India, Nov. 18 -- Hoi An, for me, is a collage of life in motion. Two smiling women balancing woven baskets on a bamboo pole across their shoulders, their conical hats tipped against the early sun. A row of rickshaw drivers leaning back on their seats, chatting lazily as they wait for the day's first travellers. An elderly woman outside a shop, her deep wrinkles softened by the glow of coloured lanterns behind her. And aimless wanders beside yellow-painted houses, mirrored in the flowing waters of the Thu Bon River.

Once a thriving 16th-century trading port where Japanese, Chinese, Indian and European merchants exchanged silk, ceramics and spices, Hoi An still feels like a crossroads of worlds. Wooden shophouses echo Chinese design, brid...