Imperial City Of Hue

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The bus pulled into Hue in the late morning, one of the reps of the bus company boarded and began telling us some bullshit of how the police were nearby and we couldn't stop at the station and instead would have to go to this hotel. Many eyes rolled as we knew all too well by this point how common it was to try to scam tourists into staying at certain hotels that the bus companies "favoured". In any case I guess karma kicked in because as this guy was running his mouth to us passengers, a taxi slammed into the side of the bus, sending the rep flying forward almost into the front dash. It wasn't too serious of an accident but we all disembarked at this point, gathered our bags and moved out.

Tim was on this bus as well but was only in transit here for a few hours until he'd catch his bus to another destination. We walked to this hostel called Hue Backpackers, which was quite nice, I checked in and dumped my stuff, and then with some girl who tagged along too, we made our way to the center of town to the Imperial Citadel.

Hue was once the capital of Vietnam during the Nguyen dynasty, and the citadel was where the emperors resided. The citadel consisted of a walled city center with a further walled off section surrounded by a moat. Many of the structures found in the citadel were in disrepair and there was many large and unused areas within. Large plans seemed to in progress to reinvigorate this area, it will probably be some time before the work is complete. We walked quite a bit that afternoon, it was a sunny and sweltering day. Tim and I parted ways, and I headed back to the hostel for a short while before heading back out to check out this blind massage place I had heard about. Along the way I conversed with a shop owner for half an hour before finding the place and getting a pretty good massage. I guess losing one sense is supposed to enhance the others and it seemed to be the case here. The guy who was probably close to my age, could feel all my wounds I had accumulated throughout the trip and avoided them without me even having to say anything. At one point I dropped my watch and he bent down and picked it up instantly for me just by hearing where it hit the ground, quite impressive. Best part of the whole thing was that the message only cost me a dollar and a half. On my way back I stopped for some Hue specialty dish (a version of rice soup) and then checked out the bridge which lit up in different colours after dark. I then headed back to get some sleep as I needed to be up at five thirty in the AM.

I did the DMZ (demilitarized zone) tour the next day and it was very informative. After the Vietnamese defeated and repelled the French in 1954 the country was divided into two until general elections could be done two years later. The north became communist under Ho Chi Minh while the south became a republic. Knowing Ho Chi Minh would win any upcoming vote, the south refused to have the elections and the country remained divided until the end of the Vietnam war. The DMZ was where the north and south split and was supposed to be a no combat zone, however the Americans completely disregarded this and set up several bases within and bombed the surroundings.

We left Hue and headed two hours by bus to the DMZ, went through the town Dong Ha then proceeded to the Rockpile, a former American base which could only be reached by chopper, as well as certain remaining American choppers and artillery. The museum there was also pretty good but again it seemed as though there was a good deal of bias to the North Vietnamese, I guess it's to be expected. We then checked out the river dividing the two former countries, a famous bridge and a minority village in the area.

After a lunch break we continued on to the Vinh Moc tunnels which, unlike the Cu Chi tunnels that were designed with combat in mind and were way more confined, these tunnels were made to house an entire village within in secrecy and were a lot more spacious. Also this place was so much less touristy than the tunnels near Saigon as well as having a much longer tunnel network for us to explore which was nice. We met a really tiny and deaf Vietnamese guy who came into the tunnels with us and supposedly lived in them back in the day. In fact 17 babies were born inside these tunnels amidst the constant barrage of bombs from the surface. The tunnels opened up to a picturesque shoreline before we continued on into another section. We arrived back in Hue at six in the evening, a tiring day to be sure.

The next day I was up to not much, just walking the streets, when a local came up to me saying my facial hair reminded him of his cousin. I talked to him for a bit and then he asked me if I wanted to get some food and beer with him while he waited for his kids to arrive from Saigon. I had nothing else to do and agreed. We went to some local place where I had some Pho Ga and we had quite a few beers between us (Vietnamese men LOVE to drink). I discovered that he had family in Canada, including Quebec City, and he could speak some basic french as well. Afterward he insisted on paying for everything, although I did get him a bottle of good wine to reciprocate. He said he would share it amongst his family that evening as it was a Buddhist holiday and they were going to be celebrating.

I was supposed to be heading to Hanoi that evening but the open tour bus never picked me up from the hostel so I had to stay another day. Maybe for the best cuz I had diarrhea that evening from some dodgy sandwhich I had earlier would have been brutal dealing with that on the overnight bus trip!

On my final day in Hue (so I hoped this time) I hired a bike and went off to explore the Ming Mang Tombs where past emperors were buried, which was outside of the city. Along the journey an older woman, named Ja, pulled up on her motorbike and conversed with me before telling me she'd guide me to the tomb, as she was on her way home and it was nearby where she lived. I accepted the offer and she was surprised with how fast I was able to bike as we made quite good time.

Arriving at the tomb she said her friend, one of the vendors nearby, could look after my bike (mind you I knew I'd have to buy something from her). I thanked her and headed inside. It was peaceful and empty within, the overcast weather, typical in Hue, adding a tinge of eeriness to the experience. I thought the statues and pagodas were interesting and I liked the landscape surrounding everything. When I left I saw that the Ja was still chatting with her friend and then invited me for tea at her place nearby. She lived in a very nice and secluded area and served Vietnamese traditional tea as well as the freshest pineapple I've had in a while. I stayed for a while, then thanked her and headed back to Hue, although I did get lost slightly on the way back but it was a pretty good bike ride and I was pushing to feel the burn.

As I got back I ate some pizza with some people from the hostel and then happily made the sleeper bus towards Hanoi this time.

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Comments

[Phil]

Dude!
When are you coming back?!

[Danny347]

Dude!
Could be another couple of months. I feel like I'm only now finishing the first piece of a very large cake!