In Hoi An, we went to Little Phoic's tailor shop.  Most of the made-to-measure shops show the same styles and fabrics, and they will make anything you want in less than a day. Somehow the lovely ladies convinced Steven to buy 2 suits ('course, he blames me) and measured him in minutes. He chose 2 lovely light-weight cashmere-wool blends and after 2 fittings and a few lightening fast tweaks, voila! Not one to wait patiently in the wings, I managed to get a few choice little numbers made as well.

The next morning, we biked to My Son along winding country roads through miles of rice paddies. We veered off the main road onto a path that led us past many homes containing cotton looms.


The equipment was 50-60 years old. Homes have 2-4 looms, while larger stand alone rooms had more. It was quite noisy and we assumed these folks suffer hearing problems at a fairly young age. The whole area seems to clatter and hum.


We got sort of lost wending our way through the village alleys. But it was a flat leisurely ride and we eventually returned to a main road.

We visited a fantastic series of Champa ruins that included a palace and many smaller temples. This was clearly a civilization that was obsessed with fertility.

Short ride today, since the BIG hill comes tomorrow.

We returned to Hoi An and wandered around. It’s a charming city, with wonderful old riverfront buildings, shops, cafes and a whole lot of personality.