6. Hoi An: great food, great shopping, great homestay

nice private bath in the home stay

I was a little nervous staying in a homestay. but I picked this place because it was cat-friendly and the location was perfect, just across the river from the old town. The room was spotlessly clean. They have a little roomba-like vacuum that cleans all the rooms. The bathroom was modern with new tiles on the floor and walls. There was plenty of room for me, Cosmo, and Dawne for the last night when she would be flying in. The girls who worked there are super nice and one of them loves cats.

the robo vacuum

Cosmo's not sure about the robo vacuum

me and Cosmo at the beach in Hoi An

Cosmo checking out the fishing boats

Cosmo would like scooter rides better if he would wear his goggles

Cosmo chilling in the room

grilling my taco

There is a street one block away with food carts and another block down is a night market. I had some delicious taco-shaped things with rice paper shells and grilled veggies and meat inside. I also tried their sausage, banana/nutella crepes, and a tornado potato which is potato slices on a skewer fried with a sweet spice. All very good. My first full day there I was planning to just eat street food except they weren't open until the evening, which luckily forced me to google for good food and I found 3 of the best meals I had in all Vietnam. First was a little place called Com ga Nga that has great chicken rice Hoi An, which is appropriate since their name means "rice chicken Nga" with Nga being the name of the woman who runs it. It had some mixed reviews for some strange reason, so luckily it was not busy when I wanted to eat as the other two places were very busy with wait times up to 45 minutes. The rice chicken was excellent. The next day for lunch I hit Com Linh which is known for their dick and cristy pork. I got the duck with rice and the pork noodle soup. The soup was very good but I am still dreaming about their incredible duck. Definitely the best meal I had in Vietnam which is saying a lot since they food is so good. My last meal was Madame Khanh's banh mi. This place is always busy but opens at 6:30am so at 8:30am we picked up mixed Bahn Mi for us and our driver. It was so good, it was unbelievable. All the meats and flavors went so well together. Oh, and the prices: $3 for the duck rice plate, $2.40 for the chicken rice, and $1.20 for the banh mi. Best food ever!

rice paper taco deliciousness

best duck ever!

Hoi An chicken rice

Pork noodle soup

Dawne buying Banh mi

my bahn mi

eating my banana Nutella crepe

tornado potatoes and sausages

making crepes

the seamstress of the purses

I had decided that I wasn't going to get any souvenirs from Vietnam since I had gotten my fill last trip 5 years ago. I did run across a couple items in Ho Chi Minh that were just perfect for some people and I had to get them, and I had planned to get a dress made in Hoi An. But then I saw these super cute and funny cat pouches and had to get them. Then came across these cool cut paper cards that people had mentioned before and they were super cool so I figured out the going rate for them (about $2) and got about 16 of them. I also passed a store selling silk sleeping bag liners and those are always useful so got some of them. Finally, walking down a little alley-street I passed a woman sewing on a machine. She was making little cell phone holder purses and cross body purses out of silk. I have a cruise coming up next month and I always need something to carry my phone in so an elegant silk pouch with black cross body cord is perfect! I couldn't help getting a few more. I think she uses silk scraps from the hundred-odd tailors in town and her prices ranged from $1 to 3 so hard to beat! After my initial purchase, I went back and bought some more, and the next morning took Dawne with me to buy a few more!

cute handmade purses

cut paper cards

old town Hoi An

Cosmo meeting a pampered pup in Hoi An

Cosmo in his goggles

After Hoi An, our driver took us to My Son Sanctuary (not named after someone's son, those are names/words in Vietnamese). On the way I tried to get Cosmo used to his googles but he just does not see the upside to them. Cosmo was allowed/not noticed at the My Son entrance and had a great time wandering around the grounds and meeting fellow tourists who were very interested in a traveling cat.

Cosmo on the bridge at My Son Sanctuary