The folks at the guesthouse we stayed at in Hue, Vietnam, were really helpful to set us up with a private driver to take us from Hue, through Da Nang and onto our next stop; Hoi An. (http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g293926-d1947769-r260340068-Original_Binh_Duong_1_Hotel-Hue_Thua_Thien_Hue_Province.html) They put us together with Ken from the transport company shown below – highly recommended 🙂

All photo credits: A.L. Wiltse (unless otherwise noted)

The journey took around 4 1/2 hours across roads through winding hills and gorgeous scenery. Definitely take the long route 🙂

Source: vietnamcoracle.com

We stopped at Marble Mountain – a main source of marble for the region’s sculptors. I’d love to know who actually orders these spectacular pieces and have them shipped home … they cost a fortune & rightly so … they really are magnificent! Take the time to walk up the steep steps to the gorgeous Buddha statue at the top of Marble Mountain. It’s here you can see the mountain source of the marble renowned through this region (the largest outside of Italy and India!), along with some beautiful temples. From here, we entered in Da Nang proper to finish the last 30 minute drive into Hoi An. My friends, Da Nang looks like Miami Beach on the South China Sea. A beautiful & modern city, the luxury is opulent, but a bit too overboard for my simpler tastes. There is a huge amount of development happening along the waterfront here – an investor’s goldmine for sure! This area has some of the most beautiful beaches in the country, including the spectacular China Beach. http://www.visit-mekong.com/vietnam/da-nang/china-beach.htmOff to Hoi An now … the magical city of lanterns … Namaste!