One of the things we love to do whilst travelling is interacting with local people, hearing their stories and getting to know their way of life. Sometimes though it can feel hard to break down the barriers of culture, language and suspicion that can prevent us from really getting below the surface of a country or region. Taking a Hoi An Tour was the perfect way to gain access to people and stories...

Hoi An attracts millions of visitors every year to its centuries-old relics, nights that are magically lit up by hand-made lanterns, and gentle activities like cruising on the Hoai River that flows through it. This old town in the central province of Quang Nam is also known for its people's honesty and hospitality. But Hoi An's attractiveness also lies in its vast cuisine with foods that are ch...

The graceful curve of an aging Japanese bridge is nothing short of pure art. Form, function, spiritual significance - people report feelings of peace just from crossing or hanging around the Zen-inspired bridges. Even Monet felt moved to create a masterpiece based upon the Japanese bridge. Without question, the most famous Japanese bridge in Vietnam - if not all of Southeast Asia - is found in ...

In this post, I will discuss the Vietnam War from various perspectives. I will also be showing pictures where battles have taken place. As I mentioned in the first post about Vietnam, please do not read this post, if you feel this will cause any type of ill feeling. Mark and I, as well as the kids, learned a great deal during this tour; I hope all of our readers learn something as well... We ha...

While planning our route through Vietnam one of the places I was most looking forward to visiting was Hoi An. Many travellers we had talked to had absolutely raved about the place. However, our two-week long stay in Hoi An, Vietnam became a love-hate relationship. I found the people to be incredibly grumpy, which is contrary to what we had experienced in other parts of Vietnam. But then there w...

If you haven’t heard of Hoi An, you’re not the only one. This is one of Southeast Asia’s best kept sort-of-secrets. Those who have had the pleasure of visiting are bound to brag about this little gem, with its’ exceptionally well-preserved Old Town and streets lined with colourful lanterns. If you find yourself on a tiki tour of S. E. Asia, you’re gonna want to put th...

In my previous post, I talked about the first "agritourism" or "ecotour" tour we did during out recent, month-long trip through Vietnam (thanks to Vietnam Central Coastal Tourism!): Wet Rice Farming with Water Buffalo, and how awesome it was! The second one, also with Jack Tran's Ecotours, was Fishing and 'Palm Paradise', and it was great fun, as well! Elisse casts her fishing net! As...