Hoi An

In the 17th century, Japanese, Chinese, Portuguese and Dutch traders lived side by side on this riverbank, and their town still stands, with more than 1,000 old houses. Hoi An's stories cross its covered bridge, sail out to the island of Cù Lao Chàm and reach the Cham towers of Mỹ Sơn, about 40 kilometers west. Then they come home to its kitchens, where noodles turn gold in ash water and Tết cakes drop from carved wooden molds.