The check-in of our beachside homestay five minutes from historical Hoi An was a flurry of confusion. Two old ladies showed us photos of various breakfast foods while ushering us up to our room in the traditional timber bungalow that would be our home for three nights. We decided to stay a little out of the much-visited historical centre of Hoi An at An Bang Beach to get some excitement-respite after Ho Chi Minh. Seaside An Bang Homestay is run by Thu and her family who offered lots of local advice, delicious breakfasts (egg banh mi and banana pancakes) and use off their beautiful home.

It was an easy walk to some great little restaurants selling traditional food (Xin chao restaurant) and delicious coconut coffee (Sound of Silence), as well as numerous massage and day spas. We visited Moc Spa who pampered us for an hour with massages and green tea body scrubs (around $25 each). The beach itself was grim. Dirty, eroded and un-cared-for.

The 5-minute Grab (Vietnam’s Uber) ride from the beach to the town centre was green with rice fields being tended to by farmers with water buffalo, enormous lily pads, and roadside banh mi carts and dusty beer holes.

Many friends said Hoi An was their favourite part of Vietnam, and I can see why. Being a former trading port, there’s a rich mix of cultural influences here with Japanese, European and Chinese traders shaping the town’s food, architecture and culture. Life seems a little slower for the people that live here, although the tourist touts were in high-action mode. Having people buzz around waving fliers for pubs, boat rides, tours, and meals was draining and was a definite lowlight of the trip so far.

We wandered through the graceful Old Town by day in the scorching heat. It felt a little like a European hill town with alleyways hiding bars and coloured homestays (the government regulates the permitted historically-accurate colour palette) but also with preserved ancient Chinese temples and assembly halls, an ancient Japanese bridge originally built in the 1590’s, and mustard yellow French colonial buildings. Souvenir shops sold local coffee and tea, wooden carvings, silk (I scored a gorgeous black silk shirt at 50% off at Metiseko…probably because I needed an XXL!), pottery and the colourful lanterns Hoi An is famous for.

By night rows of the coloured lanterns zigzagged across the streets which were alive with night market crowds on their way to watch the boats covered in rainbowed lights bob across the Thu Bon River.

We had some wonderful meals trying local delicacies like Hoi An chicken rice and white rose dumplings (banh bao banh vac…try them at Morning Glory) and caught up with a work friend who serendipitously happened to be in town. Travelling also makes you open to meeting and connecting with strangers in unexpected ways. We met the most beautiful, worldly French girl as we looked over the same menu in front of a restaurant late one night, and ended up eating dinner together, sharing each other’s life stories (she studied to be a yoga teacher in India and is now a yoga instructor in Cambodia!), and enjoying the city’s night time heat wandering the streets together.

Hoi An is the tailoring capital of the country, so we though we should get a few things made while we were in town. It worked out well for Cam. Being 6’5” finding suit jackets to fit him off the rack is always a struggle. He had two beautifully lined linen blazers whipped up in hours. Creating a dress that fits well and is also in fashion however is another challenge. I asked them to copy a cute black dress I have at home. I chose the fabric…a fun red print. I showed them the photo. They measured me up. And what I came back to try on was a dowdy abomination. Truly awful. I had flashbacks to my time studying at university in Bangkok when we were scolded at the uniform markets for being “too FATTTTTTT”. The Hoi An tailors told me the design I wanted wasn’t appropriate because “hip too big”. “You no look like girl in photo.” “THAT GIRL IN THE PHOTO IS ME. FROM A MONTH AGO!” After some alterations and some tears, I received a dress I’ll actually wear. Maybe.

An easier made-to-fit option is leather sandals, made within a day in whatever style, colour, and leather finish you could dream of. I bought a pair for around $35 is a beautiful textured tan leather. They fit like a dream, and were a solid investment.

Hoi An is a must-see destination on your Vietnam itinerary. Full of tourists, yes, but with good reason. The atmosphere feels familiar, but with a different spice sprinkled on top. There is historical charm, an elegance and calm character to the city and its people.

After three nights, we squeezed onto a bizarre three aisle double story sleeper bus to take us north to Hue. Cam could barely fit in the lay-down beds, but the bus was near empty, so we snacked and laughed for the 4-hour trip, which was broken up by a grubby bathroom stop where two old ladies washed the coach down with a hose and brooms. Every part of the coach. Including the luggage compartment where everyone’s bags were kept. Needless to say, our backpacks were sopping wet when we arrived in steamy Hue.