Hello Hoi An.... Part 1 of Vestiges of Vietnam

In case anyone did miss me, (I seem to have missed out on numerous gatherings, ie, Ninja Jones, impromptu meetings with Unkaleong and the rest of the gang), I was in Vietnam, celebrating a dear friend's 40th birthday. The birthday itself was in Hoi An, supposedly a UNESCO world heritage site, though why that is, I'm not entirely sure. I recall it was one of the wish list places that Rasa Malaysia wants to visit. Well, dear, don't do it in May, coz it's hot as hell. Makes our KL weather feel like we're on perpetual airconditioning.

Hoi An is supposed to be the guormand paradise of Vietnam. (again, I am not entirely sure why that is). But just to highlight some of the stuff we had there, that was kinda memorable:

Squid with Lemon Grass

1 litre mojitos

Fish in banana leaf, the house specialty. Rather good, lots of lemon grass. Excuse my ineloquence in the description, as my memory had been erased by the litre bucket of mojitos, and half a bucket of snowball that followed.

Chicken with Sesame Seed.

This rather palatable meal was had at Hong Phuc, one of the restaurants by the Hoi An riverside. Of course, for me the highlight was the 1 litre cocktails served in buckets. Careful not to kick it, (the bucket), I tried to stick to my mojito. I forget now the price of the poison, but it was something absurdly cheap, which begs the question, was it rum FLAVOURED alcohol that went into that mojito, OR, real rum. The Long Island Tea that one of the guests had looked positively toxic, and well, if you're using bootleg booze, or generic booze, LIT is NOT an advisable drink to have.

The birthday dinner itself will warrant a separate post, in the other blog, as I need to update the absent friends on the goings on (what little I can remember), at the birthday party.

Another rather delectable item we had was this WHITE ROSE thingie. It's like a gow chi, but lighter, and sprinkled with something similar to dried shallots.



These spring rolls (not spring pocket)... were nice, but a tad oily.


This was our resort, the Life Resort with its Wellness Spa. Apparently the Wellness Spa treatments were not up to scratch.


A view of Hoi An waterfront from the river. I think if you fell in, you'd have to disinfect your entire body with the strongest disinfectants, as there was raw sewerage in its full glory floating around.

One of the charming little streets of Hoi An.

One of Hoi An's attractions is My Son, (Mee Sohn), relics of an ancient Champa civilisation. Discovered and suppressed by the French in the 1800s, it was rediscovered during the war and partially destroyed by the american bombs. Hailed as a "mini angkor wat", those who had seen the real AW rolled their eyes in scorn. Well, if it wasn't so hot, I might have enjoyed it more.


And yes, that is a LINGAM, on the first picture on the left.