Continuing our way south, we arrived in Hoi An wanting to accomplish at least two things. One, enjoy local dishes only found in Hoi An and two, to shop. While Hoi An is known to many as a charming old port town set on the Thu Bon River and for its Chinese, Japanese, and European influenced architecture, most backpackers know it as shopping central. From the minute you set foot in town, tailors are all over you offering to custom-fit everything from suits to cowboy boots. Before arriving, Jen and I came up with a game-plan of sorts to best handle the ensuing onslaught. We decided that the first night we would just look and get a feel for which tailors were better than others. Also, we would try to spread our business around, essentially hedging our bets should we happen upon some lesser skilled tailors.
I decided that I would get a suit and some dress shirts made despite the fact that my workplace is fairly casual. As Jen put it, “It’s time for you to dress like a grownup”. At the age of 34, I guess she’s right. Jen was a bit more ambitious. In addition to a couple of business suits and dress shirts, she decided that she would get some other items of clothing made, items which include a nightie. More on that later.
For the suits, we decided to focus on quality over price. Our choice was a no-brainer. Walking the main strip in town, you couldn’t help but notice the place. Whereas all the other businesses were basically indistinguishable, A Dong Silk stood out. From the hardwood flooring, to the organized displays (mannequins without their “junk” hanging out) to the overall cleanliness of the place, it wasn’t hard to see why we chose this place. Thankfully for us, the quality of service matched the outward appearance. Having never had anything handmade and tailored to fit, both Jen and I were a bit overwhelmed at first. I mean, we’ve both never had to pick out our own fabric and design, nor have we ever had to worry about sleeve lengths, pant lengths, or skirt lengths. What color do you want the lining to be you ask? I have no idea. Luckily, we were matched with a couple of really sweet and really patient workers named Trang and Nee who helped us through the whole process. In my mind Nee, who was helping me out, got the better end of the stick. Not saying that Jen is very picky, but I’m pretty sure her fittings outnumbered mine 10 to 5. In her defense, she did have more items made and for some reason or another, the tailors would never use a “perfect” fitting item as a template for the other. I could definitely see some frustration setting in as Jen would get a shirt fitted, order a second thinking it would be at least similar, then have them come back completely different sizes. At least they made all of her requested changes with a smile.
In between all of our shopping, we managed to check out the rest of the town and some of the surrounding areas. Most of our time in town was spent in Hoi An’s Old Town. Set along the river, the Old Town is a collection of shops, restaurants, and cafes. Here, Jen and I experienced some of Hoi An’s local delicacies including Cao Lau noodles which, to be made properly, must use water from the nearby Ba Le well, and “white rose” dumplings (tiny shrimp dumplings). The dumplings were very tasty but both Jen and I couldn’t see what the big deal was about the noodles, even after trying a few different restaurants. Having rented a motorbike for a couple of days, we checked out one of the local beaches called Cua Dai. While I‘m not a beach person, I have to admit I was pretty excited to get back into the water. We spent a day chilling on some lounge chairs, soaking in the sun, and playing in the waves. Taking advantage of the gorgeous surroundings, we enjoyed a great seafood dinner along the beach that night.
Now back to the shopping. I mentioned earlier that Jen had wanted to get some simpler items made in addition to her suits. I believe the list included a skirt, a dress, and a nightie. (In the end, she also decided to gamble on a leather handbag.) For these simple items, we thought that using some of the smaller and cheaper tailors would be best. It all started out very promising. As we were trying to spread our business around, we visited 3 additional tailors to get the items made. The first stop was a shop run by a pleasant enough lady who would make a skirt and dress for Jen. She went through the motion of measuring and double checking all her numbers so all seemed good. We probably should have questioned our choice when she asked for full payment up front, but after agreeing upon a 50% deposit, we left her to her work. The skirt turned out alright but the dress turned into an ordeal. With tailored work, we assumed a couple of fittings would be in order. But, we also assumed that with each fitting the dress would actually change. Not in this case. Even I could deduce that the dress was a bit small when Jen needed help to get the thing off. In the end, Jen gave up on that lady and just got the people at A Dong Silk to fix up her dress.
The handbag process was a bit different but showed the same level of service. As with the skirt and dress lady, instead of actually listening to what Jen wanted, they simply tried to convince her that the way they made it was fine. Now, I don’t know much about handbags, but even I can tell when there’s about 2 extra inches of leather on the closing flap. After the fourth visit, they finally got it right.
The nightie experience was the most ridiculous. To set the scene, first let me describe what Jen had in mind. For some reason, about 95% of the women in Vietnam wear floral patterned pajamas as everyday clothing. Theirs are more the top and pants variety, but nevertheless, Jen seemed to agree with their logic . . . why not get something that can double day and night. What Jen had in mind was a loose fitting dress that in theory would look pretty good, and at the same time be comfortable enough for sleeping. I’m no tailor, but the design that Jen requested looked fairly simple. I wasn’t there for the first fitting, but all Jen could say afterwards was, “there’s just SO much fabric”. In fact the saleslady, who was pregnant by the way, even laughed that the dress would be better for her, and joked that there was enough room for three people. Thankfully I was able to witness the second fitting. The moment Jen exited the fitting room, I thought I was looking at the 5th Golden Girl. I mean, the thing was a gigantic mu-mu. Another couple who happened to witness the unveiling couldn’t contain their laughter either. Even the saleslady laughed, but still couldn’t quite fix it up after 3 fittings. Finally we figured it was more hassle than it was worth, and never went back. I wonder if that saleslady realizes or cares that we never came back to pick up our mu-mu. Maybe she’s wearing it, or perhaps is using it for bedsheets. Regardless, we’re pretty sure she’d already made her money on our 50% deposit. Lesson learned in Hoi An; we got what we paid for in all instances.
Worn out from the shopping adventures, we posted our suits home and caught a flight directly to Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). By this time, we’d had enough overnight travel and determined that the extra $30 for a 1 hour flight versus a 16 hour bus was fully worth it . . . .
For our few photos of Hoi An, go to http://gallery.me.com/adamschen
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