The beauty of Hoi An in sunshine and in rain

Hoi An is as beautiful on a hazy morning as it is on the hot afternoon we arrived.

Photo: Hoi An's river in the morning

Apart from its quality weaving, record number of tailors and crowds of tourists, Hoi An is known for its stunning UNESCO world heritage listed Old Town. A trading port in the 15th century, Hoi An attracted merchants from all over the world. They stayed and built a city of unique architecture: buildings, bridges and pagodas.

Hoi An's traffic free and heavily-policed old town is worth the visit in and of itself. Add the picturesque river, great shopping, skilled tailors, world-class restaurants and cooking schools (plus a nearby beach) and Hoi An really is an amazing tourist destination.

But expect to pay for it - Hoi An is expensive.

We arrived yesterday passing through the nearby service city of Datang, which has the international airport, a great deal of business, and a number of huge resorts along lovely beaches (and more under construction). Then we just wandered through the town, did some laundry and had a great lunch at a charity restaurant.

This morning, I rose early and walked down to the wonderful local food market along the river. This turns into a clothing and textile market in the afternoon but at this time of day its packed with local produce and Hoi An residents buying their food for the day.

Photos: Hoi An's local market

After a fantastic included breakfast at our very nice four star hotel (I think I'm getting used to the buffet breakfast random wierdness) we decided to hit the beach despite the fact the temperature was plummeting and we were being threatened with rain.

It's a short taxi ride to the beach and it was quite nice - apart from the cold, wind and the odd sprinkle of rain.

In the afteroon, I bought a 90,000 dong ticket to Hoi An's sights so I could go across the Japanese bridge and explore the Old Town. The ticket allows you access to five buildings and helps fund restoration and reconstruction.

Photos: Hoi An's old town

Photos were taken, t-shirts were bought, lunch was had.

And then it rained.

And rained.

So we hit a wine bar for a drink and then had dinner at a disappointingly Western restaurant called Cargo and then hit the sack.

Photo: Hoi An's Japanese bridge