Ahoy from Hoi An, Vietnam

Greetings!

I am posting this from Hoi An, Vietnam. It's a small town in the central coastal area and it's lovely. Its relaxed vibe is contagious and its old-fashioned streets and buildings are picturesque and endearing.

How did we get here? Well that's an interesting question.

We met up in Luang Prabang on the 14th, checked it out for a coupla days, then headed to Vientiane. From there we flew to Hanoi. Hanoi to Halong Bay (2 days, 1 night) then took a 13-hour night train from Hanoi to Hue. Spent a whirlwind of a day in Hue then took a bus ride to Hoi An, where we currently sit. Tomorrow we check out Hoi An, then on the 24th we're off to Saigon/Ho Chi Minh City for a few days, then Cambodia!!!

Gotta go enjoy some Hoi An nightlife shortly, but here are some quick highlights:
Luang Prabang: Walked around the old city, bought paintings at the night market that I absolutely adore. Hiked up a bunch of steps to the top of Phou Si for beautiful views of the city, went to Wat Xieng Thong - a truly beautiful and unique wat and generally wandered around. Had an authentic "Luang Prabang" meal that was scrumptious.
Vientiane: I enjoyed the capital more than everyone said I would. We went to Wat That Luang - the most famous monument in Laos, a truly stunning display of gold plated architecture. Then we went to Wat Si Saket, which is in the running for one of my favorite wats ever (which is saying something, I'm something of a wat expert these days). Then the national museum which was certainly sobering and thought-provoking with its fairly extreme captions and photos of the effects of American bombs. All told, I am definitely a Vientiane fan.
Hanoi: Holly got sick on our full day in Hanoi, so I was left to explore on my lonesome. Went to the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum and his former home, which was striking in a number of ways, primarily in the reverence shown to him. Then I bought train tickets (after numerous displays of stupidity to passersby. I'm a great representative of the states, really.) and grabbed Holly, went to the famous lake - Hoan Kiem - with the red bridge and whatnot. Then Holly returned to rest and I hit up the Hoa Loa Prison, which was built by the French to hold Vietnamese resistors, then used by the Vietnamese to detain Americans captured during the war. John McCain was held there, and seeing the photos of him being pulled from his plane and then seeing the clothes he was wearing when he was captured was pretty powerful. Eavesdropping on a Vietnamese tour guide explaining the exhibit to slightly affronted American tourists was particularly enlightening. More later.
Hue: Arrived after our night train (13 hours... sleeper train... Holly and I occupied the cheapest bunks, aka the top ones, which meant repeatedly climbing over people who hail from feet-phobic cultures, which was needless to say less than comforting. Thank god for sleeping pills) at 8 a.m., hopped on a tour bus at 8:45 and were carted around the old city to see tombs of ancient emperors, which were beautiful. We also saw the old citadel and Imperial city (what's left of it anyway). Took a boat back to the city and hit the hay early.

Which brings us to Hoi An. We walked around today aimlessly, soaking in the chill vibe and enjoying the beautiful scenery. Will do legit sight-seeing tomorrow.

Ok. It's short, but it's something, alright? Some day I'll write a meaningful one, but for now, enjoy the laundry list? Holly's blog is much more detailed. Check it out here.

Much love!
Ali