Anyway, we decided to try out Vietnam this time...such a great trip! (They all are though!!) Apparently there are a lot of good cities to visit in Vietnam, and I had a hard time choosing where to go. After a little research we decided to try out Hoi An. Loved it! It was an older city and not overly developed. The people were so friendly, the food delicious, and there was another awesome beach!
We got in late Thursday night, but we were up early and ready to go Friday morning! We were told that we had to get some clothes made while we were there, so that was our 1st stop. The kids thought it was so cool! Brent got a suit made and the kids and I got a few pieces too:) This was such a different experience for us! If we need clothes or shoes we just go to the mall. It was so neat for us to see the process and the faces behind our clothes. Such amazing talent!!
We headed out to explore the town next. The colors of the buildings, the lanterns hanging, all the art shops and street food just made for such a fun and cool setting. I couldn't stop taking pictures! We went into the neatest shop where there were about 8 ladies sitting down with a copy of a photograph that they were sewing into canvas with silk thread...it was unreal! So beautiful! Anyway, one of the ladies took us around the shop and showed us where they kept and grew the silkworms and their larvae. We got to pet them and see how they made it into thread and then onto the loom to make the fabric. Such a cool and educational stop!
After a little shopping (and stopping a few times to let people take pictures with the kids...Jake was not in the mood:)) we tried out a short river boat ride! There was just so much to see while we were on the boat! All the fishing boats, the rice hats, motorbikes and bicycles everywhere, elderly women carrying baskets on their shoulders...I truly felt like I was on the other side of the world!
We had a fantastic lunch at a restaurant on the river and the kids made some more friends:)
We headed to the pool and beach that afternoon...always a must-do for our family! The beach was perfect! Fun waves to jump and play in without being too overpowering. And there were lots of seashells to collect! We were pretty tired from our late night before, so just did a room service picnic while watching a movie for dinner. I love those nights:)
The next morning, we had a tour booked for Marble Mountain. It was beautiful!! We went to a shop first and saw how they chiseled and polished the marble. Then we headed up the mountain. It was recommended that we pay to take the elevator up with the kids. I am so glad we did because there were still over 250 steps once we got up there! The kids did great though and there was no complaining! I think the cooler temps up there and the fact that there was just to much to see definitely helped. I am sure the promise of ice cream after didn't hurt either:)There were a lot of different caves and temples up top and all kinds of Buddhas carved right into the mountain. We saw lots of ladies worshipping which led to many questions from our oldest:) We had a fantastic guide that was great with the kids! It was so cool to look down and see that you were walking on beautiful marble.
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| Being silly:) |
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| View from up top. |
After, we headed back to the hotel for lunch by the pool and more playing in the waves:) We ate dinner that night at a restaurant recommended by the hotel. I think I ate my body weight in spring rolls in those 4 days!!! Seriously amazing food! We sat at a table facing the street and river and lucked out that there was a parade that went right in front of us! Dinner and a show...gotta love it!We walked around and sampled some street food next...yes more eating...and then headed to the tailors for our first fitting:)
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| We needed a little pick-me-up:) |
It was so neat...at dinner time, all the families from the shops would be cooking on the sidewalk and eating together on these little red benches:)
It really amazes me that they made all our clothes by the following night! And shoes!! It was so fun trying everything on and I loved seeing Brent in a suit:) The ladies kept smacking his rear and giving me a thumbs up while saying, "Very nice and big!" Yes, yes...tis true:)
Sunday morning, we had worship service and then headed to a local pottery village. There was a really neat museum where they had an awesome display of cool buildings around the world made out of clay. Next, the kids got to make some pottery! They loved getting their hands messy! We then just walked around the village.I have never really seen anything like it. At every house, they were sitting outside making whistles or pots. They were all very friendly and sweet with the kids. They even got to sit down and try making a whistle:) It was a very humbling experience. It is so easy to take for granted how much we have.
We spent lunch by the pool again, and then got picked up around 4 for a sunset fishing tour. Oh my....so great!!! Our tour guides were absolutely awesome! They were all from the fishing village, and Lily, the girl guide (Lily loved her name!), was very informative. She kept talking about how rare she was...an unmarried girl at 24. We loved hearing about growing up there and all about the culture.
They took us to a very "local" fish market. She said it was not a place that tourists ever go, so she pointed out that the locals would not try to get us to buy anything because they didn't know to. She was so right. They just looked at us and wanted to touch the kids:) Brent and I always joke that they aren't going to know what to do when we move back to America and nobody wants to take a picture with them!
On the boat, the crew made some cool trinkets for the kids out of coconut palm leaves. They also played some games and we all just enjoyed the beautiful evening!
We then got on a smaller boat and tried fishing with nets. This was really cool for the kids because it was like the apostles did:) All the kids pulled the net in, but Lily was the only one that wanted to try throwing it. I think the coolest part was the fact that we were being rowed around by a woman well into her 70s! Lily, the guide, talked about how retirement doesn't exist there. You make enough money to live on but not enough to save, so you work until you can't. Having a son is extremely important because it is the daughter-in-law that takes care of the older generation. Crazy!
Ella wasn't too sure about actually touching the fish!
Next, our guides, Hulu and Captain Cook, got in the basket boats and went nuts!! They were spinning SO fast and everywhere!!! Then we got to go for a ride! They did not hold back! We were flying! It was like being on the tea cup ride at Disney World...we all loved it!
We were on the tour for a little over 3 hours and all of us absolutely loved every minute of it! Just an amazing experience! The whole trip was!! We got to see and do things I never would have imagined. I love that we all got to see a totally different way of life. These people work everyday...hard work...7 days a week. And they were all smiling...what a great lesson! We were definitely sad to leave the next morning, but we know summer is right around the corner! 37 days and counting until we get to hug our family and friends...whoohoo!!!
