Vietnam

Huế

We arrived in Hue late afternoon. Knackered from the day on motorbikes we still mustered up some energy to walk along the river banks, exploring the various craft and food stalls. For dinner we went to Dong Ba market for dinner where we had various Hue specialties like Bun Bo Hue or Bánh khoái (shrimp and vegetable rice pancake). We also went into a big supermarket and bought some interesting ice creams, including a cheese flavoured one (wouldn’t recommend 🤣).

Having heard mixed things about Hue as a city we werent sure what to expect, but we enjoyed the evening because everyone was super friendly and it felt like a more authentic experience compared to Hoi An.

For the next day, given our limited time here before our flight to Hanoi, we booked onto a day tour.

In the morning we took a boat trip on the Perfume River to the Thiên Mụ Pagoda (Heavenly Lady) and learnt the difference between temple and pagoda. Former being a place of worship and the latter is more akin to a monastery where monks (or nuns) live.

Next stop was the Imperial City of Hue. The place was heaving with tourists. Mostly “local”. Given the 4 day weekend as part of the celebration for the end of the war and reunification day a lot of Vietnamese people choose to go on holiday within the country.

The look on our tour guides face ,when he spotted the size of queues, was funny and concerning. After a fairly long wait and some difficulties with some QR codes we made it in.

Learnt a lot about the history of the Nguyen dynasty and how most of the complex was destroyed during the war.

Before breaking for lunch we did a quick trip to Dong Ba market, this time visiting it inside checking out the fresh produce. I couldn’t resist a pre meal snack so I had a bag of yoghurt - yum 😋.

After lunch we had a lemongrass foot bath which was nice but odd having it in the middle of a busy restaurant terrace. 🤣

In the afternoon we visited the tombs of emperors Minh Mang, Khai Dinh. They were grand buildings built in different styles.

Before our flight, we nipped out to get some more Bun Bo then got a taxi to the airport.

PS: the show drying hack from the internet worked! We also visited a village where they made incense, Beth had a go.