Our hotel is large, probably the largest we have stayed at to date on this trip. The breakfast is in the main restaurant and can seat well over 200 people. It is the normal buffet style with an additional cooked option for those that want something more. The buffet is huge with sliced meats and cheeses, yogurt, multiple kinds of breads, fresh fruit (passion fruit, dragon fruit, papaya, guava, watermelon) croissants, pain au chocolate, Danish buns, pancakes, waffles, French toast, an Asian style salad bar, tiny cakes and pastries, etc. Then, if that’s not enough, you can have eggs, omelets, eggs benedict or the Vietnamese soup (pho) of the day. Of course, freshly squeezed juice (I’m beginning to like lime juice) and any style of coffee (hot or cold) or tea you want. I stick with my normal yogurt, fruit and croissant while Dick explores the Pho of the day.
After breakfast we put together our laundry for pickup. We’ve been very fortunate on this trip that laundry has been widely available and mostly same day service. I have a confession to make: I did the worst packing job for this trip ever. I took into account the daily temperatures but neglected to factor in the humidity. Every morning the temperature starts out in the mid 80’s, but it feels like a 100 degrees and it only gets worse as the day goes on. Half of the clothes I packed are too warm to wear and the ones I do wear need washing after one day.
Today was a busy touring day.
Our first adventure this morning is at the Hue Imperial Citadel (a UNESCO World Heritage site), a short drive from downtown Hue. The Citadel was the political, cultural, and religious center of the Nguyen Dynasty, the last ruling dynasty of Vietnam in the early 19th century. It’s a massive site which contains the Forbidden Purple City (home to the Emperor, his concubines and eunuchs) and many other beautiful structures. The tile work and statuary is incredible. Unfortunately, most of the buildings were heavily damaged during the Tet offensive in 1968. There is ongoing restoration work being carried out.
Next up was a visit to the Thien Mu Pagoda, an important Buddhist temple & monastery and the site of many anti-government protests in the 1960’s. The Vietnamese president Ngo Dinh Diem was pro-Catholic and anti-Buddhist and tried to eliminate the Buddhist religion in South Vietnam. Discontent with Diem exploded into mass protest in Hue during the summer of 1963 when nine Buddhists died at the hand of Diem army and police. A monk, Thich Quang Duc, drove his light blue Austin to the Pagoda and committed suicide by self-immolation to protest the government. This started the uprising which led to the fall of the government. The car is at the monastery as a memorial. The pagoda has 7 stories, each representing a different buddha and overlooks the Perfume River.
Our last stop was at the Tomb of Emperor Minh Mang, a large complex of more than 40 traditional-style buildings and gardens built around the junction of two rivers and lake. It’s a beautiful setting. Minh Mang was the 2nd emperor of the Nguyen dynasty and is considered by many to be Vietnam’s most successful ruler.
On Peters advice, we walked down to Madame Thu’s for an early dinner. Thu’s is well known for offering local Hue specialties – Bun Bo Hue (Hue Beef Noodle Soup) & Bahn Khoai (Stuffed Crispy Rice Pancake). Very nice although the Stuffed Pancakes needed an instruction manual to assemble!
We stopped by a craft beer bar, The Seven Bridges, on the way back to the hotel. Dick finally got to enjoy an IPA while I tried the local Vietnamese wine ‘Da Lat’ (who knew) – it was OK. Our server, Tuan, was a young university student studying e-commerce, of all things. When told that much of Dick’s career involved that discipline he insisted Dick was too old to understand what that was. Gotta love it.
We finished with a nightcap at the hotel patio watching the very heavy rain.
Mary