The Boolies and HoiAn

Returning to the bottom across the water, and an old American Army Jeep ride to the bridge, brought us to a little bamboo covered, open sided restaurant. It soon became obvious that I wasn't going to eat anything. John got my liter of water and a packet of re-hydration salts, highly touted by Johns Hopkins. The temperature is 100+ and the sun is merciless to a dehydrated old man. All this had agravated my condition, so I began drinking the foul-tasting mess. I noticed the instructions said always to drink it chilled: good luck, unless they want me to put more bad ice in it. it must have been half way to boiling at that time. The instructions also say not to let the mixture pass 86 degrees, but if it had been that cool, I probably would not have needed it. Inf airness, even though it tastes terrible, it really made me feel better within hours; that and the Cipro  I shall have to tell my physician friend at Hopkins that she saved my life in VietNam - deserves a medal.

Another bouncy ride, clunking and banging (a great thing on my rumbling gut), brought s to the ancient seaport of Hoi An, about 30 km south of DaNang. John and I headed into the old town, which was a Cham center from the 2nd Century, but when the VietNamese arrived, they pulled down the towers to use the building materials. It was real nice brick. By the 17th Century, it had become an important seaport. It is highly touted as a tourist site. John and found it very disappointing as we walked around town in the late afternoon. There are tourists here who probably will never see much outsiiide the hotel and the fairly boring things here. We went back to the Hoi An Hotel and did something I have never done in VietNam. We took advantage of being in the only hotel in which we stayed that had a swimming pool! 

                                                                      Ancient HoiAn Seaport

Just in time for dinner, I began to feel better. we ate at a restaurant nearby, out on a balcony. It was lovely. I ate very carefully, but the menu was more than adequate. We had Pho, of the Chicken Vegitable variety, Cheese Ravioli with roasted onion, Banana flower and peanut shrimp with seaweed on toasted rice paper, Otom Fish baked with carrot in a banana leaf, Stir Fried Cuttlefish on Vegitables, Beef and Vegitable Stirfry with Pineapple, Brazed Pork in a wonderful mystery sauce, and a very sweet Pineapple, cut before our eyes. That wasn't the menu from which we were to select a meal; that was the meal. Unfortunately, that was the norm in that country when serving us. they have a greatly exaggerated idea about how much we eat. On the other hand, we usually ate it all.

Visit:  Hue and the Citadel