Day 13 Da Nang & Hoi An

After a day at sea and 515nm (955kms) we arrived in Da Nang Vietnam. This was my first visit to Da Nang and was not to be a long one as my tour for the day was to be in Hoi An. In Hoi An I attended a Vietnamese cooking class… Can’t wait. We also had a visit to another food market!

Another first for us, the Azamara Quest was the first cruise ship to arrive in Da Nang since Covid. Might explain all of the big smiles we saw.

Da Nang Arrival

Arriving in the port of Da Nang was more straightforward than Keelung.

Cooking Class & Hoi An City

My tour for the day was one of the Azamara Tours and including my cooking lesson in Hoi An. Hoi An is a 45mins bus trip.

During the American War this was one of the key military areas for the US, and was the location that the TV show China Beach was based on. BTW, the beach is not called China Beach, a bit of poetic license used…

The Tour

Indulge in the flavours of Vietnam on this culinary adventure to the Hoi An Market with a cooking lesson from a local expert chef. Wander through Hoi An Market and learn about Vietnamese ingredients while discovering how to source the freshest produce. Then, journey to the “Pho Cho – The Market” cooking school where you’ll enjoy a short talk on the art of Vietnamese gastronomy. Our local expert chef will introduce you to regional herbs and spices, vegetable and other ingredients. Then, enjoy a hands-on experience where you’ll create your own courses and learn how to prepare delicious Vietnamese favourites including fresh summer rolls, grilled chicken with lime leaf, banana flower salad, and soup with cabbage-wrapped shrimp. Finally, delight in a scenic stroll through Hoi An with time to browse the shops, followed by a visit to Non Nuoc Beach.

Hoi An

On arrival in Hoi An we met our first guide in Hoi An. She had the task of giving us a tour of the local market and explaining the ingredients used in Vietnamese Cooking.

The Hoi An Market was filled local produce and I definitely did not do it justice with my pics. A place I would recommend visiting when in Hoi An.

A local guide is needed, if you don’t speak Vietnamese, though I am pretty sure google translate will suffice, just not as much fun… Our guide was buying things that we thought were for our cooking class, found out they were for her dinner and not us. And we were not even invited

The produce in the market was fresh and definitely a lot better than what I can get in Singapore.

As Hoi An is on the water, there is a lot of seafood, pretty much all locally caught. Can’t wait to cook some of it.. Well I hope we get to cook the local stuff, we will find out soon enough.

After the market it was time to head towards the cooking school…

Hoi An is definitely a tourist town, apparently has great night life. Unfortunately we were not going to be around to experience it. Another time, added to the ever growing list.

Ms Vy – Morning Glory

We started our tour of Morning Glory on the ground floor where there are a number of cooking stations preparing different types of Vietnamese Cuisine. Some of which we got to try.

Next up it was time to go up to the 1st floor and to take our cooking lesson and to say good bye to our first guide. The classroom was laid out with all of the ingredients we would be using to cook the four different dishes.

Of the four dishes we cooked my favourite was the soup with cabbage wrapped prawns. Everything was tasty and fairly simple to make. On the way out we given the recipes for what we cooked and a vegetable peeler, that works pretty well on carrots and a like.

The food, looks pretty good. Tasted even better.

Hoi An Township

After our self-cooked lunch we needed to stretch our legs to walk off the food and explore the town.

Hoi An definitely looks like a place to visit both during the day and at night. Some interesting shrines around the place, though this is definitely set up for tourists. Lots of souvenir and art shops.

This Dragon fountain is a feature of the Cantonese Assembly Hall.

Hoi An Japanese Bridge

One of the main landmarks in Hoi An is the Japanese Bridge. The bridge was originally built by Japanese Seafarers in the 16th Century, it has been continually added ever since.

After the Japanese Bridge we continued our exploring of Hoi An.

Hoi An is a pretty place… Somewhere to return to.

Silk Factory

From Hoi An we headed back towards Da Nang and stopped a silk factory, bought a few shirts and scarfs. Interesting process.

Road to Da Nang

We also stopped off at a marble showroom / factory, some very interesting choices for marble statues.

Non Nouc Beach – Da Nang

Our last stop for before returning to the ship was Non Nouc Beach, the so called China Beach. Very touristy, would have been a good place to enjoy a drink or two..

After about 7 hours we returned to the ship after a very enjoyable tour that I would recommend to anyone staying in Da Nang. If in Hoi An the Morning Glory Cooking School is also a place to visit.

Sail Away

Da Nang is definitely a place that I would like to return to and just chill and enjoy the place (plus Hoi An of course). It was a nice night for it… I am really enjoying the unobstructed view from cabin.

Next up is our last port before we head to Singapore, Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon).