Rain splattered the car windows as the road climbed up into the mountains from water-logged rice paddies sprawling along the sea. A bonsai tree in a painted white and blue pot rested on a balcony above a vibrant rooster pecking the cement porch of a house painted chartreuse. A herd of cattle temporarily blocked the road, then we rose into the mountains and through Cloud Pass. Da Nang spread out around the bay below until dense clouds rolled in and obscured everything below. 
The drive along Highway 1 between Hue and Hoi An takes about three hours.
Where Globe-Trotting meets Beach-Combing
