About a half hour later, we settled our tab and began the long walk back to the cab stand on the other side of the village. As we left down the main thoroughfare of Hoi An I began to have mixed emotions about leaving this beautiful UNESCO heritage site. On the one hand, it was gorgeous and exciting, on the other, there were far too many Americans on mopeds. It was bad enough in Da Nang with seasoned professionals, now you have to throw in horrible driving, Americans!
I was starting to become fearful of my life. We were continually honked at as we walked down the road. For you see, in this land, sidewalks aren’t made for walking, they’re made for parking and driving. We nervously (at least on my part; no one else seemed phased) navigated our way back to the taxi and climbed in. We began the drive back to the city, where I was going to meet up with some of the family friends for dinner. It’s funny how the same road from the other side can offer up sights you missed on the opposite way in.
I completely overlooked the neatly plotted rice patties and buffalo-drawn equipment as we drove into Hoi An. Probably because I was transfixed on the mountains, hills, and giant Buddhas that paraded the other side of the highway on our way in. A motorbike passed, and a lady was on the back doing her makeup. I thought doing it while driving was a challenge!
As the sea came back into view, I got a better vantage point of the beach and roaring sea. Across the bay, nestled on the far hills of the peninsula, rested the ivory-white lady Buddha. The largest statue of her kind in the world. She sat perched high atop her lotus blossom, overlooking the beaches and bay like a guardian protecting her shores. I would be going to her towards the end of my trip. A sight I was looking forward to seeing.
The beaches were vacant of bathers, and the water looked pretty rough. It looked like there might be some rough storms just offshore. The beaches and sidewalks were still full of people enjoying the view and getting some exercise. We whizzed back across the canals and into the backstreets of Da Nang once again. I was headed for a quick nap before going back out for a Saturday night in the City of Bridges.
