Dessert highlights in Da Nang included nouc mia (sugarcane juice with a dash of lime juice) and che troi nouc (sweet glutinous rice balls with coconut milk). The Astronomer bought a tall glass of nouc mia from roadside vendors to cool off during hot afternoons, while I was a che-fiend at every opportunity.

Kem nho (grape ice cream) was the lone lowlight in Da Nang. Since when did grapes taste like bubblegum flavored fluoride treatment?

I am developing a theory about Vietnamese interpretations of American/Western foods—I hypothesize that the people cooking up this cuisine in Vietnam have never tasted the actual food they are making and as a result, their product resembles the food on the outside, but tastes far from the real thing. Thus far, this theory rings true for hamburgers and ice cream sundaes.