurements on top of scanning my entire body to make sure what they were making would be absolutely perfect. Nothing is off the shelf, everything they make is 100% tailored to the person buying it so their clothing not just fits well but is essentially one of a kind; not to mention extremely efficient. We were only in Hoi A for two and a half days and were able to create my jacket in less than 24 hours. A bespoke jacket in the states or Europe would run well into five figures but this only cost me $200…and it’s made from cashmere!

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

Another flight and another city, this time we landed in Ho Chi Minh City, most wildly known as Saigon. Home to nearly ten million people, Saigon represents Vietnam’s second largest city and the largest in the south. With only an evening here, it was extraordinary difficult to take in the whole city, but we did our best via a Vespa food tour of the local street food vendors. After the rain let up, we set out on five separate stops ranging from BBQ beef to fried bananas to a seafood spread that could’ve feed a small army. The full list of food in the post notes but the best part of the tour was being able to experience Vietnamese traffic (for real!) while simultaneously taking in the sights of a night lit city.

After the food tour, Sanjay (a member of our group and an overall lovely human being) wanted to have a nightcap at Carevelle Saigon. Carevelle was the home of the press corps during the Vietnam War where they had a front seat view to everything that was going on. From that balcony they submitted their reports while simultaneously getting blitzed. What got me was it was the site that captured the final days of the war, including the evacuation of US troops the day before Saigon fell to the north. It was also the place where the Top Gear blokes drank beer during their Vietnam special, so I’ll leave it up to you to decide which is more historically significant.

Our final day in Vietnam ended with a border crossing but on our way, we stopped at Cu Chi tunnels located between Vietnam and the Cambodian boarder. This is the site of many hand to hand skirmishes during the war but nowadays is a museum that focuses on Vietnamese war tactics, booby trap designs but most impressively their underground tunnel system that allowed them to flank and surprise the US military that provided them a huge home field advantage. These tunnels, a network of several miles of twisting, winding and tight corridors catered to the small frame of the Vietnamese soldiers spanned for miles in the battlefield. And I mean small. I was able to barely fit into one of the original surface holes but walking through the tunnels was a very claustrophobic and hot experience and I admittedly cut my journey short.

With Vietnam in our rear view, we approached the border crossing with cautious optimism. Next stop: Cambodia.

Travel/Post Details:

Post includes travel from December 2 – 5, 2024

Accommodations:

• Hoi An: Hadana Boutique Resort
• Ho Chi Minh City: Sila Urban Living

Other Notes:

• Special shout out to our Vietnam tour guide Sunny. He was an absolute joy to be around, took excellent care of us and the entire group but most importantly, made us feel not as tourists but rather a group of friends exploring an incredible country.
• In Hoi An we also visited Cho Hoi An, an indoor/outdoor market where we ate fresh mangosteens and rambutans and Lauren bought Cao Sao Vang – a very potent Tiger Balm type balm that Sunny suggested. We also stopped at Hội Quán Phước Kiến, a 17th century Chinese residence dedicated to the sea goddess.

Food Summary:

• 12/2:
  • Dinner: Morning Glory by Taste of Vietnam. We secured a prime table on their rooftop with a great view of the river and striking lights of both old and new town. I had the Hoi An crispy pancakes with grilled pork and Lauren had pan seared beef with a black garlic sauce. The restaurant had a huge menu which is usually concerning however the dishes we had were quite excellent and would highly recommend going back.
• 12/3:
  • Drank Mót, a local drink that has been perfected over the last century. It was a refreshing mixture of cinnamon, lemongrass, ginger, lemon, lotus leaves, honey and chrysanthemum served with ice and a bamboo straw. As the temperatures were hitting 90 degrees with high humidity levels, it was very much welcome and was absolutely delicious. It was followed up with juice at a coffee house called Mê and between the two consisted of our lunch.
  • Dinner: Håi Café as part of a local cuisine cooking class. We stopped for dessert at Dailo Boulevard Gelato which was as close to real gelato without being in Italy.
• 12/4:
  • Coffee at Hoi An Roastery where I had an egg coffee and Lauren had a coconut coffee and we sat watching the street and chat for about an hour. Picked up another Mót before picking up my sport jacket
    • Dinner: Street food tour in Ho Chi Min City with several stops. BBQ pork at restaurant with no name, Chinese duck noodles, grilled chicken at Mon, fried banana and sugarcane juice at Vina Chuoi, Bahn Mi at Sáu Minh, Passion Fruit Tea and a seafood spread consisting of grilled shrimp, oysters, scallops, and fish at Ôc Ðào. There was A LOT of food on this tour and everybody was stuffed way through. The seafood spread and grilled chicken were the highlights and I could’ve done without the passion fruit drink, sugarcane juice and Bahn Mi as they were all pretty average.
  • 12/5:
    • Big breakfast at hotel since we knew we wouldn’t have much for lunch on our way to Cambodia. We did pick up hot and spicy Pringles and a sixlet type candy that Lauren wasn’t a big fan of midway through our drive.

Flights: HAN > DAD; DAD > SGN Vietnam Airlines

Featured Image: Dragon Bridge connecting Da Nang to Hoi An