Hanoi to Hue - a Great trip

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Hanoi - Hue
Are last day in Hanoi. The morning was spent at the water puppets show followed by milkshakes by the lake. I had woken at 6.00 to walk around the lake to watch people slap each other again but alas it was raining. Back to bed for awhile then we were off to the “cultural” show. It was a good experience with Vietnamese artistry executed in a very different way. With four performance a day the puppeteers stand in water behind a screen to execute their puppets moves. (The water did not look to clean so not sure about their longevity).

As we exited it rained ago so under $4 umbrellas we walked back to the room to pack stopping briefly for a milkshake - yum, With bags in the lobby we had an afternoon to go in Hanoi before we were picked up for a 7.00pm train. Amongst other small activities we visited the Hanoi Hilton (so named by Japanese pilots who were brought down over Hanoi during the Vietnam war). First used by the French to house Vietnamese “trouble makers” earlier in the century conditions were as expected pretty ordinary. A sobering experience.

Having purchased some supplies to cover dinner we were ready to head off south. We traveled the small distance from central Hanoi to the train station quickly to get aboard our train. A 4 sleeper “soft” bed berth was 1st class travel. It was a tiny room that we barely fitted our luggage in. Squat toilets were the go...1 to each carriage. The train bounced and wobbled along and we had no trouble going to sleep. Each carriage had about 10 rooms and there were other travelers in roughly two per carriage. It was a relaxing trip, albeit cramped (much better than overnight bus travel which is stop start and swerve most of the time).

We arrived at 9.00am in Hue and quickly found our hotel. Right on the river with magnificent views and a pool we are in relative heaven.. Kerri and I swam before lunch while the boys played improvised table tennis again. Lunch was superb. In a small lane we sat in relative quite compared to Hanoi’s beeping and traffic noise. Our meal was 3 soft drinks, a beer, pancake, spring rolls, fried rice, steamed rice, chicken with cashew nuts, squid in lemon sauce at a total cost of $13.20 AUD. Great food and great price helps the stomach and budget.

After lunch we headed off to Hue’s main attraction by taxi. The Citadel is a short distance from the heart of town and is made up of last century buildings, lush grounds and moats. It was a real kings domain. We wandered for 2 hours in beautiful surrounds occasionally listening in on the guides servicing larger tourist groups. The site was bigger than expected and well worth the entrance fee and time allocated. Back late afternoon for a swim (it’s almost vital to have access to a pool in this climate) and drinks on our balcony overlooking the cities river. Stunning views and great company. Another great 2 days in Vietnam.

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