Hoi An you wonderful drop of gold

She was trying to make me pinky swear to go buy beer from her tomorrow

These ladies requested a photo be taken

Our 'buckets'

Deathly Hallows represent, not long now yussssssss

Scooting on the footpath, casual.

Wuw. Off the bus and instantly theres 3 people trying to make us stay at their hotels. We try explain we're just going to have a wee sit and talk about it but they don't leave us alone so we cross the street - which is easy as pie here - and have about 74seconds before they follow. Ugh. Sam had more unfortunate events after he finally got into the air, his bag didn't make it to Ho Chi Minh so he had to stick around for an extra day there and wait for it, so we don't wanna make any decisions until we know if he is on his way or not. He's not. So we go the the annoying peoples hotel and its only $5 a night so I guess I should stop complaining.

Exploring time. WHOA. I feel like my eyes should be heart shaped when we first go walking, it's sooooo pretty and picturesque and just whoa. We have a semi-plan to go to the shoes maker and dress maker that Emma-darlingpants suggested, and I end up going to the shoe-maker next door and getting THE BEST BOOTS IN THE WORLD made. I get to pick out the leather and colour and how I want this and that and I'm a little scared they're going to be hideous but when I get them back I don't wanna wear them they're so gosh darn pretty. It is going to be hard to not get 19 pairs made. Mash gets some shoes that look like fire balls, some armadillos, and some hi-tops that match his jacket he's getting made. Thinking today calls for cowboy boots, not sure if my bag will fit it all tho...We get some beers, they're 4000 dong each which is 24 cents each in NZD, and taste reminiscent of JMs homebrew. I'd been hanging for nachos, so we found a mexican place called Green Chilli and had dinner there. Yum, they were just delicious. There's lights and lanterns and pretty things everywhere, and we are on the lookout for some floating swan things we heard about, apparently their eyes light up and they play santa clause is coming to town at double speed. No dice, didn't even see one.

This next day we head out to find some scooters, hells yeah, I love scootering. Driving on the right side of the road is a bit odd, and having 0 give way rules is also a bit challenging, but something to get used to. Free for all intersections, gogogogogogogogogo. We head down to the market and Mash gets a tailored jacket in the works, and a couple more pairs of shoes, and I'm getting the second pair before I can tell myself no. Then a lady comes up and joins arms with me like we're the bestest old buddies and starts walking down the street with us...ok...of course she wants us to come to her shop, and as she hugs me for the 7th time and strokes my arm we make a break for it. But! I've told her my name, and she finds us as we come out of another shoe shop, I was thinking who the hell is yelling my name, I know no one here. Off to her shop, where Mash goes pants crazy and I order a dress. While we are choosing what we want, we get free water and back rubs with tiger balm, they sure know how to butter up the tourists in this place. But that's fine, they're hilarious. After we both get 25 hugs each, we leave to go in search of a new hotel. A fancyish one. We scooter all the way down to the beach, and look at a few places, and eventually decide on the >Lotus Hotel< . It's halfway between the beach and the market. Downside is they are repaving a  couple sections of road, so we have to drive on the footpath and gravel everytime we need to go to town. Meh.

 In to town to meet SAM! I told him we would pick him up from the Hoa My hotel we stayed in the first night, and when we pull up, ta-da, he's there. We drop all his things off at the hotel, then back into town so he can custom order some rad footwear also. Dinner and beers then we end up following one of the many fliers random people have dropped off at our table. Sun Bar. Free 'bucket' on arrival. Mash gets one of the free scooter rides there and me and Sam walk. Je-sa-hus. It's like being 17 again, Screaming drunk ass girls dancing to blaring distorted music. Just my thang! Not. So we be real sociable and go sit outside. After our free 'bucket' (which is a jar with a straw through the lid) we head off to the second flier place. Some guys on scooters says they'll take us so on we all jump on and head off. When we get there our guy tells us it's a rip off and we angrily pay him. Mash got the free one but our guy was just a random scammer dude who we later read about in the Lonely Planet. Ah well. This place is oh-so much better, and I don't even know if I'm being sarcastic as I write this. Hmm, was it? It was called Why Not Bar, and they have tourists working there which is kinda handy for the sales part. I can hardly shut the door to the loo tho, my knees are in the way. Sweet design. Me and Sam are going home, and Mash that crazy partier wants to stay. We get back to the hotel and theres about 3 usher guys trying to help us to the room with torches, which is lovely and kinda funny at the same time. They even kept the torch on the keyhole while I fumbled trying to open the door. Noice.

Next day pool fun time, and trying to wake up Mash for the buffet (god yes please) breakfast. He doesn't reply and we can't open his door so he misses out. By 11 we are actually thinking he's dead cos there hasn't been a peep, so we ring his room continuously till he wakes up. , check. Hung as hell, check. Turns out him and some other NZ guy were dancing on pool tables and possibly falling off pool tables. Fittings and Sam gets a suit on the go, and Mash is still drunk and orders a fourth pair of pants and a shirt. He then realises the tailored jacket he picked up yesterday got lost in the kerfuffle last night...But where? He's raging, but after we get scooters we go back to one of the places we went the night before and they had it. A bit of luck. To the beach! We Scoot to a section of the beach where there's loungers and big umbrellas and it's awesome. The sea is nice and cool and refreshing, it's so great. We laze their for a few hours and I kinda wish I could have just slept there for the night it was that good. Back on the mish, few beers and randomly a massage. Mmmm Massage. Sams first hes ever paid for, and seeing we had just been swimming at the beach, they both have no undies on and have to wear these hilarious paper see through disposable undies. I didn't look but the ladies were cracking right up.