Danang/Hue/HoiAn 2025 - Hoi An Ancient Town Solo Walk

 

It was nice to be out on my own again. It's not that I don't enjoy people's company, it's just that I find it very relaxing and peaceful to explore things alone. And on this early morning, I was going to see Hoi An for the very first time alone first, and that itself was so trilling! above, one of the corner shop with the sign that every tourist likes to take photo with. As you can see, it was still kinda dark as I ventured out.

From where we had dinner the previous night, the night market vendors were all gone, so I found looked across the river, and I instantly recognised the Japanese Bridge, which was the oldest bridge in Hoi An. The view was lovely, with the Vietnamese buildings in their signature yellow on the two sides of it. I was feeling happy :) The rain clouds have cleared, and it was going to be a lovely cooling morning for a nice walk.

The streets around my side of Hoi An was pretty empty! There were a few locals having their breakfast at the local vendor's food stall by the side of the road. There were rubbish trucks around collecting the garbage from people's shops and houses. It was a very normal small town buzz. I love this more than the night market for tourist a thousand times more. I travel to see local life, not tourist malls and attractions. 

Walking by the river, I saw some space where events could be held. It was quite a nice marina to walk along as the sun slowly rises to greet the day. The streets were still wet with last night's rain.

Soon I came to the main old bridge, and it looked so different from last night! Last night it was just crowded with people and I could hardly see how wide the bridge was! In the morning, I could see everything! And motocycles were also going across it. There is another more modern bridge nearer to our hotel that cars can access to. This old bridge was mainly used by two-wheelers and people. I wanted to say 2-leggers, but there are also pets crossing it :P

How lovely is the view. Such a contrast to the previous night of lanterns and dreams.  In the morning, the water on the river was calm, reflecting the sky. There was hardly a boat in sight. It was quiet. So very very calm.

As I crosses over, how strange it was that I came across a shop with the name of my weird cousin on it. He has passed away just 2 months back or so, and it was strange to see his name here. I smiled to myself. Maybe he got lost along the way, lol. I hope he is at peace wherever he is.

I picked a  more inner part to explore, and was greeted with more older and local type of buildings. Although old, they still have the signature lanterns hanging on them. This part of town looked a lot more intimate and personal. More local and authentic. 

Some of the old houses were designated as museums or heritage buildings. I was looking forward to visiting them once we get our cultural tickets which allows us to visit a few sights during our stay here.

Some of the information of the old houses I walked pass.

More signs at shop front where it's very popular for tourist as a photo spot. There was no one here yet. 

The almost empty little streets, with just the local on their bikes buzzing pass. I love that they have the Vietnam flags hanging outside. The red of the flag, contrast with the yellow of the buildings. It was such an iconic Vietnam keepsake photo!

Further along as I walked, there was a stretch of yellow buildings covered with plants on the top. Add the red lantern along the street, as well as the red flag hanging outside, it was such a lovely sight. 

Some building was of dark wood and indigo blue. It kinda reminded me of my hometown Georgetown Penang. It felt like they were also stuck in a certain era.

Like this scene here, which was probably of a clan house or temple. The architecture and the colour scheme, looked similar to olden China villages, doesn't it? Built by immigrants to Hoi An from the past, just like Georgetown Penang? 

Here is a close up view.  Without the yellow building to cloud it, this could have been taken from a street in Penang!

On the other side of the street, were more typical Vietnamese buildings, with strong wood and strong tiles. Hoi An also have a lot of lovely and well behaved little doggies. I don't know why, but I find the dogs in other countries are so much more well behaved than the ones in Malaysia, or Singapore, or China :P Is it a Chinese thing? Lol. Maybe the Chinese pampered their dogs too much?

I also found some super narrow alley which I know are also popular photo spots for tourist. It was rather unique. It looks lovely for photo taking, but it looked damn uncomfortable for me to even look at this. It's like if you need to run or escape, there is only forward or back to run to, and that is not comforting for me at all!

Saw some shops with lanterns outside. Since the shop is closed, I helped myself to some photo taking in front of it. I was comfortable in the morning as there weren't many people around. 

Here is me again with the street view. I actually dressed up for today in floral blouse cause I know I'd want to take lots of photo in Hoi An! Lol. 

Danang/Hue/HoiAn 2025 - Hoi An First Morning and Breakfast at Emerald Riverside Resort

On our first morning there, my friend decided to sleep in while I decided that I wanted to go out and take a look at Hoi An in the early morning without the tourist crowd. I think I was out by 6am? First thing I wanted to do was explore the hotel area. It was called Emerald Riverside Resort, so I wanted to go and see the riverside. 

It was just a short distance away from our room. There was no actual boundary or security anywhere. It lead directly to the river. There were some photo spots around, and coconut trees swaying by the riverside. 

This Love structure here reminded me so much of my time in Kampung Agong. It was a typical photo spot for people. I always think such things are so cheesy. I wanted to see authentic stuff, not man made structures built for no other reasons than for photo shots!

I saw some movement on the grass. I don't really know what to expect, but I saw a crab moving around on the grass. Can you spot it on the photo above? It's just a tiny small crab, and I guess it's a river crab? I've never seen something like that before, so that was fun!

The view to the right side of the river as above. I know that there is another result further down the which was more expensive and higher class perhaps. But I was dead set on staying at Emerald lol. I bet my friend was wondering why I pick such a shabby hotel resort. Perhaps I felt more comfortable here than if I were to stay in a high class resort where things can be more superficial?

This is the view from the riverside looking towards our hotel. The building right in front would be the hotel lobby area which was strangely on the 2nd floor. Our room was on the ground floor on the building on the right of the photo. And right in the middle area is the pool which I was planning to at least soak in, but ended up not even entering it.....

Here is the view of the pool. It was still early, so it was empty. There was a staff cleaning the area too. Later in the day, right up to the evening, there are usually guest swimming in it. It is rather lovely. 

Walking inwards, this is the view just outside the breakfast area looking out towards the river. 

And this here is what our room building looked like. It wasn't a double storey. No. Our room was on the ground floor with direct access to the pool. It was really relaxing to be here. I spent quite a lot of time sitting out at the small balcony area, especially during rainy days. Even when it's raining, I still enjoy my holidays. 

The corridors around the hotel. From our main room door, to get around to the dining area or lobby or going out, we use the corridor and I just love the emerald and white lantern. It's such a classic combination!

And here is what our breakfast place looked like. There were white water lilies growing all over the small pond all around the dining area. The pond and its colour goes so well with the emerald white theme of the whole place. It was just heavenly. You could sit indoor or outdoor for breakfast. Us being Asians, we always sit indoor.

Here is our table and our breakfast. It's a buffet, and we ate there 3 days! Lovely! The below breakfast photos were taken after I came back around 8am and joint my friend for breakfast. After exploring the riverside, I actually went on a solo walk of the small town early in the morning. You can read more about it on the next few post. 

I always load my plate with proteins and fibre as my first plate. 

And then my fruit dish. Lychee was in season. 

They also have yogurts and you could add condensed milk and fruit bits into it. I got quite addicted to the yogurt and ate it daily.,lol. I think it's because of the condensed milk though. I love condensed milk on anything! 

Danang/Hue/HoiAn 2025 - Hoi An First Night Walking in the Rain

 

After having our dinner, we decided to talk a short walk around the small town just to see why it was so popular with tourist. It was our first impression of Hoi An, and it was so touristy and crowded. There was a night market just right outside from where we ate, so the moment we stepped out, we were bombarded by sounds and light and vendors on their moving cart, or vendors with their wares setup all over the place. It was Danang all over again, but packed in a more dense area! Lol. 

So we decided to cross the bridge to see the river and the other side instead. It was quite a sight to see. Everything was lighted up, and all sorts of colours can be seen from every corner of our eyes. The river itself was filled with lanterns of every colours! They were from the floating boats on the water which tourist can pay to ride. It was just so touristy and cheesey! 

Yet, it still held some charm to it all. It was kinda dream like to look at the river with its floating like. It was a river of dreams. Where people went on boats to make a wish and release their wishes to the river, hoping that it will come through..... Perhaps an ancient belief passed down till today and has become somewhat commercialised for the tourist visiting. 

After crossing the old main bridge, we also ventured further into the small roads to see the view so that we would know what to expect the next day when we are ready to explore this little town. The streets, just like the river, was brightly decorated with lights and lanterns that we so uniquely Vietnamese. It was an oriental dream somehow. It was beautiful. It was lovely. And it was charming, like a fairyland. 

It started to rain as we walked, and the road started to get wet. But instead of going back, we walked on, and the scene it self looked even more dreamlike for taking my photos. The reflection on the street enhances the dreamlike themed of our evening walk. The road was not crowded since it was now raining. Some people seek shelter in the shops or cafe. 

I spotted one of the attraction houses that I wanted to visit. It was nearer than I expected. Hoi An indeed was a small town. Although we stayed there for three nights,  and there were other parts of Hoi An besides the town, we didn't visit other parts of it. We just spent all our time exploring this town. 

Lovely restaurant all decorated with lanterns, yet empty as it was raining. 

Even the cafe and coffee shops looked so cosy and beautifully decorated. I regretted having my coffee at the dinner place. I should have saved it and have a nice warm coffee here instead, looking out into the rainy scene. It would have been nice to linger there, and remain in the dreamy state of the old town.

More lanterns in front of shops.....

The streets were also decorated with hanging lanterns. They looked so beautiful. 

Shop houses with  lanterns outside of them. 

Soon we decided to head back as the rain started to pour. On our way back, we pass by this wall mural just opposite our hotel. I thought it was nice. It was a foot massage shop. We did try to get a foot massage there one day, but we couldn't find anyone attending to the shop while we were there. Pity. We ended up going to another shop instead which was Korean inspired lol. 

Danang/Hue/HoiAn 2025 - Hoi An Dinner on the First Night

My friend picked the first restaurant for our first dinner in Hoi An. I think she picked it 

because the place was jammed packed with locals instead of foreigners. (Note: foreigners to me usually refers to AngMoh a.k.a. caucasians.) I didn't object cause the price was ok, and they serves some of the cuisine I wanted to try.

The name and the menu of the restaurant. One nice thing about Vietnam is, almost every cafe or restaurant usually provides wifi for you to use. I learned that when I was working there and doesn't have a roaming plan. Of course sometimes I got stuck and couldn't call a Grab back.....

Look at the seafood! I don't even know how much those are!

I wanted to try the clam claypot rice, and one of the noodles too.

Ah here it is. Cao Lau. 

My friend did the ordering. So we got grilled brinjal. I love brinjal so I didn't object to this.

I got my noodles. It was interesting, but not as nice as Mi Quang.

Got some grilled sotong, which was a bit too dry. 

Got some grilled oysters too, which was again, too dry! So yeah, the seafood was a tad disappointing. Actually, I would have preferred to kept our seafood dishes to Danang instead since that's where it's famous for. Hoi An is after all, a kinda village.....

Tried the clam rice, which was just so so. They actually minced up the clam, so you don't see a whole clam inside anywhere.... Doesn't even taste remotely near to the sea, sorry! It was a filly meal, but not really memorable in taste.

The coffee was always great though. And we actually sat next to two trans lady who was also doing streaming while they eat with a bunch of old man, lol. That itself was rather interesting. It was a super local restaurant so everyone was kinda seated shoulder to shoulder with each other. 

Danang/Hue/HoiAn 2025 - Hoi An Emerald Riverside Resort Hotel

 

We managed to get a Grab from Danang all the way to Hoi An! It was almost a 45minutes ride. I used to be afraid of taking taxi or Grab in South East Asia in case they kidnap me to somewhere else. But recently I've been a lot more chill about it. Maybe for one, we looked local, and for two I always greet them first in Vietnamese so it's like an obligation to treat us more locally ? Lol. I don't know. I just feel much more comfortable now travelling around Vietnam than last time. We reached our hotel around 7pm I think. We were staying for 3 nights at the Emerald Riverside Resort.

I pick it cause it's near the old town, yet some distance away so that we won't be bothered with the crowd and sound. I personally like the hotel cause it reminded me of those hotels in Penang or Malaysia, but I think it was rather dated for my friend's liking. I wanted to book 3 nights in the pool view room, but it wasn't available, so I got 2 nights garden view and 1 night pool view. For some reason, after we checked into our room, they told us we could have the pool view room for the whole 3 nights at no extra charge! YES!

There was no bath in the toilet, just a shower. We put our bags, and went out to look for dinner.

It was just a short walk to reach the old town area. I instantly saw Morning Glory, one of the restaurant that people recommended in the forum. I realised that what foreigners recommend online might not be what I want to actually try. They are usually expensive, sterile, and tone down in taste as compared to the real deal. Looking at this building, I decided not to even mention this restaurant to my friend.

Isn't the green lantern pretty? I love the colour of emerald green. I picked this hotel because I once stayed at a hotel called Emerald in Hanoi too, and had a lovely experience there. So I thought it might be the same here. During checked-out I was told they are not related. Still, I enjoyed my stay here a lot and don't mind coming back again.