Just before nine, we woke up well-rested at Hotel Valentin. Despite our room neighbor being in heartbreak, we managed to fall asleep quickly and sleep well. He had been singing his ballads until early morning and had consumed so much beer that the smell of alcohol and cigarettes had seeped into our room overnight. The night was punctuated with rainstorms, which caused some windows and doors to slam shut intermittently due to strong gusts of wind. Overall, the noise was somehow relaxing and provided us with restful sleep. There was no breakfast at the hotel, so we decided to set off right away. First, however, we had a brief chat with the friendly hotel owner. She couldn’t sleep either because of her loud and sad guest, explained his situation, and apologized for it. After a few tips for our journey, we headed in the same direction as the night before for dinner to find something for breakfast.
On the way, we spontaneously found a suitable café on the roadside where we focused on our contributions and coffee consumption. Additionally, Malte found a pack in the café’s snack section that he didn’t know the contents of. It turned out to be melon seeds, meant for snacking just like the sunflower seeds the day before.
In search of something to eat, we passed by a market hall typical for Vietnam, which was completely non-touristy and therefore a must-see. Even though there was nothing interesting for us there, it was very relaxing to observe it without the tourist hustle and bustle. On the way around the market hall, we saw vendors in front of stacked goods, including various vegetables, meat, fish, and all kinds of groceries. Part of the market consisted of several cages where ducks, chickens, and other animals waited in the sun to be bought. A mix of different smells filled the air, making it challenging to endure. To avoid leaving empty-handed, Malte bought a bunch of mini-bananas for 20,000 VND as a snack for the journey ahead.
Leon wanted to move quickly, so we asked the park ranger for a breakfast recommendation, or rather lunch, since it was almost noon. The recommended food was delicious and inexpensive. There was noodle soup, with Malte’s being chicken and Leon’s beef. Leon also added a spring roll, which was super crispy and perfectly fried with very airy batter. It looked so delicious that Malte had to order one for 5000 VND or about 19 cents as well. Of course, we drank fresh lemon soda.
Then it was off quickly on our mopeds, on the now-familiar route towards the Golden Bridge. Just as we entered the parking garage at the gondola station for the Golden Bridge, it started to rain heavily. So, we sheltered in the parking garage for a bit until we could, dry, reach the ticket office at the gondola. Unfortunately, there we discovered that the tickets at over 40€ were truly too expensive for us. We had only wanted to see the bridge and take the gondola up the mountain, but one could only book the total package that included admission to the adjacent amusement park, which we didn’t want to see at all. After some deliberation, we decided against it, even though we felt a bit reluctant since we had already made the trip for the second time. By the way, there were special prices for locals, and the price communication was, some might say maliciously, very confusing. So back to the parking garage, where just as we were driving out, it started pouring again. We sheltered for another fifteen minutes.
Leon tried to use the time to enable the moped routes on Google Maps, which cannot be displayed in the German version. Malte, who had managed to do this somehow during his last vacation, tried to help, but it just wouldn’t work. We had to decide against the route to Hue, as the heavy rain had caused flooding on the road. So, we headed straight south to Hoi An. With the route guide on Malte’s phone, we set off. For a moment, we considered using our rented rain capes, which turned out to smell horrifically of old laundry and sweat.
The highway was nice and fortunately very empty. Leon wanted to make a phone call to Johanna by the roadside, which didn’t work out well and was postponed. We drove on until it started to lightly rain again, a sure sign of larger rainstorms, prompting us to take refuge in a small roadside bar before getting soaked.
The little bar by the roadside was just a large corrugated metal sheet that shielded us at the last moment from the impending rain. Here, a few Vietnamese were sitting at five tables, who had already been drinking heavily and looked at us with interest. The atmosphere was cheerful, and apparently, there was only beer available, as after we ordered two colas, one of the women hopped onto her moped and disappeared for a while. She must have gone to the next village to buy cola and returned with a six-pack. So we relaxed with our colas, waiting for the rain to stop while Leon called Johanna. We were repeatedly served rice crackers at the table, and when we finally managed to leave, we were bid farewell with much attention and best wishes for our onward journey.
It wasn’t far to Hoi An, and we soon arrived at the hostel where Lena, a friend of Leon’s, was currently working. She didn’t know we were coming by or that we were even in Vietnam because we had planned it as a little surprise. As Lena was not at the hostel when we arrived, we took the opportunity to head to the beach. There, before the approaching thunderstorm, we drank two mojitos while looking at the devastated beach. The atmosphere was ominous and impressive, perhaps a small warning for what was about to happen.
We had to start back quickly, as the bar staff informed us that it would rain soon. So, we hurried back with the mopeds before we could get wet. Easier said than done, as we couldn’t deactivate the steering lock on Malte’s moped. When activating the steering lock, a small metal cap clicks in front of the keyhole, which can be unlocked with one side of the key. However, both the key and the unlocking device on the moped were so worn out that it was impossible to open it. Two Vietnamese came to help us with the problem. In the end, we managed to get the moped running through combined efforts and Leon’s dexterity. Thankfully, we didn’t have to spend the night on the beach. In the future, we won’t look at the steering lock again.
Relieved, we rode back to the hostel. The surprise worked perfectly, and Lena could hardly believe her eyes when we simply sat down next to her in the hostel. And so we started the night with free drinks, along with Lena and a few other hostel guests at the hostel bar. The night continued towards the old town. Hoi An is a very touristy city, and correspondingly, the clubs were full of tourists from all over the world. The night was very fun and exciting, though we had to be somewhat embarrassed for ourselves and the other tourists at times. Malte finally found a chance to eat Cha La Lot in front of the club, a snack he had been searching for since arriving in Vietnam. We got back to the hostel at 5 AM and fell asleep completely exhausted.
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