Hollywood Backlot

This morning we went to breakfast, paid WAY too much for some used English novels (Kel is desperate), packed up our things and caught a 1:30 bus south, arriving in Hoi An 4 hours later, stomachs churning from the corkscrew road. We went to the hotel recommended by the lady at our hotel in Hue. One of the girls who works here, Song, is adorable. She has freckles (rare for Vietnamese) and when she saw Kel's freckles, her face lit up, she pointed at them and said "Same same!" (they say 'same same' a lot here). We walked to Treat's Café where our guidebook promised they have a 'generous happy hour.' They do, and we ended up staying for dinner as well. On the way there, we met Jim on the street. He is an old man who walked up to us and started speaking to us. He heard my accent and automatically knew I am American (this rarely happens, and I do say I'm from Australia as it's much easier). He pointed to his missing foot (and maybe even a fake leg) and said it was from an American bomb, but that America gives him no money now. We couldn't tell if he fought with the Communists or with the South Vietnamese but it was still sad. I felt guilty at first, and embarrassed, but reminded myself I wasn't even born yet when the war ended. He gave me a big hug (and an unwanted toothless kiss on the cheek) before we walked away, so it was okay.

After dinner we walked slowly back to our hotel through the narrow streets of Hoi An. It has so much character!! The streets look like one big movie set. The buildings are very old French/Tahitian/New Orleans/Caribbean/Tahitian (it's hard to describe the feeling) and sound sort of bounces off the road, making it all feel fake. We walked down to the Tau Bon River, which is more like a canal, it is so still. There is the most gorgeous footbridge and restaurants and shops lining both sides. It is where parts of 'The Quiet American' were filmed and looks pretty much the same if you've seen it. The streets are lined with shops selling tailor-made clothing, handbags, shoes, and beautiful artwork. We can't wait to explore more tomorrow. We came back to the hotel, did some much needed laundry in the bathtub and headed for bed. Nigel is watching "Bulletproof Monk"-in English with Thai subtitles.