These photos are from my recent trip to Hoi An, Vietnam
I had an amazing time, discovered some amazing places and met some lovely local folk.
Day 1
On a borrowed bicycle from the lovely Fireworks Homestay, I headed South West of the Hoi An. I cycled narrow dirt trails, through very local housing and out through rice paddies to discover a temple that I am sure other tourists have never stepped foot within and close by I met a guy placing Cao Lầu noodles out in the sun to dry with medical precision.
I soon found myself in one half of the pedestrianised Old City at the Lune Performing Centre. A few weeks before, when I was in Ho Chi Minh City, I saw the amazing AO Show at The Opera House (by the same production company). I sat and immediately booked the best seat in the house (D15C) for the TER DAR show for the following evening. While I sat, three young guys carried cockerels to the lawn next to me. Soon they were provoking one of them to attack another. I can only presume this was for practice. They let them fight for a short time and then separated them to rotate the fighters. I didn’t want to see what would happen so I got back on the bicycle and headed over to the nearby island of Cẩm Nam.
At first glance Cẩm Nam didn’t seem like much, a few grocery shops spread out between large affluent houses on wide concrete roads. But cycling down a side street to the edge of the Thu Bồn River revealed people repairing broken shacks while others fished for their lunch without a care in the world. At the end of the island was a disused looking fish market. Weeds pushed up through the concrete floor. An elderly local kicked back in the shade and gave me a confused smile. Why would a tourist would come to these parts? Sleeping fishing trawlers docked along the quay but there was not another soul in sight. While the black seat of the bicycle heated up, I took a moment to sit on the edge river bank and take it all in.
I continued to cycle around the island and soon came across small lakes in a grid formation. I later learned that these were shrimp farms. Local workers loaded bucket upon bucket of shrimp into the back of a small truck. When I stuck my nose in and gestured for a photo not only did they oblige. They invited me down to the next lake to see them drag in the nets brimming with fresh water shrimp. One guy brought in net after net by hand. Others poured shrimp from the nets into perforated washing up bowls. Others carried them off and loaded them onto the trucks.
I tried to offer help but fearing I would only get in the way of this well oiled machine I thanked them kindly in my best pidgen Vietnamese and continued around the coast. I saw yet more brilliantly painted boats, fields of cut corn and waved like a rock star to local children on my way back to the homestay. A great start to my experience in what I've otherwise heard is quite a touristy town.
This is original content by @tonymilton
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