The second of our two wheeled adventures in two days had a little more horsepower than biking around La Chau. Today we explored some of the rural villages around Hoi An on the back of Vespa's (Italian motor scooters). We may not be the sharpest pencils in the box but we're at least smart enough to know to leave the driving to someone else. Our travel agent booked our adventure through a company called Vespa Adventures. They're a company that is owned by a lady from Saigon (Ho Chi Min City) and her husband who is from South Carolina. Their reviews were outstanding and we quickly found out that it was a reputation that was well deserved.
We were met right on time in our hotel lobby by our tour guide/driver, who went by the name of Ben (we liked him instantly). He was accompanied by a second driver who was also a mechanic (just in case) who's name was Hoa (pronounced How). Ben, who spoke excellent English gave us a quick briefing on what we would be doing and where we were going. We were given our helmets and ponchos (it was raining a little at first). Beth hopped on the back of Ben's Vespa while I saddled up with Hoa. Off we went to explore some of the rural villages around Hoi An.
In front of the one of the local village temples with our guide (Ben)
By the time we got to our first stop, a local temple, the rain had stopped and the sun was shining. This was a little surprise to us since the weather forecast showed showers for most of the morning. Ben laughed when we told him about the forecast and assured us that they're wrong way more than they're right when it comes to predicting the weather.
The Traveling Idiots plus Ben (front) and Hoa
Ben orchestrated this panoramic shot. This bridge was about 300 yards long. It was built by farmers after the main bridge was damaged in a flood. Talk about taking matters into your own hands instead of waiting on the government to fix it.
The temple was quite nice and we had a chance to say hello to a nice gentlean who is the chief of the village which means he is also the caretaker. Ben shared with us a bit of information about names in Vietnam. The most common family names are Nguyen, Tran, Le and Pham. Just these four names account for around 60% of all family names. As you could imagine, this could create some confusion when it comes to marrying since there is a good chance the bride and groom would already have the same family name. Not to worry, the temples often provide a sort of "ancestory.com" as Ben put it. These records show family trees so the prospective bride and groom can assure they are at a minimum of four families removed before getting serious. We also learned from Ben that if the person has the name Thi in it that it's pretty much guaranteed that the person is a female.
The villages version of ancestory.com. It's kept on the wall at the temple
As we made our way around, we also stopped at the house of two sisters who weave sleeping mats. Working as a team they can usually make three mats a day. These mats are taken to market to be sold or people simply stop by the house and purchase them directly. The cost per mat is around $6 US dollars. Beth and I took turns attempting to thread the bamboo fiber through the loom. We could do it but at the rate we were moving we would have slowed them down from three mats per day to about a half a mat per day.
The lady on the left would pass the long stick with one piece of fiber attached. Her sister would pull the loom down. These steps would be repeated using the different colors of dyed fibers over and over and over and over. It takes about three hours to make one mat.
We also stopped at another house where we had an opportunity to first watch rice noodles being made and then were given a chance to make them ourselves. The rice concoction starts out as a rice and water paste that is poured on a hot surface similar to a crepe maker. A second layer is added, then it cooks for a minute or two before being removed. At that point it looks somewhat like a thin, undercooked tortilla. It's run through a manual machine that cuts the still wet and gooey rice flour into noodles. We've had them quite a bit and they're very tasty.
She was the expert
Rice crackers and sugar cane juice with Ben
We also enjoyed stopping at a local coffee shop. The young man that owns the shop roasts his own coffee, not only for the shop but for retail sale as well. The traditional Vietnamese coffee is very strong (similar to espresso). Condensed milk is added to provide a little sweetness.
We also stopped at a boat yard where large wooden fishing boats were being made. There were two boats being built at the present time. Once completed they will be launched and around 10 to 12 fisherman will often spend up to five weeks at a time out in the ocean waters fishing. Ben shared with us that he has been bringing people to the boatyard for four years and that he has never seen a blueprint. The boats which looked to be around 125-150 feet in length are built by skilled men who bend and piece the wood together. They then stuff bamboo fiber into the cracks, which are covered with resin, to make sure it's waterproof and seaworthy.
These fishing boats are built completely by hand with no blue prints!
There were a few other stops along the way. Just as fun as the stops was simply seeing the amazing sites of the villages and surrounding areas on the back of the Vespa's. It was made even more fun by Ben's sense of humor and storytelling. He had a quick wit about him that he had developed by touring groups (especially Aussies) from all over the world around this incredible coastal area.
From the top of the tallest bridge in central Vietnam
After a little rest at the hotel we roamed around the ancient city again for a couple of hours. We found a place to eat our first night here that fit our frequently used criteria of inexpensive, local (everything here is local) and good. The place specializes in Banh Mi which is a Vietnamese sandwich served on a baguette with meat, vegetables and spices. This particular shop was made famous a few years back by Anthony Bourdain who featured it on his show. They make a wickedly good sandwich for a really nice price. Two sandwiches and two drinks cost around $4 US dollars!
