11:40am. Trying to decide if I want the creamy but hot "pumpkin soup" or a cold "healthy dessert jar" (fresh yogurt, fruits, and seeds) for brunch. Both are delicious. It's 23c here and overcast so almost feels a little chilly to this now somewhat acclimatised Canadian. I even have a sweater on...a lightweight one mind you. Prices at this cafe are a bit or even quite alot higher than in other cafes/restaurants because it is at a hotel and serves many foreigners, although many will still find prices cheaper than back in their home countries...including mine...but I really love the ambience and service and watching the street scene of people walking or driving by on scooters from my little table under a covered patio, and plus I often meet my new friend Rose here for our morning "ca phe sua da". 😊 Well now a little breeze bringing a dampness from the ocean has just hit me and helped me make my decision... hot pumpkin soup it is! 😋
Speaking of restaurants, cafes and hotels here, it is just incredible how many there are in this city. There are so SO many, and everywhere one looks. It is quite astonishing really to see so many...and everything from super luxurious to budget. Of course the ones closest to the beach and with sea view are the most expensive, and with some being recognizable worldwide franchises like The Radisson, The Four Points Sheraton, and then others are private like The Golden Lotus, Grand Seaview, The Eden, and other names I'd never heard of, but all very beautiful looking, and especially at night when their huge and tall glassed-in lobbies are all lit up with lots of hanging decadent chandelier lights and/or glowing colourful Vietnamese lanterns, and gleaning polished marble tile floors and walls. And always ALWAYS there is a golden shrine somewhere in every lobby that is very ornate and resplendent with offerings of fruit in bowls and wafting fragrant smoke of thin sandalwood incense sticks burning from a very decorative ceramic urn, and all for a Buddha who sits amongst all the gildings and adornments and gifts looking very pleased, peaceful and calm. 🙏 Vietnamese people certainly do not chintz when they decide to go all out, and I've seen many a sight to behold here just in hotel lobbies alone. Even my little apartment, at roughly $385 cad a month, which, to me, is a "budget" one (and especially considering I'm in the most expensive "touristy" part of the city), is very well laid out, clean and super comfortable, and I always love the great comfy beds here and the lovely fine cotton linens they use. I will post some pics of it at some point for sure. And that mthly rental includes my own brand new little automatic washing machine, TWO countertop stove burners, an oven, a big fridge AND twice a week housekeeping. (Oh my, but that housekeeping bit is certainly a bonus treat for sure!)
PS> Just now googled "how many hotels in Da Nang?" and found a stat saying that in some places there are up to 50-70 hotels in a short section of road, just 500 meters long. Wow! But absolutely believe it. It is so truly chock-a-block full of them! (And that term "chock a block" is perfect for describing the hotel scene in Da Nang 😊)
Here's a link to where I found that above stat in case any of you are interested.
https://vietnamnet.vn/en/da-nang-is-in-hotel-oversupply-crisis-547215.html
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