Day 30! Wow… it’s already been a month on the road. It’s flown by but it’s also felt like multiple months have already gone by! I can’t imagine what multiple months on the road will actually feel like!

I woke up nice and early today and after eating my free breakfast took a stroll to the beach!

It’s honestly so nice to have a free breakfast at a hostel! Apparently a lot of hostels in Vietnam do it so I’ll need to keep an eye out!

While lying on the beach I hung out with a few people from my hostel and then after they all dispersed I worked on my blog post from the day before!

I’ve been so happy being close to a beach especially one that is calm enough to swim around in! I took a dip this morning and it was the perfect way to start the day!

After showering I hopped on my motorbike and drove to the old city which is about 15 minutes away from my hostel!

I don’t think I’ve said this yet, but I decided my bikes name! *Drum Roll Please* it’s Kilby! I actually decided this on my first ride, but it slipped my mind when writing the blog post.

The name comes from the song Kilby Girl by Backseat Lovers which was the first song to get stuck in my head while riding!

I parked my bike and went on a walk to find a couple of familiar faces!

I was meeting up with my friends Jack and Chloe who I’ve become quite close with over the past few days!

They are such amazing people and it’s felt like I’ve known them for much longer than 3 days.

It took us a while to find a restaurant as none of us were in a deciding mood. But we ended up finding a hole in the wall Vietnamese restaurant that was serving Cao Lau and Com Ga!

I ended up opting for the Com Ga but Cao Lau is specifically in Hoi An and it’s very good!

We then went on a mission for a little shopping for me!

I’ve been thinking about getting a scarf for when I’m riding since there’s so much dust and junk in the air… and also I thought it’d be fun to start rocking a scarf every now and then!

I did in the end find one, I don’t have a picture of it yet, but I’m sure it’ll make an appearance in posts to come!

After a little retail therapy we walked around old town to try and find a sweet treat and stumbled upon a sorbet stand selling flavors of fruits local to SE Asia!

Jack and Chloe got lime flavored and I got mango, but they even had durian flavored sorbet (the stinky fruit)… pretty crazy!

I then drove Jack and I back to the hostel on my motorbike and Chloe got a Grab scooter!

After a few games of pool, Jack, Chloe, and I went back to the beach to continue hanging!

We mainly relaxed and chatted on the sand but Jack and I did run into the ocean to try and body surf for a bit!

The sun was starting to go down so it was time to head back to the hostel where I did some planning for my upcoming drive and to get ready for the evening!

Jack, Chloe, and I headed back out to old town where we went on a long walk to a restaurant on the far side of the town.

It was totally worth the walk and I got a very large plate of crispy noodles with chicken and vegis!

Yesterday, Jack dropped off his Birkenstocks to get tailored a bit so we went and picked that up before wandering around the night market some more!

This is when I went a bit adventurous and decided to buy a snack that definitely isn’t for everyone.

I got a squid tentacle on a stick! Not something I’d normally eat ever but they are all over the night market and I just felt compelled to try it!

It wasn’t amazing, but it wasn’t terrible either. It was quite goofy to look at though.

We got back to the hostel after another fun night wandering about and joined some other hostel friends in the chill seating area!

There were a few of us who could play guitar so we ended up jamming for an hour passing the guitar around, singing all together, and having a great time!

It’s fantastic being in an environment where everyone feels comfortable to be themselves and play/sing without being judged!

It’s been a great few days in Hoi An and I met some incredible people here! I can definitely see myself coming back to this town in the future to spend more time but for now I think it’s time to move on!

Tomorrow I should be setting out for Hué but on my way I’ll be driving the Hi Van Pass and cruising down the coast!

– Elie