Day 3
We went for a bike ride out to Tra Que Vegetable Village today and came back through some rice fields. Highlights included:
– first time in years I’ve ridden a normal bike. Last time I threw up. This time I narrowly avoided that but did have to walk a few sections when my heart rate hit 200 bpm
– I rode on the highway! Scary, but traffic was obviously used to crazy tourists
– The vegetable village was beautiful and I was very happy to avoid the touristy gimmicky stuff while still contributing to their tourism fund. Brad says when we buy our Labrador farm I should grow veg like this, I said sure if he also buys me a farmer 😂
– I saw buffalo! And one was a baby now named “bubbalo”
Dinner was at Xin Chao also on the south side of An Bang. It was closer to the backpacker area so prices were cheaper and the curry was really REALLY yummy. Curry with rice, Cao Lau and two fruit drinks was 220k VND so around $14 AUD.
Day 4
Today started with a PhD commitment for me so I joined the discussion from our balcony.
We then spent the day relaxing at An Bang beach. The breeze means it was a bit cool for us to swim (did not stop the Brit’s and Russians at all!) so we laid in the shade with books and listened to the waves. I also found a swing!
Dinner tonight was at another south end restaurant – this one called Serena Restaurant. This one was very locally owned and run and the food was tasty and well priced. I got to eat another regional Hoi An dish called Com Ga also known as chicken rice. They had a cute and friendly doggo as well.
Day 4
Another day spent relaxing at the beach and listening to the waves. Around 3pm we used Grab to head to Hoi An Old Town (about 5kms away). We started out visiting White Rose Restaurant to try the famous white rose dumplings. White rose dumplings which are only found in Hoi An might look fancy, but they’re just beautifully folded rice flour pockets filled with shrimp or pork and steamed. Despite the name, there are no roses involved – just the delicate wrappers shaped by hand and a punchy sweet / spicy dipping sauce.
The recipe for these dumplings is secret, held by one family in Hoi A who supplies all the restaurants. White Rose Restaurant’s (533 Hai Ba Trung Street) staff member Tran Tuan Ngai is a third generation secret keeper of the traditional white rose recipe.
We then walked down to the Japanese covered bridge “Chua Cau” which was under renovation the last time we were here. This time I got to see it and walk over it!
We had a drink and hung around for awhile waiting for sunset so I could watch all the pretty lanterns on the river. Pro tip – cross to the other side (the fake old town) so you can take photos with old town in the background.
Dinner was a delicious banana and Nutella pancake from a street vendor and I was verrrrry pleased with it.
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