HUẾ

 24th - 25th Dec 2022

The fortified entrance to the Citadel in Hue

Hue (pronounced Hweh, not Hooway as in the Geordie 'Howay the Lads') was for a time the Imperial Capital of Vietnam. The  Citadel was the extensive walled and moated compound housing the Vietnamese Emperors and Court from 1802 until 1945 when, after the occupying Japanese in WW2 had surrendered and amid much political chaos, the Viet Minh (Communist) Government prevailed. The Emperor, Bao Dai, abdicated and went to live in exile in France. Vietnam, along with the rest of Indo-China (Laos and Cambodia), was a French colony (apart from during the Jap occupation during WW2) from 1887 to 1954. After they (French) left, with their tails between their legs, the country was divided, following a treaty, The Geneva Accords, along the 17ºN latitude into two independent states, North and South Vietnam. The American saga followed.

I took a train from Nha Trang to Hue leaving at 12.18am on the 24th. It was a 13 hour journey and I had only booked a 'soft' seat. These old Viet trains travel at a max speed of 50mph, wobbly, somewhat noisily and almost begrudgingly, with many stops. OK, mistake, I should have booked a sleeper berth. The seats were quite comfortable and I had a row of two to myself. The Vietnamese can curl up and sleep soundly on anything, anywhere (including the cross-bar on a bicycle), but my creaking joints did not allow this. So, combined with a couple of voluble Vietnamese chaps laughing incessantly sitting behind me and unable to stretch out, I didn't get much kip.

After dawn, north beyond Da Nang, we passed high up along some spectacular cliffs overlooking the sea. On the flat ground thereafter were large areas of rice paddies (a bit like photo on left, but bigger) with many locals out working on them at first light. It looked very laborious, boring and hard work. Of course I failed to get any decent photos.

Right: Rather incongruously, there were some very elaborate Buddhist cemeteries located, seemingly at random, amongst these paddies, far away from any villages. My photo does not show some of the more impressively elaborate and vastly expensive  'shrines'. I later got an answer to this.

I have in fact done this rail journey before, from Saigon all the way to Hanoi and onwards, stopping off at Da Nang, Hoi An and Hue en-route, but I think it was before my 'blogging' days and have lost any photos from then. I expect my monitor and research team at  'OMPITA' will advise, as always.

We arrived in Hue at 1.30pm. Interestingly,  my ticket (bought the day before I left) was not inspected at any point from beginning to end. Left: The frontage of Hue station.

I then walked on to a comfortable little hotel/guest house called, quaintly, 'Hue Lovely Homestay' and had a good sleep followed by some eggs and bacon at a local café. It was another, by chance, amazingly good value and delightful place to stay. On the way there I walked past, on the southern main riverside road (Le Loi), a splendid and ostentatious hotel called 'La Residence' which was the former residence of the French Governor of Hue. I stayed there back in 1997, or was it 2011 (my memory is failing me)? I must have been much wealthier in those days!

The next day, it was Christmas Day apparently, I decided to have a wander around the Citadel. As said, I have done this before but have no photo evidence so will bore you with some now.

Right: This is a model of the walled and moated compound. I'm not sure if it is of the original or present day. I suspect a mixture. The problem is that the American forces (supporting the South Vietnamese Army of the Republic of Vietnam, the 'ARVN') bombed and shelled the place (as is their wont) during the Tet offensive by the North Vietnamese Peoples' Army of North Vietnam (PAVN) and their guerrilla fighters, the Viet Cong (VC), in 1968. There was fierce fighting in the Citadel and throughout Hue which started at the end of January 1968 and went on until September that year. Many of the original elaborate Imperial buildings were destroyed, as was much of Hue. So what we have now is a few original buildings, some reconstructed and much empty space.

Left: The last Emperor, Bao Dai (born Nguyen Vinn Thuy in 1913) with his wife, Princess Monique. He died in Paris in 1997 aged 83.

Right: The Emperor's official residence.

Left: Looking back over empty space towards the main entrance which originally was a series of 'halls'. Maybe these fell victim to US bombs.

Right: The original 'Royal Treasury' at the eastern side. It is in a very derelict state.

Left: Inside the large and elaborate Mieu Temple. A 'shoes off' venue where photography is prohibited.

Right: I think this was the Queen's private quarters.

Left: Inside the Royal Theatre. They still put on performances here.

Right: An elaborate archway.

Left: I'm not sure what this is. It had a stone sculpture of a lion or griffin inside. Perhaps it was the Royal Telephone Box.

Right: The 'Kien-Trung' Royal Palace at the far northern end. Presently undergoing restoration and hidden behind screens and scaffolding.

Left: Another Imperial building, I think called the Thai Hoa Hall at the southern end. 

I suppose the whole compound measures about 750m x 700m. 

There were many other buildings of various size and function, but that is enough!

Left: The nine 'dynastic' urns lined up on the forecourt of the temple. Each one represents a dynasty. They are one of the most valuable works of art in Hue, and indeed Vietnam (I read) and have UNESCO world heritage recognition.

Right: This sign was positioned near the entrance. I don't suppose it was there in 1968. A bit late now!

Left: A couple of well dressed locals who were happy to have their photo taken.

Right: A group posing outside the eastern gate. There were four gates, including the main one where you bought entry tickets (and audio guide if you wanted). The other three gates appeared to be open to the outside streets and unmanned. I can't think what there was to stop people coming in through these without paying.

There is a museum outside the compound which displays a few interesting items  taken from the Palace, such as this (left); the Imperial Throne.

Right: A 'palanquin' which, carried by eight bearers, was used to transport the Emperor around the compound. He probably had a gym somewhere to do some exercise.

Left: The Royal Bed ('scratcher'). It looked a bit on the 'firm' side, but as explained earlier the Vietnamese can sleep happily on anything.

Right: A pair of shoes, with wooden soles, as worn by one of the Queens. She must have had very small feet and they looked most uncomfortable.

Left: A ladies' Grand Royal Audience Gown. There were several of these elaborate garments on display.

That will do from the Citadel. 

Wandering around town I passed a clothes shop selling these Father Christmas outfits (right). They do take Christmas quite seriously and like to dress accordingly.

The 500m wide Huong River, more popularly known as the Perfume River, runs through the centre of the city and divides it north/south. The river  flows from an area which grew fragrant flowers and shrubs and the nice smell drifted down with it, hence the 'Perfume' soubriqué. It is crossed by four bridges. The oldest and most famous is the easternmost Truong Tien bridge (left), which carries pedestrians and vehicles. It is lit up with a changing display of coloured lights at night

On my previous visit to Hue I went on a day river cruise which stopped off at several elaborate pagodas and the tombs of deceased Emperors. It was interesting and amusing but I didn't want to do it again. Once you've seem one pagoda and/or tomb you've seen them all (but I've lost the photos of these so was slightly tempted). Right: One of the many variously sized and shaped tourist cruise boats.

Instead of doing more 'touristing' in Hue I decided to go on a visit to the wartime 'Dee Em Zee' (De-Militarised Zone) astride the 17ºN Lat, about 50 miles north of Hue.  The report to follow...eventually.

ON TO NHA TRANG

19th - 23rd Dec 2022

The packed beach at Nha Trang

It was a Futa bus again, a daylight journey this time leaving at 11.00am, in which I travelled from Dalat to Nha Trang. It was another of those bunk-style 'sleeper' buses; I would have much preferred a normal seat.

Right: At least the bus was fairly empty and I had a lower bunk this time (recommended by the lady who sold me the ticket. I must have looked suitably decrepit) right at the back of the bus and the adjacent bunk was vacant on which to put my bags. There were plug in sockets for phones/computers etc. but I couldn't work them out.

The distance to the seaside city of Nha Trang is about 140km to the north-east and the journey was going to take in the region of 3 hours. 

Leaving Dalat I was again impressed by the mile upon mile of plastic covered flower nurseries (left). In some places as far as the eye could see. 

These photos taken from the bus are poor due to a) It was a struggle to look out of the window from the prone position b) as always, when you see something to photo, it has disappeared by the time you get your camera out and focused c) It was a very twisty road.

The road descended in an alarming zig-zag down the mountains hugging the valley walls. The scenery was dramatic with towering cliffs above and descending below. There were some spectacular waterfalls and views a long way down into wide mist covered valleys. There was no way I could manage to photograph all this. Right: This snatched, out of focus view, gives you some idea. The road itself was impressively built...I believe quite recently. Someone told me by the Chinese, but not sure about that, although the Chinese seem to be buying up the world's infrastructure (vis. the railways in Serbia from a previous blog!). 

We stopped somewhere at the bottom of the mountains for a coffee/pee break. Vietnam is a major coffee producer but I still haven't got to enjoy the Vietnamese style of coffee which is served, either hot or iced, in thimble sized cups, and it is very bitter and strong taken 'black'. They often like it very sweet with condensed milk. While here a local (I assumed) generously gave me what he called a 'bamboo rice' to eat; a local delicacy he told me. It was a 12" long tube of bamboo with sticky rice packed inside which you had to squeeze out with a plunger. He was watching me in anticipation of my ecstasy. I politely ate as much as I could....it was not delicious.

We arrived in Dalat at the well out of town bus depot at 2.30pm and, studiously avoiding the persistent and pestilential rip-off taxi drivers, was shown to a 'complimentary' minibus which delivered me, free of charge, to my hotel.

The hotels here deserve a mention. I had booked, on spec, into the Areca hotel. It was at the northern end of the city, which is not the end to be at, as I discovered. However, this hotel which was 20 stories high, was extremely comfortable. It was most definitely of 4* quality, and it cost £15 per night! A bargain! Left: A photo to give you some idea of the room.

Right: It was a vast room with a large flat-screen TV which had English speaking news channels. There were comfortable chairs, a good writing desk with plenty of power points, a top-of-the-range bathroom and this enormous window with a panoramic view over the roof-tops towards the sea. I just hoped I didn't sleepwalk! Plus, breakfast was included.

I'm not sure if it is 'out of season' here, but there seemed surprisingly few tourists around the place. On the two mornings I had breakfast in the very large dining room which served a splendid selection of food, there were only three other guests (and it didn't look to me as if there had been any others in previously). The last time I was here (admittedly 10 years ago) at this time of year the city was thronged with tourists. Someone told me that the Chinese had made up about 60% and Russians 20% of tourists in the past. Well, Messrs Xi and Putin have put an inglorious stop to that malarky!

The city is packed with hotels; indeed they are wall to wall down the seafront including some vast swanky 35 storey jobs. The website I visited to book listed 556 hotels of varying size. And that was only one website of many. I began to think that you could put all the present tourists into one of the 35 storey hotels and they would still have rooms spare.

The beach here runs in a crescent, north to south, for about 4 miles. The main 'touristy' area with the most bars/restaurants is about ⅔ down towards the southern end. As such, after two nights I decided to move to a hotel in this area. Again, there was an infinite choice and I ended up in an equally lavish establishment, the DTX Hotel, for £15 pn. 

The beach was, for the most part, deserted. The sea, which was a cloudy grey/brown colour (sand), produced some big waves. There were only a few intrepid souls swimming, or paddling. This place (left) offering surfboards, and instruction, did not have any customers. There was also a continuous on-shore breeze, quite strong at times.

There were a couple of decent watering-holes which I frequented; The Sailing Club restaurant (poor photo right) and a pleasant open-air beachside bar called Blue Seas. 

The last time I was here, in 2012, I visited an island, Hôn Tré, about a mile off-shore which contained a small version of Disneyworld with 'faux' fairytale castles, casinos, funfairs and stage performances etc. It is called Vinpearland. It was rather fun, relatively cheap and you got over to it by a cable car from south of the southern end of the beach. I decided to pay another visit.

I had seen the cable car pylons in the distance. I walked, and I had well underestimated the distance, for an hour and a half to get to what was the terminus.  Left: The Vinpearland island. When I got there, 'woe upon woe' the pylons were there, but no cables. The terminus no longer existed. It was all gone! (and websites were still advertising it). I subsequently discovered that the cable car has been shut down for over a year "awaiting repair" with no foreseeable reopening. Also, the cost of a 'day trip' over in a boat, including an entry fee to the Vinpearland park, was now approaching $80! I gave up.

Right: Vinpearland at night. The large Ferris wheel, on the left, was illuminated with a changing light sequence. Looking at it by day however, the wheel itself was never revolving. I have a feeling that (lack of tourists?) many of the facilities there were probably closed.

Walking along the beach area one encountered several old ladies carrying, slung over their shoulders, large boards (6ft x 8ft) displaying sunglasses of differing styles. I counted about 80 specs on each board. I never saw them sell one. More in hope than expectation I think.

As with other Vietnamese 'resorts', there are many of these garishly lit 'tri-shaws' parked at street corners. They hassle you, inoffensively I may add, as you walk past, saying "where you going?" etc. I respond politely rather than tell them that 'where I am going is no business of yours!'. Similar to that ubiquitous Vietnamese/Thai salutation "Youwantaxi".

All along the seafront between the beach road and the beach is a grassy area with many exercise contraptions. The locals seem to enjoy using them (right). I joined in with one; the hand-wheel thing. For the life of me I couldn't work out what good it was likely to do me. This chap was obviously very 'health conscious' by wearing a face-mask. A 'TIM'.

Left: Another rather pointless 'exercise' machine. They might just as well go for a good walk. Having said that you don't see any fat Vietnamese. Diet? Exercise? Genetics? They set a good example unlike the many flabby obese monsters that wobble around the streets in UK.

One of the common items on many Vietnamese menus is the 'Phở bò', a beef noodle soup with beansprouts and aromatic green leaves of some sort (or it could be chicken, pork or fish). I think it is delicious and cheap and healthy. I eat it regularly. This menu (right) had no fewer than 4 pages dedicated to different varieties, all costing just over £2. Somewhat of an improvement on the dreaded MacDonalds junk.

In the evenings there was always a 'song and dance' performance at a stage on the beachfront. Some of the acts were very cleverly choreographed and jolly. Left: Another poor photo. I took a video of one act and will try, probably fruitlessly, to download it here later. I don't have much luck with these things.

I spent three full days here and did or saw nothing out of the ordinary, but it was a relaxing time, the weather was warm and I happily idled about in some comfort. For the more adventurous there are many islands off-shore which offer, apparently, great scuba diving in crystal clear water. I'm not into that. It was a pity about Vinpearland!

Right: Another Catholic (I think) church which I passed on my way to the railway station. It was decorated 'Christmassly' and festooned with coloured changing lights at night. They really do take their Christmas decorations seriously.

Next off, by train, to Hue, the old Capital city and home to past Emperors.

ĐÀ LẠT. DAY TOUR PART 2

 17th - 18th Dec 2022

Yo Ho Ho! Merry Christmas?

So on with the tour. After lunch we set off to the north of the city and parked outside a large covered football pitch sized area growing cherry tomatoes and strawberries. This, apparently, was called the Japanese Market. We were handed plastic baskets and encouraged to forage. I got rather carried away and filled my basket up with strawberries. What I hadn't realised beforehand was that our baskets were to be taken and weighed and we had to pay for what we had collected! I had seriously overdone it and it was rather an expensive exercise. We boxed our pickings and I had far more strawberries than I could possibly eat. I later gave them to the nice girl at my hotel reception.

Then on to the Puppy Farm. My only previous experience, some years ago, of puppies in Vietnam, up in the north, was when they were served on a plate with two veg and a spicey sauce. I had no idea of what to expect here! I rather hoped we weren't expected to collect them and have them weighed as per the previous event.

As it happened, this was an experience primarily aimed at the children. They were encouraged to 'pet' them. The 'blurb' stated that these 'puppies' were a variety of different breeds (which they listed). 

I made several observations. Firstly, they were in no way 'puppies'. Secondly, they were certainly a 'variety' of breeds ie. mongrels. Thirdly, there were some very fat and bad-tempered Corgi-type creatures amongst them which I witnessed on one occasion snapping at a frightened child.

Left: This young lady seemed to be getting on OK with an overweight specimen. She was rather attractive, which is more than can be said of the dog.

I don't know how they were kennelled or looked after. There were some spartan looking cages in the background, but at least they appeared well fed. Possibly with cherry tomatoes and strawberries from the Japanese Market nearby?

Right: The next, and final, stop was at a church somewhere in town. I believe this was one of the 'stand-by' venues. It was called 'Domaine de Marie' and Richard explained the history which involved a wealthy French lady, sometime back in the 19th century, sponsoring it to be built. There was more to it, but I didn't take notes!

Left: A well constructed 'nativity' diorama outside.

Right: Inside the church. Much like any other I suppose, and well kept.

Left: Another 'crib' display inside. They are obviously keen on these.

Right: Richard, our charming, and patient, guide.

The next day, after walking to the main bus station to check on further travel timings and short of anything else to do, I decided to walk on up to and take a ride on the cable car, the terminus of which is close by. This travels over some hilly forested countryside to the Truc Lam monastery, a distance of about 2.5 kilometres. The 'cars' each seat 4 people. I shared mine on the way out with an amusing Serbian tourist. I wandered around the monastery (done previously with photos in Jan 2020), had a spot of lunch, and came back...solo in my own 'car' this time. It was very windy. I don't have a great head for heights in these contraptions and with it swinging around in the wind one's imagination begins wonder what might happen if anything snaps! I was concentrating too much on possible landing sites below.

In the 'home' terminus are a variety of restaurants and ranks of these electronic 'massage' chairs (right). Perhaps I should have tried one out, but didn't.

Left: St Nicholas Cathedral in the city centre. Again, all decked out with Christmas tree and Festive decorations. All these buildings were constructed by the French in the colonial days.

Right: In all Vietnamese cities are these ladies, always ladies, often quite elderly, who make a sparse living by clearing rubbish from the streets. They all wear the traditional Vietnamese conical hat (the 'nón lá').They collect 'recyclables' such as cardboard and plastic and manage to make some money from it. I doubt if this will catch on in UK! Our lot would all be on 'welfare'. (maybe they have 2nd more lucrative jobs at night and own  holiday homes in Gstaad, but  somehow I doubt it!).

I think that will do from Dalat. I am next off, by bus again, to the seaside city of Nha Trang...a 3.5 hour journey down the mountains to the north-east.