How Now Brown Cow?

This past weekend was amazing!!! We went to Hoi Anh, the ancient trading village, for 2 nights. On the drive up, we saw some breathtaking views of both the countryside and the coast of Vietnam!

Upon arriving, everyone went out to dinner at the "Cargo Club" - a restaurant very well known in Asia and Europe for it's cuisine. Sitting under billowing tents in the cool evening breeze, I once again felt as if someone dropped me into a movie scene that isn't supposed to exist in real life. The restaurant sat next to a river, which floated calmly under the moon. We sat two stories up (most restaurants in Vietnam are 1-4 stories up), on a beautiful porch, painted with rustic golden yellow walls. Small wildflowers graced the tables, which were made of beautiful dark wood. Known for it's international cuisine, I ordered Moroccan grilled salmon from the restaurant. SOO good!

Later that night we walked down the river, towards a bridge. People stirred all around the bridge, visiting an evening market and enjoying the general splendor of the village. Hoi Anh lights up at night, resplendent with lanterns hanging from every possible tree and storefront. Floating in the river were two enormous lanterns made entirely of silk- one was a huge, multi-colored coyfish, and at the moment I am so tired that I can't even recall what the other one was. 

The next day I went to the market in the morning and became overwhelmed with how many goodies and baubles and clothes spilled over onto the streets. After bargaining hard, I bought a lot of stuff, like a greedy kid in a candy store! I tried to seem not too greedy and discreetly hide my trinkets.

Later that day Linh, her cousin and I went to the beach, where we later met up with the group. The beach was like nothing I have ever seen before - so tropical!! It was beautiful and very hot!! In the evening, although everyone else was going out to a bar, Linh and I stayed in and did homework. 2,000 years of history packed into 2 or 3 weeks is not exactly "light reading." (This is somewhat of an exaggeration - we focus intensely on WWII - present day, so the rest is just background stuff.)

In the morning, I woke up and went for a morning swim in the hotel pool....HEAVENLY! The hotel had inlaid the pool with stone and filled it to the brim. The stone made the water appear a deep, teal blue, and it spilled over into beautiful stones from the beach (the stones covered the gutter/drain surrounding the pool). Palm trees surround the pool, and from the pool you can see the river, complete with fishing boats.

We boarded the bus just after 10 am, and drove to ancient temple ruins of the Champa people. In the middle of the mountains, indeed, in the middle of the jungle of central Vietnam, this particular location served as a regular camp of Viet Minh soldiers.The temples date back to the 8th-12th centuries, but were bombed and ruined during the war. Now, although some have retained their basic shape and structure, they mainly look like piles of bricks. The tour guide spoke at length at every pile of brick...It was incredibly hot, and although perhaps under milder conditions I would have found the talks interesting, I must confess I was much more concerned with 2011 than 800 a.d. for the majority of the tour. The bus ride home was air conditioned and uneventful! 

The one glitch in the trip was our overzealous tour guide....Mr. Hao. On one hand, I love him because he is very spunky, obviously works hard, is incredibly friendly, and means well. On the other hand, he seems not to pick up on the body language of us foreign students, and feels determined to be the best tour guide possible regardless of anyone's fatigue. Consequently, he decided to stay in Hoi Anh for the weekend and "accompany" us, even though we were supposed to be alone. He accompanied us 100% of the time, pointing out this and that, and telling the history of things endlessly...Not wanting to be disrespectful, everyone would stand and listen...or pretend to listen, as we wilted in the hot sun, sweating, and dreamed of life without a tour guide. In the morning, Katie, Tori and I headed towards the breakfast room, only to be greeted in the lobby by Mr. Hao (who was not supposed to see us until the next day). He proceeded to tell us about breakfast and started talking about the history of the silk village we were about to visit. It was like that movie, "What about Bob?" about the man who becomes the eternal patient...Mr. Hao is the eternal tour guide. 

Later, at the ruins, even our professor remarked, "Mr. Hao is definitely the most enthusiastic tour guide I have ever had. His stamina is incredible. It's.........unrelenting!" On the four-hour drive home, Mr. Hao began telling us the history of every town or statue that we passed. (There are many.) By the 3rd hour of the trip, he began having his private conversations with Professor Giebel INTO the microphone provided by the bus. He clearly loves the role of tour guide! I have a feeling I will probably never forget Mr. Hao, for the rest of my life!

As a tour guide he was very funny though - ask me why when I see you back home :)

All in all, this weekend was phenomenal!