One for the road...: February 2014

As Always, Please Click On The Photos For A Larger View.

VIET NAM 2014

It has been a few years since I was last in Vietnam, so needless to say, I was thrilled to find myself on a plane in the direction of Da Nang, Vietnam…my heart was soaring as high as those metal wings. This was no ordinary trip for me; this was for a tropical beach in an amazing resort….paired with a vibrant ancient city full of history and beauty…I knew this would be an amazing trip, (and I wasn’t just thinking about the food…I promise!).

Da Nang On The Cliffs

(AKA Sandy Toes, Beach Reads, Spa Days and Iced Coffees)
I was stuck for a few days in a super lux tropical paradise resort; at the InterContinental Danang Sun Peninsula Resort…not a bad way to start a holiday. I was surrounded by beauty on all sides; nature’s awesome raw beauty and modern luxury’s carefully planned beauty. Every afternoon I took a relaxing stroll down the sun bathed pathways that were nestled between beautiful boutique shops and lush tropical flowers with their beautiful floral scent filling the air and it was paradise. I found myself lounging on the beach reading books in the sunshine, listening to the rolling waves and taking in the fresh tropical sea breeze and of course drinking iced Vietnamese coffees. This hotel is quite lovely…full of surprising details that are a feast for the senses…you can wonder around all day and still find something new the next. It was such a relaxing place to be…this resort is truly an escape from reality and is pure unapologetic indulgent luxury. (For some info on the design elements of this hotel click HERE)

Harnn Heritage Spa (@ InterContinental Hotel Da Nang)

I even got to meet up with my KL friend, Emely, for a super relaxing spa day…full day of steam rooms, foot soaks, body scrubs, massages, facials, herbal lemongrass tea and spicy dehydrated ginger. This was a wonderful birthday gift from Fint…and my mind and body thanked him for it! When I walked into the spa’s reception I knew this was going to be a real treat. From the strong yet very soothing scents and the oversized “Alice in Wonderland” chairs to the golf cart ride down to my private spa villa I was transported into a parallel world…made to soothe the mind and body into a splendid state of tranquillity and relaxation. I was carted down to a private villa…and it was exquisitely finished…the detail that went into this spa is stunning. Everything inside my spa room was dark wood, black, white and teal in colour. By the end of the day’s treatments I was in another world of relaxation…and my skin felt like a baby’s bottom. I could get use to that level of pampering. What a great birthday present!! ;)

The Room

Our room was lovely…the best feature, for me, was the bathtub; a huge comfy marble tub. And with the fresh evening temperatures, this was the ideal place to soak and finish my book while enjoying a nice Illy cappuccino. The hot bath water also meant that I could open all the French doors and windows to let in the refreshing air and sounds of the waves crashing the beach below. Nothing beats that.Nothing.

Our Room

View from our room's balcony.

Da Nang A Beach Front Town

We checked out of the cliff side haven and checked into another beautiful hotel on the sandy beaches nearer to the city centre for the weekend. Our hotel room was beautifully situated with a stunning beach view, which you could enjoy from our bed or the comfy couches through the huge French doors. This made for way for our next adventure…Hoi An.

Kindred Tree Pose Spirits.

Hoi An

Here is a video of us walking around Hoi An:

Hoi An is an ancient town in central Vietnam, which possessed the largest harbour in Southeast Asia in the 1^st century. By the 18^th century it was considered the most important trading destination for all of Asia. However, by the end of the 18^th century this title was given to the nearby port town of Da Nang and thereby making Hoi An a forgotten backwater, as a result it was almost untouched by any of the changes being made to Vietnam for the next 200 years. And today it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Lanterns everywhere

Fint taking the Year Of The Horse by the reins. ;)

Once you arrive in Hoi An…it can be a bit difficult to know what to see or what to do. First, you you need to buy a “City Ticket”, of sorts, which allows you to view five of the historic sites. (You can buy more than one ticket if you wish to see more than five). I didn't merely want to wander around aimlessly, so we hired a private guide to show us around and tell us a bit more about what we were seeing….and he was a wealth of information, which made the visit more personal.

Pho, Coffee and PasionFruit. ;)

There is no doubt, that this city is beautiful and charming. It has wonderful little cafés and restaurants and craft shops mixed with the historical and cultural gems…that this is a wonderful place to spend a day.

The Japanese Bridge (For info click HERE)

The bridge was built in the 1500's and doubles as a temple with shrines to several deities located inside. I was surprised to find that the temple is still active with people still leaving food gifts for the deities, I was told by my guide that they do this to help safeguard themselves from the yearly floods that hit this city about seven times during the rainy season.

We stopped for sweet Vietnamese Coffees and delicious bowls of Pho during our day visit. This city is one that we could have easily spent more than one day wandering around.