By acquiring an open bus ticket in Hanoi, I was pretty much guaranteed to hit all the backpacker spots on the tourist trial. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, as I have been able to see a lot for a minimal amount of money - and the tours to the major attractions in each town are cheap and easily arranged through the backpacker guest houses I've stayed at. It saves trying to figure everything out when you don't speak the language and aren't quite ready to tackle things on your own. So I'm finding myself going with the flow but sometimes I feel like I'm missing out on the "real" experience of the place when I do these tours- I catch a glimpse beneath the surface here and there, but after awhile the bottom line seems to be about buying and selling or capturing the moment with a picture. That gets old fast; as I get more comfortable with traveling independently, I'll have to veer off the beaten path a bit, I think.
Hoi An, a much anticipated trip, lived up to its Unesco Heritage status in beauty and "oldness" - there was history everywhere you looked. The town very much caters to the tourists - like many quaint touristy towns I've seen elsewhere. There were some specialty shops, lots of tailors, and many souvenir shops selling basically the same stuff, and there were many restaurants and bars - the food was pretty cheap and good. The trip to My Son, arranged by my guesthouse for $8.00 was an all-day event and was o.k., but mostly seemed to be geared towards photo ops - still, I got to see it and I did have the opportunity to steal away and wander around to try to get a sense of the place.
