Shopping New Jersey " Style in Vietnam...

Morning view from
our stateroom

Da Nang downtown an our way to Hoi An

I'm sure in happens on every vacation, on every cruise, nearly every day.  The "shoppers" appear, like magic.  We had planned a trip to Hoi An, a village on the registry of historic sites worldwide.

Canal in Hoi An

Japanese covered bridge.

Ancient traders house

  Why, you ask?  Hoi An, at one time long long ago, was a major trading location on the "perfume route" in the Far East, where traders from many different countries met to exchange and bargain.  This area, as a matter of fact, is one of the premiere silk producing areas still in the world.  And the village is largely intact, with one old Chinese traders' house that was over 400 years old.  We thought this would be a good historical visit and you know how I love history!!

Silk cacoons drying after dying.
The shoppers took one,
hope the USDA doesn't find it!

But I had forgotten the "shoppers."  Our bus took us the hour into Hoi An, stopping first at a silk manufacturer's shop to show us how silk is made from the silkworms to finished product.  Then, as we gathered to begin our trek into town, the "shoppers" yelled, over the din of the crowds, "Excuse me, excuse me.  We were here yesterday and we came back to shop."  This was good and bad.  First, that meant there were good shops to browse and buy.  Second, it meant that the group was going to break up and we could all get lost.  Our little Vietnamese guide shook his head but, not wanting to lose out on potential tips, told the shopper ladies from New Jersey, where to meet for lunch.  And we were off.

Unwinding the silk from the
dyed caccoons.

Lantern maker

Embroiderers in a room with walls
of picture embroideries priced at
thou$and$.

Shoppers and tourists in Hoi An

Wood carvers making decorative panels

Frankly, the ladies were not wrong.  Of course, not!  These were professional shoppers!  They knew where to get the goods, the bargains.  So, while we strolled up and down a Main Street in this historical little village, we saw hundreds of today's VIetnamese "traders" plying their trade, from trinkets to jewelry to medicinal herbs to fruits and vegetables.  And I'm sure it looked much like it did hundreds of years ago.  And what I can tell you is everything is cheap by American standards -- and by much of the other locations we've visited.  When we were at the silk market in Saigon, for instance, we saw buyers from the states buying hundreds of yards of silk to bring home for clothing, I would imagine.  And the same thing was going on at Hoi An's silk "factory."  And I got caught up in the goods, but also the atmosphere.

For instance, my daughter has been giving us a running dialogue on her potty training efforts back in the states, particularly the pooping part.  Well, in the middle of the dirt "Main St" we saw a little girl just about Iris's age, without pants or diapers, pooping in the street!  And we stopped to buy a couple of kids' clackers from an old lady who reminded me of my mother, chewing her bettle nuts, which had stained her teeth black.  This is the basic hand-to-mouth economy.  And our New Jersey shoppers were loading up.  It was their shopping heaven.

Marble carvings you could have
shipped home, 3ft high and
very heavy

After leaving the village, we drove to Marble Mountain.  Yes, it is a group of mountains made of marble and the next village was overrun with marble carvers.  Shop after shop carried the most beautiful marble pieces, everything from huge dragons and lions for your palace, to small pieces for your library shelves.  And even the pieces chipped off the big pieces were used to make the small easily portable pieces.  The shopper ladies were in heaven.  And the work was magnificent!  We noticed that the shop we were at was shopping huge crated pieces all over the world from Australia to France to the US.  And I wouldn't be surprised if a large piece or two ended up in New Jersey either!

On the way back to the ship, we drove past beautiful beaches with crashing waves, including the famous China Beach which has been renamed "Marble Beach".  And, built on these beaches, were parts of potential vacation homes and condos, few finished.  There was even a large casino waiting for customers and our guide explained that only foreigners could go to the casino.  Vietnamese were not allowed in.  But most of the structures were deserted, waiting for what the Vietnamese investors had hoped would be an influx of foreign vacationers that never appeared!

More carvings available

When I asked our guide where they expected guests from, he answered China and Japan.  When I asked a German couple if they would travel to Vietnam for a vacation, they said a resounding no -- they had much closer choices to home like Dubai and Greece.  However, our one conclusion about Vietnam is that they are on a path of strong infrastructure development and are determined to be not just a tourist destination, but a trading partner for other nations.  The Japanese have built not just bridges here, but tunnels through mountains, becoming a partner in that development.  Thinking for the future?!  We did not see this in Thailand or Indonesia.

A little girl

Old ways still work!

Selling noise makers and
new years trinkets.

Hoi An river with new year decorations

One of many clothing makers.
They made some for passengers,
in three days!

Vegetables

Hoi An

Tunnel built by the Japanese.  7 miles long.

Beautiful Marble (China) Beach waiting for tourists.

The shoppers, loaded down with bags and boxes, happily returned to the ship.  And I am sure they are readying themselves for Hong Kong shopping, some of the best in the world, they tell us.  I guess we should follow behind them so we don't have to do any research!  What do you think??