Hoi An aka Clothes Heaven

Hoi An is a pretty touristy town in Vietnam--I think the fact that they sell many winter coats is a dead giveaway that it's not quite a market for vietnamese. It's pretty flippin hot here. In any case, it's known for having over 400 tailors that will take whatever design, picture, whatever you wish, and will replicate it for a very small price and tailor it perfectly to your body. So it's enough to make many go crazy, even the someone like me who isn't a clothes junkie. I don't even wear dresses and I ended up buying 4. The tailors are not only quite talented at their craft, but at flattery and manipulation as well, so they know how to get you to buy more. I"m leaving today, thank god.

Other good parts of Hoi An are the food and hotels. I'm staying in a pretty decent hotel with a pool for $12 (and I pay $6 since I split a twin room). How crazy is that? The food is also quite cheap and really great quality. I did a cooking class today with a group which consisted of me poorly constructing spring rolls, rice paper, hoi an pancakes, eggplant curry, and "decorations" (I was supposed to make a flower out of a cucumber and a rose out of a tomato, but they just looks like a poorly cut salad in the end). Next stop is Nha Trang! I'm on an open ended bus which cost about $40 and had 5 stops, each which take 12 hours, so it's quite a good way to get around. Just a bit rough, but that's part of the adventure!