Feb 27

We decided to rent a motorcycle to explore DaNang and surroundings. I look like Colonel Klink ...lol I was nervous at first because the drivers here are crazy but Ron was great and it gave me confidence. First stop Marble Mountain,  a cluster of five marble and limestone hills  south of Da Nang. The five mountains are named after the five elements: Kim (metal), Thuy (water), Moc (wood), Hoa (fire) and Tho (earth). All of the mountains have cave entrances and numerous tunnels.  Several Buddhist sanctuaries are in the mountains, making this a famous tourist destination. The grottos were amazing and soooo huge.... hard to show in a photo.  All carved in marble  Travelling through DaNang we saw the fisherman's harbour with DaNang in the background. A beautiful long stretch of beach but not many people on a cloudy, chilly day.    Ron looking good 😍💕 Next stop was Monkey Mountain, where there was a 67 metre-tall white statue of the Goddess of Mercy, on top a lotus-shaped platform. It is the tallest statue of the deity in Southeast Asia ...17 levels and a total of 21 miniature Buddha sculptures. Very impressive !!!  The view from Monkey Mountain  We were cold when we got back so we went to Soul Kitchen to have a tequila to warm up 

Feb 26

We had a nice long talk over breakfast with Hue, the lady that takes care of our homestay. She is trying to learn English by talking to tourists and is doing quite well. She is 27, newly married and 3 months pregnant. Her attitude towards life is great even though they are struggling....I guess that is the Buddhist faith. There are 10 people from her family living in one place. They have to use sandbags to keep their structure from blowing away in the storms. She and her sister are paying the family expenses. Although she would really like to go to school to learn more English, the cost is $50 a month and she and her husband combined only bring in $200 a month. With better English she could work in a hotel and then she would have some benefits in case her baby got sick. If we had more money would pay for her schooling. But we will give her a large tip and hope that it helps in some way.  Even though it was really windy and chilly we decided we'd go for a bike ride. We first rode to Cai Da beach which was a long stretch of beach at the point. It turned out that there was so much erosion from the winds and surf that there was little beach left. The large hotels on this stretch are now going out of business.  Then we went to ride through the rice fields. It was amazing but tough going in some stretches with the wind 😬 Our butts and legs were sore when we got back. After a rest we walked down to the restaurant on the beach owned by the lady who owns our homestay. It was blustery !!! The beach is usually filled with tourists    In the evening we went into Hoi An. We walked there and took a cab back. The town totally comes alive at night and is unrecognizable from the day time, when we were there before. It was very crowded, but picturesque. I was totally mesmerized by the thousands of silk lanterns. I really wish we could have brought one home.  The town of Hoi An is on a delta with many waterways and islands. The island directly across from "old quarters" is lined with restaurants. One of the restaurants close up.  We both loved Hoi An and would recommend it to anyone. 

Feb 25

After a nice breakfast we got ready to walk into Hoi An. And then such a coincidence....my brother facetimed us, which was great. We haven't talked to him since we left. Then as we were chatting with him our friends from Florida facetimed us at the same time. Also hadn't talked to them. Weird 😉 The weather was cloudy and windy. The walk into Hoi An was interesting...it took us about an hour. On the way we saw.... live crabs with pincers wrapped in reeds ladies selling flowers a lady selling chickens and a hut with a Vietnamese communist flag fishing weirs some type of eggs for sale and lots of rice fields Once a major Southeast Asian trading post in the 16th and 17th centuries, the seaside town Hoi An is basically a living museum featuring a unique mixture of East and West in the form of its old-town architecture. Hoi An is a popular tourist spot...know for it's small town feel. The ancient downtown area is a World Heritage Site. We are staying at a homestay at Ang Bang beach, which is the famous Hoi An beach. Hoi An This is soooo true  When we got back we decided to go for dinner at a restaurant close by that was recommended by trip advisor. The waitress really messed up the order and brought the wrong food twice.She had trouble with English and even though we pointed to what we wanted she still didn't get it right. Ron wanted a Vietnamese sandwich which comes on a baguette. After her second attempt at bringing us something we hadn't ordered, one of the other waitresses said they didn't have baguettes. And sadly the name of the restaurant is The French Bakery....lol. However they did send us home with two dry "sort of muffins" which were complimentary 😬 And at the same dinner there was vodka on the menu. We ordered it and assumed it would come with tonic, juice or something. Here is what we got...no ice, no mix, no lemon...nothing. But it only cost $2 each...😃 Luckily our homestay was close by. Poor Ron is still suffering from a cold. 🤧🤧 

Feb 24

After breakfast we walked the beach. The weather was not great ☹️ We came back to get an umbrella then explored An Bang Beach area. There were torrential rains which flooded many areas. Our street  Not long after this picture the skies opened up again and the tourists left and chairs were put away.  I was not happy with all the rain....it lasted all day 😝 At least our homestay room is very nice....and huge too And we have our own private patio 😊 I would really, really like some sunshine....but not looking good until we leave 😫😫