Today's a day off. Not because I've had enough of Hoi An but because it seems something got the better of me yesterday. Molly's also a little off today, so she and I are learning to play Gin (instead of drinking it). This too shall pass, and hopefully we'll catch up with the others later. They've all gone for a bike ride through the rice paddies to a new beach area looking for new sites and a new hotel for us for next week.
Yesterday we spent a good portion of the day at the beach again. The weather keeps promising to get poor, so we try to maximize our time in the sun and heat.
The beach here is stunning, and the best part for me is the cabana style setting that's so easy to enjoy. We walk along the beach, the server, Meow, finds us seven lounge chairs then she brings us $1 beers, watermelon juice, laughs and teases us about our beautiful white skin, and eventually calls us for lunch at the restaurant. The food is delicious, even the kids are being adventurous here. However, I think the crab I dissected for lunch has had the last laugh.
Yesterday we spent a good portion of the day at the beach again. The weather keeps promising to get poor, so we try to maximize our time in the sun and heat.
The beach here is stunning, and the best part for me is the cabana style setting that's so easy to enjoy. We walk along the beach, the server, Meow, finds us seven lounge chairs then she brings us $1 beers, watermelon juice, laughs and teases us about our beautiful white skin, and eventually calls us for lunch at the restaurant. The food is delicious, even the kids are being adventurous here. However, I think the crab I dissected for lunch has had the last laugh.
A little reading time in the shade
The day before, Molly and I went to town to stroll through the shops for a little while. Molly doesn't part with her own money easily so, despite her full bank account, we gave her some money for Christmas to select some new clothes for herself. She had thought she'd get some custom clothes made, which are easy to get here, but she said, "Mom, why would I overpay for custom clothes when all the clothes off the rack fit me fine." That's my girl...she'll never be poor. In fact, she's only spent 1/4 of the cash, suggesting she has enough.
Molly in one of her new dresses
As mentioned above, bike riding around Hoi An is very pleasant. The house we're staying in has provided 7 bikes for us and the land is table-flat and the paths through the fields are very accessible. It's a photographer's paradise to capture people tilling their rice paddies, water buffalos stomping through the mud and men gathered to squat over their lunch on the edge of the fields. Given hundreds of tourists cruise through these fields everyday observing regular activities, you'd think the locals would get annoyed at the sight of another camera, but people here are warm and always offering a smile. I took a few photos, but have continued to avoid sticking my camera in people's faces out of respect. Sorry some of these are blurry, but my lens was dirty. Check out Lorry and Ted Brandon's photos on FaceBook for really nice photos.
On our bikes
I can't forget to mention the local entertainments we saw on Boxing Day. Down the street is an outdoor theatre that hosts water puppet shows. The photo is poor, but to sum it up, people operate wooden puppets in 2 feet of water who dance and act out daily and mythical events. It was a short, quirky and charming performance that left us all with a smile on our faces.
We found a great taco place for dinner. Yum.
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