The city of Hue, (pronounced 'Hoi' according to Binh, rather than the presumed 'Hway') on the Perfume River in Central Vietnam, is a city of close to a million people and was the capital for some time during the Nguyen Dynasty.
First up, it was off to the wharf to board a ferry on the Perfume River. Colourful boats to say the least!
A traditional fisherman on the river.
Three different elements in the photo below - the traditional (well, fairly so) tourist boat in the foreground, while the skyline is dominated by two tall buildings, one designed to look traditional, the other unashamedly modern.
We headed upstream and under several bridges.
Many swans were behaving themselves.
After about an hour cruising and some intensive marketing from our hosts, we arrived at the Thien Mu Pagoda, with the 7 tiered tower often considered the unofficial symbol of Hue. It is called the 'Pagoda of the Celestial Lady'.
The gate into the temple area was the traditional gate of 3 entrances, one for men, one for women and the larger central gate reserved for the emperor or ruling dignatory at the time.
In 1963, the President of South Vietnam, Ngo Dinh Diem, tried to make the country Catholic, by banning the Buddhist flag etc, despite a large percentage of the population (70-90%) following Buddhism, Taoism etc. This resulted in protest and discontent.
Housed in the Pagoda compound is the vehicle made famous as the background to the self-immolation of the Buddhist monk in 1963, photos of which spread around the world. The President was arrested and assassinated by the military soon after this, and just weeks before President Kennedy was assassinated also.
The photo on the wall is rather muted and less-than-clear.
Not for the feint-hearted, but the historical photos of the immolation, which are much clearer, can be found here, but caution please.
A pleasant spot. If you want more information, follow the link....
Then we were onto the bus and off to the Imperial City of Hue.
The appearance of the Imperial City was quite dramatic. Again, with the help of Binh's explanation and some reference to Wikipedia, the whole area is protected by the moat. Within the protected area is the Imperial City and within that is the Purple Forbidden City.
But before we could get to the gate, we were distracted by a group of school kids, all obediently hanging onto the shirt of the one in front.
So, back to the main game! The whole precinct was developed in line with Feng Shui, with the main gate being the one we used, but there were three other gates, one on each of the four sides.
It was very warm and humid so concentration lapsed... so Dr Wikipedia might be needed for those interested.
Paul happily posed with a little one, much to the delight of the locals.
No photos were allowed in the formal audience room, so sorry about the quality. They were 'shot from the hip'.
The emperor sat on his throne and dispensed justice.
Tragically, because the city of Hue was in Central Vietnam and near the North/South border, it suffered during the American Invasion (what we refer to as the 'Vietnam War'). Battles during the Tet Offensive saw substantial damage to the Forbidden City in the central part of the compound (in fact, I think the entire Forbidden City was bombed and flattened by the Allies) and many historical antiquities and priceless relics of the Vietnamese culture were destroyed. There is now some concerted effort to rebuild the Forbidden City.
The area is so vast that many golf buggy taxis are deployed around the area. The one below was an interesting variation on the theme.
As we departed the compound, we walked past a park housing captured war relics.
Yet another outstanding lunch! And of course, we had to stay with the beer because the water is risky!
Back on the road for the drive to Danang and Marble Mountain!
The road is dual lane and busy most of the way.
The road markings were considerable and consistent, with ripple strips before each crossing point on the highway.
The tunnel, which we could see approaching below, went for 12 km - so quite an engineering feat.
A stop at one of the retail outlets at Marble Mountain gave Barry an opportunity to get up close and personal with Buddha, but sorry Barry, it won't fit in the luggage.
The caves at Marble Mountain.
Arriving in Hoi An, we went for a quick stroll to get a sense of this lovely city. Markets and traders were everywhere, but the many clothing tailors (it is suggested there are 600) in a small area were cause for interest.
The 'old town' is closed off for cars and scooters for certain times of the day, so the strolling and shopping is very relaxed and pleasant.
Dinner at 'Morning Glory', one of the premier restaurants in Hoi An, and a very pleasant meal.
The streets on the way back to our hotel at about 9.30 at night were very colourful and felt very safe.
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